India to use urban solid waste in road construction

The policy is nearly finalized, and after segregating the waste by removing plastic, glass, and metals, the waste will be used for road construction.

The Centre has declared its plan to integrate road construction with the Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0. The objective is to utilize inert materials derived from solid waste for constructing embankments along national highways. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has drafted a policy on the use of inert waste material, demonstrating success in pilot projects.

The policy is designed to address the challenge of managing urban solid waste while also meeting the growing demand for earth or soil required for constructing embankments. Nitin Gadkari, the Minister for Road Transport and Highways, mentioned that his ministry has formulated a draft policy to encourage the use of alternative fuels in construction equipment. This initiative aims to cut costs and decrease dependence on fossil fuels.

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The policy is nearing finalisation, and once the waste is segregated by removing plastic, glass, and metals, it will be utilized in road construction. Employing waste in road construction is expected to yield several benefits and offer a viable solution to the issue of garbage dumping.

The ministry had already used inert material from municipal solid waste in road construction under the Dholera project in Ahmedabad, the first stretch of Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, and Urban Extension Road II that connects NH 44 and Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway on NH 48 in Delhi.

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The policy also addresses fundamental issues, including considerations about whether municipal corporations or councils should receive incentives for supplying solid waste and investing in segregation plants.

The waste from Delhi's three landfill sites in Ghazipur, Okhla, and Bhalaswa will be used in the construction of Urban Extension Road (UER) 2, the third ring road of the capital. Rs 700 crore will be used from the Central Road Fund to construct, repair, maintain, and beautify roads in the project to convert waste into roads.

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The ministry is also considering a policy to use recycled wastewater and mix plastic and old tires in bitumen for road construction. They hope the policy will increase the demand and consumption of solid waste, as it happened in the case of fly ash usage. Initially, when it was proposed to use coal ash, there were few takers. However, the situation has changed, and now fly ash is not easily available.

The government's initiative to use solid waste in road construction is a significant step towards sustainable development and reducing carbon emissions.