Ceis

NATURE CONSERVATION THROUGH

Ceis Citizens Environment Improvement Society (Regd.) HOUSEHOLD AND SCHOOL WASTE MANAGEMENT
 Contents 1.0 About CEIS
Citizens Environment Improvement Society (CEIS), a non‐profit NGO, has been
active in NOIDA, in the fields of Solid Waste Management, Environment
1.0 About CEIS 1 Education and Training, Cultivation and Beneficial Uses of Herbs, Water
2.0 House and School Waste Managment Education(HSWME) Project 1
3.0 What is Environment 2
Conservation and Rainwater Harvesting, Biodiversity and Resource
3.1 Present status of Environment 2 Conservation and other eco‐friendly activities for the last 14 years. Society is
3.2 Environmental pollution 2 presently operating from its site at Sector 54 green belt in NOIDA where facility
3.3 Why protect the Environment? 3 for vermicomposting of arboreal waste, a herbal garden, water sprinkler system,
4.0 What is Waste 3 waterless toilets and other eco‐friendly activities are being carried out. With
5.0 Some facts about Solid Waste in India 4
grant from Adobe Foundation, IBM and others, the society has executed many
6.0 Solid Waste Legislation in India 4
7.0 Problems associated with the Solid Waste Management 5 projects in and around NOIDA for spreading awareness about importance of
7.1 Water Pollution from Solid Waste 5 protecting the environment. CIES is now taking up a new project ‘Household
7.2 Air Pollution from Solid Waste 5 and school Waste Management Education Sponsored by Adobe foundation. The
7.3 Global Warming 6 presentation of this booklet forms part of the project.
8.0 Health Hazards of Solid Waste 7
8.1 Impacts of Solid Waste on health 8
8.2 Occupational hazards associated with Waste handling 8
9.0 What is the need of an Hour? 9
9.1 We may reduce the quantity of Waste by various means like: 9 2.0 Household and School Waste Management Education (HSWME) Project
10. Waste Segregation 10 The proposed Project aims to train and sensitize 1500 school children in proper
10.1 Why Waste segregation is important 11 management of waste.These children aged 13 ‐18 years, selected for training,
11.0 VERMI-COMPOSTING- A GREEN APPROACHTO RECYCLE 11 will be dubbed as 'Adobe Waste Managers' and provided with badges
11.1 Role of worms in composting 11
11.2 Why to compost with worms? 12
accordingly. The challenge is to make the younger generation in schools aware
11.3 Steps to convert your organic Waste into compost 12 about the problems arising due to solid waste that exists around us and to
11.4 Tips for maintenance 13 educate and train them to manage their waste in a hygienic and scientific
12.0 Do you know? 14 manner. The approach will be to motivate the school children to come up with
12. 1 Paper recycling 15 their own ideas to reduce, reuse, recycle and segregate their waste and
12.2 Aluminum Recycling 15
12.3 Glass Recycling implement their ideas in form of actions. The real challenge is to effectively
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13. 0 What can we do 16
sensitize the younger generation about the hazards and grim consequences of
13.1 Source Segregation 16 unmanaged waste and the benefits of its proper handling and management.
13.2 Reuse and Recycling 16
13.3 Composting 16
13.4 Reduce creating Waste 17
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3.0 What is Environment?
The term environment has been derived from a French
word “Environia” means to surround. It refers to both
abiotic (physical or non‐living) and biotic (living)
environment. The word environment means
surroundings, in which organisms live. Environment and
living organisms are two dynamic and complex
component of nature. Environment regulates the life of the organisms including
human beings. Human beings interact with the environment more vigorously
than other living beings. Ordinarily, environment refers to the materials and
forces that surround the living organism.
3.1 Present status of Environment
The present status of environment can be envisioned and understood from
above image which very clearly explains the transformation from a clean green
earth to an unhealthy earth trapped under the pressures of pollution
3.2 Environmental Pollution
