PANAJI
Goa’s municipal solid waste management system is showing signs of stress, with the quantity of untreated garbage increasing nearly five-fold over the last four years with over 25 tonnes of waste left untreated daily. The State’s waste processing efficiency has dropped from 98 per cent in 2021 to 87 per cent in 2025.
Data on municipal solid waste generated and processed shows that while Goa generated its highest waste load of 250 tonnes per day (TPD) in 2021, it managed to process almost the entire volume, leaving only around 5 TPD untreated.
However, despite handling lower waste quantities in recent years, the State has failed to maintain the same processing performance.
In 2025, Goa is generating around 193 TPD of waste daily, but only 87 per cent is being processed, resulting in nearly 25 TPD remaining untreated every day, almost five times higher than the unprocessed waste recorded in 2021.
The figures indicate a widening gap between waste generation and treatment capacity, raising concerns over the State’s ability to cope with increasing urbanisation and tourism-linked waste.
Waste generation dropped sharply to 128 TPD in 2022, when the State processed 88 per cent of the waste generated. However, the waste load began rising again, touching 181 TPD in 2023 and increasing further to 193 TPD in 2024, a level that has remained unchanged in 2025.
Despite the increase in waste generation over the last three years, processing levels have remained static at 87 per cent from 2023 onwards.
At present, Goa has two operational integrated municipal solid waste treatment facilities. The North Goa region is serviced by the 250 TPD Integrated Solid Waste Management Facility at Saligao, while the South Goa region is catered by the 100 TPD Manohar Parrikar Integrated Solid Waste Management Facility at Cacora, established by the Goa Waste Management Corporation (GWMC).
To address the increasing waste burden, the GWMC is in the process of setting up a 250 TPD Integrated Common Municipal Waste Management Facility at Verna Industrial Estate, aimed at strengthening treatment capacity in South Goa.
Additionally, another facility has been proposed at Bainguinim in Tiswadi, with a planned capacity of 100 TPD, which is expected to cater to the central belt of Goa.
