Current scenario of Indian Landfill and its solution through

Biotechnological approaches

2nd International Congress on Green Urban Futures 2014

The session on Biotechnological Approaches for

Enhancing Functional Quality of Urban Landscapes

A.K. Agnihotri

The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) New Delhi

Background and Facts:

MSW generation, in terms of kg/capita/day, has shown a positive correlation with economic development at world scale

Landfills are the world’s third largest anthropogenic emission source, accounting for about 12% of global methane emissions (USEPA, 2006).

Cities generating waste above 6500 TPD lack sanitary landfills – Greater Mumbai and Delhi

Around 50% of the MSW is biodegradable. Generation of MSW is around 0.2 kg/capita/day in low population density areas, and 0.6kg/capita/day in large urban areas (data from CPCB and NEERI)

Delhi, Kanpur, Jaipur, Pune. Ahmedabad, Ludhiana and Surat have emerged as cities with the highest potential for LFG

22.27% (5 out of 22#) of cities have conducted feasibility studies on methane emissions (Delhi, Ahmedabad, Surat, Greater Mumbai and Jamshedpur)

Most of the municipalities have no sanitary landfill facility and follow dumping for disposal of MSW

Source: Survey on the Current Status of Municipal Solid Waste Management in Indian Cities and the Potential of Landfill Gas to Energy Projects in India FICCI (2009)

In its 2009-10 Annual Report the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) estimated that approximately 55 million tons (1.5 lakh tonnes per day) of MSW are generated in urban areas of India annually.

It is estimated that the amount of waste generated in India will increase at a rate of approximately 1-1.33% annually

There are 53 cities in India with a million plus population, which together generate 86,000 TPD (31.5 million tons per year) of MSW at a per capita waste generation rate of 500 grams/day.

The six metro cities, Kolkata, Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru together generate 48,000 TPD (17.5 million TPY) of MSW.

Impact of urbanization on MSW generation in India

Table. Trends in India’s urbanization: 1961-2011 Note: As the 1981 Census was not conducted in Assam, and the 1991 Census was not held in Jammu and Kashmir, the population of India includes projected figures for these states in those periods. Source: Bhagat (2011)

Census Year

Urban population (in million)

Percentage urban

Annual exponential

growth rate (%)

1961 78.94 17.97 -

1971 209.11 19.91 3.23

1981 159.46 23.34 3.79

1991 217.18 25.72 3.09

2001 286.12 27.86 2.75

2011 377.10 31.16 2.76

Among the four geographical regions in India, Northern India generates the highest amount of MSW (40,500 TPD or 14.8 million TPY), 30% of all MSW generated in India; and

Among states, Maharashtra (22,200 TPD or 8.1 million TPY), West Bengal (15,500 TPD or 5.7 million TPY), Uttar Pradesh (13,000 TPD or 4.75 million TPY), Tamil Nadu (12,000 TPD or 4.3 million TPY) Andhra Pradesh (11,500 TPD or 4.15 million TPY) generate the highest amount of MSW.

Among Union Territories, Delhi (11,500 TPD or 4.2 million TPY) generates the highest and Chandigarh (486 TPD or 177,400 TPY) generates the second highest amount of waste.

Overall scenario of MSW generated in India

Source-Sustainable Solid Waste Management in India, by Ranjith Kharvel Annepu (2012)

Table : Power generating potential

City MSW Generated (TPD) Present Waste Handling Techniques

RDF / WTE (TPD)

Biomethanation (TPD)

Mumbai 11.645 80 Yes

Kolkata 12.060 Nil Nil

New Delhi 11.558 825 Yes

Chennai 6.404 Nil Nil

Chandigarh 509 500 Yes

Pune 2.724 600 Yes TPD= Tonnes/ Day

Table: Waste to Energy techniques practiced In major cities in India

Period MSW Generated (TPD) Power Generation Potential (MW)

2002 97.174 1.638

2007 130.927 2.266

2012 189.986 3.276

2017 265.834 4.566

Source: energetica india, 2012

Types of Waste to Energy Technologies used in India

Source: Jain et al. (2014) International Journal of Advanced Research (2014)

These figures shows that Biomethanation has more weightage against other technology installed in India at present scenario

SWOT analysis of MSW management and disposal in India Strength High quantum of waste generated Door-to-Door Collection Improve Primary Collection Installed waste to energy plants in

metro cities

Opportunities Around 50% of the MSW is

biodegradable. Increasing involvement of Private

Sector Involvement in SWM Regulation of new rules and acts,

and a new ordinance to be enacted for promoting proper MSWM

Recovering energy from waste can become an excellent source of renewable energy

Weakness Partial Segregation of Recyclables Usually people wait for the

government’s action. Not In My Backyard (NIMBY)

syndrome and ‘Who cares’ syndrome.

