Integrated Solid Waste Management - Managing waste an environmentally sustainable, economically affordable and socially acceptable manner. Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) management in Indian Cities including collection, transportation, processing and final disposal. It also provides details on designing a collection system, procedure for composting, RDF and Sanitary Landfill.

1. By Ms. Jini Rajendran
World Environment Day 2015 – Seven Billion
Dreams. One Planet. Consume with care.

2. Definition
• Integrated Solid Waste Management (ISWM) is a comprehensive waste
collection, treatment, recovery and disposal method that aims to provide
environmental sustainability, economic affordability and social acceptance
for any specific region.
• Municipal Solid Waste (MSW): As per the Municipal Solid Waste
(Management and Handling) Rules 2013, MSW Includes the commercial and
residential waste generated in a municipal or notified area in either solid and
semi-solid form excluding industrial hazardous waste, e-waste and bio-
medical waste.

3. ISWM - Planning Process
Education
Public
participation
Outreach
Identify Needs
Review Existing System
Review existing regulations
Organize Decision making framework
Establish Objectives
Identify Potential
Components
Compare options
Develop ISWM plan
Implement the plan
Evaluate the Waste Management System

4. Lessons learned
 Top level political commitment as well as interest and
commitment of local authorities is crucial to the success of
project.
 Baseline data is usually not available and requires considerable
time and resource.
 Local project team is very essential for the success of ISWM
project.
 Stakeholders consultation provides vital information and greatly
improve local ownership.
 Benefits of proper waste management should be looked not just
from the environmental perspective but economic and social
benefits should also be factored.

5. Assessment of Current MSW Management Practices
 Assessment of policies, regulations and laws governing MSW and
authority level of the local in the ISWM.
 Assessment of population of the City/Town/Municipality:- Must
Consider the design period (25 – 30 years).
 Identify sources of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) generation:-
Household, commercial, street sweeping and cleaning, hotels,
hospitals, institution, parks and gardens, market temples, cinema and
function halls.
 Estimate quantity of MSW generated
 Characteristics of MSW (Physical and Chemical).
 Assessment of current practices of the municipality.

6. Regulations and Laws Governing MSW
Latest regulation governing MSW in India is Municipal Solid Waste
(Management and Handling) Rules 2013.
 Every Municipal Authority (MA) shall be responsible for the implementation of the
provisions of these rules and for necessary infrastructure development for collection,
storage, segregation, transportation, processing and disposal of MSW directly or by
engaging agencies or groups working in waste management including waste pickers.
 MA or operator of the facility shall obtain EC from SEIAA for setting up MSW P&D facility
including landfill and the site for such facility shall be incorporated in the land-use plan of
the Town Planning Authority and buffer zone shall be specified by SEIAA on a case to case
basis.
 MA or operator of the facility shall obtain authorization, consent to operate and consent to
establish from SPCB for setting up and operating P&D facility including landfill.
 SPCB shall be responsible for monitoring the progress of implementation of action plan and
compliance of standards regarding ground water quality, ambient air, leachate quality,
compost quality including incineration standard.
 MA shall encourage use of MSW by adopting suitable technology which may include
composting, vermi-composting, anaerobic digestion with or without energy recovery, co-
incineration or a combination of such technologies.
 MA or operator who intend to use any new technology shall approach SPCB to get standard
laid down and seek authorization to ensure compliance.

7. Management of MSW shall strictly comply with following regulation:
 Safe collection and segregation of MSW into bio-degradable and non-
biodegradable waste.
 Horticultural, construction and demolition waste and dairy waste shall be collected
and disposed of in accordance of local bye law and not mixed with MSW.
 Storage facility shall have three bin system, green for biodegradable, white for
recyclable and black for others.
 Manual handling of MSW shall be prohibited, except in case of unavoidable
circumstances under proper precaution using adequate PPE measures.
 Landfill shall be permitted for non-usable, non-recyclable, non-biodegradable, non-
reactive inert waste only.
 Bio-medical waste, industrial hazardous waste and e-waste shall not be mixed with
MSW and shall be handled separately as per the separate specific rules for the
purpose.
 Existing dumpsites which are not engineered landfill sites shall be closed and
properly capped.
 Specification for landfill site is provided in Schedule 1 of the MSW Rule.
Regulations and Laws Governing MSW

