Team Herald

MARGAO: Failure to leave vents for methane gas to escape is resulting in the garbage dump at Sonsodo that has been covered with a geo plastic membrane to catch fire and damage the covering also.

Sources at the Fire Services revealed that they have been called quite regularly to douse the flames at the Sonsodo garbage dump since the time it was covered.

On Saturday evening, the fire services received a call at around 5.20 pm and on rushing to Sonsodo realized that the fire had turned quite intense. One fire tender was pressed into service for more than one hour to douse the fire.

This morning at around 9.30, the fire services were again called as the fire had re-ignited and it was brought under control after one hour battle. Fire service personnel have resigned to the fact that they will have to visit the site constantly till the time the covering is removed.

Margao Municipal Council Sanitary Inspector Viraj while admitting that there was a fire at Sonsodo assured that the problem should be solved after Eid as the chairperson has already spoken to Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation to deal with the issue.

It may be recalled that the Solid Waste Management Cell of the Environment Department has been asked to segregate the garbage dump gathered over the years at Sonsodo and through Hindustan Waste Treatment Pvt Ltd that is managing the waste treatment plant at Sonsodo the garbage dump has been reduced substantially.

In view of the monsoons, the garbage dump was totally covered with a geo plastic membrane so that leachate formation during monsoon is controlled. Around five square metres of this covering was damaged in the fire yesterday and the same will be recovered probably on Tuesday, Viraj said.