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By Himanshu jangid • Jan 22, 2025
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Waste management is a term that refers to all of the various actions taken and plans created to manage waste, from composting or recycling existing waste to minimizing the production of waste in the first place. A waste management system is a streamlined process that organizations use to dispose of, reduce, reuse, and prevent waste. It is an approach where companies implement comprehensive strategies to efficiently manage wastes from their origin until their final disposal. You’ll sometimes hear “waste management” used interchangeably with “waste disposal,” but that’s not quite accurate. The latter is actually just one potential component of waste management – and waste management covers the entire lifecycle of waste, from its creation through to its disposal or recovery. The whole purpose of waste management is to reduce the amount of waste that goes into landfill. Instead, rubbish should be seen as a valuable resource.
As long as we are producing waste, it will need to be managed. And we produce a lot of it: over two billion metric tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) are generated globally every year, a figure that’s expected to grow by about 70% by 2050. Put simply, waste management enables us to look after the cleanliness of the world. The way in which waste is managed can have a significant impact on the environment and the entire population’s health, so it’s vital that measures are in place to effectively manage and dispose of these materials. Failure to implement appropriate waste management techniques can lead to environmental concerns and health issues.
It’s clear that waste must be managed. But the way in which we manage the waste matters, too – when it’s managed properly, it can do a lot of great things for the environment. Some of the benefits are:
Reduces plastic pollution By reducing the amount of waste that gets disposed of in landfills or littered in the environment, and instead repurposing or recycling existing materials, we can reduce plastic pollution across the board. This, in turn, would help keep toxins out of soil and groundwater, as well as make the oceans safer for wildlife.
Avoids landfill buildup The less waste we need to dispose of, the less it builds up in landfills – which is extremely important. For eg. the US alone sends nearly 150 million tons of garbage into landfills each year instead of recycling it. And when that reduced amount of waste does need to be managed, we can instead handle it in ways that produce electricity or steam power.
Improves living conditions Proper waste management means less contamination of our air, groundwater, and soil – which means higher quality food products and healthier wildlife. Well-organized, formal waste management also means that the workers handling the waste will have better pay and better protection from hazardous materials.
Encourages a circular economy Because waste management is all about reducing the amount of waste we produce and minimizing the impact of existing waste, it fits neatly into the structure of a circular economy in which products and materials are repurposed at the end of their lifecycle.
Waste can be categorized into various types based on origin, composition, and biodegradability. Below are the main types of waste:
When you think of different types of waste management, the first image you have may be of disposal in a landfill. But there are other, more beneficial ways to handle the problem, including recycling, incineration, waste-to-energy, and anaerobic digestion.
1. Recycling Recycling is a key part of a circular economy because it involves processing materials that would otherwise become waste, and instead turning them into new items. Recycling is far preferable to disposal because it reduces waste while also reducing the amount of energy needed to manufacture products – and yet, only 9% of plastic is recycled worldwide. That said, recycling itself requires energy, so reducing waste and reusing existing items are still preferable options. Recycling is common in wealthier countries, but that’s often because they can send their recyclable waste overseas to be processed. Occasionally, that waste isn’t entirely recyclable, leaving the receiving countries to bear the burden of waste disposal – Malaysia, for example, recently sent back five containers of plastic waste to Spain after it was found to be contaminated. This has to and is rapidly changing and just recently, Thailand placed a ban on plastic waste import.
2. Incineration Waste incineration involves burning hazardous materials at temperatures high enough to destroy contaminants. This method reduces the amount of material that gets dumped in landfills, which has a positive impact. However, incineration releases chemicals and pollutants into the air, which are harmful to both the environment and to humans.
3. Waste-to-energy This process takes non-hazardous waste and combusts it rather than dumping it in a landfill. It’s a good alternative to landfills because the combustion process generates energy. This way, waste can be converted into electricity and/or steam power. In recent years, many EU countries have been using the waste-to-energy method to adhere to ESG requirements, and the future’s looking good for this popular waste management method: in Europe, the waste-to-energy market size was estimated to be $13.88 billion in 2022, and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.4% from 2023 to 2030.
4. Landfill A landfill is a piece of land that’s used as a dumping ground for solid waste. This method often contaminates soil and groundwater. It’s also antithetical to the concept of a circular economy because landfill waste is not repurposed or reintroduced into the lifecycle.
5. Anaerobic digestion One form of waste management that’s especially encouraging is anaerobic digestion. During this process, bacteria break down organic matter (think food waste or animal manure) in the absence of oxygen. The result is biogas which can be used for energy – so this type of waste management is a great example of the circular economy, because the materials are being reintroduced to the lifecycle in a useful way.
