Segregate: Two bins for organic and non-organic waste

« Segregate: Two bins for organic and non-organic waste

Pilot project has covered 80 buildings in Thimphu and hopes to include 519 more
Garbage Thimphu residents will no longer have to worry about their bins filling up to its brim until the next garbage truck comes around to collect them by the roadside.

City corporation officials, on the other hand, need not worry about a few residents driving their bins to be dumped into already overflowing whale bins at the centenary market, where stray dogs scavenge and leave it strewn all over.

Thimphu city corporation (TCC) officials have begun the two-bin pilot project, starting from Chubachu area, that supposedly has higher concentration of people living within the core city area.

The area covers the stretch between Taj Tashi hotel and Bhutan Broadcasting Service office down towards the royal academy for performing arts and towards the UNDP office.

TCC’s program officer Sonam Tashi said the area was first among four zones the city was divided into under the project.
The distribution of the bins and collection of trash began on October 20 around the area that has less than 80 buildings, excluding those under construction.

City officials distributed about 1,000 garbage bins, both green and white among building owners around the Chubachu area.
Each building were given just a pair to be stationed outside, with the promise to empty them thrice a week on Sunday, Wednesday and Friday.

Two garbage trucks, one for organic and another to pick up the non-organic bins at the Chubachu area, have already begun doing the rounds.

Two bins, green, which is about 180 litres deep, will be used for organic or perishable waste; while the white one, about 350 litres in depth will be used for non-organic waste like plastic bottles.

A pair that cost the city around Nu 5,400, its officials said, were sold to building owners for Nu 2,700.

“We have to let residents buy, so they’ll care for the bins,” he said. “Providing them for free would mean a shorter lifespan for the bins that are expected to last a few years at least.”

He said all that the public was left to do on its part was to be responsible enough to segregate perishable from non-perishable waste, before dumping them into the designated bins.

“We want people to cooperate with us in order to make the project successful, and to solve the garbage problem,” Sonam Tashi said.

One of the residents around Chubachu area, Tara Adhikari, said the new garbage bins brought with them much convenience to the residents.

“We don’t have to worry about garbage truck pick up timings any more,” he said. “Or wait outside for the garbage vehicles to arrive, especially when we have children to drop to schools, and offices to reach on time.”

A shopkeeper, Chandra Maya said the Nu 254 a household their house owners charged them was worth the convenience.

“We’d to stack up cartons of trash for garbage trucks to pick up so far,” she said, adding, with the pair of bins outside their buildings, they could simply dump the increasing waste residents produce everyday.

“The bins have good, heavy lids, which the dogs can’t open,” Chandra Maya said. “But we might require more of such bins or increase the frequency of garbage collection.”

She said this in the context of increasing number of residents and the trash each household produced everyday.

City officials are creating awareness about the ways and importance of segregating waste, as and when they distribute the bins.

Organic waste is sent to Serbithang compost making plant, while the inorganic ones, such as bottles, are taken by Greener Way and other scrap dealers.

In the next three phases, the project will rope in residents around Changlimithang, Memorial chorten and swimming pool areas to be able to realise their target of bringing under the project some 519 buildings in Thimphu.

The project will cover the entire city by the end of 2012.

“If it’s successful, the project will be contracted out to private sectors, who are interested in it,” Sonam Tashi said.

Source: kuenselonline