Environmental pollution may be defined as any undesirable change in physical,
chemical and biological characteristics of components of environment i.e. air,
water and soil which can be harmful to both living and non‐living constituents.
Water Pollution Air Pollution Soil Pollution
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3.3 Why protect the Environment?
Because of degradation of environment due to human neglect and activities
injurious to environment:
World is facing environmental disasters like Global Warming and Climate
Change, Ozone layer depletion, Acid rains and deforestation, fresh water
depletion etc.
One billion people in the world have no clean water.
Two billion people do not have adequate sanitation.
One and a half billion people (mostly in large cities of newly industrialized
countries) breathe air that is dangerously unhealthy.
Hundreds of millions of farmers in undeveloped/ developing countries struggle
to make a living on infertile land due to desertification, land degradation and
lack of irrigation.
A large number of countries are facing acute drought.
A large number of poor countries are on the verge of impending famine.
Biodiversity reduction. Many species of plants and animals are endangered
or have become extinct
4.0 What is Waste ?
Any material which is no more needed by the owner, producer or processor and
discarded, is a waste. Waste is also known as rubbish, trash, refuse, garbage,
junk, litter etc. It may be categorised according to its origin (domestic, industrial,
commercial, construction or institutional); according to its contents (organic
material, glass, metal, plastic paper etc); or according to hazard potential (toxic,
non‐toxic, flammable, radioactive, infectious etc.). Waste can be classified into
Landfill Site Waste Dumped along the road
the following categories:
Domestic Waste: Waste being generated at the household, educational
institutes, hotels, restaurants etc. is known as domestic waste.
Commercial Waste: Waste generated from markets, offices, small workshops,
godowns etc.
Industrial Waste: Waste being generated at the manufacturing, processing, and
co‐processing unit is known as industrial waste.
E‐Waste: Waste generated from electrical and electronic equipment or
components is known as e‐waste.
Construction Waste: Waste generated during the construction of any type of
building is known as construction waste.
Agricultural Waste: Waste from the agricultural farm land, park, and garden.
Food processing Waste: Waste of food processing unit like distilleries, sugar mill,
food packaging, cold storage etc. is known as food processing waste
Slaughter House Waste: Waste generated from slaughter houses.
Bio‐medical Waste: Waste being generated at the hospital, nursing home,
medical clinic, which are infectious in nature.
Nuclear Waste: Waste generated at the nuclear power plant and at the nuclear
research institutes, which are radioactive in nature are called nuclear waste.It is
highly hazardous in nature and needs very special and elaborate handling.
Hazardous Waste
Any of the above wastes is hazardous if it exhibits whether alone or when in
contact with other wastes or substances any of the following characteristics:
Corrosivity
 Reactivity
 Ignitability
 Toxicity
 Infectious nature
5.0 Some facts about Solid Waste in India
As per the study of Planning Commission Committee in 2014, India is generating
62 million tons of Solid Waste annually. Out of this 5.6 million tons is plastic
waste, 0.17 million tons is bio‐medical waste, 7.90 million tons is hazardous
waste and 15 lakh tons is e‐waste. A major fraction of urban Solid Waste in India
is Organic Matter (50%), Recyclables are 35% and the rest is inert (15%). The per
capita waste generation in Urban India is 0.45 kg per day.
The amount of solid waste generation is also directly related to the economic
status of families. e.g. higher income group generate more solid waste than
middle and lower income groups.
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The biodegradable waste can be easily converted to compost/ vermicompost
both by centralised large composting facilities or smaller but large number of
decentralized composting facilities.
