They say the children are the future. The same can be saidof Dr Gurudas Samant and the inspiration for his book, ‘Turn Waste intoResource’. “I came to Goa for a presentation on how the state could buildtoward a better future, only to find that it was attended by a few NGOs, butnot a single representative of the government. I was feeling a little dejected,when all of a sudden, I saw a little girl in search of a bin, to merely deposita chocolate wrapper. I thought that if this was the hope for the future, thenmaybe it was time to focus on that, and write about how to deal with it,” herecalls.
And the contents of the book are not just speculationeither. After a careful study of the of the average composition of Indianmunicipal solid waste (MSW) and describing different processes with theeconomic and ecological data, Doctor Samant believes, “The average compositionof urban municipal solid waste (MSW) in India is 52 percent biodegradables, 17percent recyclables (paper, plastic, metal, and glass), 31 percent of inertsand 47 percent moisture content.”
The good doctor also goes on to say that based on this aforementioned composition of waste, the solution is fairly straightforward.“Composting is a solution that permits the utilisation of 50 percent of wastewith door to door collection of biodegradables. The remaining fraction ofmunicipal solid waste, which can neither be recycled nor recovered can beutilised in the cement industry or incinerated,” he says.
Doctor Samant has gone on to compile his volume, and true tohis theme, is in the process of printing it on recycled paper. He says, “When Ifirst approached printers locally, they said that it would not be possible toprint on recycled paper. This was unacceptable in my opinion. I said that if itwasn’t possible, I would rather take it back to Germany, and publish there. Buta solution was found at a later point, and the paper I desired was sourced.”
Beyond the ecological aspect also lies the fact that one caneven earn from such ecological conservation. With door to door waste collectionof biodegradables, it can be ensured that compost is not contaminated withheavy metals, and will therefore fetch a decent price from prospective buyers.
