Source: IE
Context: The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) has issued guidelines to use urban solid waste in building National Highways.
This move aims to reduce the environmental impact of sourcing construction materials like soil, often taken from agricultural fields. Successful pilot projects on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway and Ahmedabad-Dholera Expressway have demonstrated the feasibility of using inert waste material for highway embankments. With around 1700 lakh tons of accumulated waste across 2304 dump sites, utilizing this material can mitigate environmental hazards and support sustainable highway development.
Significance:
Using urban solid waste in highway construction reduces environmental impact, minimizes soil depletion from agriculture fields, addresses the issue of overflowing landfill sites, and promotes sustainable infrastructure development.
