Lok Sabha Question No. 6612 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-06
Subject: Landfill Management Policy
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: PRATHAP SIMHA, SHOBHA KARANDLAJE

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 6612

TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.04.2018

## Landfill Management Policy

## 6612.   SHRI PRATHAP SIMHA: KUMARI SHOBHA KARANDLAJE:

Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government is considering a Landfill Management Policy to manage the Landfill Sites in and around the Metro Cities;
- (b) if so, the details thereof, including its salient features;
- (c) whether the present landfill sites are un-engineered, unscientific and therefore catch fire at times and contaminate ground water, besides occupying expensive land in the heart of commercially important locations of the cities;
- (d) if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) whether a landfill site must not exceed 20 meters in height, must not be older than 2225 years and must have a clay-lining at the bottom to save the land and ground water, according to the 2016 Solid Waste Management Rules and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE (DR. MAHESH SHARMA)

(a) and (b) The  Government  has  comprehensively  revised  the  Municipal  Solid  Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000 and has notified Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016,  which  provides  specifications  for  sanitary  landfills  with  criteria  for  site  selection, development of facilities at sanitary landfill site, land filling operations, pollution abatement, water and air quality monitoring, plantation at landfill site, closure and rehabilitation of old dumps etc. The Rules promote disposal of only non-usable, non-recyclable, nonbiodegradable, non-combustible, non-reactive inert waste, pre-processing rejects and residues from waste processing facilities at sanitary landfill sites, to minimize quantity of waste to be sent to the landfill sites. The waste for land filling is required to be compacted in thin layers using  heavy  compactors  besides  covering  of  landfill  cell  at  the  end  of  each  working  day. Besides, it stipulates proper drainage and proper closure.

(c) and (d) The Rules prescribe that the sanitary landfill sites has to be set up as per the guidelines  of  the  Ministry  of  Housing  and  Urban  Affairs  and  Central  Pollution  Control Board. The fire hazards and water pollution are more prevalent in case of open dumping.  The

Rules  further  prescribe  to  investigate  and  analyse  all  old  open  dumpsites  and  existing operational dumpsites for their potential of bio-mining and bio-remediation. In absence of the potential of bio-mining and bio-remediation of dumpsite, these can be scientifically capped as per landfill capping norms to prevent further damage to the environment.

(e) As per the provision of the Rules, the landfill site shall be large enough to last for at least 20-25 years and develop 'landfill cells' in a phased manner to avoid water logging and misuse. For prevention of pollution, non-permeable lining system can be provided at the base and  the  walls  of  waste  disposal  area.  For  landfill  receiving  residues  of  waste  processing facilities or mixed waste or waste having contamination of hazardous materials, the liner of composite barrier of 1.5 mm thick high density polyethylene (HDPE) geo-membrane or geosynthetic  liners,  overlying  90  cm  of  soil  (clay  or  amended  soil)  having  permeability coefficient not greater than 1 x 10-7 cm/sec has to be provided.

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