Development of a Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Action in the Indian waste sector

The solid waste management (SWM) sector is India’s second largest methane emitter. Every year, around 75 million tonnes of solid waste are generated in India. Thus, there is an enormous potential for mitigating India’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through reforms in the country’s SWM sector.

"Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs)" are potential climate policy instruments suited to trigger a transformation in India’s solid waste sector. A feasibility study conducted by adelphi and Perspectives on the potential of a NAMA in the Indian waste sector identified various technology- and policy-driven mitigation options that could significantly contribute to reducing India’s GHG emissions from solid waste.

Against this backdrop, the same consortium, consisting of adelphi and Perspectives, supported GIZ in developing a NAMA in this sector. The project team built its work on the findings from the feasibility study and, as a first step, identified the preferred NAMA option. Then, it developed a baseline for the relevant mitigation option. Moreover, the project team designed a robust monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) system to quantify the emission reductions achieved through the implementation of the selected NAMA option as well as to measure sustainable development co-benefits. The implementation of the NAMA was further facilitated through capacity building measures and a continued engagement with the waste sector’s most influential stakeholders, including state actors from the local, state and central level, as well as private sector representatives, the non-profit sector, research institutions and international donor organisations.