Garbage to gardens : design proposals for two decentralised waste management units in Pune, India

Abstract: The population growth and urbanisation in low-income countries bring issues of poor living standards and miserable sanitation conditions onto the agenda. If well-functioning waste management systems were developed, this could master some of the problems. The already existing local informal waste handling system that is common in many low-income countries, needs to be developed with proper sorting and composting solutions to decrease the environmental burden and improve the overall situation in the dense cities. This master’s thesis project is performed with the intention of developing functional decentralised waste management units in the city of Pune, India. The project called Garbage to Gardens is initiated by the Indian organisation Centre for Environment Education in collaboration with SWaCH waste-picker cooperative and the Pune Municipal Corporation. The initiative intends to decrease the environmental degradation caused by unrecycled waste, enhance the life quality of the ragpickers and give the concerned areas heightened aesthetical, educational and recreational values. To achieve this, the units are to be incorporated with garden space. A good architectural design is essential to gain approval from the residents of the concerned areas, and also to persuade possible private property owners to deed their land for the units. The proposed ideas are derived from the objectives, in order to produce a final design product that will serve its purpose. The objectives are based on gathered information and observations regarding the city, the current waste management system, the stakeholders, the project organisation and the potential obstacles. The overall work method used in the project is called Logical Framework Approach. It is an objective-oriented project planning tool based on structured thinking and logical analyses, where we function as consultant designers with an intermediary role. In this case the LFA contains an array of submethods such as literature study, observations, study visits, site analyses, photography, sketching, 3D-modelling and more. The outcome of the process is two design proposals for Anand Park and Kothrud districts in Pune. The areas have both similar and dissimilar attributes, thus needing site specific solutions. The main objectives are the same; aiming at a clean and beautified neighbourhood, business opportunity and income generation for the ragpickers, reduced environmental pollution and decreased waste disposal. Both the proposals contain sorting, storage and composting facilities, while the recreational aspect is more predominant in Anand Park and the educational in Kothrud.