Centre notifies solid waste management rules

• The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has notified the Solid Waste Management (SWM) Rules, 2026, superseding the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016. 

• The rules have been notified under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

• The new rules will come into force from April 1.

• The revised rules integrate the principles of circular economy and Extended Producer Responsibility, with a specific focus on efficient waste segregation and management.

• The rules provide for the levy of environmental compensation based on the ‘polluter pays’ principle for non-compliance, including cases of operating without registration, false reporting, submission of forged documents or improper solid waste management practices. 

• The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) will prepare the relevant guidelines, while State Pollution Control Boards and Pollution Control Committees will levy the environmental compensation.

Four-stream segregation of solid waste at source

Four-stream segregation of solid waste at source has been made mandatory under the SWM Rules, 2026. 

Waste is required to be segregated into:

i) Wet waste: It includes kitchen waste, vegetables, fruit peels, meat, flowers, etc., which shall be composted or processed through bio-methanation at the nearest facility. 

ii) Dry waste: It includes plastic, paper, metal, glass, wood and rubber, etc, and shall be transported to Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) for sorting and recycling. 

iii) Sanitary waste: It includes used diapers, sanitary towels, tampons and condoms, etc, which shall be securely wrapped and stored separately.

iv) Special care waste: It includes paint cans, bulbs, mercury thermometers and medicines, etc, which shall be collected by authorised agencies or deposited at designated collection centres.

Bulk waste generators

• Bulk waste generators include entities with a floor area of 20,000 square metres or more, or water consumption of 40,000 litres per day or more, or solid waste generation of 100 kg per day or more. 

• These include central and state government departments, local bodies, public sector undertakings, institutions, commercial establishments and residential societies, among others. 

• Bulk waste generators must ensure that the waste generated by them is collected, transported and processed in an environmentally sound manner. 

• This provision is expected to significantly reduce the burden on urban local bodies and promote decentralised waste management. 

• The rules also allow for the levy of user fees on waste generators as per the bylaws of local bodies.

• The new rules also introduce Extended Bulk Waste Generator Responsibility (EBWGR), under which bulk waste generators are made accountable for the solid waste generated by them. 

• Bulk waste generators are required to process wet waste on-site as far as possible or obtain an EBWGR certificate where on-site processing is not feasible. 

• This framework aims to strengthen waste management practices, as bulk waste generators account for nearly 30 per cent of total solid waste generation.

Faster land allocation 

• The rules introduce graded criteria for development around solid waste processing and disposal facilities to facilitate faster land allocation. 

• A buffer zone is to be maintained within the total area allotted for facilities having an installed capacity exceeding 5 tonnes per day.

• The CPCB will develop guidelines specifying the size of the buffer zone and permissible activities within it, based on the facility’s capacity and pollution load. 

• This is expected to expedite land allocation for waste processing facilities by states and Union Territories.

• The rules also provide for the development of a centralised online portal to track all stages of solid waste management, including waste generation, collection, transportation, processing and disposal, as well as biomining and bioremediation of legacy waste dump sites. 

• Registration and authorisation of waste processing facilities with local bodies and State Pollution Control Boards or Pollution Control Committees shall be carried out online through the portal developed by the CPCB.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants.)