8. Typical Sources of MSW in Indian Cities
Domestic household
waste, 37.18%
Commercial
Establishment Waste,
6.95%
Hotels and Restaurants,
13.24%
Institutional Waste,
2.48%
Parks and Gardens,
1.38%
Street Sweeping Waste,
6.47%
Waste from Drains,
3.47%
Markets, 9.52%
Temples, 0.70%
Chicken mutton beef,
fish stalls, 3.26%
Cinema Halls, 0.30%
Function Halls, 1.74%
Hospitals, 0.69%
Construction and
Demolition Waste,
12.62%

9. Quantity and Quality of MSW in Indian Cities
 Per capita waste generated in Class 1 Indian cities has increased from 440
gm/capita/day to 500 gm/capita/day in last decade. This is fuelled by
lifestyle changes and purchasing power of urban indians.
 Including construction waste which will be around 600 – 700 TPD, the per
capita waste generated will workout to be around 550 to 600
gm/capita/day.
 The Composition of MSW in Indian cities will be 51 % organic, 17.5 %
recyclables and rest 31% will be inert.
 The average calorific value of MSW will be around 1750 Kcal/Kg and the
average moisture content is 47%.

10. S. No Physical Characteristics Average (%)
1 Organic Waste 48.22
2 Paper and Cardboard 7.26
3 Plastics 8.61
4 Metals 0.52
5 Glass & Ceramics 1.66
6 Rags/Cloth/Cotton 5.7
7 Rubber and Synthetics 1.82
8 Leather 1.29
9 Garden Waste 2.97
10 Stone Debris and boulders 0.8
11 Bio Medical Waste 0.57
12 Sand Silt and Earth 11.62
13 Coconut Shell 0.09
14 Others 8.87
Typical Physical Characteristic of MSW in Indian Cities
Typical Chemical Characteristic of MSW in Indian Cities
S. No Chemical Property Range
1 pH 6.24 – 7.15
2 Moisture Content (%) 31.73 – 59.24
3 Carbon Content (%) 7.6 – 15.6
4 Nitrogen mg/Kg 4,500 – 7,200
5 Zinc, mg/Kg 132 - 272
6 Lead, mg/Kg 10 – 25
7 Nickel, mg/Kg 1 - 6
8 Calorific Value, Kcal/Kg 1,250 – 2,550

11. Importance of MSW Collection and Transportation
 Organic waste bio-degrades quickly and releases pungent odours. Organic
waste attracts flies, rodents and pest.
 Organic waste if not collected efficiently can lead to epidemic diseases such as
cholera and typhoid.
 Air, water and physical environment gets affected due to bad management of
MSW. Leachate from MSW pollutes surface and ground water .
 Improper MSW management affects the aesthetic of the cities/towns.
 Cleaner cities are better able to attract private investment and tourists and thus
create more jobs in the locality.

12. Source Segregation
at Household level
Primary Door to
Door Collection
Secondary
Collection Points
Secondary
Transportation
Transfer Stations
Tertiary
Transportation
Processing and
Disposal Site
Collection and Transportation System
Street sweeping
and drain cleaning
Bulk Waste from
Hotels institutions
and function halls

13.  Source Segregation is significant to improve the waste quality
and subsequent improvement in the waste processing facility.
 Source segregation shall be encouraged at household level to
store dry and wet waste separately.
 Wet waste include food and green waste such as
cooked/uncooked food, vegetables, fruits, meat, bone, fish
waste, leaves and grasses.
 Dry waste include recyclable and non-biodegradable waste
such as paper, plastic, glass, metal, ceramic, rubber, leather,
rags, used cloths, wood, stone, sand, ash, thermocol, straw
and packing material.
 Inert (construction debris) and hazardous (used lead
batteries, infected cotton, medicines, dried paint and dry
shoe polish.) waste also needs to be segregated
 Source segregation shall be achieved with the help of public
awareness campaign programs.
 Source segregation increases the value of MSW and promotes
cost recovery schemes in addition to prolonging the life of the
Landfill.
Source Segregation and its Significance

14. Primary collection and Transport
 Door to door primary collection is achieved with the help
of collection crew using tricycles or auto tippers.
 Auto tipper are advanced system and provides a better
coverage and efficiency. They have provision to store the
waste separately into wet waste and dry waste.
 Urban Local bodies can charge a user fees from the
residence and other generators.
 Total requirement of auto-tippers can be calculated
considering density of MSW as 400 kg/m3 and capacity of
tipper (0.85 m3) and no of trips by each auto-tippers. This
will give the no of house holds covered and the
requirement of auto-tippers.

