DEVELOPERS AND THEIR ONUS OF WASTE RESPONSIBILITY

Waste Management is a collective responsibility and not an individual responsibility. On a daily basis, there is a huge amount of waste that is being generated and real estate developers are responsible for almost a quarter of the country’s waste emission. In huge volume carbon dioxide, waste and pollutants being emitted in making construction materials like cement, steel and bricks. Developers being the biggest consumers of natural resources are resulting in environmental degradation, raise in average temperature and poor air quality.

These alarming consequences have led some of the top developers to pledge to make at least one-fifth of their new housing development sustainable by 2022. They are going to adopt green building practices for a sustainable environment in near future. Efforts are towards best use of natural resources, recycling waste material and reducing pollutants emission. Now developers make sure that their projects been certified by “The Indian Green Building Council”, to ensure that building been sanctioned on their parameters like water consumption, conservation of natural resources, recycling waste and providing health space for living to the occupants.

As per recent Waste Management Rules all residents' welfare and market associations, communities and institutions with an area over 5,000 sq. m. have to segregate biodegradable waste and compost it within their own premises. Modern combustion and biological technologies will be usedin managing and reducing waste emission.

WHAT ROLE CAN DEVELOPERS PLAY TO PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT

Developers need to use various thermal and non-thermal technologies to recover energy from the waste. Thermal Conversion is an oxidation process that involves thermal degradation of waste under high temperature, Biochemical Conversion produces clean energy in the form of biogas, Thermochemical Conversion technique is been used to produce heat and electrical energy from waste, Physico-chemical Conversion processes to improve physical and chemical properties of solid waste. More and more developers and builders are actively taking up these advanced technologies to build eco-friendly environment. Real estate developers with eco-friendly solutions in their project can bring awareness among the homebuyers for a sustainable environment that can leave a precious legacy for the future generation. Adoption of these techniques and technologies is the need of the hour. 

ACTION POINTS FOR THE DEVELOPERS

• Developers need to facilitate reuse and recycle methods

• They need to conserve natural resources by re-using waste from the construction site

• Need to design environmentally sustainable projects

• Developers need to reduce the use of rawmaterial

• Minimize the pollutant potential

• Eliminate the unnecessary waste that is often produced when working to meet tight deadlines

• Disposal of waste material in an environment friendly way

• Adoption of good practices in material selection and construction techniques

• Developers must contact the local district council of waste management to get the most suitable solution

• They must develop suitable spaces to facilitate waste collection

Developers have initiated a drive to reduce waste, where 3 tons waste would be converted to energy, thereby saving nearly 1100 tons of carbon dioxide emission every year, a great initiative to nurture future.