Building from waste

The Supreme Court has created a flutter by staying construction activity in States that do not have a solid waste management policy. The construction industry, particularly in the western region, is dismayed. There can be no denying that the order will affect a range of downstream industries and jobs in the short run; an industry estimate puts the number of workers engaged in housing and infrastructure projects in the Mumbai region alone at four lakh. The Maharashtra government is likely to argue before the court that it has taken steps with regard to solid waste management and is likely to complete the process by October 2019. However, the document ‘Guidelines on Environmental Management of C&D Wastes in India’, brought out by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) in 2017, observes: “Construction accounts for nearly 65 per cent of the total investment in infrastructure and the trend is increasing, hence it is more important to know how to effectively manage construction and demolition waste.” The poor performance of industry and the State pollution control boards in this regard is only too evident; this is despite that fact that the Ministry of Urban Development urged States to set up C&D waste management facilities way back in June 2012. The CPCB’s Waste Management Rules of 2016 and the guidelines that followed in 2017 spelt out clear timelines on formulating policies, identifying sites for processing and commissioning these, but there has been no action on the ground. Meanwhile, as the guidelines document observes, “25-30 million tonnes of C&D waste is generated annually in India of which 5 per cent is processed.” This waste impacts soil fertility and is a health hazard in urban areas (the petition before the apex court implicitly links construction litter to dengue). The virtual absence of recycling also goes against India’s commitments with respect to carbon emission reduction.

It is significant that, according to studies, 36 per cent of C&D waste comprises soil, sand and gravel. With rampant sand mining having destroyed river beds, worsening the impact of floods, there is a crying need to recycle C&D waste. Green buildings, which entail that all C&D waste is used up, are only incentivised in certain States, whereas they should be made mandatory. As the 2016 rules have pointed out, the Bureau of Indian Standards and Indian Roads Congress should initiate processes for the use of recycled material. For example, pavements and drainage structures can be made this way. Recycling will reduce housing costs, given the materials shortage, and should be an integral aspect of ‘affordable housing’.

Solid waste management is a key component in the Swachh Bharat programme. The construction sector could do well to be more environmentally responsible, by shifting to the use of recycled water and recycling its own waste. The Real Estate Regulation Act deals with the developer-buyer interface. However, States and industry need to create an environmentally sustainable ecosystem.

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