Do you realise that the world is grappling with mounting environmental crisis, and “waste management” has today become the biggest challenge worldwide? How to address this grave issue, and what should we actually do to reduce this enormous amount of waste generated on a daily basis, are some of the most vital questions in everyone’s mind. Hence, “Zero-landfill Initiatives” have indeed become the need of the hour and gained a great momentum in the recent years. These initiatives should be undertaken not just for the sake of waste management, but they represent a revolutionary change in the thought-processes which finally aim to minimize plastic waste and reduce its devastating environmental impacts, which is one of the greatest hurdles in promoting sustainable practices, leading the way for a cleaner and greener planet!
What do Zero Landfill Initiatives Mean?
The main aim of “zero- landfill initiatives” is to reduce and recycle 100% of the waste away from the landfills so that it can be reused in some form or the other. Therefore, the ultimate objective is to reach a point where no waste is produced by industries or households that result in the formation of landfills or huge dumping of waste on land. Thus, to achieve this “zero landfill status”, exhaustive brainstorming is required as to of how we visualize and manage waste and how should we deal with this enormous amount of wastewater polluting our rivers, lakes and oceans? One of the solutions to deal with this serious situation is using ro water treatment systems to purify water at a large scale and in the most eco-friendly manner.
Why is there an Urgent Need for Zero Landfill Initiatives?
The alarming rise in waste generation and accumulation through age-old waste disposal methods are absolutely unsustainable in the present global scenario. For instance, as per the World Bank, “global waste generation is expected to increase by 70% within 2050, i.e., from 2.01 billion metric tons annually to around 3.4 billion metric tons!” This certainly gives us chills as “Landfills”, once viewed as a solution to waste disposal, are now becoming contributors to a huge environmental pollution! Additionally, the toxins that are released from these huge dumps of waste can even pollute the groundwater (a major source of drinking water) and soil, posing serious health risks to humans as well as plants. Thus, adopting proper water resource management techniques can help us in managing the major freshwater resources on Earth like the rivers, lakes, ponds, etc., and in turn, reduce the enormous amount of waste, polluting our water bodies as well as the land.
In fact, to reduce waste and carbon footprint in the atmosphere, there are many Indian companies, following the principles of sustainable or responsible manufacturing like WAE, an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) that offers complete hygienic and sustainable drinking water solutions and products to its esteemed customers through its totally sustainable or eco-friendly drinking water machines, ROs, water purifiers, STPs, WTPs, etc., strictly adhering to the principles of sustainable or green manufacturing.
What are the Advantages of Zero Landfill Initiatives?
The Zero Landfill Initiatives have several environmental, social and economic benefits. Some of them have been listed below:
- Overall Reduction of Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Reducing, Recycling and Reusing (the 3Rs) waste from landfills scientifically reduces emissions of methane gas which is considered to be a salient contributor to frequent climate changes.
- Conservation of Natural Resources: Recycling and reusing materials reduce the need for extraction of more raw materials, preserving the rich and limited natural resources on Earth like timber, water and other salient minerals. Additionally, adopting several techniques of water conservation also play a key role in this area.
- Energy-efficient Products: Manufacturing sustainable and energy-efficient products from recycled materials typically uses less energy than producing items from new raw materials. For instance, recycling aluminum saves 95% of the energy required to produce new aluminium from ores. Also using energy-efficient commercial water solutions for industries, corporates and busy public places like stations, airports, etc., can be more economical and sustainable!
What are the Major Hurdles and the Path Forward?
Though zero landfill initiatives hold an immense potential, there are many challenges to its widespread adoption. One of the major issues being the expense associated with establishing the necessary infrastructure for practising sustainable methods and implementing the processes of recycling and composting. Also, there has to be a major behavioural change among the consumers to stop using disposable plastic items and switch to sustainable products like reusable glass water bottles and non-corrosive metallic products which can certainly play a vital role in successfully implementing the “zero landfill” plans and programmes.