Ghazipur landfill site saturated, civic body moves green panel

New Delhi: The saturation point of the Ghazipur landfill site and non-availability of alternative land to manage garbage has prompted East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) to move the National Green Tribunal (NGT). 

The municipal corporation on Friday  moved an application seeking urgent direction to the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to hand-over a 130-acre piece of land at Sonia Vihar and a 50-acre plot at Ghonda Gujran for solid waste management facilities on a priority basis.

A two-judge bench headed by acting chairperson justice Jawad Rahim directed the DDA to file its reply before April 23. 

During the hearing of the issue at the green panel, advocate Balendu Shekhar, appearing for the civic body said that the two pieces of land were approved and appraised by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and it should be handed-over to the corporation for handling municipal solid waste. 

Lawyer Kush Sharma, appearing for the housing authority, told the bench that a detailed reply would be filed by it. “The only available site in EDMC jurisdiction, that is, Ghazipur landfill site which was fully saturated way back in 2000 continues to get 1,600 metric tonnes of waste of Delhi on a daily basis even after 17 years of the scheduled closure….This is an alarming situation since the gases trapped in the site are a ticking time bomb, which, if an explosion takes place, will result in cataclysmic repercussion for the thousands of people who live in close proximity thereto.”

Recently, deaths have occurred due to landslides at the landfill site, which has risen up to 65 meters, about 40 meters more than the permissible limit, the plea said. The experts consulted in this regard, including Manoj Dutta from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi, have clearly stated that no reparation work on the landfill site is possible, if continued dumping occurs, the plea added.

“The only reparation including composting, bio-stabilisation, conversion into biodiversity park (on the lines Swarn Jayanti Park on Ring Road) can only take place, if this landfill site closes for good,” the municipal corporation said. 

“There is no other alternative possible in these circumstances,” the green panel added.

The green tribunal had earlier directed the Delhi government and the civic bodies to submit an action plan for identifying alternative landfill sites and setting up waste-to-energy plants in the city. 

The green panel further said that it was unfortunate that at a time when the national capital was grappling with the huge quantum of waste to the tune of 14,000 metric tonnes (MT) on a daily basis, the authorities were involved in a “blame game” and showing an irresponsible attitude. 

With the rapid development and urbanisation of the megacity, the waste generation was increasing on a daily basis, which has resulted in the saturation of the existing landfill sites that can only handle only up to 7,000 MT of waste generated per day, the NGT said.