See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/328118104

Plastic Solid Waste Management in Pakistan - PAKPLAS Magazine-2018

Article · April 2018

CITATIONS READS
0 5,482

1 author:

Yasir Qayyum Gill

University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore
33 PUBLICATIONS   177 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

Green Plastic Products View project

Recycled Polymer Modified Bitumen for Road Construction View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Yasir Qayyum Gill on 06 October 2018.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

Plastic Solid
Waste Management
Pakistan
in

W
ith the advent of 21st cen- to plastic waste.
tury a global increase in Plastic waste makes up 10% of the total global
population, strengthen- municipal solid waste and this percentage is expected
ing of economy, techni- to increase with the passage of time [3].
cal prosperity and rapid
industrialization were
observed that lead to an
increase in urbanization
and overall improvement in the standard of living [1]. But
on the other hand they also exposed the consequences
of increased generation of municipal solid waste (MSW).
On a global scale over 1.3 billion tonnes (1.2kg per
person per day) of MSW is generated annually. With the
increase in rate of waste generation, the development
Dr. Yasir Qayyum Gill, of an effective and efficient system for solid waste
Assistant Professor,
management has emerged as a challenging issue for
Semester Coordinator
Deptt of Polymer and Process
all municipalities around the world [2]. An important
Engineering, aspect of MSWM that needs to be urgently addressed Figure 1: Waste Management Hierarchy
University of Engineering and is that of plastic waste management (PWM). Due to
release of toxic gases upon incineration, life expectancy In the light of current waste generation, trends and fu-
Technology,
of plastics that range from hundreds to thousands of ture estimates, most of the countries have come up with the
Lahore
Email: yqgill@uet.edu.pk years, traditional practices of MSWM such as landfill, concept of Integrated Solid Waste Management (ISWM) for
incineration or composting cannot be directly applied the proper handling of MSW. The ISWM is based upon the

110

Figure 2: Flow of Waste in Lahore
Waste Management Hierarchy and it comprises of two
parts: Waste Diversion and Waste Disposal [3]. The stages
of ISWM as proposed by the waste management hierar-
chy include separation of waste from source, collection
and transportation of waste, transfer stations, recovery
of salvageable material, waste treatment leading to re-
source recovery and finally ending at the disposal [4].
Another approach of the ISWM followed globally is
the 3R i.e. reduce, reuse and recycle. The 3R approach
(sometimes the 4R, fourth being ‘recovery’) acts as waste
diversion and reduces the amount of waste entering
the waste stream requiring disposal and maximizes the
material and energy recovery from waste. By following
the 3R approach countries have reduced their waste by
reducing, reusing and recycling it [4]. For PWM the same
ISWM and 3R approaches can be applied effectively for
the reduction of plastic waste entering the waste stream.
The total global municipal solid waste contains 10%
plastic waste out of which only 14% is recycled while
40% ends up in landfill, 32% goes to oceans or land and
14% is burnt or incinerated [5].
Less developing countries including India, Sri-Lanka,
Bangladesh and Iran [3] have the highest plastic waste
composition of 12% in their MSW streams which will
become 13% if projected to 2025. Bangladesh has 7%
plastic waste in its MSW [3], while India, Iran, Sri Lanka,
Pakistan have 2%, 11%, 6% and 18% respectively.
Sweden and Denmark who have relatively well estab-
lished and effective MSWM practices have 2% and 1%
plastic respectively in their waste streams [3].
In Pakistan, Municipal Solid Waste Management and
Plastic Waste management are relatively unknown con-
cepts. The municipalities do not have a proper system for
the management of solid waste generated. There is lack
of long term planning resulting in counter-productive
plans and policies [6]. Although, the municipalities are
responsible for collection, transportation and disposal of
all kinds of waste, MSWM is still defunct in Pakistan [7].
Based on current data, Pakistan produces 50,438
tonnes/day of MSW, i.e. 0.84 kg/capita/day. This could
rise to 1.05 kg/capita/day till 2025. Of the total MSW
produced, 67% is organic, 5% paper, and about 18% is
Plastic. This is a considerably high percentage of plastic
waste when compared p to other countries of comparable
p
population and income level [3]. This staggering per-
centage of plastic waste in MSW of Pakistan presents
an impending problem to the country. Inadequate and
inefficient plastic waste management policies can result
in serious consequences for Pakistan in future.
The three metropolitan cities of Pakistan, Lahore,
Karachi, and Islamabad are the only municipalities with
a working model for the management of municipal
solid waste. In Karachi, the responsible organization
is Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC). In Lahore,
Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC) is respon-
sible for waste collection while in Islamabad, Capital
Development Authority (CDA) deals with MSWM.
111
 Figure 3: Collection Bins in Lahore Although, KMC is responsible for waste collection and
disposal in Karachi, yet the city suffers from a waste epi-
demic. The city spends about in excess of a billion rupees
annually in solid waste management but still it is ineffective
[8]. The city is littered with solid waste and both the public
and private sector are unable to cope up with the problem.
In Islamabad, CDA is responsible for municipal duties [9].
CDA has effectively countered the solid waste and plastic
waste problem in the city. Recycling is practiced efficiently
throughout the city and private sector also is employed in
this regard, mainly the independent waste pickers [10].
Lahore is the only city in Pakistan which has modeled
its MSWM system according to the modern needs. Its waste
management system is effective in collecting and dispos-
ing off the waste generated within the city. The system ef-
fectively deals with both the organic and inorganic waste
especially plastics [1].
The common practices in Pakistan to deal with plastic
waste are landfills, compositing, incineration and recycling.
Each has its own pros and cons but some of these have
more disadvantages than benefits. Landfill sites are unavail-
able in most of the cities of Pakistan. Even mega cities like
Lahore and Karachi have just a single landfill site each for
Regarding Pakistan’s their needs [1]. In Pakistan, open dumping is more practiced
than proper engineering and sanitized landfill sites. These
perspective about
landfill sites lead to even more pollution by releasing toxic
plastic waste gases, thus contaminating the underground water supply.

