Chennai: Waste Management

[krishnaswamy]

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chann...nage-waste-039
Singapore, China to help manage waste

A high-level team of the city corporation which visited the congested cities in China and Singapore to learn modern waste management procedures has returned home and is now working on the new modules related to garbage collection in Chennai.

China’s expertise in waste management will be incorporated in the city’s waste collection process and a detailed draft master plan will be submitted to the state government, a senior corporation official said.

Thirty-one firms, including foreign ventures, have bought tender applications to establish zero waste management centres in Kodungaiyur and Perungudi.

Most of the wastes generated in Asian countries are similar to that of Chennai.

Both the landfill sites and centres where incinerators are operated for effective management were studied during the visit and those initiatives can be followed in Chennai too, a senior official said.

Based on the foreign exposure, a master plan would be drafted and forwarded to TN government. The government will take a call regarding the draft and its implantation, the official added.

According to Ripon Building sources, the corporation had also approached the Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur collectorates seeking their intervention to identify barren lands.

[sshivakumar]

After showing the door to Neel Metal Fanalca for poor conservancy work in the city, now the Chennai Corporation is planning to take strong action, including cancellation of the contract with Ramky Enviro, as the new conservancy agency has not been able to do a good job. Ramky Enviro manages three zones of the corporation—Adyar, Teynampet and Kodambakkam. The city corporation had urged the firm to recruit 500 more conservancy workers, but Ramky is not getting workers since it is not willing to pay more than Rs 200 daily to the workers.

Corporation commissioner D Karthikeyan said the civic body would not hesitate to even cancel the contract with Ramky Enviro if the agency did not improve its performance. "Despite several reminders, they have not improved. The main reason is the lack of conservancy workers. If they continue this way, we will take strict action including annulment of the contract and imposing a penalty," Karthikeyan said.

But Ramky Enviro officials sounded belligerent. They said they would move the court if the civic body cancels the contract. Ram Mohan Rao, national head of Ramky Enviro, said the corporation was always critical of their work and never supportive. "We operate in more than 10 states. Nowhere else have we faced such criticism," he said.

As the war of words continue, the complaint cell of the corporation (1913) and Ramky (1800 4251566) continue to ring non-stop as citizens call in with complaints. Corporation officials said Ramky workers were not showing interest in their work because of the low salary.

Reacting to this, Ram Mohan Rao said, "We started operations in three zones after the micro plan submitted to the corporation. Initially, the civic body asked us to clear 1,500 tonnes of garbage, but now it has gone up to 1,600 tonnes." He said there was no shortage of workers. "Initially, they have asked us to recruit 3,000 workers, but we recruited 3500. Another 500 will join us within a week. Many people are not willing to work because of the summer heat."

The firm has been offering a minimum wage of Rs 205 daily or Rs 6,500 monthly. Ramky published advertisements and distributed pamphlets in slums to recruit people, but the response has been poor.

Source : TOI

[vinodgopal]

If we have an underground thrash burning site where the junk is carried in trucks and and thrown at the site throough a sliding door and burnt underground so as to reduce the pollution reaching the sky, is it a good idea?

So easy to think of, but will it work?

[saysenthil]

No more garbage dumping in Pallikaranai

For the first time, Chennai Corporation will stop dumping garbage at the Pallikaranai yard and also initiate stringent action against those who trespass the site

For the first time, Chennai Corporation will stop dumping garbage at the Pallikaranai yard and also initiate stringent action against those who trespass the site.

Since Saturday, residents in the neighbourhood of the dumping yard have been severely affected after a major fire broke out there. In order to prevent such incidents, the civic body has decided to suspend the transportation of garbage to Pallikaranai.

Officials of the Corporation said that every day, the dumping yard at Pallikaranai received about 100-120 metric tonnes of garbage generated from Alandur. This would now be sent to the nearby site in Perungudi, which receives nearly 2,200 metric tonnes of waste daily.

Corporation Commissioner D. Karthikeyan said that this was the first step towards remediation of the Pallikaranai dump yard, which is spread across 15 acres.

The civic body also plans to remediate similar facilities in Perungudi and Kodungaiyur for which tenders to choose the right technology are under scrutiny. Integrated solid waste management facilities would then be set up outside city limits.

