In the last decade, the subject of Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) has witnessed an encouraging upsurge. The stakeholders are asserting the need for breaking the silence of the patriarchal socio-cultural system in India. Women’s empowerment is at the heart of the movement including awareness drives and building toilets. Emphasis is solely placed on de-stigmatising menstruation to reclaim the fundamental right to life, equality, and dignity for women. Such initiatives have led to an increased use of disposable sanitary napkins. This is especially because of the government’s directive to provide free or subsidised sanitary napkins to schoolgirls.
In recent years, the dialogues around MHM have expanded to include the challenges around the disposal and management of disposable sanitary napkins. Due to ambiguities inherent in India’s waste laws, the growing stream of this reject waste confounds researchers, social workers, and policy makers alike.
Initiatives promoting Incinerators
In a rush to handle menstrual waste, the Indian government is promoting use of mini incinerators in schools and women’s sanitary complexes to burn sanitary pads. Directions issued by the Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan (NBA) guidelines in December 2013 to this effect. This official memorandum issued by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation reads:
“Setting up incinerators in schools, in women’s community sanitary complexes, in primary health centres, or in any other suitable place in village, etc. can be taken up.”
The recent Swachh Bharat Swachh Vidyalaya mission’s principle includes at least one incinerator in girl’s toilet block. And a niche to keep sanitary napkins. In certain states, like Tamil Nadu, UNICEF has helped to build incinerators at schools. And promote simple, single-chamber, iron-drum incinerators for home usage. Seizing the market potential of this government directive, corporations have developed and promoted mini electric incinerators. The examples of these are NapiBurn and Reprocide which are placed in many schools and colleges in India. Swati Bedekar from Vatsalya Foundation, a social entrepreneur in the field of menstrual hygiene promotes clay incinerator for home usage.
Environmental concerns with use of Incinerators
There are serious concerns about the technology of mini incinerators. These incinerators by law have to be approved by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB). Unfortunately as of yet, there are no provisions to monitor the emissions from these incinerators. Nor any peer-reviewed studies testifying that emissions from such incinerators do not adversely affect public health.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends incinerating all health-related waste only at temperatures over 800 degrees. For when plastic polymer products, such as disposable pads, are burned at lower temperatures they typically release asphyxiant and irritant gases into the atmosphere.
Further, the biodegradable components, such as cellulose, wood-pulp, cotton in disposable pads often contain furans and dioxins. Furans are present in pesticides that are sprayed on inorganically-grown cotton or tree plantations. And dioxins are present if a chlorine-bleach process is used during manufacturing of the sanitary napkins. Dioxins and furans are among the most deadly toxins known to science, even in trace quantities.
When pads are burnt, these toxins are released into atmosphere and travel a long way from the point of emission.
WHO warns that:
“exposure to dioxins and furans may lead to the impairment of the immune system, of development for the nervous system, the endocrine system and the reproductive functions”
The Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternative recommends applying the “precautionary principle” to incinerator technology. They point out that even in high temperature incinerators (>800 °C), if the temperatures are not uniformly maintained then dioxins and furans can form in cooler pockets. This may happen during start-up or shut-down periods of the machine.
Actions taken to address some concerns
Given these challenges in incineration technology, in 2012, the state government of Kerala, upon the recommendation of its technological committee, banned installation of mini incinerators. As “they were of single chamber working in low temperature and not complying with CPCB norms.” Making similar observations about the four mini incinerators installed by the Pune Municipal Corporation, Laxmi Narayan, general secretary of SwaCH, further adds that this waste management solution is not economically sustainable as the operational cost of incinerating one sanitary napkin comes to Rs. 2 – including waste collection, electricity charge, etc.
Last but not least, activists maintain that rather than promoting decentralized incinerators, without any monitoring mechanisms in place, a better solution would be to declare sanitary waste as bio-medical waste. Which is then incinerated in registered and approved centralized incinerators. Municipal governments are not keen on this solution. Given the sheer amount of menstrual hygiene waste that is generated, currently estimated at 9000 tons per month nationwide.
We at Eco Femme naturally recommend reusable menstrual hygiene products in keeping with our values of caring for our bodies and the body of the earth. Now that you understand the significance of switching to sustainable products, we invite you to visit our page for a detailed look at the contents of our organic certified cloth pads.
With thanks to Bindu of earth&us & Dhirendra for contributing to this article.