State Level Monitoring Committee (SLMC) on solid waste management formed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) stated that the waste management system in Kerala including Kochi city needs a radical change.
A holistic approach and an integrated and coordinated effort are required to implement provisions of environmental laws from the grassroots level. The stakeholder must focus on reduction primarily for better waste management, the report added.
One of the positive changes is the ban on the use of single-use plastic implemented by the state. But, it brings the responsibility on the shoulders of the civic bodies for implementing the ban successfully.
As per the Committee, bodies like District Legal Service Authority, Suchitwa Mission and also, Haritha Kerala Mission can help the cause by organising awareness programmes about waste management.
Also, the civic bodies can promote the treatment of biodegradable waste at the source with the assistance of such bodies. A proper record can be kept regarding the quantity of waste treated at the source and its final disposal.
Methods not permitted for the disposal of wastes must be prohibited, said the Committee. To avoid such unacceptable practices, door-to-door collection of waste which cannot be treated at the source has to be improved and waste segregation at the source must be done and promoted among the citizens to ensure that the waste reaching the treatment plants should be segregated.