15. Primary collection and Transport
 Street sweeping shall be conducted by sanitary
workers. Average road length covered will vary from 0.2
– 2.8 km per worker.
 Drain cleaning is also a major activity to be conducted
as part of primary collection. The drains are cleaned for
silt and sand and the dumped on the road sides.
 Refuse swept from the street and drain silt and sand
shall be directly send to secondary transport system.
 ULB may enter into appropriate contractual agreement
with private operators for carrying out such activities.
 Bulk waste from hotels, institutions and commercial
establishments are collected separately tractors or
tippers and are directly transported to the processing
facility.
 For calculating the requirement of bulk waste
transportation vehicles, total quantity of bulk waste
needs to be assessed, the bulk density of waste
considered shall be 500 kg/m3 and distance to be
covered by each vehicle and no of trips shall be
assessed based on traffic study.

16. Secondary Collection and Transport
 MSW collected from primary door to door collection shall
be temporarily stored in secondary collection points prior to
transportation to Transfer Stations.
 Bins are of 3.5 m3 capacity type or 1.1 m3 dumper bins can be
used for secondary collection of MSW. Secondary collection
bins shall have color code, Eg. Green for collection of
organic waste and blue/yellow for collection of inorganic
waste.
 Such bin location shall be strategically located so that the
dumper placer vehicles can easily maneuver and lift these
dumper bins and place it back.
 Dumper placers or vehicle compactors can then transport
the waste to Transfer stations.

17. Transfer Stations
 Waste transfer station facility are designed to received MSW secondary transportation
vehicles, where the waste is compacted and loaded to larger vehicles.
 The primary reason for using a transfer station is to reduce the cost of transporting
waste to disposal facility. It reduces the fuel consumption, vehicle maintenance cost
and produces less traffic, air emission and road wear.
 At some transfer stations workers screen the incoming wastes on conveyor system or
tipping floors or in receiving pits. Screening is done for recyclables or waste
inappropriate for disposal.
 Screening for inappropriate waste is more efficient at transfer stations than in landfill.

18.  Decision to have a transfer station will have to be
studies in detail based on planning, siting,
designing and operating cost against the saving the
transfer station might generate from reduced
hauling cost.
 Although cost effectiveness will vary, transfer
stations generally become economically viable
when the hauling distance to the disposal facility is
greater than 15 – 20 miles.
 One of the main component of the transfer station
is the tipping floor, one approach to estimate the
tipping floor space is to begin with a base area of
4000 sft and add to it 20 sft for each ton of waste
received in a day assuming that waste will be
temporarily piled 6 ft high on the tipping floor.
 Transfer stations shall have the following
components Unloading platforms, lower operation
area, ramp facility, Hopper, weighbridge, office
building, service area, Compound wall, green belt,
landscaping and roof cover.

19. Tertiary Transportation
 Tertiary transportation is conducted with the help of 18 m3 hook loader container
vehicles to transport MSW from Transfer station to Processing and disposal sites.
 The requirement will be calculated based on density of waste (500gm/m3), number
of trips to be performed by each tertiary vehicles. Traffic assessment study is
required to identify the no of trips.

20. Process Flow in Typical ISWM P&D Site
Waste Receiving Platform
(Pre-engineered covered shed and
RCC Platform with drains for
collection of leachate)
Moisture Loss (5%)
Removal of tyre, boulders and
other bulk materials (6%)
Pre-Sorting Plant (100 mm
rotary screen)
(Pre-engineered covered shed and RCC
Platform with drains for collection of
leachate)
Recyclables (5%)
Refuse Derived Fuel (35%)
Composting (Windrow
Composting – 3 mx2mx1.5m
Turning after every week for 3
weeks) (44%)
Sanitary Landfill for disposal of Inert from MSW (5%+14%)
Compost (11.5%)
Rejects
Rejects Rejects
Rejects
Moisture Loss (18.5%)

21. Composting
 The process of degradation of organic mater by microorganism (bacteria,
actinomycetes and fungi) in a controlled condition to a stable substance is called
composting and the stable product is called compost.
 The compost so generated is an organic manure which contain plant nutrients and
improve the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of soil.
 Composting is considered as a sustainable practice. it reduces 50% load of the landfill
since around 50% of the MSW comprise of organic matter. Compost is considered as
a natural solution to increase soil fertility than chemical fertilizers.
 Many organizations and institutions are considering composting of their organic
waste as part of their sustainability practice.