Inappropriate Disposal of Waste on Open Dumping Grounds

Threats Increasing per capita waste in

cities Unavailability of land for dumping

the waste Long lifecycle of the landfill sites Lack of awareness among masses

Problems with todays landfills:

Finding new landfills in and around cities is nearly impossible because of the poor track record of dumpsite operations and its maintenance in India and the Not in My Backyard (NIMBY) phenomenon.

Carbon-di-oxide, Methane and other harmful gases generated by decaying organic wastes are released into the atmosphere.

Methane is a green house gas and can itself be a danger to inhabitants of an area because it is flammable and potentially explosive.

Over dumping and not focusing on the biological treatment of the landfill

Improper management of leachate is contaminating the ground water and causing underground water/ river pollution in nearby areas

With the rapid increase in the population living in urban areas, the volume of MSW is likely to increase considerably.

Technological options available and challenges S.No. Technological options Challenges 1. Composting Composting is difficult process because the waste

arrives in a mixed form and contains a lot of non-organic material. When mixed waste is composted, the end product is of poor quality.

2. Incineration In India the incineration is a poor option as the waste consists mainly high organic material (40–60%) and high inert content (30–50%) also low calorific value content (800–1100 kcal/kg), high moisture content (40–60%) in MSW and the high costs of setting up and running the plants

3. Gasification Technology

MSW treatment after drying, removing the inert and shredding for size reduction, costly and need more manpower.

4. Refuse Derived Fuel (RFD) Plants

Operation of the thermal treatment systems involves not only higher cost, but also a relatively higher degree of expertise.

5. Landfilling Open, uncontrolled and poorly managed dumping is commonly practiced, giving rise to serious environmental degradation, pollution of groundwater, bad odour. Limited availability of land for waste disposal

Drawback of the technological options available

Limited technological options available

Incineration was thought to be good options but were providing less calorific value out of the waste and are more hazardous to health and environment

India does not have the laws or government agencies to regulate this new sector of waste-to-energy incineration.

The National Green Tribunal in March 2013 found dioxin emissions from the incineration plant above permissible limits

Landfill options are more traditional and feasible but long time duration. Other options require expertise, separation of waste, drying, need more man power and engages more capital investment.

Case study of Metro Cities: (Delhi)

Bhalswa and Okhla. The results showed that the range of

methane emission varies in winter from 12.94 to 58.41 and in

Summer from 82.69 - 293 mg/m2/h in these landfill areas.

Population Sites Average Waste generated

Composition of waste

17 Million

Bhalswa (1992) Ghazipur (1984)

Okhla (1994) 8000-9200 TPD

Biodegradables

(73.7%)

Recyclables (9.2%)

Inert (10.8 %)

Non- Biodegradables

(6.3 %)

Municipal Solid Waste Management in New Delhi, India

Component In Percent Methane 45–60 carbon dioxide 40–60 Nitrogen 2–5 Oxygen 0.1–1 Ammonia 0.1–1 NMOCs (non-methane organic compounds) NMOCs commonly found in landfills include acrylonitrile, benzene, 1,1-dichloroethane, 1,2-cis dichloroethylene, dichloromethane, carbonyl sulfide, ethyl-benzene, hexane, methyl ethyl ketone, tetra chloroethylene, toluene, trichloroethylene, vinyl chloride, and xylenes.

0.01–0.6

Sulphides (hydrogen sulfide, dimethyl sulfide, mercaptans are naturally occurring landfill sulphides mixture, which gives it rotten-egg smell)

0–1

Hydrogen 0–0.2 Carbon monoxide 0–0.2

Typical Composition of Landfill Gases in Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Sites.