6.0 Solid Waste Legislation in India
A set of rules entitled Municipal Solid waste (Management and handling) rules
2000 were notified by Govt. of India. These have been recently superseded by
new set rules called Solid Waste Management 2016.The rules primarily provide
guidelines for:
 The scientific management of municipal solid wastes including plastic waste,
e‐waste, Bio‐medical waste, Construction and demolition waste, Hazardous
waste and its transboundary movement.
 Ensuring proper collection, segregation, transportation, processing and
disposal of municipal solid wastes with special stress on segregation at source,
proper disposal of recyclables and composting of biodegradable waste.
Upgrade existing facilities to arrest contamination of soil and ground water.
7.0 Problems associated with the Solid Waste Management
7.1 Water Pollution from Solid Waste
Solid waste lying accumulated in open, release toxic leachates that contaminate
the surrounding soil and groundwater.
Solid wastes carelessly thrown in streets, highways etc.can cause pollution when
they are carried off by rainwater run‐offs or by flood water to the main streams,
as these contaminating residues will reach larger bodies of water.
When solid wastes are dumped in drainage channels and gutters, they block the
flow of the sewerage. This may cause flooding. At the same time, solid wastes
Waste Dumped in Water Body Waste Detected in Birds Body
also affect the aeration and percolation of water into the soil which hinders the
growth of crops.
Most uncontrolled dumps are many years old, having grown over time from
small dumps to large, unmanaged waste sites.
Uncontrolled dumps have significant environmental impacts. As the waste
decomposes, it creates leachate—a mix of toxic and nontoxic liquids and
rainwater—which may get into local water supplies and contaminate the
drinking water.
7.2 Air Pollution from Solid Waste
Burning of waste at landfills due to self‐ignition and firesproduces air toxins.
Typically burning of the solid waste occurs at temperatures (250 ºC to 700 ºC) in
oxygen‐starved conditions. Hydrocarbons, chlorinated materials and pesticide
compounds under these conditions produce a wide range toxic gases harmful to
the environment and public health. These gases contain dioxins / furans, volatile
Air Polluting through landfill Fires Burning of Waste
organic compounds, particulate matter (PM), hydrogen chloride (HCl), carbon
monoxide (CO) and oxides of sulphur and nitrogen and liberate toxic metals
including antimony, arsenic, barium, beryllium, cadmium, chromium, lead,
manganese, mercury, phosphorus and titanium.
Studies have demonstrated that two to forty households burning their trash
daily can produce average dioxin / furan levels equivalent to emissions from a
modern municipal waste combustor equipped with high efficiency flue gas
cleaning technology burning 182,000 kg/day of the same type of waste
Uncontrolled dumps also release gases that are explosive and flammable.
In some instances, waste is burned at these dumps, which poses a direct safety
threat because of the danger of explosion. The air pollution created by burning
harms local communities. Improper waste disposal also produces greenhouse
gases (GHGs), which contribute to climate change. In contrast, properly
designed, constructed, and managed landfills aim to prevent or minimize health
and environmental impacts.
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Since some of the waste materials are water proof, they can be dangerous to the
aeration system of the soil hence hindering agriculture. It also leads to the
reduction of fertile cultivatable land in form of dumping sites.
7.3 Global Warming
The most important atmospheric concern in present scenario is Global
Warming. When unsegregated waste is dumped into open spaces or landfills,
the organic portion in the waste decomposes and releases carbon dioxide and
methane which are potent Greenhouse gases and add to Global Warming
significantly.
Impact of Global Warming
WHAT ARE GREENHOUSE GASES?
Some greenhouse gases—such as water vapor, carbon dioxide,
methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone—occur naturally in the
