New Construction Waste Rules Lay Stress On Accountability & Recycling

India’s environment ministry has introduced Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), mandatory recycling targets and other provisions to promote recycling and sustainable waste management in the construction and demolition (C&D) sector.

Under the newly notified Environment (Construction and Demolition) Waste Management Rules, 2025, local or development authorities are now required to include waste recycling provisions in approvals for all construction projects. The rules mandate that EPR targets in construction, reconstruction and demolition projects be regulated through a waste management plan.

“Every producer shall prepare a waste management plan in respect of each project which shall assess the quantum of waste from all streams in a construction, reconstruction and demolition project and submit it to the local authority for approval,” it said.

The rules define the responsibilities of waste generators (or producers), requiring them to collect and segregate waste into separate material streams, store it safely, and ensure recycling or proper handover to authorised agencies or recyclers. They must also take necessary measures to prevent air pollution, avoid littering, and minimise public nuisance during waste collection, segregation and storage.

“The revised rules mark an important shift by placing more responsibility on waste generators and encouraging private sector participation,” said Sree Kumar Kumaraswamy, Program Director, Clean Air Action, WRI India. “This creates opportunities for new business models in C&D waste management and enables data-driven planning through digital tools like the online portal.”

When calculating EPR targets, debris such as cement concrete, bricks, plaster, stone, rubble, and ceramics will be considered. However, reusable or resalable materials, such as iron, wood, plastic, metal, and glass, will not be counted towards EPR targets and will be managed under prevailing regulations.

The new rules also mandate the utilisation of processed C&D waste in certain construction activities. As per it, projects with a built-up area of 20,000 square metres or more and road construction projects must use processed waste. Local authorities are responsible for monitoring compliance.

The rules also talk about waste storage facilities. Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) must identify and set up intermediate waste storage facilities and processing sites — locally or on a cluster basis — within one year. They are also responsible for establishing collection points, ensuring waste transport to registered recyclers. Non-compliance cases must be referred to the State or Union Territory Pollution Control Boards, as per the new rules.

The rules also introduce provisions for environmental compensation. Producers, recyclers, storage operators, or developers will have to pay compensation based on the harm caused to the environment or public health if they fail to follow proper waste disposal and recycling rules.

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) will manage the compensation collected in a separate account. These funds will be used for collecting and recycling uncollected, legacy, or orphan waste, supporting research and development, incentivising recyclers, and aiding local bodies in managing waste effectively.

The rules also talk about a central steering committee that will oversee the implementation of the rules. The CPCB Chairperson will chair it and include representatives from several ministries (Environment, Housing, Roads, Rural Development, etc.), NITI Aayog, Bureau of Indian Standards, Indian Roads Congress, recycling sector, real estate sector, and other expert bodies.

The rules set clear EPR targets for waste recycling in reconstruction and demolition projects — 25% for 2025-26, rising to 100% from 2028-29 onwards. Targets for the utilisation of processed waste in construction begin at 5% in 2026-27 and increase to 25% by 2030-31 and beyond. Similar targets are set for road construction projects.

Kumaraswamy said, “The mandated minimum targets for using recycled C&D waste in construction and infrastructure projects are especially promising. They can help create a reliable market, which may drive down costs over time and incentivise innovation in material recycling and reuse.”

The new rules also talk about centralised interface-based online monitoring and compliance assessment. Appreciating this, Kumaraswamy said that it has a “strong potential to bring transparency to the entire C&D waste lifecycle — from generation to recycling” and, if implemented well, he added, “it can significantly strengthen compliance and data-driven decision-making, fostering a more accountable and efficient system.

A growing challenge and limited progress so far

The construction sector contributes 8% to India’s GDP and employs the second-largest workforce after agriculture. With ongoing urbanisation and rising aspirations, the sector is expected to grow. A joint report by think tanks Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), WRI India and RMI for the G20 Secretariat in December 2024 notes that India is already adding 700-900 million square metres of floor space annually, while the national highway network expanded by over 60% between 2014 and 2023. To meet future demands, India will need to develop 15 square kilometres of land every day until 2050, in addition to redeveloping old infrastructure.

This rapid expansion is expected to increase construction and demolition (C&D) waste significantly. Estimates vary as per the report. In 2018, the Building Materials and Technology Promotion Council (BMTPC) estimated annual C&D waste to be 100 million tonnes, while the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) projected 150-500 million tonnes in 2024. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) estimates that total solid waste will reach 165 million tonnes annually by 2030.

Policymakers have long recognised the scale of the challenge. A 2022 report by the MoHUA noted that India’s annual material consumption rose six-fold between 1970 and 2015 — from 1.18 billion to 7 billion tonnes — and is projected to reach 14.2 billion tonnes by 2030.

In response, the Government of India introduced various regulations. The Municipal Solid Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules were notified in 2000, and in March 2016, the Ministry of Environment released dedicated Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules. However, construction activity has surged over the past two decades, and experts say the problem of C&D waste has grown substantially.

According to a 2023 report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a New Delhi-based think tank, the 2016 rules were poorly implemented and had several shortcomings. These included a lack of notification of bylaws by cities, inadequate identification of waste collection points, absence of mechanisms to promote recycled products, a weak market for recycled materials and poor institutional capacity within urban local bodies.

The CEEW, WRI India and RMI report observed, “…in practise, a significant quantity of C&D waste is handled informally, either through backfilling, or illegal dumping in vulnerable areas. This has health and environmental impacts such as aggravating air pollution and GHG emissions, soil contamination, impact on climate and flooding.”

“There has not been much success in the implementation of these rules,” said Bharati Chaturvedi of the Chintan Environmental Research and Action group, which works in the waste sector. According to Chaturvedi, one of the reasons why this type of waste is managed poorly is that it is not a profitable activity. “It is our job to make it a profitable and useful business, and we have not done that,” she said.

Can the new rules fix the old problems?

The revised framework for managing C&D waste, notified in April 2025, emphasises ensuring compliance by waste generators. Compared to the 2016 version, which had 10 provisions, the updated rules are more comprehensive, with 21 provisions covering a wider range of issues.

Stalin D., director at Mumbai-based NGO Vanashakti, said the rules could “certainly help in curbing the menace of illegal dumping in public and natural spaces. Ecologically important areas, especially wetlands, have borne the brunt of such dumping.” He noted that the 2016 rules lacked a central portal to monitor waste generation and had weak reporting systems.

The 2025 rules introduce provisions for EPR certificates, allowing waste generators to meet their targets by purchasing certificates from registered recyclers. “The requirement to buy EPR certificates in advance is a good step — it ensures that the cost of proper disposal is paid upfront,” Stalin added.

However, experts have flagged several concerns, too. “A key gap remains in addressing small waste generators, who contribute significantly to unmanaged waste,” said Kumaraswamy. “There’s an opportunity to expand the rules’ impact by creating clearer mechanisms to engage and support them within the formal recycling ecosystem.”

Stalin also pointed out that implementation could be hampered by limited staffing at pollution control boards.

According to Bharati Chaturvedi of the Chintan Foundation, the rules lack clarity on EPR responsibilities. “In e-waste and plastics, brand owners are clearly accountable. But in this case, who is responsible — the house owner, the contractor, or a government body like PWD?” she asked. “We still don’t have a clear definition, and that’s a concern.”

(Published under Creative Commons from Mongabay India. Read the original article here)