Kathmandu's waste segregation initiatives have faced significant challenges, leading to their failure despite various efforts and policy mandates. The sources highlight several interconnected reasons for this:
- Lack of Consistent Collection of Segregated Waste: A primary reason for the failure was that city workers often mixed segregated waste in the same garbage trucks, even if households had separated it at the source. This inconsistency discouraged public participation, as residents felt their efforts were futile.
- Insufficient Infrastructure for Segregated Waste: There was a lack of proper infrastructure to support the collection, treatment, and disposal of different waste streams once they were segregated. For example, despite a bio-methanization plant set up in Teku to convert organic waste, it failed operationally after initial months due to managerial and operational reasons. The Teku transfer station, though originally designed for segregating and composting organic waste, had its infrastructure unused due to managerial problems.
- Contamination at Transfer Stations: Waste arriving at transfer stations, like Teku, was typically "horribly mixed and contaminated," making the recovery of recyclable items "quite impossible". This further complicated efforts to process segregated waste efficiently.
- Public Perception and Behavior:
- Citizens often viewed solid waste management (SWM) as solely the municipality's responsibility, leading to low community ownership and participation in segregation efforts.
- An ingrained "use-and-throw" culture, driven by factors like cheap plastic products, contributed to increasing waste volumes and mixed disposal habits.
- Many residents considered waste segregation a hassle. Some also burned waste or threw it in rivers, especially in areas with low collection coverage.
- Despite awareness campaigns and notifications from municipalities, people have not consistently segregated their waste at home or source. Some people still mix their waste.
- Past attempts, like imposing fines for non-segregation, were initiated but did not lead to sustained change, partly due to the aforementioned collection issues.
- Limited Municipal Capacity and Resources:
- Municipalities faced technical, financial, and human resource constraints. They struggled to adequately collect, treat, and dispose of waste due to growing urbanization and budgetary limitations.
- There was a shortage of trained personnel and limited technical expertise.
- Lack of proper vehicles and poor maintenance also disincentivized responsible waste disposal.
- Historically, SWM was an overlooked aspect of municipal operations in Nepal.
- Inconsistent Enforcement and Coordination Gaps:
- Despite legal mandates like the Solid Waste Management Act, 2011, which requires segregation at source into at least organic and inorganic waste, enforcement has been inconsistent, with more emphasis on public awareness than punitive measures.
- Weak coordination among local, provincial, and central governments, and between formal and informal waste sectors, created ambiguity and inefficiency. For example, private organizations involved in waste collection often operated without obtaining licenses as provisioned by the SWM Act.
- Landfill Challenges: Landfills, such as Sisdole and Banchare Danda, which receive over 700 metric tons of solid waste daily, were intended for non-recyclable waste (around 30% of total waste) but received mixed waste. This led to environmental issues like leachate runoff and hazardous conditions. Frequent closures of landfill sites due to local protests or poor road conditions also disrupted waste collection and disposal.
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