10 months on, MMC yet to act on HPCC decision to set up 15TPD bio-methanation plant
MARGAO
Just imagine a situation when operations at the Cacora waste treatment plant come to a halt for a couple of days, or if the plant reaches a stage of saturation in a year’s time.
Well, the immediate fall out will have a big bearing on waste management in the commercial capital, with the situation ends up raising a stink, or the Margao civic body sends the waste back to the Saligao waste treatment.
Indeed, when Waste Management Minister Atanasio Monserrate visited Sonsodo last week, he found the Margao Municipal Council’s waste management site free from stink and flies, suggesting a gradual turnaround taking shape at the decade’s old waste dumping site.
Goa Waste Management Corporation (GWMC) Levinson Martins, however, sounded a caution, insisting the turnaround at Sonsodo is temporary in nature, asserting that the Margao Municipal Council has just a year at its disposal to set up a waste treatment plant before the Cacora plant reaches a state of saturation.
The message from the GWMC Managing Director is loud and clear for the Margao councillors and the powers that be ruling the city – if the Cacora waste treatment plant is saturated with waste, or if the plant is shut down even for a couple of days for whatever reason, how will the MMC dispose of its waste in the absence of any alternative mechanism for waste disposal?
For an answer, consider this. On May 22, 2023 a similar question had come to haunt the Margao Municipal Council when Sonsodo had come under the High Court scanner. The Chief Minister Pramod Sawant-headed High Powered Committee (HPCC) was quick to take a decision to set up a 15TPD bio-methanation plant for Sonsodo and the report was submitted to the High Court.
Around 10 months down the line, the HPCC decision is still confined to the papers by the Margao Municipal Council. That’s not all. After preparing estimates for the 15TPD bio-methanation plant, the GWMC had communicated the same to Margao Municipal Council way back in October, 2023. Almost four and half months down the line, the civic body is yet to obtain an administrative approval for the proposed bio-methanation plant.
On the contrary, if one goes by the Margao Municipal Council’s status report filed in the High Court, the civic body has plans to again knock the doors of the High Powered Coordination Committee (HPCC) to seek guidance and appropriate decision from the Chief Minister-headed panel in view of what the MMC called as “subsequent technology” proposed at Sonsodo by Goa Energy Development Agency (GEDA).
This has thrown up another question – what has GEDA’s proposal got to do with the 15TPD waste treatment plant at Sonsodo when the gasification plant proposed by GEDA is nothing but an incinerator to incinerate dry waste? Will this gasification plant resolve the issue of disposal of 30-35 tons of wet waste generated in the commercial capital? And, if the answer is negative why is the MMC still going slow in setting up a waste treatment plant when the HPCC had given the green signal to set up a 15TPD waste plant at Sonsodo in May last.
In his submissions before the High Court last, MMC Chief Officer Gaurish Sankhwalkar has stated that the Margao Municipal Council requires some time to decide on this matter, throwing up another question – has the MMC written to the Chief Minister’s office to call for a HPCC meeting to take the crucial decision on selection of garbage treatment technology at Sonsodo?
The bare facts
- The Commercial capital generates around 35 tons of wet waste every day. The entire waste is now transported to Cacora plant for disposal by spending lakhs of rupees on transportation
- Around 27-30 tons of Margao waste goes to Cacora. But, it’s purely a temporary arrangement till capacity exists
- Once waste from Canacona, Dharbandora, Quepem and Sanguem taluka picks up, Cacora will reach a point of saturation. Margao waste will have to be stopped at Cacora since the Cacora plant is designed for these four talukas
- Wet waste capacity at Cacora is around 60 tons per day and dry waste 40 tons
- This window period must be utilised by the Margao Municipal Council to put a waste treatment system in place
- The gasification technology mooted by Goa Energy Development Agency is about setting up an incinerator to incinerate dry waste. This will solve the issue of dry waste and not the disposal of 35 tons of wet waste
Meet reveals MMC not in favour of taking up repair works at Sonsodo
MARGAO: If one goes by the statement made by Margao Municipal Chief Officer Gaurish Sankhwalkar at the just concluded Council meeting, the civic body is not in favour of taking up the works of repair to the Sonsodo waste management shed, besides equipment including the overhead crane, trommels, etc.
Reason: The Chief Officer has pointed out that since repairs to the shed and the equipment may cost the civic body over Rs 2-3 crore, which may not be cost effective, more so when the civic body is exploring the possibility of adopting new technologies at Sonsodo for waste treatment.
Officials of the Goa Waste Management Corporation (GWMC), however, say the civic body should have kept the existing waste management shed ready for use to take up waste treatment of around 10 tons of garbage every day through the windrow method.
GWMC’s suggestion seemed to have not found favour with the MMC Babus on the ground that the windrow method is an outdated technology, no more suited for Sonsodo.
