TEHRAN –The Department of Environment (DOE) aims to use artificial intelligence (AI) in waste management through a specifically defined project, an official with DOE has said.

Referring to the fact that plastic accounts for a large amount of waste, Mehdi Khadem-Sameni said the ministry of industry is responsible for supervising the implementation of waste management law and the distribution of plastic bags, but the results have not been satisfying so far, IRNA reported.

He made the remarks on the occasion of Clean Earth Week.

The National Clean Earth Week will start on April 22 with the theme of “Investing in land, developing recycling and green productivity.”

The event will put the emphasis on reducing the use of plastic bags across the country.

The Department of Environment plans to enforce the law that ban plastic bag distribution on Clean Earth Week, the official added.

There are five types of waste, including, urban, rural, agricultural, medical, and industrial waste. Particular industrial and medical waste demand additional measures, Khadem-Sameni added.

The DOE has compiled and approved the standard of biodegradable bags as part of regulations to reduce plastic bags consumption, he said.

Many countries including Pakistan and Bangladesh have already implemented bans on plastic bag distribution.

Failing to observe the law will result in legal actions to be taken.

Considering the high volume of waste produced in the country and its adverse effects on human health and the environment, it seems that the revision of waste management is very crucial.

Within the past Iranian calendar year, March 2023 – March 2024, a total of 5,117 tons were produced per day in Tehran with 200 to 250 tons known to be medical waste, and some 828 cases were industrial.

Improper disposal costs environment $1.7b annually

Improper management of waste in the country causes 870 trillion rials (some $1.7 billion) in damage to the environment and natural resources every year, an official with the Department of Environment (DOE) has said.

Converting waste into fertilizer and energy, using standard waste incinerators, and modern methods such as digesters and pyrolysis are among the known strategies used in the world for handling waste, but these methods do not exist in the country, he added.

The current methods used in the country for waste management are old, the official noted, regretting that up to 80 percent of the waste that can be recycled to be used for different purposes is discarded.

“Out of around 600 waste management centers across the country, just four to five are standardized. In other words, some 96 percent of the waste is just dumped in landfills.”

According to World Bank, the pollution of resources in 2004 incurred a loss of about 8 billion dollars to the country, and the figure rose to about 10 billion dollars in 2009.

Developing AI infrastructure

By allocating 50 trillion rials (some $100 million), the public and the private sector will develop the infrastructure for artificial intelligence operators in the current calendar year, which started on March 20.

The importance of artificial intelligence cannot be denied. However, it’s hard to keep pace with the rapid [global] growth in the area, Rouhollah Dehqani-Firouzabadi, the vice president for science and technology, said, IRNA reported.

He made the remarks while attending the first meeting of the national steering committee’s working group on artificial intelligence.

The main objective behind founding the national steering committee is to promote and develop AI in the country with the help of both the private sector and the public sector, he added.

Dehqani-Firouzabadi went on to say that the national committee is not seeking to hold a share in management. It aims to facilitate and coordinate the development of AI by developing a streamlined, dynamic, and synergetic structure. It also endeavors to pave the way for individuals to participate in the development of artificial intelligence.

On December 3, 2023, President Ebrahim Raisi issued an executive order for the establishment of the 'National Steering Committee and the National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Center'.

MT/MG