‘NEW HAZARDOUS WASTE RULES WILL ENSURE RESOURCE RECOVERY
AND DISPOSAL OF HAZARDOUS WASTE IN
ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND MANNER’: JAVADEKAR
ENVIRONMENT MINISTRY NOTIFIES HAZARDOUS WASTE
MANAGEMENT RULES, 2016
“The new Hazardous Waste Rules will ensure resource recovery and
disposal of hazardous waste in environmentally sound manner. The Rules
are environment and industry- friendly. The provisions of the new Rules
are in line with this Government’s priority for Ease of Doing Business
and Make in India, but with responsible concerns for sustainable
development”, Minister of State (Independent Charge) of Environment,
Forest and Climate Change, ShriPrakashJavadekar, said here today, while
releasing the HW Rules, 2016.
For the first time, Rules have been made to distinguish between
Hazardous Waste and other wastes. Other wastes include:Waste tyre,
paper waste, metal scrap, used electronic items, etc. and are recognized
as a resource for recycling and reuse. These resources supplement the
industrial processes and reduce the load on the virgin resource of the
country.
The salient features of Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management &Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016 include the following:-
i. The ambit of the Rules has been expanded by including ‘Other Waste’.
ii. Waste Management hierarchy in the sequence of priority of
prevention, minimization, reuse, recycling, recovery, co-processing; and
safe disposal has been incorporated.
iii. All the forms under the rules for permission, import/export, filing
of annual returns, transportation, etc. have been revised
significantly, indicating the stringent approach for management of such
hazardous and other wastes with simultaneous simplification of
procedure.
iv. The basic necessity of infrastructure to safeguard the health and
environment from waste processing industry has been prescribed as
Standard Operating Procedure (SOPs), specific to waste type, which has
to be complied by the stakeholders and ensured by SPCB/PCC while
granting such authorisation.
v. Procedure has been simplified to merge all the approvals as a single
window clearance for setting up of hazardous waste disposal facility and
import of other wastes.
vi. Co-processing as preferential mechanism over disposal for use of
waste as supplementary resource, or for recovery of energy has been
provided.
vii. The approval process for co-processing of hazardous waste to
recover energy has been streamlined and put on emission norms basis
rather than on trial basis.
viii. The process of import/export of waste under the Rules has been
streamlined by simplifying the document-based procedure and by revising
the list of waste regulated for import/export.
ix. The import of metal scrap, paper waste and various categories of
electrical and electronic equipments for re-use purposehas been exempted
from the need of obtaining Ministry’s permission.
x. The basic necessity of infrastructure to safeguard the health and
environment from waste processing industry has been prescribed as
Standard Operating Procedure (SOPs) specific to waste type.
xi. Responsibilities of State Government for environmentally sound
management of hazardous and other wastes have been introduced as
follows:
Toset up/ allot industrial space or sheds for recycling, pre-processing and other utilization of hazardous or other waste
To register the workers involved in recycling, pre-processing and other utilization activities.
To form groups of workers to facilitate setting up such facilities;
To undertake industrial skill development activities and ensure safety and health of workers.
xii. List of processes generating hazardous wastes has been reviewed
taking into account technological evolution in the industries.
xiii. List of Waste Constituents with Concentration Limits has been
revised as per international standard and drinking water standard.
The following items have been prohibited for import:
a. Waste edible fats and oil of animals, or vegetable origin;
b. Household waste;
c. Critical Care Medical equipment;
d. Tyres for direct re-use purpose;
e. Solid Plastic wastes including Pet bottles;
f. Waste electrical and electronic assemblies scrap;
g. Other chemical wastes especially in solvent form.
xiv. State Government is authorized to prepare integrated plan for
effective implementation of these provisions, and have to submit annual
report to Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
xv. State Pollution Control Board is mandated to prepare an annual
inventory of the waste generated; waste recycled, recovered, utilised
including co-processed; waste re-exported and waste disposed and submit
to the Central Pollution Control Board by the 30th day of September
every year.
3. Hazardous Waste
Hazardous waste means any waste, which by reason of characteristics,
such as physical, chemical, biological, reactive, toxic, flammable,
explosive or corrosive, causes danger to health, or environment. It
comprises the waste generated during the manufacturing processes of the
commercial products such as industries involved in petroleum refining,
production of pharmaceuticals, petroleum, paint, aluminium, electronic
products etc. As per the information furnished by CPCB in the year 2015,
the total hazardous waste generation in the country is 7.46 million
metric tonnes per annum from about 44,000 industries.
4. Proper Hazardous Waste Management
i. Scientific disposal of hazardous waste through collection, storage,
packaging, transportation and treatment, in an environmentally sound
manner minimises the adverse impact on human health and on the
environment. The hazardous waste can be disposed at captive treatment
facility installed by the individual waste generators or at Common
Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities (TSDFs).
There are 40 Common Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage and Disposal
Facilities (TSDFs) available in 17 States/UTs.
ii. Hazardous waste as lead acid battery scraps, used oil, waste oil,
spent catalyst etc. and other waste such as waste tyres, paper waste,
metal scrap etc. are used as raw material by the industries involved in
recycling of such waste and as supplementary resource for material and
energy recovery. Accordingly, it is always preferable to utilise such
waste through recycling, or for resource recovery to avoid disposal
through landfill or incineration. There are about 1080 registered
recyclers; 47 cement plants permitted for co-processing; and about 108
industries permitted for utilisation of hazardous waste.
5. Problems of unscientific disposal of Hazardous and other waste
Unscientific disposal of hazardous and other waste through burning or
incineration leads to emission of toxic fumes comprising of Dioxins
& Furans, Mercury, heavy metals, causing air pollution and
associated health-related problems.Disposal in water bodies, or in
municipal dumps leads to toxic releases due to leaching in land and
water entailing into degradation of soil and water quality.The workers
employed in such unscientific practices suffer from neurological
disorders, skin diseases, genetic defects, cancer etc.Hence, there is a
need for systematic management of hazardous and other waste in an
environmentally sound manner by way of prevention, minimisation, re-use,
recycling, recovery, utilisation including co-processing and safe
disposal of waste.
6. Consultation process for new Hazardous and Other Waste Rules
Draft Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement)
Rules were published in July, 2015 inviting suggestions and objections.
473 suggestions/ objections were received from Government
organisations, institutions and private individuals. Draft rules were
shared with industry associations, Central Government ministries and
State Governments. Stakeholders’ consultation meetings were organised in
Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru. A working group comprising technical
and subject experts examined all the suggestions. Based on the
recommendations of the Working Group, the Ministry has published the
Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management & Transboundary Movement)
Rules, 2016.
***
HK
(Release ID :138521)
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