22. Composting
Monsoon Shed (15 days for
stabilization)
(Pre-engineered covered shed and RCC
Platform with drains for collection of
leachate
Primary and Secondary
Screening with 35mm and 16
mm screen. (Pre-engineered covered
shed and RCC Platform with drains for
collection of leachate
Curing (15 days for further
stabilization and moisture
control) (Pre-engineered covered shed
and RCC Platform with drains for
collection of leachate
Fine Screening with 4mm
screen (Pre-engineered covered shed
and RCC Platform with drains for
collection of leachate
Composting (Windrow
Composting – 3 mx2mx1.5m
Turning after every week for 3
weeks) (base – concrete or compacted
clay 50cm thick permeability coefficient less
than 10-7 cm/sec with drains to collect
leachate and surface run-off)
Packing Bagging and Labeling of
Compost

23. Composting
Parameters Concentration not
to exceed (mg/kg
dry basis, except
pH and C/N ratio)
Arsenic 10.00
Cadmium 5.00
Chromium 50.00
Copper 300.00
Lead 100.00
Mercury 0.15
Nickel 50.00
Zinc 1000.0
C/N 20-40
pH 5.5 – 8.5
In order to ensure safe application of
compost, MSW rules 2013 stipulates
the following specification of compost
quality must be met. Compost
exceeding the below mentioned
concentration limit shall not be used
for food crops.
 Micro-organism required for composting are indigenously
present in MSW (bacteria, fungi and actenomycetes).
Inoculum or enzymes may be added to hasten the process but
not necessary in Indian condition.
 The optimum moisture content required for composting will
be 50 – 60%.
 Temperature in the aerobic compost can rise beyond 700 C,
however the activity of cellulose enzymes reduces above 700 C.
A temperature range of 50 – 600 C is optimum for 5 – 7 days.
This will also ensure destruction of pathogen and parasites.
 C/N ratio of 30:1 is most favorable for composting. When C/N
ratio is low carbon sources such as straw, saw-dust, paper are
add and if C/N ration is to high nitrogen sources such as
sewage sludge, slaughter house waste etc. is add.
 During composting the oxygen get depleted and has to be
continuously replenished. This can be achieved by turning
windrows at ever 5- 7 days. (Artificial aeration to the tune of 1-
2 m3/ day/Kg of volatile solids will be required in case of
enclosed composting).
 Composting is normally considered as complete when the C/N
ratio reaches 20, excess carbon tend to utilize nitrogen
decreasing soil nitrogen content and low C/N ratio will not
help to improve soil structure.

24. Refuse Derived Fuel
Secondary
Shredding
Primary shredding
of Combustibles
Screening of
combustibles
Air Density
Separator
Fluff
Combustibles from the
presorting shed (MSW particle
size more than 100 mm size)
Bales
Packing and
dispatch

25. Typical Characteristics - RDF
S. No. Parameters Value
1 Moisture Content % 17.195
2 Ash Content % 16.795
3 Volatile Matter % 66.01
4 Chloride % 0.615
5 Carbon C % 46.7
6 Hydrogen H % 3.5
7 Nitrogen as N % 1.345
8 Sulfur as S % 0.5025
9 Fixed Carbon % 0.725
10 Net Calorific value Cal/g 3244
11 Gross Calorific Value Cal/g 3848.5
 Combustible components of MSW are paper,
cardboard, plastics, textiles, rubber, leather and
wood.
 RDF is mostly used in cement kilns, in cement kilns
combustion takes place under a very high
temperature of about 14500 C and relatively longer
residence time. These conditions are favorable for
burning RDF.
 RDF quality for cement industry are :
 Particle size - < 30 mm
 Sulfur content < 1%
 Chlorine content < 1%
 Moisture Content < 30%
 Hg content < 3 mg/Kg
RDF Components % C % H % O % N % S % Cl % H2O % Ash
Paper 34.4 4.72 32.4 0.16 0.21 0.24 21 4.62
Plastic 56.4 7.79 8.05 0.85 0.29 3 15 8.59
Wood 41.2 5.03 34.5 0.02 0.07 0.09 16 2.82
Textile 37.2 5.02 27.1 3.1 0.28 0.27 25 1.98
Leather, rubber 43.1 5.37 11.6 1.34 1.17 4.97 10 22.5