atmosphere, while others result from human activities. Carbon
dioxide is released to the atmosphere when solid waste, fossil fuels
(oil, natural gas, and coal), and wood and wood products are burned.
Methane is emitted during the production and transport of coal,
natural gas, and oil; the decomposition of organic wastes in municipal
solid waste landfills; and by livestock. Nitrous oxide is emitted during
agricultural and industrial activities, as well as during the combustion
of solid waste and fossil fuels. Each greenhouse gas differs in its ability
to trap heat in the atmosphere. Methane traps over 21 times more
heat than carbon dioxide, and nitrous oxide absorbs 310 times more
than carbon dioxide.The higher the heat trapping potential of the gas,
the greater the impact on climate change. Efforts to decrease
emissions of these gases help reduce climate change impacts.
8.0 Health Hazards of Solid Waste
Waste that is not properly managed, especially excreta and other liquid and solid
waste from households and the community, are a serious health hazard and lead
to the spread of infectious diseases. Unattended waste lying around attracts
flies, rats, and other creatures that in turn spread disease. Normally it is the wet
waste that decomposes and releases a bad odour. This leads to unhygienic
conditions and thereby to a rise in the health problems. The plague outbreak in
Surat is a good example of a city suffering due to the callous attitude of the local
body in maintaining cleanliness in the city.
8.1 Impacts of Solid Waste on health
The group at risk from the unscientific disposal of solid waste include – the
population in areas where there is no proper waste disposal method, especially
the pre‐school children; waste workers; and workers in facilities producing toxic
and infectious material. Other high‐risk group include population living close to
a waste dump and those, whose water supply has become contaminated either
due to waste dumping or leakage from landfill sites. Uncollected solid waste also
increases risk of injury, and infection.
In particular, organic domestic waste poses a serious threat, since these
ferment, creating conditions favourable to the survival and growth of microbial
pathogens. Direct handling of solid waste can result in various types of infectious
and chronic diseases, with the waste workers and the rag pickers being the most
vulnerable.
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Exposure to hazardous waste can affect human health, children being more
vulnerable to these pollutants. In fact, direct exposure can lead to diseases
through chemical exposure as the release of chemical waste into the
environment leads to chemical poisoning. Many studies have been carried out in
various parts of the world to establish a connection between health and
hazardous waste.
8.2 Occupational hazards associated with Waste handling
A. Infections
• Skin and blood infections resulting from direct contact with waste, and from
infected wounds.
• Eye and respiratory infections resulting from exposure to infected dust,
especially during landfill operations.
• Different diseases that results from the bites of vectors breeding on the waste.
B. Respiratory diseases
Incineration operators are at risk of chronic respiratory diseases, including
cancers resulting from exposure to dust and hazardous compounds.
C. Accidents
• Bone and muscle disorders resulting from the handling of heavy containers.
• Infecting wounds resulting from contact with sharp objects.
• Poisoning and chemical burns resulting from contact with small amounts of
hazardous chemical waste mixed with general waste.
• Burns and other injuries resulting from occupational accidents at waste
disposal sites or from methane gas explosion at landfill sites.
9.0 What is the need of the Hour?
To improve the current scenario of waste management in India, we need to
adopt 5R's Mantra, which is Be Responsible to Reduce, Reuse, Repair and
Recycle your waste
 Responsible
Reduce
Reuse Major types of waste generated in household like as: paper,bone,chicken,hair,
Repair dal,rice,metal,nail,plastice,wood,tetra pack,left over food,fruit peel,Egg shell,
Raxine,Tea bag,Rubber,Gatta.
Recycle

