MCD plans plastic waste processing plant in Delhi

A senior municipal official associated with the project said the volume and light weight of plastic waste makes it difficult to transport

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has proposed setting up the Capital’s first plant dedicated to processing plastic waste, officials aware of the plan said, adding that the establishment will reduce the amount of plastic that ends up at the city’s landfill sites.

Delhi is currently biomining its three landfill sites at Ghazipur, Okhla and Bhalswa. (HT Archive)

The corporation in July invited expressions of interests (EoI) from private companies to set up a plant with a capacity to process 1,000 tonnes per day (tpd) of waste, based on a zero residue torrefaction process. Based on the response to the EoI, two private companies have been shortlisted, senior MCD officials said. MCD has asked both the companies to give us detailed presentation on land requirement, designing, installing and operating such zero residue plants. Based on these parameters, tenders will be floated

Torrefaction is a thermochemical process that decreases water and volatiles contents from a specific material and improves fuel properties and calorific value. It involves the treatment of waste at 200-320 degrees Celsius under high atmospheric pressure, in the absence of oxygen. During the process, the water in the biomass and volatile material is released, and dry, blackened granule called torrefied biomass or bio-coal are obtained.

A senior municipal official associated with the project said the volume and light weight of plastic waste makes it difficult to transport. “The plant will help reduce plastic waste into small granules which can be filled in bags and easily transported. Plastic waste assumes a lot of space in the trucks, and its volume reduction and increase in calorific value will help us sell it to cement plants, waste-to-energy plants, and other industries,” the official said, requesting anonymity.

A second MCD official said two companies have been shortlisted for setting up the plant. “Most of the companies demanded money for setting up the plant, but two have said that they can set up the plant without any financial burden to MCD, and have said that they will use the final product as a fuel. We have asked both companies to give us a detailed presentation on land requirement, design, installing and operating such a plant,” the official said.

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“We have four waste-to-energy plants with a capacity of 6,550tpd, which process mixed waste and refuse-derived fuel. This project (the plastic processing plant) will be based on green fuel technology, which is environment friendly,” the official added.

Delhi is currently biomining its three landfill sites at Ghazipur, Okhla and Bhalswa. The trommeling and biomining of mixed legacy waste leads to the separation of various components such as inert materials, construction and demolition waste, fractions of soil, organic matter, and combustibles.

“MCD is currently sending its refuse-derived waste, comprising plastic fractions after biomining process, to cement industries in Chittorgarh (Rajasthan). These plants normally consume coal-based fuels, and such granules can replace these components solving the disposal problem,” the first official quoted above said.

According to Delhi solid waste management action plan released in April, Delhi generates 1113.25 tonne per day of plastic, which is 9.8% of the total municipal waste generated every day in the city. Out of this, MCD areas are estimated to generate 1,100 tonnes per day of plastic waste.

Environmentalist, Bharati Chaturvedi, the founder of Chintan Environmental Research and Action Group which specialises in waste management, said that the MCD plan should focus on reducing plastic waste. “We sincerely hope we are not going see a monopoly of extended producer responsibility. It will translate into livelihood of waste pickers and recyclers being compromised. We are looking forward to mechanisms to include informal sector. We should also be looking at reducing plastic use which can only be done by reusability,” she said.