26. Recyclables – Coconut Shell Shedding and Coir Making

27. Sanitary Landfill
 Sanitary landfills are sites where waste is isolated from the environment until it is safe.
Waste is buried underground or in large piles
 Different types of landfill include Above ground landfill, below ground landfill, slope landfill
and valley landfill. Landfill section will be arrived at keeping in view the topography, depth
of water table and availability of daily cover material.
 The essential components of a landfill are :
 A liner system at the base to prevent migration of leachate or gas to surrounding soil.
 A leachate collection system which collects and extract leachate from within and from
base of the landfill and then treat leachate.
 A gas collection system which collects and extract gas from within the landfill and
then treat it or use for energy recovery.
 A final cover system at the top of the landfill which enhances surface drainage and
prevent infiltrating water and supports surface vegetation.
 A surface water drainage system which collects and removes all surface runoff from
landfill sites.
 Environment monitoring system which periodically collect and analyses air, surface
water, soil and ground water samples around the landfill.
 A closure and post closure plan for long term monitoring and maintenance of the
completed landfill.

28. Sanitary Landfill

29.  Landfill capacity is determined by the volume of waste and volume occupied by
the liner system. For planning purpose the a density of 0.85 kg/m3 is considered
for biodegradable waste and a higher value of 1.1 t/m3 is considered for inert
waste.
 Landfill is operated in a phased manner, so that at a given time a part of the site
may have a final cover, a part being actively filled, a part being prepared to receive
waste and a part undisturbed.
 Each phase is typically designed for a period of 12 months. It must be ensured
that each phase reaches the final cover level at the end of its construction period
and that it is covered before the onset of monsoons.
 The term cell is used to describe the volume of material placed in the landfill
during one operational period, usually one day. A cell includes the solid waste
deposited and the daily covering material usually consisting of 15 – 30 cm of
native soil at the end of each operating period.
 The purpose of daily cover is to control blowing of waste material, to prevent rats,
flies and other disease vectors entering into the landfill and to prevent entry of
water into the landfill.
Sanitary Landfill

30. Sanitary Landfill
Compacted earth
Compacted clay liner
900 mm thick with
permeability 1 x 10-7
cm/sec
1.5 mm thick HDPE
liner
285 gsm geo-textile
300 mm thick drainage
media with 160/200 OD
HDPE pipes
285 gsm geo-textile
Waste dump in thin
layers compacted
Waste dump in
thin layers
compacted
100 mm thick soil
cover
500 mm thick clay
layer
150 mm drainage
media
450 mm soil with
grass beeding
Gas vent to
atmosphere
Bottom Liner
Top Cover

31.  Leachate collection system consist of drainage
layer of permeability of greater than 0.01 cm/sec.
Perforated pipes are laid at a slope of 2%.
 Usually PVC or HDPE pipes are used with
perforation separated at 1200.
 Estimation of pipe diameter and spacing is on the
basis of estimated leachate quantity and maximum
possible head.
 Factors that influence leachate generation are
precipitation, ground water intrusion, moisture
content of the waste, daily cover during filling
period and final cover design.
 Leachate generated is collected at sumps, which
are depression in liner filled with gravel to
accommodate collected leachate.
 Sumps are accessed by side slope raiser pipes that
follow the landfill slope. Leachate is extracted by
pumps that often run intermittently using level
sensing switches.
Sanitary Landfill

32. Sanitary Landfill
 Landfill gas results from the biodegradation of waste. The major
components of landfill gas are methane and carbon dioxide
(typically in the ratio of 3:2).
 There are two type of landfill gas collection system, namely passive
and active collection system.
 Passive system relies on pressure and concentration gradients to
function. This includes a vertical vent and gravel trenches.
 Active system includes a prime mover that creates a vacuum on the
landfill. This includes vertical gas wells and horizontal collectors.
 If the gas quantity is too low for use then it can be flared. A flare
system may also be used to burn off excess gas.
 Wells are typically drilled to 75% of refuse depth or until leachate is
reached. Boreholes are typically 24 to 36 inch in diameter. Casing ill
be of PVC, HDPE or carbon steel. Perforated with slots, holes or
screens. Typically perforated with slots for bottom 1/3 to 2/3 height.
 Gravel pack enhances LFG extraction and reduces screen plugging.