Sustainable Waste Management in Higher Education Institutions—A Case Study in AC Tech, Anna University, Chennai, India Jayapriya Jayaprakash and Hema Jagadeesan Abstract Educational institutions are major contributors to municipal solid waste (MSW) such as vegetable wastes (cooked and uncooked), leftover food, packaging materials, papers, plastics, rags and other fabrics, dust, ash and a variety of com- bustible and noncombustible substances. Approximately, 500 kg/d of vegetable and food waste from the canteens and mess and 8,000 kg/month of paper and hardboards are generated in the educational institutions with a footfall of 12000 persons per day. The key problems faced by the institutions due to solid waste generation are (i) cost of disposing the waste appropriately, (ii) clogging of drains due to dispersal of the waste into the surrounding and (iii) vector breeding apart from the contamination of soil from these wastes. Therefore, appropriate collection and disposal of generated solid waste is crucial in MSW management. Nowadays, institutions focus on minimizing the amount of waste generates and maximizing the value-added products extracted from them. This chapter enlightens the importance of solid waste management in the educational institutions and responsibilities of the institution for proper waste treatment. Keywords Solid waste management · Educational institution · Composting · Sustainability 1 Introduction Higher educational institutions accommodate young adults. This target group is a very important one in all aspects of nation-building. A community can be clean only if all sectors of it practice proper waste management. Institutions, especially J. Jayaprakash (B ) Department of Applied Science and Technology, A.C. Technology, Anna University, Chennai 600025, India e-mail: jayapriyachem@gmail.com H. Jagadeesan Department of Biotechnology, PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India © Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020 A. Z. Yaser (ed.), Green Engineering for Campus Sustainability, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-7260-5_12 163