Directs Pollution Control Board to conduct audit after complaints of foul odour at plant; threatens action against Margao chief officer
MARGAO
Days after he was sworn in as a Minister in Chief Minister Pramod Sawant dispensation, Environment Minister Aleixo Sequeira descended in the SGPDA retail fish market to inspect the Margao Municipal Council-run 5TPD bio-methanation plant, only to find the plant non-functioning.
Sequeira not only issued instructions to the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) officials to conduct an audit of the bio-methanation plant to probe into complaints of stink, but has threatened to initiate proceedings against the Chief Officer of Margao Municipal Council under Section 5 of the Environmental Protection Act.
Accompanied by Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai, local councillors and GSPCB officials comprising of Sanjeev Joglekar, the Environment Minister saw for himself that the bio-methanation plant is not functioning when he was told a day ago that the plant is on a functioning mode.
Sequeira questioned the Margao Municipal engineer to find out how the slurry generated by the bio-methanation plant is getting discharged. When the engineer pointed out that the slurry will be disposed of at the Cacora waste treatment plant, Sequeira demanded to know how the civic body has been disposing of the slurry with locals complaining of the slurry finding its way into the adjoining fields.
That’s not all. When the Municipal engineer briefed the Minister that the MMC is presently sending the daily waste to the Saligao and Cacora plants, Sequeira demanded to know why there is a need for a bio-methanation plant if there is a solution in place.
The Environment Minister later told the media that the GSPCB will conduct a thorough investigation into the functioning of the bio-methanation plant in the form of an audit. He assured the Fatorda MLA as well as the citizens to do everything possible to ensure the plant does not emit stink and foul odour. “I have decided to inspect the bio-methanation plant following complaint lodged by MLA Vijai and citizens that the plant is emitting foul odour and non-functioning. I was told yesterday that the plant is operating at the site, but my inspection revealed that the plant is not functioning,” he added.
Saying that the GSPCB will conduct an audit over the plant functioning, Sequeira said the Board will even take action against the Margao Municipal Chief Officer, if required, under Section 5 of the Environment Protection Act.
After being informed that the bio-methanation has been set up by a Pune-based firm, Sequeira observed “what is the spirit of giving the contract to the Pune party to run the plant”.
GSPCB official Sanjeev Joglekar pointed out that an environmental audit of the plant was conducted some time ago, and the results were not encouraging. He also conceded that the bio-methanation plant at the PDA retail market has no consent to operate from the GSPCB, pointing out that the Pollution Control Board has issued a show cause notice to the MMC to comply with the discrepancies.
Vijai smells scam into plans to set up another bio-methanation plant at SGPDA market
MARGAO: Smelling a rat in the Margao Municipal Council’s decision to set up another bio-methanation plant at the SGPDA wholesale fish market, Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai on Friday said that a scam is in the making with the civic body proposing a bio-methanation plant in the wholesale fish market when the existing plant is a big failure.
Sardesai demanded to know what purpose will the proposed bio-methanation plant serve at the PDA wholesale fish when the market is churning out only thermocol and fish waste, which cannot be treated by a bio-methanation plant. “I fail to understand why the MMC is in a hurry to spend crores of rupees on another bio-methanation plant when the existing plant has turned out to be a big failure,” he said.
That’s not all. The Fatorda MLA pointed out that the Council had taken a decision that the Council should not go ahead with another bio-methanation plant unless expressly directed by the Council.
“The MMC will only indulge in a new scam if the Council goes ahead with the bio-methanation plant at the wholesale fish market,” he said, while saying he expects the Minister to be true to his word and take the complaint against the bio-methanation plant at the PDA retail market to its logical conclusion.
