Dharavi Waste Disposal

Question 1

Describe the waste and stream and disposal in Dharavi

Answer 1

• Waste is generated in increasing amounts (Mumbai alone generates almost 7,025 tons of waste on a daily basis)
• Waste is taken to Landfill sites
• Waste is collected and sorted by ragpickers
• Waste (80%) is recycled for example plastic becomes pellets which become buckets
• Waste (20%) remains unsorted in landfill sites
• Waste is transformed and is useable again

Question 2

Waste Components of Dharavi

Answer 2

• Domestic waste from household activities e.g from cooking, cleaning
• Commercial waste - food waste, plastic, WEEE
• Institutional waste, hospital waste (syringes)
• Street sweeping - paper, plastic, dirt, dust (high class residential areas)

Question 3

What case study is Dharavi Waste Disposal?

Answer 3

Unregulated waste disposal

Question 4

Environmental Consequences of Dharavi Waste Disposal

Answer 4

+ Recycling materials so not all waste is going to Landfill

- 80% of Mumbai’s waste is recycled but landfill is the only option for the rest

Question 5

Economic Consequences of Dharavi Waste Disposal

Answer 5

+ Income for over 300,000 ragpickers
+ India has no formal/organised municipal waste management policy or recycling program - so ragpickers allow India to not spend money on employing people to collect or recycle waste themselves (without ragpickers = no waste collected or recycled, let alone sorted). 70% Waste collected by ragpickers
- The incomes are low, and unreliable
- Children are employed

Question 6

Social Consequences of Dharavi Waste Disposal

Answer 6

+ Standard of living is higher for migrants working as ragpickers than in rural places

• Health and safety issues (The workers break down obsolete computers, with their bare hands, and boil, crush or burn parts to extract valuable materials like nickel, copper, gold or platinum. This process releases toxic chemicals like cadmium, mercury and lead and can cause serious health problems)
• Children are employed