Solid Waste Management

Waste   Generation

The resident of the city generate solid waste at an estimated of 200 grams per capita per day. Based on Census 2001 population figures of 0.32 million for Kollam city, the total waste generated would be 64.00 MT/day. Table 9-11 indicates the source wise solid waste generation at the corporation level.

Table 9-11 Waste Generation in Kollam (2001)

Street Cleansing

Under the Kerala  Municipalities  Act 1994, road/street sweeping  and drain cleaning  are  obligatory  responsibilities  of the   Municipal  Corporation  area  has been  geographically  divided into 50 wards deploying   Sanitary  Workers  and Drivers under the supervision of a Sanitary  Inspector  .  The sweepers   of the  Kollam  Municipal  Corporation (MC) are provided  with  the tools /Equipment  like  brooms made of coconut  leaves, baskets,  wheelbarrow/push  carts and shovels for the street cleansing operation.  Only the main roads and city centre area are cleaned daily b between 06.30 hours and 12.30 hours; other parts of the city are not.  Street sweepers keep the waste collected in small heaps, which are removed by a handcart collection crew.

Primary Collection and Storage

In  Kollam, a large  section  of  household , shops  and commercial   establishments generally do not  practice waste  segregation  at source.  A  few  households/commercial  establishments  separate  recyclable/reuse waste and  sell   the same  to scrap  dealers.

Currently  residents leave  their  household refuse  at the  nearest open  temporary  storage  point  in the morning from where it is collected  by the Municipal  Corporation (MC) staff  Market  waste is  directly  collected form  large heaps  accumulated in front  of the market; none of the market stalls have individual containers.  At the SNT fish  and  meat market the  common  practice  is to  dump  waste in to  the adjacent  area  long side a canals.  Every day after1800 hours the waste is  openly burnet.  Shops  have no individual  storage bins.

There are 260  waste collection points  located with in the M C area  using a  variety  of   methods for the primary  collection And storage of solid waste comprising : (i) open  storage points;(ii) concrete  cylindrical  bins: (iii) small  steal bins.  All bins are emptied manually.

Secondary  open  collection  point are open places of  waste disposal  conveniently  identified by the conservancy staff  for  waste disposal  from  house  holds, street sweepings  and drain  cleanings. These  are  spread all over  the city  where waste is stored  openly  prior  to being  collected and  transported  for disposal .

Concrete  cylindrical  bins have been  placed in residential  areas  but   are mostly  phased out due to difficulty  in emptying.

Transportation  of wastes

Kollam MC’s Health  Department  has  a  fleet of 26 collection vehicles  of which  four  vehicles (tractor  trailers)  are its own.  The  remaining  22  vehicles are hired Lorries and this number could increase  during  festivals or as per requirements.  All loading and unloading operations are  manually  handled.  At present there are no waste  transfer  points ( temporary dumping yard ) and  waste is  transported directly to the disposal site.  In FY 2003-04 the MC spent Rs320,000 on  hired Lorries.

There is no routine  planning for  the collection and transportation of waste from different parts of the city.  Vehicles collect  waste from open storage areas/dustbins as and when required especially in residential areas. These  sites are often attended to more on the basis  of the complaints received. Most open storage points/dustbins   are not cleared everyday. The garbage is removed from 06.30 hours to 12.30 hours.

Disposal  and Treatment  of  Wastes

Kollam  MC  is operating  a   municipal  waste  composting  plant and disposal  site  (4Ha) at Kureepuzha 6 k m from  the  city  centre, functioning since   2002.  A  total  of 30 to 35 MT  of  unsegregated   waste  is  transported to the site out of which 15 to 20 MT is converted into compost. The rejects of  the  compost plant are  disposed into trenches, which is then  covered with clay.  The compost plant was  constructed at a cost of  Rs. 1.75 crores which has been handed over to PMT Earthmovers for operation.  There are the three Orgavor  machines each   having a  processing  capacity of 15 MT per day.  The Corporation  makes a payment of Rs 281,000 per month to the contractor  for  operating the plant. The  current installed capacity of the plant is 45MT per day.  There is a need for providing a weighbridge and extension of the present shed at the composting plant.  The area required  for sanitary  landfill up to the year 2021 is 3 Ha.

Bio Medical  Waste: There are 20 private  clinics, hospitals  and  nursing  homes within Kollam  Municipal Corporation. The Corporation does not dispose of any  medical  waste.  There is a biomedical treatment plant (BMTP)located  pallakad and a vehicle from BMTP, pallakad normally collects the waste from Kollam.