Waste management in Nepal, particularly in Kathmandu, faces significant challenges due to rapid urbanization, increasing waste generation, and limitations in financial resources and infrastructure.
Here's an overview of waste
management practices and challenges in Nepal:
- Waste Generation and Composition:
- The Kathmandu Valley produces approximately 1,200
metric tons of solid waste daily.
- A significant portion, nearly 75% of the total
waste generated in Kathmandu, is organic and thus compostable.
- However, rapid urbanization and changing
consumption habits have led to an increase in plastic waste, fostering a
"use-and-throw" culture.
- Collection and Disposal:
- Over 700 metric tons of solid waste end up at
Banchare Danda landfill site daily, with around 300 garbage trucks
making disposals.
- Although landfills are primarily intended for
non-recyclable waste (around 30% of total waste), they currently receive everything
from degradable to non-degradable waste.
- This leads to environmental issues like
leachate runoff and hazardous conditions at landfill sites such as
Sisdole.
- Historically, waste collection in Kathmandu has
been irregular and often involved communal bins or roadside dumping, with
limited door-to-door services. An estimated 8 tons of waste remain
uncollected daily in Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC).
- Open dumping and burning of uncollected
waste are common practices, leading to clogged drains, water pollution,
and health risks.
- Source Segregation Efforts:
- The Solid Waste Management Act, 2011, mandates
segregation at source into at least organic and inorganic waste.
- KMC has previously tried to implement source
segregation, even imposing a fine of Rs 500.
- Despite these efforts and awareness campaigns, widespread
and consistent source segregation by households has not been effectively
achieved.
- A major issue has been the lack of proper
infrastructure or practices for collecting segregated waste, with
city workers often mixing segregated waste in the same garbage trucks,
discouraging public participation.
- Waste arriving at transfer stations like Teku is
typically horribly mixed and contaminated, making the recovery of
recyclable items "quite impossible".
- Recycling and Treatment:
- Nepal's waste management systems have historically
prioritized collection and disposal over reduction, reuse, or recycling.
- Only about 18.5% of waste in the Kathmandu
Valley is recovered and sent to scrap dealers for recycling.
- There are plans to convert organic waste into
manure and biogas and sell dry waste to recyclers. A
bio-methanization plant in Teku, supported by the European Commission and
the Nepali government, aimed to convert organic waste into biogas but failed
operationally after initial months.
- Initiatives like the HMF River Project, with Doko
Recyclers, aim to prevent plastic waste from entering rivers by boosting
informal waste workers and establishing decentralized hubs for
material recovery.
- The use of "suiro" hooks in Bharatpur
and Hetauda has aided in plastic source segregation for recycling.
- Challenges and Barriers:
- Limited resources: Financial, legal,
technological, and human resource constraints hinder effective municipal
solid waste management (MSWM).
- Lack of Proper Infrastructure: Inadequate
waste collection vehicles, processing facilities, and proper landfill
sites are significant issues.
- Public Perception: Citizens often view SWM
as solely the municipality's responsibility, leading to low community
ownership and participation in segregation efforts.
- Inconsistent Enforcement: Despite legal
provisions for fines, actual imposition is sporadic, with more emphasis
on awareness rather than punitive measures.
- Coordination Gaps: Weak coordination among
local, provincial, and central governments, as well as between formal and
informal waste sectors, creates ambiguity and inefficiency.
- Past Failures: Many previous waste
management projects, even those with donor support, have failed due to
the lack of proper waste segregation at source.
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