CHENNAI:

In face of opposition from the local residents, Mayor M Subramanian on Monday laid the foundation for the integrated solid waste management project at the dumping yard in the southern suburb of Perungudi. 

The facility, costing Rs 69.5 crore, is expected to resolve the problem of mounting garbage in the city and also fetch Rs 75 lakh per annum to the Chennai Corporation as royalty charges. 

The State Environment Impact Assessment Authority recently gave environmental clearance to the project, which also got the consent of the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board. "At least 1,500 tonnes of waste reaching the yard daily will be processed through various methods and net load will be zero finally," Subramanian said. The garbage is now disposed in the open and levelled on a daily basis. 

With the help from a private developer, Hydroair Tectonics Limited, the local body will use 30 of the 125 acre of the dumping yard to develop the facility, where at least 1,400 tonnes of solid waste accumulating daily in the notified dumping yard will be treated. It is estimated that 280 tonnes of compost, 350 tonnes of combustible waste, 70 tonnes of recyclables and 98 tonnes of eco-bricks will be generated from the site. 

During a public hearing held in March this year, the local body met with stiff opposition from a section of local residents and environmentalists, who demanded that the site be shifted to a far-off place because of the large-scale real-estate development taking place in the area. 

Subramanian said the corporation had also floated tenders to to excavate the compacted mixed garbage which underwent biological degradation over the years in both Kodungaiyur and Perungudi. It will be done using suitable sieving machines. "Technical evaluation of the bids is on," he said.