The Hindu 03.01.2012
Brahmapuram: accumulated waste to be cleared before June
Processing could not be carried out for a year and a half
The waste accumulated at the Brahmapuram solid waste treatment plant
will be cleared before the onset of monsoon in June, according to
authorities.
Inclement weather has affected the processing as the
waste accumulated inside the plant is absorbing moisture, and the water
seeping into the floor through the cracks, said Babu Ambat, Executive
Director of the Centre for Environment and Development (CED), which has
been running the plant for the Kochi corporation.
The civic authorities had brought in the agency for
running the plant some time back when the installed machines developed
technical snag. The floor where the machinery was installed had sunk.
The plant site had subsequently become a waste dumping yard as the
machines could not be operated. Huge quantity of waste has been
accumulated at the plant site as the processing could not be carried out
for nearly a year and a half, during the term of the previous
corporation council.
According to Dr. Ambat, plans were afoot to dry the waste out in open.
The increased moisture in the waste was causing some
glitches in processing. The situation can be avoided if the waste is
dried in the yard, he said.
The increased moisture and the resultant snags were
preventing the capacity utilisation of the plant. Though the plant can
now be operated nonstop for around 20 hours, it can be effectively run
for around 15 hours only. Much time is lost in de-clogging the machines,
he said.
Capacity
The plant has an installed capacity to process 250
tonnes of waste a day. Currently, around 60 tonnes is processed and this
can be gradually stepped up to the range of 150 tonnes to 200 tonnes a
day.
If weather permits, the backlog would be cleared within four months, he said.
The new civic regime has evinced interest in taking
forward the functioning of the plant. The agency hopes to relieve itself
from the job of running the plant within two years. The civic
administration has been apprised of the ground situation, he said.
The segregated collection of waste was better in Kochi
when compared to Thiruvananthapuram. The situation needs to be improved
in some areas and the issue has been brought to the notice of the civic
administration, he said.
The agency is waiting for the completion of the road works for clearing the non-degradable refuse from the plant site.
Once the road project is completed, these materials can be transported to the sanitary landfill site, he said.