Integrating Garbage Recycling Activities into a Solid Waste Management System
Overview Of Recycling Sector In Karachi1
The recycling sector in Karachi can be divided into two broad categories:
- Waste picking in streets, communal bins and disposal sites by Afghan pickers and sweepers. The picked waste then passes through a number of dealers and ultimately reaches the small scale recycling industry. As this stream deals in comparatively poor quality of waste, hence its called the dirty stream. Typical materials in this stream are waste paper, plastic bags, broken glass and bottles and bones.
- Waste separation at the source of generation and it’s further sell to itinerant waste buyers which passes through a number of dealers and ultimately reaches the large and small scale recycling industry. This stream deals in comparatively better quality of waste, hence its called the clean stream. Typical materials in this stream are ferrous cans, metals, newspaper separated at source, bottles and plastics.
In addition to the above two activities waste is also imported from and exported to other cities of the country. Some main dealers and recycling industry also import waste from other countries for re-processing.
There are a number of stakeholders groups involved with recycling in Karachi. Table 2 and 3 give a brief description of the stakeholders involved in the two streams:
Table – 2
| Stakeholders | Role |
|---|---|
| Households | They separate and store the saleable waste components and then sell the separated components to itinerant waste buyers at a known or agreed price |
| Domestic Servants | In high income areas, they separate and store the saleable waste components. Then sell the separated components to itinerant waste buyers |
| Itinerant Waste Buyers | They purchase separated waste from the households and other sources and sell it to middle dealers |
| Middle Dealers | Purchase all the materials from itinerant buyers and sell it to the main dealers. Also clean and process some materials to reduce the transportation cost and add value |
| Main Dealers | Deal in a single type of waste. They purchase waste from middle dealers and sell it to the recycling industry within and outside the city. Process and sometimes categorise materials for further transportation and add value. For some materials the main dealers for dirty and clean stream could be the same, for example broken glass and ferrous metals |
| Recycling Industry | Convert waste materials to other saleable products. For example, ferrous metal is re-rolled and glass is mixed with the virgin raw material |
Table – 3
| Stakeholders | Role |
|---|---|
| Sweepers | While collecting waste from households, they separate and sell saleable components. The remaining waste is disposed of at communal bins or open plots by them |
| Street Pickers | A very high number of Afghan immigrants are involved in the separation of paper and cardboard from waste on streets and communal bins. Also pick other components, if they can find them. They bring the waste at common yards and collectively sell them to the dealers and recycling industry |
| Middle Dealers | Purchase and transport materials from waste pickers yards and sell it to the recycling industry. Also process some materials to reduce the transportation cost and add value, for example paper is baled and compacted |
| Recycling Industry | Mostly small scale industry involved in the recycling of poor quality paper and cardboard to paper board. There are also few industries which deal in plastics |
Pre-Feasibility Study Of The URC Concept
The URC concept was accepted by the Governor’s Task Force for the Improvement of Municipal Services which was set up in the first quarter of 2000. As a result, a Task Force Sub-committee, of which URC was a member, carried out detailed consultations with all the stakeholders in the solid waste management process in Karachi. These included recyclers, kabaris, middle and main dealers, scavengers and government agencies. The Task Force Sub-committee found the concept workable. The Task Force therefore decided to carry out a pre-feasibility for the concept and sought financial assistance for it from the WSP-SA of the UNDP-World Bank. This pre-feasibility was prepared by Dr. Mansoor Ali of WEDC and the author of this paper. Its findings and recommendations are given in the paragraphs below.
- Dr. Mansoor Ali and Arif Hasan: Integrating Recycling and Disposal System for Solid Waste Management in Karachi; unpublished report, June 2000 ↩
