Editor, Goemkarponn
AERIAL VIEW
So overall, it was a huge burden on one plant.
This was because the new plant at Cacora was delayed and the plant at Sonsodo was a failure.
Nonetheless, while the Cacora plant has started, some part of the waste (around 5 TPD) still comes to Saligao, for some unknown reasons – maybe political.
When we talk of Goa Waste Management policy, it is totally dependent on two or three plants – Majorly the Saligao plant, the Cacora plant and the bio-medical waste plant at Kundaim.
Imagine these plants breakdown and the waste management would be in a total mess.
So while Goa needs a pat on the back for getting the treatment plants, it also needs to be reminded that just three plants cannot handle the waste of the entire Goa.
SURAJ NANDREKAR
Editor, Goemkarponn
The National Green Tribunal has directed the state of Kerala to adopt the Goa model for solid waste management, according to guidelines provided by the tribunal.
A team appointed by the Kerala State Pollution Control Board recently visited Goa to study the successful implementation of the model and has prepared a report.
As per NGT, Goa’s waste management initiatives have proven successful, aiming to eliminate garbage dumps and reclaim land. The state is divided into three zones for collecting waste from residential areas, schools, local bodies, and national highways. Collected waste undergoes scientific processing in specialised plants, where it is converted into gas fuel to generate electricity, NGT says.
Now, this is great news at the start of 2024 that a small state like Goa is paving the way in solid waste management. The fact that NGT has asked a big State like Kerala to adopt the policy, speaks volumes of Goa’s efforts.
However, we Goans know how good or bad our waste management is.
The Goa Waste Management Corporation (GWMC) initiated projects in 2016, including the Saligao waste treatment plant.
While the Saligao plant is a success story, one has to remember it is overburdened as more and more waste is dumped only in one place.
The plant started with a capacity 100 Tones per day (TPD) but today it handles around 250 TPD. Initially, the plant was supposed to handle waste only from Candolim, Calangute and Saligao but slowly waste from North coastal areas started coming in.
Thereafter, waste from the capital Panaji and thereafter from Margao and Colva also landed at Saligao.
So overall, it was a huge burden on one plant.
This was because the new plant at Cacora was delayed and the plant at Sonsodo was a failure.
Nonetheless, while the Cacora plant has started, some part of the waste (around 5 TPD) still comes to Saligao, for some unknown reasons – maybe political.
When we talk of Goa Waste Management policy, it is totally dependent on two or three plants – Majorly the Saligao plant, the Cacora plant and the bio-medical waste plant at Kundaim.
Imagine these plants breakdown and the waste management would be in a total mess.
So while Goa needs a pat on the back for getting the treatment plants, it also needs to be reminded that just three plants cannot handle the waste of the entire Goa.
Every panchayat and every municipality has to manage its own waste and if Goa is able to manage that, it would be called a successful Waste Management Policy.
Of Course, Goa is planning to get new plants for building material treatment plant, industrial waste treatment plant and the IT waste treatment plant.
So overall when we talk of waste management, Goa is on the right path but only needs some fine-tuning, especially viz-a-viz the legacy waste dump at Sonsodo.
While the GWMC has met partial success in treating Sonsodo waste, the management of day-to-day waste is still a challenge and the issue becomes crucial in monsoons when the leachate flows down to residential areas.
Besides Sonsodo, beach cleaning is also a challenge. How can the Tourism department handle beach cleaning?
Why is the GWMC not in charge of beach cleaning?
Similarly, the Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation is in charge of waste on the side of highways. Does this make sense? Then why do we have GWMC at all?
When municipal and panchayat waste is handled by GWMC why not waste from beaches and highways?
This is the main reason that despite spending hundreds of crores we still find unclean beaches and littered highways.
So as we talk of the success story of the Goa Waste Management policy there are several flaws in it which need to be fine-tuned and the political class has to keep aside their vested interest and let the GWMC do the thinking and implementation of Waste Management.