NDMC (North Delhi Municipal Corporation) bans South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) for dumping garbage at landfill site, over payment dispute (SDMC was supposed to pay 350 per metric tonne of garbage)

Delhi's landfill sites 'overflow' as High Court orders construction of new dumping grounds to curb environmental and health 'disaster‘

The three present sites at Ghazipur, Bhalaswa and Okhla are already overflowing and have reached saturation point, the situation becomes scarier with the daily release of garbage expected to jump to 18,000 tonnes by 2021

Recently in News:

Ten new prospective landfill sites identified for Delhi

New Delhi locals Cry Foul against Incinerator’s Exhaust

Two-third solid waste in state disposed in unscientific manner: MPCB report

Source : The Hindu, New Delhi, May 1st 2014

Case study of Metro Cities: (Mumbai) At present there are 3 landfill sites in Mumbai. These are Deonar,

Mulund and Gorai, whose expected lifespan remains only 5

years

New landfill site which have been proposed: at Kanjur marg (66

ha) will be using Bio-reactor land filling (Anaerobic Digestion

Process) and composting technology for its waste treatment

All the dumping grounds are nearly 30-40 km north of South

Mumbai, and cost approximate to about 16 lakhs per day.

while costs for maintenance of dumping ground, waste

transportation and hire charges come to 126 crores per annum

Classification of Dumping Sites in Mumbai

The study found that about 2% of the total MSW generated in

Mumbai is openly burnt on the streets and 10% of the total

MSW generated is burnt in landfills by humans or due to

landfill fires

Increasing population of the city has forced people to settle

near the dumping grounds. Densely inhabited areas now

surround the landfill

Source: Solid Waste Management on Dumping Ground in Mumbai Region – A Study: Joshi, Patil ,Maurya, International conference on Green Computing and Technology(2013)

The Gorai dumpsite is located in the western suburbs of Mumbai,

and is very close to habitation.

It spreads over an area of 19.6 ha and is operational since 1972.

Approximately, about 2.34 million tons of waste up to an average

height of 26 m is lying at the site.

To provide environmental solution for developing an Integrated

Solid Waste Management Plan (ISWM) for the Metropolitan city,

Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) has appointed

IL&FS for this project.

Gorai dumpsite (among world’s top 100 sustainable projects)

Mulund Dumping Ground, Mumbai

Burning of solid waste in Mumbai Landfill

Source: Solid Waste Management on Dumping Ground in Mumbai Region – A Study: Joshi, Patil ,Maurya, International conference on Green Computing and Technology(2013)

Case study from abroad

Columbia building first bioreactor landfill in Missouri: Columbia is currently working on a type of liquid-injected landfill area known as a bioreactor

Yolo County Central Landfill (U.S. state of California) : The Landfill-Based Anaerobic Digester-Compost Project (digester cell) is a new technology that has been developed, based on the landfill bioreactor technology

Coca Cola landfill gas utilisation project at Atlanta in USA which has – 6.525 MW CHP plant using LFG from Hickory Ridge landfill

The Adnams bioenergy plant is the first of its kind in the UK built to inject green gas to grid, producing bio-methane from food and brewery waste.

BMW experience in USA wherein In early 2003, four turbines located at BMW Manufacturing Co.’s Energy Center came alive with the combustion of methane gas piped in from the nearby Palmetto Landfill.

(click here for short video)

British Airways and Washington, D.C.-based Solena Group Inc. have entered a joint venture to build a 16 MMgy waste-to-jet-fuel plant in eastern London.

(The plant will process 500,000 metric tons (551,156 tons) of municipal solid waste (MSW) into fuel each year, employing Solena Group's plasma gasification technology and the Fischer Tropsch process to produce the jet fuel and bionaptha).

Lufthansa turns to algae and municipal solid waste in quest for new sources of sustainable jet biofuel. The facility will convert more than 520,000 tonnes of waste biomass into jet fuel, diesel fuel and electricity. Source: www.greenaironline.com, 2012

Sunshine Gas Producers (a joint venture between DTE Biomass Energy and EIF Renewable Energy Holdings) through its subsidiary Landfill Energy Systems, has started generating electricity from landfill gas at its recently constructed renewable energy facility at the Sunshine Canyon Landfill in Sylmar, a neighborhood in Los Angeles.

