Friday, February 24, 2006

Living by the Dead: Reality Bites

Have you ever thought what happens to the waste that gets collected from your doorstep?
One only perceives carry bags, and in fact piles on such bags to use them to trash waste. Thus happily saving on dirtying hands cleaning the waste bin.
What happens to the trash I generate?: -
A stinking lorry collects the waste. Ah! and it then disappear into thin air. Have you ever stopped and wondered ‘Am I producing too much of waste’, waste that can be avoided or ‘Can I do something about the waste’.
This waste in taken away from the urban settlement (easy solution right?) and dumped at a remote location. A mountain of waste thus created is then covered with concrete, as if sins can be locked in a nice box.
Such toxic waste not only is an ecological disaster that causes soil and ground water pollution but also releases into the atmosphere a lot of poisonous gases.
How can we feel safe in such a structure of society where home is till ones doorstep and what happens beyond is no concern of ours, as it does not affect us (does it!) and thus we can dirty our neighbourhood.
The revealing for me happened when on 22nd of Feb I visited the dumping ground for Pune city (India), located 35 kms off city limits. There lay mountains of waste with no signs of life around it (it was a dead place; a spring which had formed a small pond lay dead too, devoid of any life) but for some needy people whose work was to dispose off our trash, our sins, our wrongs (have we fallen so low).
The System: -
Centralised waste disposal system is a disaster as I have come to understand. Waste minimization and waste utilization is the need of the hour. Each individual must be responsible for the waste he or she produces. Creating an efficient in house waste disposal system is a way out of this sticky muck.
Planning waste disposal: -
We all know that plastic is non-biodegradable and thus its usage must be minimized while the biodegradable and other kitchen waste (the process of composting is helpful: http://vegweb.com/composting/) can be easily used as manure for plants, etc. The solution lies in each of us doing our part.
Be Aware: http://www.toxicslink.org/art-view.php?id=9
A lot of work is on, in this area, especially in Delhi (http://www.toxicslink.org/art-view.php?id=52), (http://www.toxicslink.org/art-view.php?id=95), where the citizens are doing their part, supported by NGOs. One needs to be aware in order to bring in a change. Lets move towards the first step in our efforts, towards a clean and green neighbourhood. Mother Nature will do the rest.
"All of us belong to a greater whole, and whether you call it society or civilization or country, it has a deep and profound impact on our lives. Some seek to escape it. Some to embrace it. All of us, though, should seek to understand it."
Anonymous

2 comments:

theindoaustimes said...

Hi adil ji I shall be glad to have this content posted in my online newspaper please contact me on theindoaustimes@gmail.com
hemu

Unknown said...

On waste control,rather pollution control, just remember to follow the principle of 3 Rs -
Reduce,Reuse and Recycle.
If we follow these three basic principles,then we can remain assured that our planet is saved for our grand children as well.
zuhare ahmed