How is AI revolutionizing waste management?

Did you know that about 1.3 billion tonnes of food waste is generated annually before going to consumer refrigerators? (Photo by Wendy Wei via Pexels)

Waste management is an issue for wealthy and developing nations both. However, emerging economies are inventing and implementing innovative garbage management systems with great benefits.

Also read: Gut the gutter: Where machines should replace humans in doing the job

Serious challenge ahead

Emerging economies can handle and control different kinds of waste, but developing countries still need help for correctly storing and eliminating traditional general waste.

Pollution and trash disposal without a plan in the big cities of these developed countries is a big reason why the environment could be in better shape. Waste is moved and thrown away unsafely, making it hard for people to live there. So, pollution and garbage should be adequately packaged, disposed of, stored, shipped, handled, and reclaimed to make them valuable assets worldwide.

AI can help us better understand how waste is made and help us develop better ways to reduce, sort and get rid of the trash. By looking at data about what kinds of trash are being made and where they are being thrown away, we can find ways to improve how we get rid of the trash.

Existing AI solutions for waste management

In 2017, researchers from the Institute of Engineering and Management in Kolkata came up with a smart way to get rid of the trash by using solar power to run a smart bin with appearance sensors to track how much waste is in the box.

The smart bin would work as a wireless Internet access point and could be used with any container, from small trash cans to underground tanks that hold a lot of trash. Service providers, on the other hand, use a login to get into the device and can then analyze data and track full-level smart bins in real time using information about the best ways to pick up trash. With this smart approach, companies can cut down on the number of feet of trucks, use less energy, speed up the collection time, and reduce running rates by up to 80 percent.

In 2020, researchers in Poland found that waste management is a decentralized method that depends a lot on the economies of each country. Tracking how much trash is made is the first step in any plan for managing waste in any region or area. So many new high-quality monitoring process innovations (like GISs, RFIDs, and ultrasonic sensors) have been made to improve how waste from bins and containers is handled and to strengthen the integrative convention for Smartphone network transmission service.

According to the United Nations Human Settlements Programme, several scientists have identified waste management system variables. For example, the waste generated depends on family size, education level, and monthly income. Residents' attitudes about garbage disposal are influenced by the active sponsorship and expenditures of an immovable corporation, the participation of neighbourhood recreational committee members, and the distribution of costs based on waste or waste weight.

Greyparrot, an AI startup based in London, has developed a new solution that uses robotics and AI. The company makes a machine vision tool to identify and sort different types of trash, such as "glass, paper, cardboard, newspapers, cans, and different types of plastics."

Winnow Vision is a similar startup that makes an equal platform for use in commercial kitchens and food processing plants. Their machine vision solution tracks and measures food waste, putting a dollar value on all the food and ingredients a business sends to the landfill without using them all.

Conclusion

As we try to make the world cleaner, it's clear that AI will be a crucial part of how we deal with trash. AI can help us make better plans, improve recycling facilities, and make the waste management process smoother.

In addition, AI can help us ensure that our waste management system is as effective and long-lasting as possible. It will be interesting to see how AI changes how waste is dealt with in the coming years.

Industrial facilities often have trouble dealing with waste, but new AI tools can help reduce the amount of work needed.

Furthermore, AI is revolutionizing the collection, transportation, and classification of all forms of trash, from medical waste and biohazardous waste to biodegradable waste. One of the key benefits of employing AI in trash management is a better understanding of garbage production and consumption patterns. We can create more efficient garbage management plans using this information.