9.1 We may reduce the quantity of Waste by various means like:

• Bring reusable bags and containers when shopping, traveling, or packing
lunches or leftovers.
• Buy items made of recycled content, and use and reuse them as much as you LEFT OVER FOOD HAIR MEAT
can. For instance, use both sides of every page of a notebook before moving on
to the next clean notebook. Use Discarded, printed or printer paper for a
scratch pad.
• Donate used books, laptop, computer, clothes to the poor.
• Choose products that are returnable, reusable, or refillable over single‐use
items. VEGETABLES FALLEN LEAVES WOOD
• Avoid individually wrapped items, snack packs, and single‐serve containers. &
FRUITS PEELS
• Buy large containers of items or from bulk bins whenever practical.
• Many types of food scraps, along with leaves and yard trimmings, can be
combined in your backyard compost bin.
• Last but not the least and very important is to segregate your waste at source BATTERY CELL
CLOTH
TETRA PAK
of its generation.
Major types of Waste generated in schools such as: Food Waste, Plastic, Paper,
Floor sweeping, Aluminum foils &others (stationary items, pencil sharpening,
etc.)

RAXINE RUBBER GLASS

PLASTIC THERMOCOL PAPER

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10. Waste Segregation Use “Worms” against Climate Change
Waste segregation means dividing waste into biodegradable (wet) and non
biodegradable (dry) waste into two separate bins.

Our societies are producing millions of tons of kitchen and garden

Vegetable peels,
Fruit peels, Eggs shells, Meat &
Bones, Tea bags, Left over foods,
Flowers, Leaf from garden.
Glass bottle,
PET bottle, Empty
Tetrapak cartons, Aluminium
Foil, Tray cans, Mix paper, News
Paper, Tissue paper, Paper cup
Plastic cut, Rubber.
waste that gets dumped on landfill sites where it produces carbon
dioxide and methane. Especially methane is a very potent greenhouse gas
that takes up to 20 years to reach the upper layers of the earth
atmosphere. This practice of dumping organic matter is not only a waste
of valuable resources but entirely avoidable as well. Earthworms can
thrive on nearly all organic matter and can recycle huge amounts of wet
waste on a continuous basis. Thus humans can use worms as weapons
against fighting the battle against climate change.

11.1 Role of worms in composting

10.1 Why Waste segregation is important

Segregation is important because:

• If we segregate waste, we can protect health of waste handler.
• If we segregate waste, we can recycle maximum components of waste.
• If we segregate waste, we can reduce the quantity of waste that reach landfill.
• If we segregate waste, we can reduce the number of vehicles needed to
transport waste to the landfill.
• If we segregate waste, we can save natural resources.
• If we segregate waste, we can make our city more clean and green.

Recycling: Wealth from waste.

11.0 VERMI‐COMPOSTING‐ A GREEN APPROACH TO RECYCLING GREEN WASTE

Composting by means of worms

Vermicomposting- A method that relies on the
work of small earthworms “specialized” in
decomposing organic matter. It is a
“TEAMWORK” which involves worms and
microorganisms to convert organic waste into
11.2 Why to compost with worms?
• It requires little in terms of equipment
• It can transform kitchen scraps and plant cuttings into rich soil conditioner.
• Can be done indoors in bins too if open space is NOT available

