The Hindu Kerala (Kochi) 01.09.2016
Local body resolves to go ahead with energy plant
The proposed waste-to-energy plant at Brahmapuram will
have two units, one for producing refuse-derived fuel blocks and another
for generating power, Mayor Soumini Jain has said.
Replying
to a debate in the corporation council on Wednesday, Ms. Jain said the
project proponent would seek all mandatory clearances for the proposed
plant. The local body will have the responsibility to provide the
required quantity of waste for treatment at the plant.
The BPCL has entered into an agreement with the Kochi Corporation to provide Rs.25 crore viability gap fund.
The
agency will provide financial assistance in five instalments, and an
agreement was signed with the petroleum company on Tuesday, she said.
The
Mayor also offered to conduct a technical presentation for councillors
to have a better understanding of the project. CPI(M) councillor K.J.
Antony said the waste-to-energy project had not been proved successful
anywhere in the country, and that the local body was heading for trouble
by going ahead with it.
Poornima Narayanan, another
CPI(M) councillor, expressed apprehensions about the availability of 300
tonnes of waste required for the project.
ABC programme
Ms.
Jain said the Animal Birth Control programme was a legally valid
project to control canine population. The law permits culling of only
rabid and severely injured dogs, she added.