The civic body has received expressions of interest from 31 multi-national companies to supply suitable technology for its solid waste management initiatives. It is also in the process of identifying alternative regional landfills.

It may be recalled that the Corporation commenced its search for sustainable technology in the wake of the National Green Tribunal setting aside the environmental clearance granted by the State government to the integrated solid waste management facility in Perungudi.

The Corporation also plans to initiate police action against trespassers into the Pallikaranai dump yard and deploy more security personnel to closely monitor the site. It will also strengthen video surveillance in both the Perungudi and Pallikaranai dumping yards. Officials of the Corporation said closed circuit cameras would be installed in a week.

Mayor Saidai S.Duraisamy who visited the site on Wednesday instructed officials to bring the fire, which has still not been completely put out, under control and prevent it from spreading further. The fire continues to pose problems for motorists.

A press release said that he also instructed officials to record the procedure of lorries dumping garbage in the yard and improve surveillance.

[kannan infratech]

I notice that Ramki trucks and their drivers are so insensitive to traffic on the roads and are not trained enough how to handle garbage.

Very soon, we may see street fights between the general public and Ramki staff.

[indiatraveller]

The garbage collection scene seems to have worsened after Ramky has come in. Dustbins overflowing almost everywhere. And in a lot of places dustbins have mysteriously disappeared
Chennai has this history of metallic parts disappearing (seats at bus stands, direction boards etc). Maybe this is part of the same group.

Our Mayor shamelessly admits - 'despite its previous track record of poor garbage clearance in other cities, the Corporation was forced to give the contract to the company because it was the lowest bidder'.

Why does the contract necessarily have the go to the lowest bidder? Some might argue that the purpose of bidding will be defeated if it isn't done that way, but can the Corporation not have some basic minimum criteria (including previous track records) set before giving a contract to a vendor?

[vinodgopal]

Originally Posted by indiatraveller

The garbage collection scene seems to have worsened after Ramky has come in. Dustbins overflowing almost everywhere. And in a lot of places dustbins have mysteriously disappeared
Chennai has this history of metallic parts disappearing (seats at bus stands, direction boards etc). Maybe this is part of the same group.

Our Mayor shamelessly admits - 'despite its previous track record of poor garbage clearance in other cities, the Corporation was forced to give the contract to the company because it was the lowest bidder'.

Why does the contract necessarily have the go to the lowest bidder? Some might argue that the purpose of bidding will be defeated if it isn't done that way, but can the Corporation not have some basic minimum criteria (including previous track records) set before giving a contract to a vendor?

same old story. one paise less and the contract goes to satan instead of God. Cus no one cares.

[chennaidetroit]

I think the government is providing us the people of Chennai more than what we deserve, there is no need for any politician to provide us with any thing because we don't have them accountable. We are PIGS, yes people of Chennai are PIGS or even worse. We shit in the middle of the road , yes I did see it today / right across a public toilet and pee at any wall (used to be walls of temple off limits but no more), we destroyed all water body with in Chennai city limit ( Chennai / Madras used to be city of Lakes and ponds). UNLESS OR UNTIL WE DOT KEEP THE PEOPLE WE ELECT ACCOUNTABLE AND CHANGE OUR WAYS I DON'T THINKS SO WE PIGS DESERVE ANY BETTER.

[vinodgopal]

Originally Posted by chennaidetroit

I think the government is providing us the people of Chennai more than what we deserve, there is no need for any politician to provide us with any thing because we don't have them accountable. We are PIGS, yes people of Chennai are PIGS or even worse. We shit in the middle of the road , yes I did see it today / right across a public toilet and pee at any wall (used to be walls of temple off limits but no more), we destroyed all water body with in Chennai city limit ( Chennai / Madras used to be city of Lakes and ponds). UNLESS OR UNTIL WE DOT KEEP THE PEOPLE WE ELECT ACCOUNTABLE AND CHANGE OUR WAYS I DON'T THINKS SO WE PIGS DESERVE ANY BETTER.

toilet kattinaangala, pavements kattinaangala, wide roads kattinaangala, koovatha sutha paduthinaangala, illa anga konji vilayadum nam kulla pengallukku manjal arachangala?

