-By: Clara Rodrigues …. The Solid Waste Management Cell, formed in the year 2013 to undertake various activities related with solid waste management in Goa, has been continuously striving to keep the state garbage free. The Cell, constituted under the Department of Science & Technology and which operates from the premises of the Goa State Pollution Control Board, has taken up the cudgels to fight the garbage menace.
Earlier, the Council of Ministers in its cabinet meeting designated the Department of Science & Technology as the Nodal Agency for the setting up of solid waste management facilities.
COLLECTION MECHANISM FOR NON-BIODEGRADABLE WASTE ACROSS THE STATE OF GOA
So far, the Cell has tried to establish a collection mechanism for non-biodegradable waste across Goa. The Monitoring-cum-Working Committee signed a Memorandum of Understanding with M/s Vasavadatta Cement, Sedam wherein baled dry waste would be transported to the company for co-processing. The waste generated would then be used as a fuel, along with coal at high temperatures of around 1200 degree centigrade.
So how does the collection mechanism work? The local Panchayats and Municipalities work closely with the cell to undertake the collection of waste within its jurisdiction. The SWM Cell is usually intimated to pick-up the collected waste, which is segregated and deposited at the baling stations.
The cell, operating the collection mechanism for over the past two and a half years, has been playing a crucial role at ensuring that the waste is not dumped or burnt but is rather disposed off in a beneficial manner.
THE “SWACHHTA APP”
The cell has incorporated Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in its waste management module. An example of this would be the work it has done towards launching of the mobile application (the “Swachhta App” which was recently launched on the National level) and which soon be fine-tuned to the Goan milieu, to ensure the active participation of all stake holders in waste management.
MANAGEMENT OF E-WASTE
The SWM Cell is also working at a module for the disposal of E-waste generated in Goa. The cell convened a meeting with manufacturers of electronic & electrical products in this regard. A proposal to launch a pilot project to dispose of e-waste such as tubelights and lamps has been proposed to the Government.
