TEAM HERALD
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MARGAO: Post-monsoon, mounds of industrial slag lying dumped in the industrial estates could well be used for construction of roads and embankments in the State.
While the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) has given its green-signal to use the slag for road construction, the proposal is now awaiting a final nod from the Chief Minister and the PWD Minister.
Herald inquiries have revealed that the PWD had mooted a proposal to the Chief Minister and PWD Minister for utilisation of the slag for road construction. A senior PWD official said though the GSPCB had given its clearance for use of the industrial slag for road construction, the department is awaiting nod from the Chief Minister’s office to put the slag to use.
Sources in the know said the PWD has mooted a couple of options how to make the contractors use the slag lying abandoned at the industrial estates.
Chairman of Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) Jose Manuel Noronha told Herald that analysis of the industrial slag has shown that it is non-hazardous in nature. “The slag can be put to use for construction of roads and road embankments. We already had a meeting with the PWD officials and they were receptive to the proposal,” he said.
Noronha said that rough estimates have put the total quantity of industrial slag lying abandoned in the industrials estates of Cuncolim, Kundaim and other areas to around 1.95 lakh tons. “When analyses have revealed that the industrial slag is non-hazardous, the PWD has assured to use the same for road construction and embankments after the monsoons,” he said.
