The Hindu 26.04.2013
Plan to set up biomedical waste treatment plant in city
M.P. Praveen
Plans are afoot to set up twin facilities for the scientific treatment and disposal of biomedical waste in the city.
Despite
being a hub of health care facilities (HCFs) generating increasingly
large quantities of biomedical waste, Kochi does not have a dedicated
treatment and disposal facility. The city now depends on the one run by
IMAGE (Indian Medical Association Goes Eco-friendly) at Palakkad.
At
present, the Common Biomedical Waste Treatment and Disposal Facility
set up by the Kerala chapter of IMA in 2003 handles the biomedical waste
generated by its member HCFs across the State.
“IMAGE
and the Kochi chapter of the Confederation of Real Estate Developers’
Association of India (CREDAI) had entered into an agreement in January
this year whereby the latter will identify the land and the former will
set up the plant. The plant will be ready within a year from the date
the plot is made available,” said Abraham Varghese, State joint
secretary, IMAGE.
CREDAI realised that biomedical
waste was being generated in domestic households and apartment complexes
and approached IMAGE for a solution.
“We are on the
lookout for suitable land and are holding discussions with the
corporation and other agencies. IMAGE has agreed to collect biomedical
waste from apartment complexes here till the time the plant is ready,”
said Najeeb Zakaria, president, Clean City Movement, CREDAI.
Mr.
Varghese said that unlike its relatively large facility with a built-up
space of 2 lakh sq.ft at Palakkad with the capacity to treat between 17
and 20 tonnes of biomedical waste a day, Ernakulam could do with a
smaller facility with the capacity to treat five tonnes a day, reducing
the extent of land needed to just about five acres.
Meanwhile,
Kerala Enviro Infrastructure Limited (KEIL), which runs Hazardous Waste
Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facility (CHWTSDF) at Ambalamedu, has
submitted a detailed project report to the State government and the
Kerala State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) seeking approval to set up
an incinerator and autoclave facility for the treatment and disposal of
biomedical waste.
“We have the advantage of having
land in our possession. We have received a no objection certificate from
the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation to set up a
facility in our existing campus of 50 acres of which 2.5 acres can be
dedicated for it. We are now waiting for the green signal from PCB,”
said N.K. Pillai, CEO, KEIL.
KSPCB chairman K.
Sajeevan said the proposal was under consideration. KEIL was one of the
respondents to the KSPCB’s invitation for an Expression of Interest for
setting up a biomedical waste treatment and disposal facility. A
presentation of the proposed facility was held before the KSPCB on March
25.
The facility with an estimated cost of about Rs.
4.5 crore will have the capacity to handle 10 to 12 tonnes of waste a
day. “The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests provides a subsidy
of up to 25 per cent of the total project cost not exceeding Rs. 1 crore
provided that subsidy component is matched by the State government,”
said Mr. Pillai.
IMAGE on the other is looking to set
up three facilities, one each in south, north, and central Kerala.
IMAGE has already bought 30 acres at Palode near Thiruvananthapuram,
where the work of the plant will be launched soon.
The
plant at Palakkad covers 80,000 beds in HFCs across the State with one
in-patient bed generating on an average 1.5 kg of biomedical waste a
day. Transportation of biomedical waste from across the State to
Palakkad is the biggest challenge since the Biomedical Waste (Management
and Handling) Rules 1998 stipulates that the biomedical waste generated
should be treated within 48 hours.
Despite being a hub of health care facilities, Kochi does not have a dedicated biomedical waste treatment and disposal facility.
