A report called BIOTECH, Aneesh writes
– by Aneesh R
Hey folks…..
I am pretty much sure that if I don’t post about our last meeting with the Biotech director, Chris is going to kick me outta Tidy city … I am already in her black list now for ‘I wont say’ reasons..
Okay, right to the point … The appointment was fixed for 12 .30 pm with Mr. Shaji, director of Biotech and by the time I reached the spot (a bit late ) Bindu and Piyush were there all ready for the meeting. After a brief introduction to the receptionist and waiting for about 5 minutes, we were called into the Director’s cabin. We took the seats offered to us and gave an introduction about Tidy city and our activities. I think, I should really thank Piyush for giving a vivid and detailed portrayal and thereby instilling some sense into the wayward description I was giving.
After an overview of our organization and events, we enquired about their area of expertise and the arenas in which they could co operate with us and thereby help us in enhancing our activities.
This is what we learned from Mr Shaji about Biotech
• It is a NGO working in the filed of innovative waste disposal techniques.
• They are approved and partly aided by Central Government.
• They have installed biogas digesters for managing food waste and other organic waste in many house holds and institutes.
• Have received many accolades both in the national and international level.
Now onto the Q and A session
We put forward various problems faced by us on waste management, proper disposal and in the awareness front, during our cleaning and discussion sessions to Mr Shaji . He pointed out that the issues we are facing are not due to the lack of technology or brain but because of lack of interest and few takers for such technologies.
He proposed that the best way of creating awareness is to erect one such plant in one of our houses and thereby showing the neighbors and others, the advantages of it.
He also pointed out that the bio degradable waste generated in a nuclear family is enough to sustain a burner flame for 2 continuous hours a day.
Biotech make such plants and it will take only one square meter and can even be installed in terraces .No fear of pungent smell and a part of the expense will be bore by Central Government . The only catch we saw was the cost of one such unit for a house is about Rs 12,500 (Actual cost is 15k but 2500 Rs will be subsidized by the government).
We then asked about the feasibility of having such plants at public places like Museum and Kanakakunnu where the generation of bio waste is very low. His response was that there is lot of liquid waste generated in museum which is a useful energy source and that the output can be used to the light the lamps inside the Museum campus. he told us that the organization like ours can do a lot of good work in this arena in pressurizing government and promoting people to retort to such plants .
When we raised the concern of segregation required for implementing and functionalizing such a plant, he smilingly assured us that question of segregation wont raise at all if we do it at the base itself (say our home). To our question of Corporation mixing the waste even if we segregate and give it, he replied that it is our responsibility to make the Corporation change their way. He said that an organization like ours can compel them into collecting segregated wastes separately and that we should really look into it.
Another point he raised was that compared to Biotech ,we are in better position to make people understand the advantages and the importance of biogas plants .Since biotech is a NGO and the company implementing such plants, people would always be circumspect about their motives and hence sideline them as mere profit seekers .
He was not very ken in taking sessions but said that he would take one for us if we really want .All we have to do is to contact him in advance and then fix the date ,time and place. He was of the opinion that sessions and presentations wont make a difference and that only directly displaying the advantages of one such plant can make people think about it seriously.
I am darn sure that I have missed out on one too many points .So I request Bindu and Piyush to add on to this report
PS: I have Mr Shaji’s visiting card. People who want the number, just drop in a mail or ping me.
Adios folks.
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Hi Aneesh,
Thanks for the write-up. This is a useful technology, but as you pointed out requires some cost commitment. Nonetheless, a very innovative recycling strategy. I looked at the internet for more, and found the following video that features in detail the functioning of the BIOTECH unit.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrtINiLgNKY
Good work guys. Keep up the spirit.
i visited a kappuchin ashram at chavara, kollam , ’sanpio’, where there is a bio gas plant. But from their experience the cook said it is of no use since the heat generated is too low for cooking and also they have to wait for 3to 4 days for the whole plant to be filled enough to generate the gas,and moreover the stove along with the plant is also not at all working and as a whole according to them the bio gas plant is not at all useful. May be it is not useful of such a big ashram where the number or people will go up to 100 per day.and they cannot wait for almost 2 hours to simply cook one dish.
i think the use of a biogas plant is limited to only households. i dont know let us discuss the same.
pretty good report Aneesh…