Proposal to take excess garbage to Vilappilsala

The Hindu Ministers P.K. Kunhalikutty and V.S. Sivakumar and Mayor K. Chandrika attending an all-party meeting on the Vilappilsala garbage plant issue, in the city on Tuesday. Photo: S. Gopakumar

Source-level treatment of waste to be promoted

Committing itself to continuing with the practice of treatment of garbage at source in the capital city, the government on Tuesday made out a case for a small quantity of garbage to be taken to the garbage treatment plant at Vilappilsala for treatment.

This proposal was mooted by Industries Minister P.K. Kunhalikutty during talks with the representatives of the Vilappil Samara Samithi and later at an all-party meeting on the garbage issue.

A large portion of the garbage generated in the capital city would either be treated at source or be buried in identified spots. However, there would still be some tonnage of garbage left out. This would be taken to Vilappilsala till the network of small treatment plants and large processing plants planned by the government became operational.

Samithi representatives told the government that they needed five days to consider this proposal and to present it locally at Vilappil. Samithi representatives later told media persons that they would present the government's proposal to the people of Vilappil who would have the final word on the subject.

Briefing press persons on the talks, Mr. Kunhalikutty said the government viewed both sides of the problem—the suffering of the people of Vilappil and the garbage crisis faced by the capital city—with equal seriousness. The samithi representatives wanted an immediate and permanent closure of the garbage plant. The government's stand was that this was not possible and would only lead to a crisis in the capital city.

Over the last one month the culture of treating garbage at source had steadily caught on in the capital city. This would be continued. The police were also acting firmly against those who dump garbage by the wayside. The government believed that this alone would reduce by a great extent the quantity of garbage that needed to be taken away for treatment.

The government reportedly told the samithi that it would need a minimum of six months to have an alternative garbage treatment system up and running.

The government and the City Corporation would work together to put in place a welfare package for the people of Vilappil. This would include drinking water schemes and health schemes, he said. The talks were held in a cordial atmosphere and the Samithi representatives appeared to have imbibed the issues as delineated by the government, he said.

Mr. Kunhalikutty later told The Hindu that the government had more than a dozen sites in mind for setting up garbage treatment plants. These were areas where there was very low density of population. “The government does not wish to reveal the exact location of these sites,” he said.

Apart from a string of small-scale treatment plants, the government also proposed to set up a large treatment plant somewhere between Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam. Even if there were plants, a large-capacity plant was unavoidable, he argued. Once all these plants were up and running there would actually be a shortage of garbage to be treated, he claimed.

Meantime, a team from the Suchitwa Mission left for Germany on Tuesday to study the ‘cold mineralisation' technology for treating garbage. The government would take a final call on the technology after studying the report submitted by the team.

Meanwhile, the LDF parliamentary party in the Corporation council decided to call off its agitation in front of the Chief Minister's residence. Party leader V.S. Padmakumar said here that this decision followed the government's resolve to resume operations at the Vilappil plant.

Vilappilsala plant can become a model for the country, say experts

If properly managed and operated the Vilappilsala plant can be upgraded as the best solid waste treatment plant in the country, say experts.

Speaking to The Hindu they said that once the leachate treatment plant and sanitary land fill inside the plant was commissioned the Vilappilsala plant could become a model waste treatment plant worthy of emulating in cities all across the country.

“The windrow composting technology used in Vilappilsala plant is undoubtedly the best available technology for processing biodegradable waste. It is an internationally accepted organic waste processing technology which is also mooted by the Union Ministry of Environment,’’ said Babu Ambat, executive director of Centre for Environment and Development (CED), an agency providing technical support to waste treatment plants in various states.

Mr Babu Ambat said that the processing plant at Vilappilsala, designed and constructed by Poabson Group, is one of the best in the State. CED has been operating the plant for the city Corporation for the last four years.

“There have been issues of space constraints in the processing plant as it was not enough to properly process the 250 tonne waste that was daily brought to the plant. This was also the reason for the odor problem there because of lack of aeration facility. But now the area of the processing plant is being doubled to two lakh square feet. With this the issue of space constraint will also be solved,’’ he said.

Social activist and rural technology exponent R.V.G. Menon also said that unlike high technology solutions like pyrolisis and incineration, composting, as done in Vilappilsala, was best suited for treatment of biodegradable waste in our state.

“The biodegradable waste generated in our climatic condition has about 70 percent moisture. But for technologies like pyrolisis and incineration dry waste is best suited as it has high energy content.

Experts all over the world say that the best technology for organic waste with high moisture content is composting or biogas,’’ said Mr Menon.

He, however, added that the composting facility at Vilappilsala could be upgraded by facilitated proper aeration or biofilters.

In the case of plastic waste, the Corporation could think of transporting plastic to recycling units outside the state after converting them into pellets using plastic shredders.

“However, segregating plastic and organic waste is also pertinent. Although plastic shredders can be installed at Vilappilsala, it should be ensured that it is properly segregated and does not get into the composting facility,’’ Mr Menon said.

While the experts concede that decentralized waste treatment facility in different parts of the city is definitely required to bring down the volume of waste transported to Vilappilsala, a centralized treatment plant is also inevitable for a city like Thiruvananthapuram.

Social and environmental activist B.R.P. Bhaskar said that while conventional method of taking the entire municipal waste for processing in far off villages is not feasibility in Kerala because of the sheer density of population, source level processing was also only a partial solution.

“Not all waste generated in a household can be treated there. That is why we require an integrated method of decentralized and centralized facility. The Vilappilsala plant can be reopened as a centralized plant, but only after the authorities convince the people there and assure them that the plant will henceforth be properly managed without endangering their health or environment,’’ he said.

“Vilappilsala plant can no more be treated as a dump-yard of the city. The volume of waste taking to the plant has to be significantly brought down,’’ said COSTFORD director P.B. Sajan.

Mr Sajan put forth a novel idea to ensure efficient management of the plant. “Why not involve the Vilappil panchayat in the plant operation. This way they can ensure that plant is properly managed and also make it an income generating initiative by selling the manure produced there. The Corporation should of course pay the operational expenses,’’ he said.

“And as long as the issues at the Vilappilsala plant remain unresolved, there will be public opposition for setting up plants elsewhere,’’ Mr R.V.G. Menon added.