Sikkim Biodiversity Conservation and Forest Management Project

The operation of SWM will be outsourced through a competitive bidding process. Specialized waste collection vehicles, equipment, and protective clothing will be leased to selected operators from the Project. The performance of the operators will be monitored periodically to ensure the financial sustainability of SWM operations. The major functional elements involved in a SWM system are segregation, storage, collection, transport, processing, and safe disposal of the waste. Solid waste must be collected from households, commercial establishments, trek routes, and tourist spots. Biodegradable and recyclable solid waste must be sorted and segregated. Temporary storage of dry solid waste will be encouraged and bins supplied. The tour operators and trekkers will be responsible for bringing all the waste that is generated during the trekking period back to the base camp. The biodegradable fraction of the domestic waste will be processed by household-level composting. Suitable locations for such composting processes will be identified with the help of JFMCs, EDCs, PSSs, and the RMDD. Manure produced from the composting processes for both the domestic and commercial establishment sources will be utilized locally as fertilizer for gardening and plantation purposes. The recyclable waste will be sold to the recyclable waste supply chain for processing and recycling. The SWM operators will charge beneficiaries for their services. Public awareness and capacity building will be carried out through JFMCs, EDCs and PSSs to inform and train local communities about solid waste management, collection, composting, and storage. Sikkim tour operators offering treks and ROs will attend a workshop on the SWM system and on their responsibilities towards environmental clean-up and maintenance. Effective mechanisms to enforce the Sikkim Wildlife (Regulation of Trekking) Rules (2005) will be developed and implemented to improve SWM on trekking routes.

Consultants will be engaged to carry out SWM training of staff members of the waste management operators, and members of JFMSs, EDCs, and PSS?s. Waste collection: Staff members of the SWM operators will attend a one-day workshop on the use of waste collection vehicles, tools and equipment, and protective measures needed to counter professional health hazards, and how to plan routes for collection judiciously. Waste segregation: Through the JFMCs and EDCs, local communities will be trained to keep waste segregated at source. However, other households living nearby may also be invited to see the demonstration. Local-level composting: A one-day workshop will be conducted in each of the villages with selected members of the JFMCs, EDCs, and PSS?s on local-level composting. They will be expected to share the knowledge they acquire with other village residents.

A one-day workshop will be conducted in Gangtok to inform trekking tour operators and ROs about the waste collection system on trek routes. The purpose of the workshop is to provide guidance on how the waste generated during trekking can be properly managed by using the best practices followed elsewhere.

Four specialized trucks, bins, backpacker?s bins, carrying trolleys or wheel barrows, protective clothing, and safety equipment for the backpackers are required for the operations of SWM. The four specialized tracks may be replaced as necessary during the project period. This set of equipment will be leased to the SWM operators. In addition, 120 bins will be placed for temporary storage of solid waste to avoid littering. These bins will be strategically located mainly in the public places such as shops and stalls, hotels and restaurants, trekking base camps.