CPCB: No steps taken to clean up groundwater at Bandhwari

Bhartesh Singh Thakur

Says landfill still active I public protest halted waste disposal by G’gram, F’bad MCs at new dumps

“At present, the height of the dump has increased to 40 m and the quantity of waste to 33 lakh tonne as fresh trash at the rate of 2,000 tonne per day is still being dumped at the site and less quantity is being bio-mined.” – Central Pollution Control Board

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 23

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has pulled up the local bodies of Gurugram and Faridabad over the Bandhwari dumping site while pointing out that the “steps for the decontamination of groundwater have not been taken”.

It says that the dumping site was still active due to the “dumping of fresh waste at 2,000 TPD (tonne per day) generating leachate” and “33 lakh tonne of non-bioremediated waste”.

In its fresh report, dated January 13, submitted before the National Green Tribunal (NGT), the CPCB says that “as informed, the treatment and disposal of fresh solid waste by the Municipal Corporations of Gurugram and Faridabad at the new identified sites in Farukkhnagar and Sihi could not be undertaken due to public protest” at these places.

In the last NGT hearing on September 30, 2020, the CPCB was asked to give an independent report as on December 31, 2020, on the dumping site, particularly with regard to groundwater contamination and proper manifest system for the treatment of leachate.

The dumping site is located near Gurugram while the waste is dumped from both Gurugram and Faridabad.

The CPCB had earlier inspected the dumping site on September 18, 2020, and at that time the height of the dumping site was 36 m and the waste was 31 lakh tonne. “At present, the height of the dump has increased to 40 m and the quantity of waste to approximately 33 lakh tonne as fresh trash at the rate of 2,000 TPD is still being dumped at the site and less quantity is being bio-mined,” the CPCB says.

Notably, both the local bodies had claimed in their action plan that 17.5 lakh tonne of legacy waste would be bioremediated by September, 2020. However, just 1.17 lakh tonne (3.6 per cent) of legacy waste has been bioremediated till December 31, 2020, of the total 33 lakh tonne dumped. Also, only approximately 66,982 tonne bioremediated legacy waste has been processed through trommels in the last more than one year.

“In December 2020, the average quantity of bio-mined waste per day was approximately 900 tonne whereas the installed capacity for bio-mining is 2,700 TPD through nine trommels. The Gurugram MC is not able to utilise the trommels to full capacity as the disposal of screened fractions is a major issue being faced, creating space constraints at the site,” the CPCB adds. The CPCB has informed the NGT that 350 KLD leachate was generated from the dumped waste and collected in seven ponds having a total capacity of 36,000 KL and at present, 20,800 KL leachate was filled in these ponds. The treatment of leachate is being carried out at the rate of 550 KLD with treatment plants.

Earlier, the action plan submitted by both the local bodies had listed new sites for fresh waste but in vain.

Meanwhile, the NGT has set the next date of hearing on March 9. Moreover, Aravalli Bachao, a citizens’ group, will hold a protest on Sunday against the proposed waste-to-energy plant coming up there. They are also demanding the removal of the dumping site.