Source: DTE Biomass Energy | October 14, 2014

The US, Waste Management Inc. operates 2 plants in California and Ohio (with a third announced in October 2013) to convert landfill gas to liquefied natural gas. Waste Management also produces over 500 MW of electricity from biogas, and its subsidiary Wheelabrator Inc. has a capacity of almost 670 MW.

Source: www.biofuelstp.eu/biogas

Why Biotechnological approach is needed for ultimate disposal of MSW

Need for a rational MSW management based on high quality scientific input

Limited Land for new landfills

MSW treatment in landfills were primarily carried out by anaerobic digestion and decomposition which is derived form the microbes, thus scientific mechanism is must be considered

Legal position about MSW Management and Disposal in India The Municipal Solid Waste (Management and Handling) Rules 2000 A typical waste management system in a low- or middle-income country includes the following elements: • Waste generation and storage

• Segregation, reuse, and recycling at the household level

• Primary waste collection and transport to a transfer station

or community bin

• Street sweeping and cleansing of public places

• Management of the transfer station or community bin

• Secondary collection and transport to the waste disposal site

• Waste disposal in landfills

• Collection, transport, and treatment of recyclables at all points on the solid waste pathway (collection, storage, transport, and disposal)

• The Government of India (GOI) recommend adoption of different technologies, which include bio-methanation, gasification, pyrolysis, plasma gasification, refuse derived fuel (RDF), waste-to-energy combustion (WTE), sanitary landfills (SLF).

• However, the suitability of technologies to Indian conditions has not been sufficiently studied, especially with regard to the sustainable management of the entire MSW stream and reducing its environmental and health impacts.

Way forward:

Set up of an anaerobic bioreactor with leachate recirculation to recover the full energy potential of biomass waste

In second stage, operated in the aerobic mode to produce compost

The third stage for resource and space recovery

The bio-cell landfill is a novel and holistic approach to waste disposal on land; with energy recovery, landfill gas emission control, groundwater contamination control, and compost and space recovery as direct benefit

Source: Sustainable landfill bio-cell an innovative technology to bio-stabilize organic fraction of municipal solid waste : Don Davies Stantec Consulting Ltd. Calgary Rem Tech October 2010

Potential Advantages of Bioreactor Landfills Decomposition and biological stabilization in years vs.

decades in “dry tombs”

Lower waste toxicity and mobility due to both aerobic and

anaerobic conditions

Reduced leachate disposal costs

A 15 to 30 percent gain in landfill space due to an increase

in decomposition of waste mass

Significant increased LFG generation that, when captured,

can be used for energy use onsite or sold

Decrease in long-term environmental risks and landfill

operating

Reduced post-closure care

Schematic representation of the landfill gas generation and energy recovery as compared to conventional concept

What we can propose: (For existing Landfills)

The existing landfill will be used for the study, and treatment will be carried out in parts

Feasibility study for the methane from the landfill will be carried out.

Application of the existing suitable consortium of anaerobic bacteria available at our lab for increasing the degradation rate of the waste

Collection of the leachate and recirculation of the same to the dump for proving the better moisture to the dump

Infrastructure development and installation of gas collection system at site

Collection of the methane gas produced during decomposition of the waste by cover the landfill with more wide upper liner, to prevent escape of landfill gas, with better gas collection system

Life cycle reduction of the existing landfill using Bioreactor landfill model concept by 1/3 of the present

Composting of the left out waste using aerobic bacteria

Methane producing microbes

Identified methane producing bacteria (methanogens), were reported from following genus Methanobacterium Methanococcus Methanosarcina Methanobrevibacter Methanoculleus Methanogenium Methanothermobacter Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methanogen

Key Benefits of the Biomethanation process

Reduction of Carbon dioxide emission

(CO2 + 4 H2 → CH4 + 2 H2O)

Increase in Methane generation by using potent methanogens reported

Reduction of the life span of existing landfill by increasing decomposition rate

Ground water contamination through Leachate can be checked

Compost can be prepared from the left after matter

Recommendations Segregation of the solid waste before disposing at Landfill

site

Multiple scientific technologies should be adopted for convert waste to energy

Conduct feasibility study of existing Landfill for methane extraction

New landfill should be built scientifically and engineered way

Life cycle reduction of the existing landfill using Bioreactor landfill model should be adopted

The Government of India should use satellite maps to identify new landfills sites

Revisal of Municipal Solid Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, according to existing conditions

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