Team Herald
MARGAO: With the monsoon expected to start in June, the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) faces a race against time to initiate the long-overdue transportation of 35,000 tonnes of hazardous waste from the Cuncolim Industrial Estate to the Pissurlem disposal facility.
For over a decade-and-a-half, the annual ritual of covering the waste with tarpaulin sheets has been a temporary fix, but concerns persist over its environmental impact.
The urgency has grown following a study by the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), which reaffirmed that the waste left behind by Ms Sunrise Zinc nearly two decades ago remains hazardous and must be removed.
The GSPCB had commissioned the study last year to determine if the waste could be remediated, but NEERI’s findings confirmed that safe disposal at a designated hazardous waste facility was the only viable solution.
The study, completed in November last year, involved detailed sampling to assess the waste's characteristics.
While speaking to the media, GSPCB Chairman Mahesh Patil stated that the Board has formally approached the Union Environment Ministry for financial assistance, estimating the transportation costs at Rs 14-15 crore. He noted that the Ministry has agreed in principle to part-fund the project under a 60:40 cost-sharing scheme.
“We recently met with the Union Environment Secretary to request the inclusion of Cuncolim’s waste site in the national list of hazardous waste sites requiring urgent intervention. We are optimistic that the Centre will share the financial responsibility,” Patil said. While the Board had initially expected to start the transportation process last year, delays in securing funds from the state government stalled progress.
In November 2023, the government had approved Rs 5 crore for the project, but the funds never reached the GSPCB, leading it to focus instead on conducting the NEERI study. Now, with the study complete and the Centre’s preliminary nod, the Board is pushing to expedite the process before the monsoon rains make transportation more difficult.
Patil explained that the estimated quantity of hazardous waste at the site is around 35,000 tonnes, though the exact amount may change once transportation begins.
“The quantity of the waste may vary when it is being taken up for transportation,” he noted. With just two-and-a-half months left before the monsoon sets in, questions have been raised about whether the GSPCB will be able to complete the formalities and initiate transportation in time. If the process is not started in the next two months, the Board will have to resort to the familiar practice of covering the dump with tarpaulin sheets before the onset of heavy rains.
“If we can begin within the next two months, we will proceed. Otherwise, as in previous years, the waste will have to be covered once again,” Patil said.
Authorities are under mounting pressure to resolve the long-standing issue, especially as the site has remained under High Court scrutiny for years. This issue is likely to be raised by MLAs during the upcoming Assembly session.