VMC inaugurates material recovery facility in Indian holy city Varanasi

Varanasi Municipal Corporation (VMC) has collaborated with Tetra Pak, Deutsche Gesellschaft für International Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) to open a material recovery facility (MRF) at Bhawania Pokhri, Belupur in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India.

The facility has been set up as part of “Development and Management of Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) in India” to boost the collection of recyclable waste and help bolster the waste management in Varanasi.

The NAMA project is financed by the Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU), Germany, while its nodal ministry is The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), Government of India.

Gaurang Rathi – Varanasi Nagar Nigam Municipal Commissioner said: “Along with the MRF the NAMA project is focusing on achieving source segregation at the household level and engaging informal sector for MRF operations. Public Private Partnerships initiatives like these will be nstrumental in achieving sustainable MSW management in Varanasi.”

The new material recovery facility in Varanasi will work as a waste sorting centre where plastic, paper-based cartons, mixed-waste paper and others are separated and baled.

The Varanasi material recovery plant, which focuses on dry waste, is located in the same site as the VMC biogas plant which processes the wet waste collected and turns it into electricity.

Inauguration of the material recovery facility in Varanasi. Photo courtesy of Business Wire India.

All the recyclables recovered through the material recovery facility in Varanasi will be sent the relevant recycling streams to make sure that no waste goes to landfill.

Tetra Pak’s recycling partner in Uttarakhand will recycle the carton packages recovered from Varanasi into useful items such as paper, granules, and furniture which can be converted further into products of daily use.

The waste management facility will be operated by Trilochan Enterprises, a Varanasi based entity that collects dry waste from the Uttar Pradesh city.

While VMC has provided the land for the material recovery facility at Bhawania Pokhri, Tetra Pak has provided the equipment, and in collaboration with NAMA project of GIZ and TERI, is offering technical expertise pertaining to ‘Municipal Solid Waste’ (MSW) management.

Ashish Chaturvedi – Director-Climate Change of GIZ India said: “Varanasi is one of the biggest tourist hubs in the country and attracts millions of tourists every year. A bustling city like Varanasi needs a robust waste management system. The NAMA project is focusing on reducing Green House Gas (GHG) emissions due to unsustainable waste management like landfilling or burning of waste.

“Recycling of each tonne of segregated dry waste reduces around 0.5 tonnes of CO2 emissions. Over the past 12 months we have educated around 310000 people and 100 waste-workers who are the catalysts to changing the waste landscape in Varanasi. With the inauguration of this MRF and the increased focus on awareness-building, we believe that the current waste landscape will see a massive change.”