Redesigning waste: An exploration into the role of architecture in an integrated solid waste management system

Abstract

The world is urbanizing at a pace never seen before. The UN estimates more than one third of the world’s population live in urban cities and by 2050 it is estimated that more than half of the world’s population will live in cities. With urbanization comes its fair share of problems. Solid waste is one of the biggest crises the world is experiencing due to urbanization. Every year the world produces about 2 billion tons of waste and 33 % of these wastes are seen to be mismanaged. These mismanaged wastes create hazards to humans, animals and more importantly irreversible damages to the environment. As waste management systems are designed to tackle these problems, it is seen that the architecture and architects have very minimal role in this waste management systems. This study delves into this predicament and studies how architecture used efficiently can help form an integrated waste management system. In the waste management industry creating awareness among people is the primary objective. So, this study proposes a waste center which would consist of a waste to energy plant, a material recovery facility and more importantly integrated public spaces that the public can access. Vibrant public spaces are seen to be the key to open up the closed process of the waste management and encourage public participation. Design features such as green roofs, green facades, natural sky lighting, jalis, water bodies are seen to create an aesthetically pleasing and serene environment. The role of architecture in waste management thus deduced was to create spaces that encourage deep reflection and thinking which in turn would change perceptions and actions and thus form holistic integration of the people and process. With grounds in that, the waste center is set to be a pioneering project that treats people’s mindset as much as it treats the wastes.