Economic Times 05-Jun-2017(https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/miscellaneous/tech-companies-mncs-strive-to-recycle-the-waste-they-generate/articleshow/59013288.cms)
Real estate developer RMZ Corp's tech parks EcoWorld and Infinity have been able to reduce their percentage of mixed, or unsegregated, waste to about 15% from 50% in recent months.
BENGALURU: The city's many technology clusters and multinational companies are pitching in to help Bengaluru manage its waste, making conscious efforts to recycle nearly all of what they generate.The efforts begin with waste segregation -and particularly convincing employees of its importance.
“For an office campus to go `zero waste', the change can be quick and take less than three months if there is a concerted effort,“ said Lakshmi Menon, head of client relationships at Hasiru Dala Innovations. The recycling and waste management firm is working with MindtreeNSE 0.01 % Technologies, KPMG and Tata CommunicationsNSE 1.32 % to help the companies convert their city offices into zero-waste campuses.
At InfosysNSE -0.46 %, about 90% of the waste is segregated. The company hosts initiatives such as eco clubs and plays and sends mailers to sensitise employees on reducing food waste. It also organises reward-based programmes for minimising waste and focusses on segregation, which is the key to treatment, recycling and disposal.
“We have made it compulsory for employees to segregate waste at every location. Through this initiative, we have been able to overcome the vital issue of segregation at source and ensured waste segregation at all campuses,“ said Guruprakash Sastry, regional head, infrastructure, Infosys.
The company is now aiming for 100% waste segregation at source.
US-headquartered retailer Target India's Bengaluru offices last week observed World Environment Day , which fell on June 5, with a workshop on waste segregation for its employees conducted by waste solutions firm Daily Dump.
“Bengaluru has borne the brunt of unscientific dumping of garbage and its effects have been very apparent over the past few years,“ said Shalini Natraj, head, HR, Target India. “The aim of the session was to help team members over come common mental blocks about handling household waste in a responsible manner.“
Real estate developer RMZ Corp's tech parks EcoWorld and Infinity have been able to reduce their percentage of mixed, or unsegregated, waste to about 15% from 50% in recent months.
RMZ, which has partnered with social enterprise Saahas Zero Waste, composts the wet waste it generates, which is about 60% of its total waste, and recycles the remaining dry waste into paper, bags and other goods. “We have been able to reduce our mixed waste quantities,“ said Thirumal Govindraj, managing director, RMZ Corp, “Our next focus is on making our campuses zero-waste.“
