By Minali Arora:
It is common knowledge today that waste material can help in power generation. Still, it is quite an irony that localities face a double whammy of power cuts and poor public hygiene (unseemly waste disposal), that too in a global city like Delhi.
Our society is always mismanaged. There are many issues that are specifically at local levels but are equally important at national level, for example, unscheduled power cuts. A power outage means a short or long term power loss to an area. These days such power outages are very frequent. There is no specific set time or schedule for power cuts in the society due to which people are suffering much.
Popular headlines read, “Delhi reels under long power cuts”, “Power cuts these days adding to people woes” but people are hardly in a position to make any good use of this information.
The erratic electricity supply creates a chaos among people especially when it’s scorching heat outside. People cannot relax even as diesel rate hikes dis-incentivise generator usage. It becomes very difficult for students to cope with such long power cuts and it hampers their studies.
No doubts though that consumption is increasing by the day. High usage of heavy electrical appliances and the soaring power demand under sultry conditions has aggravated the power woes.
Another major problem prevailing in our society is improper waste management. We can see dust bins clogged with garbage left in the open while the local authorities concerned are least bothered to take any steps. The foul smell apart, the main danger that comes with these open pits is the spread of diseases mainly caused by rodents and bugs. An example of this is malaria, which flourishes in open areas with stagnant water and particularly hot and muggy temperatures.
But luckily the advances in technology have led to many new discoveries. The enormous increase in the quantum and diversity of waste materials generated by human activity and their potentially harmful effects on the general environment and public health, have led to an increasing awareness about an urgent need to adopt scientific methods for safe disposal of wastage. While there is an obvious need to minimize the generation of wastes and to reuse and recycle them, the technologies for recovery of energy from wastes can play a vital role in mitigating the problems. Besides recovery of substantial energy, these technologies can lead to a substantial reduction in the overall waste quantities requiring final disposal, which can be better managed for safe disposal in a controlled manner while meeting the pollution control standard.
The bio gas plants are now gaining much popularity. A bio gas plant is the name often given to an anaerobic digester that treats farm wastes or energy crops. Bio gas is practically produced as landfill gas (LFG) or digester gas. A bio gas plant is the name often given to an anaerobic digester that treats farm wastes or energy crops.
Bio gas can be produced utilizing anaerobic digesters. These plants can be fed with energy crops such as maize silage or biodegradable wastes including sewage sludge and food waste.
Bio gas can be used to produce electricity on sewage works. The Deenabandhu Model is a new biogas-production model popular in India. The unit usually has a capacity of 2 to 3 cubic metres. It is constructed using bricks or Ferro cement mixture. In India the brick model costs slightly more than the Ferro cement model, however India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy offers some subsidy per model constructed.
The question is, what are we as individuals doing to make sure that the problems around us reduce drastically? Do leave your comments in the section below.