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• Compost will help your garden soil to retain moisture after rain or watering.
• Enhances germination, plant growth and crop yield
• Reduce the use of chemical fertilizers and help in improving the environment.
11.3 Steps to convert your organic Waste into compost
• Selection of site: Preferably under shade, proximity to water
and higher ground.
• Making of “Vermi and Feeder” beds: Two beds required one
for vermi and second for feeder.
• Fill both beds with dry leaves
• Water and turn leaves every day for 15 days
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• Cover both beds with gunny bags/Hessian cloth.
• Spread cooled cow dung (Not manure) on top of vermi bed
and introduce red worms (Eisenia fetida)‐ also called composter
worms.
• Water and turn leaves after 2‐3 days.
After six weeks vermicompost will be ready in vermi bed which can be
harvested.
Vermicomposting Site at Sec‐54,Noida
11.4 Tips for maintenance
A. Temperature & Humidity
Compost worms work best in temperatures ranging from 15°C to 25°C: and
humidity from 45‐60%; outside this range, they will slow down their activities
and their population may decline.
B. Aeration
Since composting process requires a fair amount of oxygen, there must be air
circulation around the vermicomposting.
C. Be Aware of Acidity
Over time, the bedding will become acidic through the composting process,
which could eventually harm the worms. To offset this, it is recommended to
add crushed dry egg shells or dolomitic lime regularly, which will provide
calcium for the worms and help them to create their cocoons.
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D. Carbon:Nitrogen Ratio
During the vermicomposting process, nitrogen may get loss due to leaching,
volatilization and denitrification processes. For maintaining the C:N ratio, pits
need to be covered to reduce leaching process; adding carbon rich food or soil
can be a remedy for volatilization; and proper aeration of the bedding can avoid
the denitrification process.
E. Type of food for worms
Worms are very sensitive species, apart from above mentioned factors one
important factor which affects their life is the type of food provided to worms.
One should always ensure that the kitchen waste preferably fruits, veggies,
coffee grounds, filters, tea bags is added while preparing vermicompost.
However, horticulture waste like dry leaves, grass and garden clippings, rinsed
egg shells can also be added but not frequently. At the end one thing which
should be strictly avoided is dry waste (like plastic, metal cans etc), meat, bones
and dairy products.
12.0 Do you know?
12. 1 Paper recycling
Every ton of paper we recycle saves 17 trees.
One ton of recycled paper saves 7,000 gallons of water, 3 cubic yards of landfill
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space, and enough energy to run one home for five months.
Recycled paper can be made into paper towels, tissue, writing and printing
paper, boxes, construction products, packaging and compost.
12.2 Aluminum Recycling
Recycling one ton aluminium can saves enough energy to power a
computer for 3 hours, and recycling one ton of aluminium saves over 10
years of household energy.
Recycling aluminium cuts steel mill water and air pollution by 70%.
12.3 Glass Recycling
Glass never wears out and can be recycled forever.
A ton of recycled glass saves 603kg of sand, 196kg of soda ash, 196kg of
limestone, and 68kg of feldspar.
13. 0 What can we do
13.1 Source Segregation
We should start segregating the waste in our own house now.
The waste can be categorized as wet and dry waste.
Take two separate bins. One, which will have all the wet waste, and the
other will have all the dry waste. Initially, begin segregation in your kitchen.
Treat all the other waste from the rest of the house as dry waste.
The paper wastes should not be mixed with the other organic
wastes/kitchen wastes since only properly segregated paper can be
recycled.
13.2 Reuse and Recycling
Donate items when possible. If you have old clothing, electronics, or other
items you don't want but are still in decent shape, donate them instead of
throwing them out in the trash.
Old clothes and fabric scraps can be donated to a fabric recycling facility.
Contact a local homeless shelter or donation center to see about donating
furniture, electronics, cars, and any other items you're finished using.
Dispose off trash and hazardous waste properly. There are some household
items that just can't be recycled or reused. These items have to be thrown
out with the trash or disposed off at a hazardous waste facility.
Items like Batteries, Paints, TVs, computers, and other electronics should be
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 RECYCLING OF PET BOTTLE
disposed off safely.

13.3 Composting
Organic wastes like raw vegetable peelings, coffee grounds, tea bags, grass cuttings, food
scraps and yard cuttings from the trash can be composted into rich, nutritious soil that
can be used to nourish your garden.

13.4 Reduce Waste generation RECYCLING OF TETRA PAK CARTONS

Don not waste paper for instance, use both sides of every page of a notebook before
moving on to the next clean notebook. Use discarded, printed on printer paper for a
scratch pad.
Use cloth towels and ceramic plates at home instead of paper towels, disposable spoons
and paper plates..
Get your own shopping bag instead of bringing home plastic bags each time you go
grocery shopping.
Use old post package boxes to send parcels instead of buying new ones.
Only reusable bags and containers should be used when shopping, travelling, or packing RECYCLING OF PAPER WASTE
lunches or leftovers.

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Our Gratitude to MR.Ashish Jain, IPCA, Ajay Garg, IPCA and Radha Goel for their contribution in production
of this booklet.

CITIZENS ENVIRONMENT IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY

(Registered & Not for Profit NGO)

CEIS Welcome those Who are Willing to join us for doing some constructive
Work in the field of environment in order to achieve our goal in more effective
manner.For more information about us, Kindly refer/contact:

Website:WWW.ceis-noida.org
E-mail:ceisnoida@gmail.com

Brig. Amrit Kapur , Vice President(9818340511) Email:greenfood2k@yahoo.com

Ar. S.K. Goel, Secretary General(9810413796) Email:skgoelnoida@yahoo.com

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