Chennai solid waste generation reduces by nearly 30 per cent

The amount of solid waste generated in Chennai has reduced from over 5,000 tonnes to under 3,700 tonnes during the COVID-19 lockdown period. This translates to a nearly 28 per cent drop, as per data compiled by the Greater Chennai Corporation.

The website Smartcity quotes a GCC official as saying, “We are collecting municipal solid waste in all the 200 wards on a daily basis. All conservancy workers are at work. But the garbage has reduced.”

One of the reasons cited for the reduction in the garbage is that many residents have left the city for their native villages, hence, many houses remain locked. This has reduced the waste collected during the door-to-door collection. Also, due to lockdown, many commercial establishments are not operating, which has reduced waste generation significantly.

As per the data, the civic body has only sent 1,600 tonnes of garbage to Kodungaiyur dump yard and 2,100 tonnes of garbage to Perungudi dump yard on Monday, March 31.

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