Dr Pankaj Pathak, Assistant Professor, Department of Environmental Science co-edited the book “Circular Economy in Municipal Solid Waste Landfilling: Biomining & Leachate Treatment: Sustainable Solid Waste Management: Waste to Wealth” in collaboration with Prof Sankar Ganesh Palani from BITS Pilani, Hyderabad. The book was released as part of the Springer publication series ‘Radionuclides and Heavy Metals in the Environment’ that covers issues pertaining to environmental pollution of air, water and soil, causative toxic agents, including radioactive materials, and remediation strategies.
The book is a ready reckoner of contemporary information regarding municipal solid waste landfill biomining, treatment of landfill leachate and heavy metals in a single platform. Construction of new landfills which requires huge monetary investments can be avoided if old landfills were bio-mined for resources and the space can be re-used as new landfills. Landfill leachate is a hazardous waste which needs proper treatment that could generate value-added products such as clean energy and biofertilizers. The book is a rich repository of information for academicians, researchers, and students at master’s and doctoral levels to understand the current trends in municipal solid waste landfill operations.
It also features the chapter, ”Valorization of Solid Waste from Landfill Activities” co-authored by Dr Pankaj Pathak and her PhD scholar MSSR Tejaswini along with Prof Sankar Ganesh Palani and Dr Prangya Ranjan Rout from Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology. The article states that urban mining of various types of landfill wastes helps in the conservation of natural resources as well as increases the economic value of the disposed of wastes. It also ensures maximum recovery from the wastes that can be used as a secondary raw material for production purposes. Accordingly, they determine the environmental impacts associated with landfill wastes and identify different technologies that would help in the conversion of waste into resources through urban mining.
Essentially the book provides a circular economy approach to municipal solid waste (MSW) management. It also reviews the current technologies and future trends in MSW treatment by focusing on technological solutions for MSW treatment in developing countries in comparison with developed countries.