STUDIES ON ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE RESILIENCE OF BASIC SERVICE DELIVERY ASSETS IN HIMACHAL PRADESH
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Date
2023-05-26
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UHF,NAUNI
Abstract
ABSTRACT
The present investigation entitled “Studies on environmental compatibility and climate change resilience of basic service
delivery assets in Himachal Pradesh” was conducted in the Department of Environmental Science during the year 2020 and 2021.
The study aimed to evaluate the environmental compatibility and climate change resilience of basic services with respect to sewage
treatment plants, municipal solid waste and bio-medical waste management facilities in the state of Himachal Pradesh. A preliminary
survey was conducted to identify the status of these infrastructures and their operating processes and purposeful selection of waste
management facilities in the state was done to evaluate their impacts on important natural resources like soil, water and air. The
greenhouse gas emission potential and life cycle assessment of the selected infrastructures was evaluated by using standard
methodology. The study indicated that older STPs in the state have enhanced soil heavy metals like Cu (1.91 mg kg-1) and Pb (0.11 mg
kg-1) in their vicinity. The geo-accumulation indices also indicated moderate contamination. Further, high levels of BOD (6.49 mg l-1),
Cu (1.48 mg l-1) and Fe (0.33 mg l-1) in water sources also indicated incompatibility of STPs to the environment in HP. The STPs in
Himachal Pradesh contributed to 48,237 tCO2 eq emissions of greenhouse gases in total and contributed 10 % to the total GHG
emissions from waste management facilities. The GHG emissions from STPs of different capacities was in order of more than 3 MLD >
1-3 MLD > less than 1 MLD with respective values of 1,733, 719 and 581 tCO2 eq. The unkempt landfills had the most deteriorating
impact on the environment as concentrations of Cu, Pb and Zn in soil were recorded as high as 1.97, 0.137 and 19.0 mg kg-1 under their
influence. The geo-accumulation index also pointed to moderate contamination of soil by heavy metals. Further, Cd, Cr and Fe levels
were as high as 0.038, 0.064 and 0.52 mg l-1 in water sources. The municipal solid waste management infrastructures in the state
contributed to 3,98,098 tCO2 eq emissions (82 %). Transportation of waste and landfills were identified as the major sources of these
GHG emissions. Landfilling of waste from hospitals without proper treatment impacted the environment as concentrations of Cd, Cr
and Pb in soil were recorded as high as 0.014, 0.057 and 0.11 mg kg-1 under their influence. The geo-accumulation index indicated
moderate level of contamination of these heavy metals. Further, Cd, Cr and Fe levels were as high as 0.018, 0.048 and 0.44 mg l-1 in
water sources under the influence of these infrastructures. Bio-medical waste management facilities lead to 34,605 CO2 eq emissions in
the state forming 8 % of total emissions from waste management infrastructures. Transportation and landfilling of untreated biomedical
waste were identified as the major sources of these emissions in the state. The LCA studies further confirmed that electricity
consumption in STPs, landfills in municipal solid waste disposal facilities and use of chemicals for sterilization in bio-medical waste
management facilities were the major sources of incompatibility in the state. However, material recovery practices in municipal waste
management facilities drastically reduced the impacts on indicators namely, abiotic depletion, acidification, freshwater aquatic
ecotoxicity, human toxicity and ozone depletion potential. In the state, inadequate facilities with rudimentary processes, unskilled
personnel and energy use have been identified as factors for environmental incompatibility. Therefore, introduction of advanced sewage
treatment technologies material recovery facilities and use of renewable sources of energy may enhance climate change resilience and
environmental compatibility of these facilities in the state.