NGT fines Tambaram civic body for illegal waste dumping

Tambaram Corporation has been ordered by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) to pay a compensation of Rs. 21 lakh for breaching the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) ruling on proper solid waste disposal in Thiruneermalai.

Waste collected from residential units and commercial complexes in and around Thiruneermalai was thrown alongside the Adyar river for more than 11 years, reports The Times of India.

Background

Thiruneermalai, with a population of 40,000 people, creates approximately nine tonnes of trash every day, according to official data. Only one tonne of garbage is properly recycled, while the remaining two tonnes are utilised to make manure. The rest is deposited near a body of water

In 2016, residents approached the NGT Southern Zone, which directed authorities not to dump waste there and clear the accumulated waste by adopting scientific methods. Thiruneermalai Town Panchayat roped in private firm Allwin Dumpyard Segregation to biomine the accumulated (or legacy) waste.

Four years ago, the state government approved a budget of Rs. 78 lakh for the removal of 8,600 cubic metres of waste dumped at Thiruneermalai. However, Anna University, which conducted a study of the area in 2020, found that the local government had not yet cleared 58 percent of the residual garbage.

The NGT had set March 2021 as the timeframe for completing biomining but the TNPCB found this incomplete in September 2021 and demanded a compensation of Rs. 21 lakh to be paid by February 24, the next hearing date in the case.