PANJIM: While Goa government has trumpeted a garbage-free Goa through its two waste management plants proposed at Saligao and Curchorem to scientifically treat tons of garbage, some experts feel that the projects are not viable for Goa.
The 1.35 sq mtrs land at Saligao-Calangute plateau and 65,000 sq mtrs at Cacora in Curchorem was recently handed over to the Department of Science, Technology and Environment for the proposed waste management plants.
Environmentalist Claude Alvares, has questioned the viability of the Saligao-Calangute project, tagging it the most expensive in the country.
“These are completely unviable plants for the State. It is not commercially viable for a State such as Goa… the government is spending money without any proper plan on the project. As per documents, this is going to be the most expensive in the country,” he alleged.
Moreover, though the agency for implementing the project has been finalized, Alvares alleged the proposal does not speak about collection, transport and proper generation of different types of waste.
Architect Dean D’Cruz also suggested that government should instead focus on setting up composting plants at every village to put a lid on garbage management. “Every village needs a composting plant…the mission will be systematic as it will also control pollution,” he said.
With the land already acquired, National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) has begun environmental impact assessment (EIA) following which public hearings will be carried out and its results will decide whether the project will get the environmental clearance (EC).
The government had maintained that scientific treatment of garbage will help generate 1 MW power for Goa, which has been rubbished by Alvares. The environmentalist claimed the quantum of garbage can generate only about 0.3 to 0.4 MW of power.
Land acquisition at Saligao plateau had irked local residents who threatened to file a contempt petition against the government in the High Court of Bombay at Goa, for violating Court’s 2003 order, which had opposed setting up of any waste treatment plant at the site.
Apart from a contempt petition, Saligao Garbage Struggle (SGS) had also planned to file PIL pointing to the fact that no EIA study was conducted and that the proposed technology – Zentrale Abfallwirtschaft Kaiserslautern, mixed waste treatment plant at Kaiserslautern in Southwest Germany – will not be a success. The villagers had instead proposed an alternate site on the same plateau, about 700 mtrs away from the site above the Salmona hill.
A group of 38 locals including MLAs from Calangute, Saligao, Curchorem and Sanguem were sent on a 10-day long ‘study trip’ to Europe last year, which cost Rs 1 crore to the State exchequer. It remains to be seen if the foreign jaunt will be beneficial in the months to come and what kind of expert advice these MLAs will provide for the plants and finally if they will help in solving the garbage problem, all Goa.