[saysenthil]

Seeking an answer to Chennai's mounting e-waste problem

Pollution Control Board steps up drive on e-waste

The next time you go to buy a laptop or a hard disk at one of those swanky showrooms, chances are that the salesperson would, besides telling you the features of the device, also give you detailed instructions on how to discard the equipment and the contact details of their collection centres. If she does not do so, you might have to ask for them, because according to the E-waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011, the consumer must see to it that any device he buys is either picked up by the producer or sent to an authorised recycler for disposal.

In order to ensure the implementation of the new e-waste rule that calls for the extended responsibility of the producer, the State Pollution Control Board has authorised 18 e-waste recyclers in the city to ensure computers, laptops, mobile phones, T.V's, microwaves, C.D.'s, DVD's, iPods, , remote controls and wires are recycled with utmost caution, causing least damage to the environment.

Chennai is home to nearly 21 major electronic and electrical manufacturing firms and hundreds of smaller manufacturing units. In 2011 alone, 28, 789 tonnes of e-waste was generated, 60 per cent of which comprised personal computers, followed by refrigerators and washing machines. Data from Central Pollution Control Board shows that Tamil Nadu was the second largest producer of e-waste in the country after Maharashtra.

The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control board (TNPCB) has urged producers, which include all major manufacturers of electrical and electronic goods, to maintain records and details of their collection centres and recyclers which need to be authorised. The board has asked dismantlers not to process e- waste for recovery of metals as many are found to use rudimentary methods such as burning in the open that cause damage to the environment. Bulk consumers that include IT companies, educational institutions and hospitals among others have been asked to maintain records of how they have disposed their e-waste.

Meanwhile, manufacturers have started aggressive promotions of their ‘take-back' schemes. Dell has launched a free laptop battery recycling programme in three cities, including Chennai. The customers who return their non-working lithium ion batteries from certain laptop ranges for recycling are promised a discount of Rs 500 towards the purchase of a replacement laptop battery.

Some cell-phone and laptop manufacturers have also launched a special discount coupon programme where consumers can send their old computers to their centre for free recycling and redeem a discount coupon on their next laptop purchase. Samsung, for instance, has urged its customers to return their mobile phones in any one of its service centres in 235 locations across India. While HP has offered bulk users who wish to dispose of the cartridges a free pick-up, Nokia claims to have placed close to 1,500 bins across the country to collect unwanted mobile phones from consumers. Experts and activists, however feel that though the enforcement has started, there cannot be substantial results unless there are frequent checks on recycling units.

“The enforcement of the rule should not be reduced to just paper work as it seems now. Bigger companies have initiated actions, but there is no audit on how recyclers are discarding the Printed Circuit Boards, present in hardware items that have numerous metals which need to be segregated the proper way,” said K. Mohan, an environmental activist.

Many e-waste recyclers in the city feel also TNPCB is taking a long time is issuing out licenses. “It is frustrating for many e-waste recyclers with proper facilities to wait for so long while others with relatively smaller facilities have been approved as authorised centres,” said Ram Ramachandran, managing director, TES- AMM recyclers.

The TNPCB said the authorisation process will take at least three months because of the procedures involved. “We have to inspect the recycling sites and see if there is no water body close by and that they have segregation and have the required land and man power to run facility. This is taking time,” an official said.

[saysenthil]

Ramky to be shown door in key areas tomorrow

Corporation to take over conservancy in two Teynampet divisions following complaints against private operator

Starting Monday, Chennai Corporation will take over charge of conservancy operations in two divisions of Teynampet zone from private conservancy operator, Ramky Enviro Engineers. The civic body’s move is expected to have a big impact on conservancy operations in the rest of the 426 sq km of the city in the days to come.

NEGATIVE FEEDBACK

According to Corporation sources, the decision to remove Ramky from the two divisions has been taken based on feedback from residents of several streets covered by the private operator.

The two divisions to be taken over from Ramky are no. 110 and no. 112. The boundary of division no. 110 is marked by roads such as Harrington Road, Valluvar Kottam High Road, Nungambakkam High Road, Jagannathan Road, Tank Bund Road and Kodambakkam High Road.

