While illegal dumping of garbage has become a fact of life, industrial and hazardous wastes are now becoming another common eyesore. A huge quantity of industrial wastes is lying in and around the City posing threat to the environment. Industrial wastes such as plastic cuttings, stone crushed powder, glass wool, ceramic wastes, metallic wastes and hazardous wastes such as waste oil, incinerator ash, effluent treatment plant sludge, sulphur, copper sulphate, printed circuit boards, pharmaceutical wastes etc have been dumped illegally in 60 places in the City.
According to Dr Lakshmikanth of the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board and Mr Mahendra Kumar M C and Mr Muniraju of the German Technical Co-operation (GTZ), who recently completed a survey across the City, the industrial wastes in these ‘wild dumping sites’ add up to a whopping 25,000 tonnes.
These dumping sites are located along and in proximity to the main highways - Mysore road, Tumkur road, Hosur road, Bannerghatta road, Old Madras Road, Doddaballapur road and Airport Road.
The total quantity of wastes, though roughly estimated at 25,000 tonnes, can be much more if a systematic long-term survey is conducted, says Mahendra Kumar M C. Out of the 60 dump sites, 27 posed a high risk of contamination of water and soil resources. At some places, the wastes were spread over an area of 20 acres. Thirty-five sites had mixture of both domestic and industrial wastes. In some places, the wastes have been dumped on private lands, close to water bodies, agricultural fields and low lying areas. The wastes are also set on fire causing air pollution.
Says Ms Beenesha P, Chief Environmental Advisor, GTZ: “Improper disposal of industrial wastes could lead to water pollution due to leaching during monsoon season and soil pollution. There is a need to monitor these wastes to determine the extent of damage.” According to the Hazardous Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1989, industries have to handle and dispose of hazardous wastes without affecting the environment. Since a Treatment Storage and Disposal Facility (TSDF) or a hazardous wastes landfill site has not been set up in Karnataka, the industry has to store wastes in their premises till a TSDF is set up. But not all industries follow these rules.
Some of them adopt the easy way out by disposing wastes wherever land is available. The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board is now finalising the setting up of a TSDF in Dobbespet near Nelamangala and the facility is expected to come up next year.
KSPCB Member-Secretary Ramaiah says: “Action would be taken against defaulting industries. The wastes also need to be analysed to assess how much of them is really hazardous.”
But, what about the non-hazardous industrial wastes? A Ministry of Environment and Forests official says that while hazardous wastes, garbage and bio-medical wastes have separate laws for regulation, the non-hazardous industrial solid wastes have no rules for their safe disposal.
This article appeared in Deccan Herald on 13th July, 2003.
According to Dr Lakshmikanth of the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board and Mr Mahendra Kumar M C and Mr Muniraju of the German Technical Co-operation (GTZ), who recently completed a survey across the City, the industrial wastes in these ‘wild dumping sites’ add up to a whopping 25,000 tonnes.
These dumping sites are located along and in proximity to the main highways - Mysore road, Tumkur road, Hosur road, Bannerghatta road, Old Madras Road, Doddaballapur road and Airport Road.
The total quantity of wastes, though roughly estimated at 25,000 tonnes, can be much more if a systematic long-term survey is conducted, says Mahendra Kumar M C. Out of the 60 dump sites, 27 posed a high risk of contamination of water and soil resources. At some places, the wastes were spread over an area of 20 acres. Thirty-five sites had mixture of both domestic and industrial wastes. In some places, the wastes have been dumped on private lands, close to water bodies, agricultural fields and low lying areas. The wastes are also set on fire causing air pollution.
Says Ms Beenesha P, Chief Environmental Advisor, GTZ: “Improper disposal of industrial wastes could lead to water pollution due to leaching during monsoon season and soil pollution. There is a need to monitor these wastes to determine the extent of damage.” According to the Hazardous Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1989, industries have to handle and dispose of hazardous wastes without affecting the environment. Since a Treatment Storage and Disposal Facility (TSDF) or a hazardous wastes landfill site has not been set up in Karnataka, the industry has to store wastes in their premises till a TSDF is set up. But not all industries follow these rules.
Some of them adopt the easy way out by disposing wastes wherever land is available. The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board is now finalising the setting up of a TSDF in Dobbespet near Nelamangala and the facility is expected to come up next year.
KSPCB Member-Secretary Ramaiah says: “Action would be taken against defaulting industries. The wastes also need to be analysed to assess how much of them is really hazardous.”
But, what about the non-hazardous industrial wastes? A Ministry of Environment and Forests official says that while hazardous wastes, garbage and bio-medical wastes have separate laws for regulation, the non-hazardous industrial solid wastes have no rules for their safe disposal.
Waste dumped on these highways
Mysore road
Tumkur road
Hosur and Bannerghatta road
Old Madras road
Doddaballapur road
Airport road
Mysore road
Tumkur road
Hosur and Bannerghatta road
Old Madras road
Doddaballapur road
Airport road
This article appeared in Deccan Herald on 13th July, 2003.
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