TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: Following a series of complaints about discharge of untreated effluents and sewage into a fresh water nullah at Curti-Ponda by industries, the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) has decided to propose to State government to set up a common effluent treatment plant at the Bethora Industrial Estate.
The decision follows a joint meeting held between GSPCB, Goa Industrial Development Corporation, industrial units and Bethora Panchayat.
GSPCB Chairman Jose Manual Noronha said that since there is no other option available, the Board decided to propose to the government to set up a common treatment plant for industrial use, thereby stopping the discharge into nullah.
“The industrial effluents can be treated and the recycled water can be used by industries for their own purpose,” he said.
The Board in April, had issued notices to United Breweries and United Spirits ~ flagship companies of liquor baron Vijay Mallya, directing them not to discharge the effluent into the nullah, failing which the Consent to Operate would be suspended.
Noronha said that during the site inspection, the board had observed that samples from the effluent and sewage treatment plants are not ‘meeting prescribed limits.’
The parameters ~ Biological Oxygen demand (BoD) and the Chemical Oxygen Demand (CoD) have exceeded their permissible limit, he said.
The industrial estates have around 46 industrial units, a few of which are responsible for discharge of effluent into the nullah, leading to water pollution.
