Reckless dumping of broken glass

 

Reckless dumping of broken glass pieces and trash poses a threat to Kabaddiwalas, rag-pickers, pedestrians, and stray animals. Broken glass bottles, plates, bulbs, and tube lights are mixed with plastics and other biodegradable waste by many residents who find it difficult to dump the waste separately.

 

The conservancy workers also complain about finding fragments of glass utensils while segregating plastic waste at collection points and dump yards. There are many workers who get injured during the process of sorting clean and dirty glass bottles and other materials from remaining waste before it is sent to recycling units. “It is a difficult task for us to segregate waste as often we injure our hands,” said a conservancy worker from Purarniya, Lucknow. Most of the time, we are forced to leave these glass bottles and pieces by the roadside as there is no recycling facilities to collect glass waste, he added.

 

Municipal corporations or other waste collectors who collect waste from households daily always request the residents not to mix paper, metal, and other items with glass waste. However, not many residents follow the directions or regulations as they consider mixing all the waste is the best option to get away with the waste. Other workers who collect different types of waste also face threats as some residents mix broken glass, knives, and other sharp objects along with the other waste.

 

We had even stopped the collection of waste from a few households for a week as we repeatedly injured ourselves owing to the negligence of the residents, he added.

The roadside is also a popular place to dump large quantities of broken glass. A significant share of roadside glass waste consists of liquor bottles, fluorescent light tubes, and CFLs.

 

The glass pieces that remain on the pavement cause injury to children and even street animals. Stray dogs and cattle who try to dig out food waste from waste packets also get injured because of glass pieces. 

Even on the road, some glass pieces remain scattered since some people throw glass bottles on the side of the road as they travel. While some people purposefully break glass and liquor bottles by throwing them against the walls as they consider it something adventurous and fun. Broken glass pieces also worry bikers and cyclers at some locations as their tires get punctured due to sharp pieces on the road.

The main cause of the problem is the absence of an effective system for gathering glass garbage. When rag pickers collect paper and plastic bottles, glass bottles are not collected by them as no junk dealers collect glass bottles. Families who live in apartments and in small plots are tossing broken glass items and lights in with other garbage because they have nowhere else to put them. We do not have a system in place to frequently collect glass bottle waste.

 

We need to act responsibly from our end rather than waiting for someone else to stand up and do it for us; we should take our stand and segregate the waste properly at our place. And those who have space constraints can directly contact the waste collectors or even us for the collection of the glass bottle. You can transfer all your glass bottle waste to us, and in return, we will pay a reasonable amount to you. It’s an excellent opportunity to earn and also add your contribution to reducing waste from the landfills. 

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