Union Carbide factory waste will not impact environment: MP CM

Amid concerns of residents over the disposal of chemical residue from the Union Carbide factory in Bhopal Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Thursday said that disposal of the toxic waste will not have a negative impact on the environment in Pithampur where it is to be incinerated.

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On January 2, 12 trucks carrying 377 tonnes of waste left from the factory reached Pithampur near Indore. This chemical waste had been lying in the factory premises, where the Bhopal gas tragedy of December 1984 broke out.

A PIL was filed by activist Alok Pratap Singh in the MP High Court in 2004 to hold US -based Dow Chemicals responsible for pollution at the site and sought immediate action on the clean-up of the factory.

Acting on the PIL, the court instituted a task force chaired by the Secretary, Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals. A year later, in 2005, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) identified an incinerator owned by Bharuch Enviro-Infrastructure Limited (BEIL) in Ankleshwar, Gujarat, for safe disposal of the waste. Following protests by Gujarat residents, the idea was dropped in 2007.

The CPCB identified other Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facility (TSDF) sites including Dungigal in Hyderabad and Taloja in Mumbai. In 2010, the SCauthorised the incineration of waste at the TSDF in Pithampur, MP.

However, the MP Government challenged the order two years later, stating that facility was not technically sound for incineration of the toxic waste.

Germany-based Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ) had submitted a proposal to the Centre to airlift the waste and incinerate it. Following opposition from German activists, the Rs 24.56 crore proposal was withdrawn. In 2015, the Centre conducted a successful trial run at the Pithampur TSDF but the plans were suspended following opposition from residents. No action was taken for seven years. On March 4, 2024, the Centre disbursed Rs 126 crore to dispose of the waste.

The MP HC on December 3 rebuked authorities for not clearing the Union Carbide site despite directions from even the SC. Following this, the government acted on transporting waste to Pithampur. Now, 337 metric tonnes will be incinerated at 1,200°C.