Waste Management System in Dhaka City

Introduction: Waste management refers to the streamlined processes used to safely manage
and dispose of them, which include recycling, reusing, composting, and incinerating.
Increasingly, waste management practices are focused on driving sustainability, and the
decisions of government bodies and waste disposal organizations are being guided by the
waste hierarchy. The waste hierarchy is a tool that evaluates and ranks waste management
methods according to what is most environmentally friendly. The pyramid framework ranks
“prevention” as the most favorable option, followed by reuse, recycle, recovery, and disposal
(Ross, 2023). Waste is generated at every stage of the supply chain, from the point when raw
materials are extracted to when the end customer receives a finished product.

Waste is produced by different human activities, like industrialization, urbanization,

improving living standards etc. Urban population and industrialization have been increasing
rapidly and these are creating a serious hassle on our natural resources, which is a big
challenge for sustainable development. Disorganized management and dumping of waste is a
noticeable cause of ruin of the environment in most cities (Rahman, 2019). Each day Dhaka
produces 3000 tons of household waste (Ahmed and Rownok, 2006).

Overview of Current Waste Management System: Bangladesh has undergone reforms in

solid waste management since 1983 with the adoption of the Dhaka City Corporation
Ordinance and the enactment of the National 3R Strategy in 2010. With few exceptions, the
overall waste management system cannot be defined as an effective comprehensive waste
reduction, recycling and disposal mechanism based on global standards. Study found that
several action plans have been introduced yet not all of those have proper implementation
like adhering the waste segregation and recycling practices from households to landfill level.
Lack of monitoring and coordination among the existing policy implementing agencies have
emerged as significant concerns in Bangladesh. (Jerin et al., 2022)
A healthy life, cleaner city and better environment are the logical demands for the city
dwellers as the municipality is traditionally funded for solid waste services from the
municipal tax system for waste collection and disposal. Due to limited finances and
organizational capacity, it has been really difficult for the municipality to ensure efficient and
appropriate delivery of solid waste collection and disposal services to the entire population.
There is an increasing rate of waste generation in Bangladesh and it is projected to reach 47,
064 tons per day by 2025. The Waste Generation Rate (kg/cap/day) is expected to increase to
0.6 in 2025. A significant percentage of the population has zero access to proper waste
disposal services, which will in effect lead to the problem of waste mismanagement. The total
waste collection rate in major cities of Bangladesh such as Dhaka is only 37%. Although
municipal authorities acknowledge the Importance of adequate solid waste collection and
disposal as well as resource recovery and recycling, it is mostly beyond their resource to deal
effectively with the growing amount of solid waste generated by the expanding cities
(Rahman, 2019).

Strategies for Waste Reduction: “National 3R Strategy, 2010” and “Dhaka Structure Plan,
2016” have specifically targeted this issue and formulated action plans accordingly. The 3R
strategy encourages reduced use of emission-based technology and private sector investment
to promote the “polluters pay” principle. The city corporations and municipalities have taken
initiatives for waste reduction through composting based on the 2010 3R strategy action
plans. Moreover, the strategy assigns relevant government agencies responsibility to spread
public awareness through mass media campaigns and encourage people to reduce waste
generation levels starting from the household. On the other hand, “Dhaka Structure Plan
2016” sets the goal of “Creation of Clean and Pleasant Living Environment” with the
objective to ensure the minimization of waste generation in Dhaka city. The strategic plan
declares “reduce, reuse and recover” as one of the cornerstones of developing a sustainable
MSW management practice in Bangladesh. It emphasizes the reduction of excessive usage of
plastic bags in the retail stores by introducing feasible plastic bag reusing practice in the
country. The “Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) 2005” also marginally mentioned
probable actions such as promoting and increasing the usage of jute products to reduce the
alarming rate of plastic waste generation. (Jerin et al., 2022)

Recycling Initiatives in Dhaka: Waste collection and transportation from the household
level to STSs and apparently to the landfills is one of the significant and important parts of
MSW management. There are several ordinances, policies and action plans promulgated as
part of the sustainable waste collection. In the “Dhaka City Corporation Ordinance of 1983”,
it is clearly mentioned that the City corporation is responsible for the removal of waste from
all public streets, public latrines, urinals, drains, and all buildings and land under their
jurisdiction. It also mentioned that the city corporation is responsible for the supervision of
regular waste collection and disposal processes. (Jerin et al., 2022)

Challenges in Waste Management: Dhaka city is already facing several challenges due to
sky-scraping waste volumes and it is predicted that the total urban population will reach
78.44 million by 2025 and the rate of waste generation is projected to increase to 220 kg per
capita per year in 2025. In the case of waste disposal in landfill, the amount of land area is
also scarce compared to waste generation. These extenuating factors, such as scarcity of land
and a lack of technical skills to deal with massive volumes of waste, as well as a lack of
definitive legislative policies, exacerbate the situation. This poor municipal solid waste
management system becomes a challenge for the city and it is also a crucial concern for the
protection of public health, safety, and the environment while also impacting the economic
development and quality of life (Rahman, 2019).

Future Plans and Strategies:

The city corporations have started to organize their own waste collection services for keeping
their localities clean. The city corporation starts their work on the basis of their community
arranged system. Wastages are being collected from households and carried to the ear by
municipal roadside containers. The community-managed house-to-house waste collection
service is gaining momentum in Capital Dhaka City and gradually expanding into a major
environmental movement (Rahman, 2019).
The past couple of decades have given rise to numerous technologies capable of transforming
the waste management industry. A smart waste management plan is one that leverages
technology — often powered by the Internet of Things (IoT) or artificial intelligence (AI)-to
make waste collection and waste disposal more efficient and cost-effective. Smart bins, for
example, leverage IoT sensors to monitor when a unit is full and AI to sort recyclables from
non-recyclables. Technologies like these drive major efficiencies throughout the waste
management lifecycle since waste disposal companies can schedule their collection services
based on when a bin needs to be emptied. There are also solar-powered trash compactors that
compress trash to increase bin capacity, countless recycling apps that educate the public
about waste management, AI-powered recycling robots, machines designed for segregating
waste, and e-waste kiosks that properly dispose of electronic devices. Some cities are
installing pneumatic waste disposal bins, which are connected to underground pipes. Solid
wastes travel directly from the bins to a waste disposal unit, negating the need for collection
and transportation services (Ross, 2023).
 References

Jerin, D. T., Sara, H. H., Radia, M. A., Hema, P. S., Hasan, S., Urme, S. A., Audia,

C., Hasan, M. T., & Quayyum, Z. (2022, February 9). An overview of progress

towards implementation of solid waste management policies in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

PubMed. Retrieved November 26, 2023, from

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35243053/

Rahman, A. S. (2019, December 17). Solid Waste Management System in Dhaka City

of Bangladesh. Zant World Press. Retrieved November 26, 2023, from

https://zantworldpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/17.-Samiul.pdf

Ross, L. (2023, June 27). Understanding Waste Management: Definition,

Environmental Impact, and Strategies. Thomasnet. Retrieved November 26, 2023,

from https://www.thomasnet.com/insights/what-is-waste-management/