Studies on Modelling Approaches in Solid Waste Management Synopsis

Every human activity creates waste (Tciiobanoglous et al., 1993). India is the second most populous nation in the world; the uncontrolled growth of urban areas has led to deficiency in infrastructural services such as: water supply, sewage and municipal solid waste management (MSWM). The burgeoning population has resulted in a massive pressure on the health-care services, leading to huge amounts of hospital/ infectious waste generation. The urban population is estimated to be 285 million, which is concentrated in a few large cities and 32 metropolitan cities. It account for 34.5 percent of the urban population and is expected to reach 341 million by 2010 (Census of India, 2001). The number of Class 1 cities with population exceeding I, 00,000 has increased from 212 to 300 during 1981 to 1991 (CPHEEO, 2000). It is interesting to note that as much as 65.2% of the urban population is living.in these Class I cities. The growth in generation of municipal solid waste (MSW), in recent years, has been exponential due to the booming Indian economy. There has been increased change in the standard of living in the urban areas of the country, which has left the civic authorities in a tight spot. The waste quantities are estimated to increase from 46 million tones in 2001 to 65 million tones in 2010 (Kumar and Gaikwad, 2004). Most urban areas in the country are suffering from lack of solid waste management (SWM) problems, despite the fact that large sums of municipal expenditure is earmarked for it.