Prevent – Top priority is placed on reducing or preventing waste. Can waste be avoided by not using the material in the first place? Reduce – Can less materials be used in the design and manufacturing stage? Reuse – Can materials be reused in other areas of your production process, or by someone else? Recycle – Can the materials be recycled, either in whole or in part to turn the waste into a new product Recover – Where further recycling is not practical or possible, energy or materials could be recovered from waste through processes such as anaerobic digestion or incineration Dispose – When all else fails, materials that cannot be reused, recycled or recovered for energy will be landfilled and incinerated (without energy recovery). This is an unsustainable method of waste management because waste that sits in landfills can continue to have a damaging environmental impact.
Waste management in India falls under the purview of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change(MoEF&CC). In 2016, this ministry released the Solid Wastage Management (SWM) Rules, which were replaced by the Municipal Solid Waste (Management and Handling) Rules. This national policy plays a significant role in the acknowledgment and inclusion of the informal sector (waste pickers) into the waste management process for the first time. These principles require cities and businesses to act responsibly and take care of the environment, fixing any harm they cause. Because of economic growth, the amount of waste has increased, so there are laws to regulate how waste is handled under the Environment Protection Act of 1986.
Waste generation in urban areas of India will be 0.7 kg per person per day in 2025, approximately four to six times higher than in 1999. According to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, India currently generates 62 million tons of waste (both recyclable and non–recyclable) every year, with an average annual growth rate of 4%. Solid waste, plastic waste and E-waste are the principal waste materials.
The generation of municipal solid waste is expected to rise to 165 million tonnes by 2030 due to changing consumption patterns and rapid economic growth.
The generation of municipal solid waste is expected to rise to 165 million tonnes by 2030 due to changing consumption patterns and rapid economic growth.
India faces challenges in managing waste. The informal sector plays a significant role in extracting value from waste, but many challenges remain.
Rapid urbanization: Urban areas with 377 million people generate about 62 million tons of solid waste every year. However, only 43 million tons are collected, and the rest ends up untreated or in landfills.
E-waste is also a growing concern, with projections showing a substantial increase in e-waste generation.
Lack of adequate garbage collection infrastructure, with only 21 million garbage collectors compared to China’s 700 million.
Sorting recyclable materials is also a problem, as only about 30% of waste is properly sorted, leading valuable materials like aluminum and plastics to end up in landfills instead of being recycled.
Scientific studies and planning: It means understanding the type of waste, the costs involved, and the best locations for disposal facilities.
India needs to invest in innovative technologies and develop a better recycling infrastructure.
Improve waste collection: India needs more frequent services, use machines to collect waste, and coordinate the timing of collection with waste generation.
Combining informal and formal waste collection sectors: This will help with segregation and collection. Other ways to improve include decentralized waste management, where local communities take care of waste treatment, and promoting recycling by implementing supportive policies and regulations.
Treating organic waste through composting and bio-methanation can reduce the amount going to landfills.
Converting existing dumps into sanitary landfills: but this requires proper funding and expertise.
Integrating technology like RFID-enabled monitoring and GPS tracking can also help in efficient waste management.
Waste-to-energy methods like bio-methanation can convert organic waste into fuel, which is beneficial.
The concept of common waste treatment facilities is being promoted, involving public-private partnerships. The country needs to ensure proper treatment facilities for biomedical and hazardous waste.
Strictly implementing waste management rules, especially the “Polluter Pays Principle,” is crucial to penalize those who don’t comply.
Public awareness: India needs to educate people through community organizations and self-help groups about separating waste, recycling, and composting to make the process more effective and sustainable.
But there is now growing awareness about waste management in India. There are several startups leading the change in waste management, trying to change people’s mindsets and create sustainable processes around waste management:
Hulladek - They have managed 25,000 metric tonnes of waste across electronics, electricals, plastic and battery since inception
Saahas Zero Waste - 42,122 metric tonnes of waste managed in ten years of operations
Skrap - A startup that provides end-to-end waste management solutions for events and offices
Anthill Creations - They collect and recycle scrap tires to build playgrounds for children and have already built over 10,000 such playgrounds
Let’s Be The Change - An organisation trying to create conceptual change in the people of Bangalore in how they think about and handle waste. They have set forth an ambitious goal to make Bangalore the World’s No 1 city in waste management by 2035. To know more about how they plan to do it click here
India faces significant challenges in the management of waste due to its large population and the huge amount of trash it generates – approximately 1.3 billion tons every year, a third of the global total. India must improve its recycling industry, as only 5% of recycled material is currently reused. Solving these problems is crucial for a sustainable future and environmental protection.
To move forward, we need to plan for long-term management of waste and adapt strategies to changing lifestyles. Household and institutional waste must be separated at the source to make recycling more efficient.
The goal is to minimize landfill use, but this requires active community participation. India must take action to solve these challenges, as it’s not just an Indian problem but a global one that affects everyone.
Related topics
Sustainability
Waste management
waste reduction
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