Strong waste management legal remedy

India’s Plastic Pollution and Waste Management

• India is the world’s largest plastic polluter, releasing 9.3 million tonnes of plastic annually, equivalent to around a fifth of global plastic emissions.

• The study defines plastic emissions as material moving from managed or mismanaged systems to the unmanaged system.

• India’s dumpsites outnumber sanitary landfills by 10:1, and official statistics do not include rural areas, open burning of uncollected waste, or waste recycled by the informal sector.

• The official plastic waste generation rate is likely underestimated and waste collection overestimated.

• The Indian Himalayan Region faces a significant issue with lack of data regarding the quantity and quality of waste and the capacity to deal with plastic waste.

• The Central Pollution Control Board’s annual reports on waste generation are based on data supplied by State Pollution Control Boards (SPCB) or Pollution Control Committees (PCC).

• The methodology adopted by these bodies or any waste audits should be publicly disclosed and scrutinized to ensure systems for waste management are proportionate with the quantity and nature of the waste that needs managing and processing.

• The Supreme Court of India has emphasized the need for reliable data about waste generation and its composition, as well as the infrastructure built over the years to deal with waste management and processing.

• To operationalize Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), producers, importers, and brand owners (PIBOs) can form kiosks across the country to gather waste from all local bodies.

Court Verdict on Tanneries Pollution in Tamil Nadu

• The Division Bench of the Supreme Court has issued a continuing mandamus to reverse pollution caused by tanneries in Vellore, Tamil Nadu.

• The court has constituted a committee to report on compliance within four months.

• The court emphasized the need for the court to intervene in cases of environmental norm violations and to rectify persistent wrongs.

• The court reiterated the “polluter pays principle,” stating that polluters are liable for environmental harm and must compensate victims and restore the environment.

• The court applied the Government Pay Principle, requiring the government to pay compensation to affected individuals and recover it from polluters until the damage to the environment is fully reversed.

• The court calls for accountability in the waste management system to millions affected by pollution caused by unmanaged and mismanaged waste.