Home Composting

Vishnu Bala B
Environmental Engineering.
In a Broad way,

We might have some questions in head…

Do you have these questions in head?

 How solid waste is generated?

 What are all named as Municipal solid wastes?
 Where it is going?
 How it will look like?
 Is there any problem arise with the papers, plastics, packages I thrown in
streets?
 How easy the disposal of those Solid wastes ?
 What is my role in Solid Waste management?
 What is composting?
 Will, a home Composting Saves an Environment?

Yes, you are at the right place to get your answers..

Lets see, What is MSW?

Municipal solid waste (MSW), commonly known as trash or garbage in

the United States
&
as refuse or rubbish in Britain, is a waste type consisting of everyday
items that are discarded by the public.
Whatever we use, will get discard after its
purpose got over ..

 Vegetables
 Newspapers
 Food packages
 Plastic bags
 waste tires
 scrap metal
 furniture and toys
 garbage
 construction and demolition debris, asbestos , etc
As a result, generation of solid waste at
home or any public place will be like this..
Solid Wastes then will reach this
container in your street..
By using garbage trucks, those
solid wastes are transferred
into disposal site in towns
and small cities, but in cities it
moves to Transfer Stations…
  A transfer station is a building or
processing site for the temporary
deposition of waste.

 Transfer stations are often used as places

where local waste collection vehicles will
deposit their waste cargo prior to loading
into larger vehicles.
So what is
These larger vehicles will transport the
transfer stations?

waste to the end point of disposal in
an incinerator, landfill, or hazardous
waste facility, or for recycling

 Transfer stations are sometimes co-located

with material recovery facilities and with
localized mechanical biological treatment
systems to remove recyclable items from
the waste stream.
So after Transfer station, you are right.
obviously, its disposal site..
Lets recall what we
have seen..
In this way solid
wastes are Are you curious ?

transferred.. how Indian cities mostly approach

these Solid wastes?

But what about  Before that lets analyse the Solid

Solid waste waste yard..
management?
 Can’t figure out
anything right.

Lets zoom it
further..
 Lets
zoom
even more..
 Plastic Bag fruit
waste waste
package
waste
Paper
waste

wooden
waste

Coconut
shell
Could you identify the problem ?

 Yes, Mixture of wastes ( bio- degradable and non-

biodegradable) in our Dumbing yard..

what’s wrong in having the mixture of both wet and

dry wastes in disposal yard..

For that, we should have better understanding about dry and

wet solid wastes..
What is Dry Waste?

 anything that can be kept for an extended period

without decomposing.

Paper, plastics, metal, glass, rubber, thermocol,

Styrofoam, fabric, leather, rexine, wood…
What is wet waste?
 Wet waste consists of kitchen waste – including
vegetable and fruit peels and pieces, tea leaves,
eggshells, bones and entrails, físh scales, as well as
cooked food.

 Note:In addition to that hazardous wastes like Paint

box, razor, Batteries may develop which should be
disposed separately by Municipality/corporation.
Drawbacks of waste Mixture in Dumbing Yard
 Difficult to separate and recover the waste.
 Additional manpower and expense need for recovery process.
 Bad odour , leachate, and harmful gases form when organic wastes mixed with
dry waste.
 Mosquito will be formed.
 Can have the high chance of Fire due to the methane gas formation in dumbing
yard.
 High discomfort to the nearby 10sqkm Area people.
 More Landfill area need to dispose the waste.
 Indirectly health issues may arise in around the dumbing yard site.
Can we convert all those disadvantages
into Advantages ?

Yes, we can
The only possible way is Source
Segregation..

Rather using

Single waste bin at home for

Solid waste generated,

Use separate bins..

Green Bin for Wet Waste

Blue Bin for Dry Waste

Result
 DRY WASTE is allowed for Segregation process and can be easily separated
and could easily recover materials from waste.
 The residual dry waste can be converted into Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) which
can be used as fuel in powerplants and cement industries.

 WET WASTE may be send as food for pig farming, cattle farming or some
other animal farming , else can be send to biogas plant for the extraction of
Methane.
 Also organic fraction from wet waste can be composted on site and get the
fertilizer as by product.
 So, Landfill area can be reduced, could reduce the bad odour, methane
formation and biggest of all we could produce energy and Fertilizer too.
Composting - Windrow Composting

 Compost is organic matter that has been decomposed and recycled as a

fertilizer and soil amendment.
 Compost is a key ingredient in organic farming.
 Windrow Composting is the production of compost by piling organic matter or
biodegradable waste, such as animal manure and crop residues, in long rows.
 Windrow composting is preferred method in India for the large volume of
composting and is cost effective.
Home Composting

When Compost is done at home to enhance

Soil Nutrient Level, then it is called as Home
Composting.

It can be done generally by two easy methods.

Two Methods of Home Composting
Containers isn’t a criteria but the
Condition is..
Cross Sectional View


Conclusion
 Creating Awareness among people and to our self only can make better
environment which we can present to our future generations.
 Remember Separate Solid waste generated at source (at home) as wet and
dry waste and also re use the materials as much as possible.
 Home Composting indirectly a huge phenomenon which triggers Country’s
welfare and soil Wealth.
 If Doctors are save us from disease, we even Save doctors by building the
better pollution less Environment. all we need is to

Go Green