Division no. 112 has Periyar Paadhai, Sivan Koil Street, Vanniyar Street, Choolaimedu High Road, NSK Salai, and Vellalar Street as its boundaries.

Ramky began conservancy operations in these two divisions — which are part of Teynampet zone — in January 2012.

On Wednesday, the civic body is likely to take over two more divisions from the conservancy operator in the Kodambakkam zone. Another two divisions, from the Adyar zone are also likely to be taken over by the Corporation next week.

Chennai Corporation sources said the private operator continues to find it difficult to carry out conservancy operations in many of the 47 divisions under its control in the Corporation limits. Ramky is in charge of 88 sq km of the three zones in Teynampet, Kodambakkam and Adyar zones, where over 1,500 tonnes of garbage are generated daily. The special purpose vehicle, Chennai Municipal Solid Waste Pvt. Ltd., set up by Ramky Enviro Engineers, had launched operations across all the three zones in January this year.

NO IMPROVEMENT

Even after Chennai Corporation threatened to initiate penal action against the firm last Tuesday, the situation has not improved, according to sources. The civic body had warned that the conservancy contract with Ramky would be terminated if its services remained inadequate.

Another precipitating factor for the sudden decision of the civic body is the inability of the private conservancy operator to step up night conservancy by adding 500 more workers.

The previous DMK-led Corporation Council too had taken a similar step, terminating its contract with conservancy operator, Neel Metal Fanalca (NMF). It too, had recommended a gradual withdrawal of the private operator because of the failure of the company to carry out conservancy operations according to the provisions of the contract.

Between June and August 2010, the previous Corporation Council took over garbage clearance from select wards of old Zone VIII, which was earlier being done by Neel Metal Fanalca. The State government finally permitted Chennai Corporation to terminate the conservancy contract with NMF on December 31 last year.

MORE ACTION SOON

During the next council meeting scheduled for June 19, the issue of conservancy will be taken up once again and further action against Ramky is likely to be announced.

Good move!!

[krishnaswamy]

"Starting Monday, Chennai Corporation will take over charge of conservancy operations in two divisions of Teynampet zone from private conservancy operator, Ramky Enviro Engineers. The civic body’s move is expected to have a big impact on conservancy operations in the rest of the 426 sq km of the city in the days to come."

if they are gonna to remove them, till they find a another operator, who is going to do the cleanup?

[shiv.chennai]

Originally Posted by krishnaswamy

if they are gonna to remove them, till they find a another operator, who is going to do the cleanup?

Chennai corporation... Not sure if they are kidding themselves to believe they can do any better ..

[krishnaswamy]

Originally Posted by shiv.chennai

Chennai corporation... Not sure if they are kidding themselves to believe they can do any better ..

oh.. Chennai corporation?
they could not get the "work" done from the agency. how in the world, they are gonna to clear it?
If they are confident of themselves, why they wasted the tax payers money?

[indiatraveller]

Originally Posted by shiv.chennai

Chennai corporation... Not sure if they are kidding themselves to believe they can do any better ..

Ramky has been abysmal. I was under the impression that none could have done worse than the Chennai Corporation, but Ramky came in and announced themselves in a short period of 5 months

[kannan infratech]

The way it is now, Chennai Corp seems much better than Ramky.

Ramky was doing a better job in Hyderabad.

[shiv.chennai]

Originally Posted by kannan infratech

The way it is now, Chennai Corp seems much better than Ramky.

Ramky was doing a better job in Hyderabad.

Ohh then it must be really bad..

[anekho]

Silver coins for plastic trash

Though Chennai Corporation had banned the use of plastics on the Marina in August 2009, beach-users and a section of shopkeepers continue to use plastic. Photo: M. Karunakaran


Many visitors and vendors at the Marina Beach spent Sunday evening collecting plastic trash from the sands. And 120 of them won silver coins for their effort. “Look at all the coupons I have collected. For every 100 gram of plastic that I collected and gave at the counter, I received coupons,” explained S.V. Avvai, a student of class seven at Lady Wellington School, who collected plastic waste along with V. Jebaselvi, her classmate, and her sister V. Nancy.