wise infeasible. Biodegradation can be done by using bio-
degradable resins but it is economically infeasible too due to
their highly expensive formation. Besides, various toxic gases
are emitted during biodegradation causing environmental
issues like global warming. Hence, recycling and reusing
of waste qualifies as the most feasible choice according to
conditions of Pakistan.
One needs to understand the slight difference between
recycling and re-use. In re-use the end use application of
the product remains same while in the case of recycling
although the material remains same but its end use applica-
tion is changed due to its modification by various processes.
Recycling technique is beneficial because it can reduce the
waste production efficiently. Recycling also has the potential
to check over consumption of natural resources due to less
consumption of energy as compared to production from
virgin materials. If everyone starts recycling at individual
level it will not only reduce the total waste volume but will
cut unnecessary repeat purchases as well.
References
1. Masood, M., Barlow, C. Y., & Wilson, D. C. (2014). An as-
sessment of the current municipal solid waste manage-
ment system in Lahore, Pakistan. Waste Management &
Research, 834.
2. Sujauddin, M., Huda, S., & Hoque, A. R. (2008).
Household solid waste characteristics and manage-

Furthermore, the cost of transporting the waste to these
is not a feasible choice
due to less availability
of land in urban areas
whereas moving it
to the surroundings
is economically
infeasible for higher
transportation cost.
Biodegradation is
economically infeasible
while incineration is
infeasible too since it
turns the waste moist
enough to require
pretreatment which
renders this technique
very expensive. Hence,
recycling and reusing
  
mentin Chittagong, Bangladesh. Waste Management,
landfill sites is immense and cannot be afforded by the mu-
nicipalities which are on a tight budget.
Composting of plastic waste is almost non-existent
in Pakistan. A sole compositing plant is being operated in
Lahore under LWMC which composts about 8% of the total
organic compost produced by the city. Incineration is an
organic waste treatment technique by the means of the
combustion process. Incineration is referred as a thermal
treatment process. It converts the waste into thermal en-
ergy which is then converted to electrical energy. China has
incinerated its 29.84% of total solid waste in 2016 to meet
its energy demands. The basic drawbacks of this technique
include production of ash and flue gases during waste com-
bustion that possess serious environmental concerns. Also,
it requires the waste in dry form wherefore wet waste turns
costly as it requires pre-treatment.
Regarding Pakistan’s perspective about plastic waste
management we infer that due to less availability of land
in urban areas, landfill is not a feasible choice for managing
plastic waste. Moreover, if we want to move the urban waste
to the surroundings (buffer zone) it will not be economically
1688-1695.
3. Hoornweg, D., & Bhada-Tata, P. (2012). What a Waste:
A Global Review of Solid Waste Management. Urban
Development Series Knowledge Papers. Washington
DC: World Bank
4. Memon, M. A. (2010). Integrated solid waste manage-
ment based on the 3R approach. J Mater Cycles Waste
Manag, 30-40.
5. Macarther, E. (2012). The New Plastics Economy. Ellen
Macarther Foundation.
6. Anwar, F. (2000). Institutional Assessment and Evaluation
of Public Facilities Management Practices in Local
Government Solid Waste Management Sector of Karachi.
Karachi: Shehri-CBE.
7. Noman Ahmed, C. Z. (2002). URBAN ORGANIC WASTE
MANAGEMENT IN KARACHI, PAKISTAN. 28th WEDC
Conference . Kolkata
8. Hasan, D. M. (2001). INTEGRATING RECYCLING AND
DISPOSAL SYSTEM FOR SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT
IN KARACHI. Karachi: Urban Resource Centre.
9. http://www.cda.gov.pk/documents/docs/sop-sanitation.
 feasible because of higher transportation cost. Incineration, pdf
as the most feasible on the other hand, is also not suitable choice due to mois- 10. Muhammad Qasim, N. A. (n.d.). CHARACTERIZATION OF
choice according to ture content in Pakistan. It turns the waste moist enough HOUSEHOLD WASTE IN ISLAMABAD AND EXPLORING
conditions of Pakistan. to require pretreatment which renders this technique cost POSSIBLE REUSE AND RECYCLING OPTIONS.

113
View publication stats