The children said that this was a nice idea: giving away silver and gold coins through a lucky draw, to keep the beach clean. A. Madurai, who came to the beach for a stroll, also got a silver coin. “I didn't know there was such a competition on today,” he said.

Coupons were distributed for plastic waste collected at seven counters set up by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) and the Chennai Corporation, as part of an awareness programme on plastics.

Environment Minister B.V. Ramana said the State government had sanctioned Rs.100 crore this year to lay roads using plastic material. He urged residents to segregate garbage at the source so as to reuse and recycle plastics.

Mayor Saidai S. Duraisamy said that in the next three months, the Chennai Corporation would ensure that collection and disposal of garbage is done in a scientific manner. He claimed that fires were being set at garbage dump yards by those who wanted to create a bad name for the government and the civic body. TNPCB Member Secretary S. Balaji was also present on the occasion. The event was supported by the Chennai Plastics Manufacturers and Merchants' Association.

Though the Chennai Corporation had banned the use of plastics on the Marina in August 2009, beach-users and a section of shopkeepers continue to use plastic. Plastic bags and water sachets sold in shops were seized as part of the ban, and in November 2010, the civic body had announced that a fine of Rs. 100 would be collected from people who violated the ban on the beach. The Corporation had also extended the ban to parks, places of worship and tourist spots.

“Not many people take the effort to put garbage into a bin. Only one in, say a hundred, would bother to put a piece of paper that was wrapped around a corn cob in their bags to dispose of it properly. Shopkeepers and food stall owners ensure that they clear garbage from around their regular spots after the evening's work,” said Thaiyalnayaki, a flower vendor.

Beach-goers however feel that the ban on plastics has not been followed up by the new regime at Ripon Buildings.

Despite claims that the sands are cleaned by a machine on a daily basis, many regular beach-goers find the sands dirty. R. Kesavan, a resident of Triplicane said that apart from small stones, pieces of glass, ice-cream spoons, pan parag sachets and corn cobs can be found on the sand. “You cannot walk barefoot for fear of getting hurt. Hundreds of children play on the sand — just imagine if someone got cut by a piece of glass. The Corporation should ensure that the sand is cleaned and sieved regularly,” he said.

[saysenthil]

Corporation steps into Ramky zone

Civic body begins conservancy operations in two Teynampet wards; will take over four more soon

The Chennai Corporation on Monday commenced conservancy work on ward nos. 110 and 112 in Teynampet zone which, until earlier this week, were under the charge of private conservancy operator Ramky Enviro Engineers. Around 150 new conservancy labourers have been deployed in the two wards by the civic body.

Starting Wednesday, the Chennai Corporation will take over the conservancy work in ward nos.127 and128 in Kodambakam zone and ward nos.170 and174 in the Adyar zone as well.

Conservancy operations in many localities near Poonamallee High Road, Padavattamman Koil Street, Kaliamman Koil Street, Gangaiamman Koil Street, Nerkundram Road, Kamarajar Salai, Arcot Road, Rajamannar Salai, Anna Main Road, Anna Salai, Sardar Patel Road and Gandhi Mandapam Road, all of which fall under the six wards that have been taken over, will now be done by the civic body.

Residents happy

Residents and councillors claimed that the new initiative on Monday had improved conditions in some localities. T. Gunasekaran, a resident of Jayalakshmipuram of Teynampet zone said: “Garbage was not removed for over 10 days in our locality. It was stinking. Today, the new workers came and cleared many such areas.”

K. Chandrasekaran, Corporation Councillor of ward no. 110 said that he used to receive over 15 complaints on garbage clearance in a day. “Supervision of conservancy work was not adequate in the ward,” he said.

S. Sakthi, councillor of ward no.112 said the number of new conservancy workers deployed by the Corporation had remained the same as that of Ramky. As many as 70 workers have been deployed in ward no. 112.

The Corporation has agreed to pay the new contract workers Rs. 247 per day.

Ramky clarifies

Ramky Enviro Engineers in a written statement on Monday clarified that they were still bound by the terms of agreement signed with the Corporation of Chennai and that there was no deviation from it. “We are fulfilling all the conditions set before us as per the agreement. It is not right to suggest that Ramky is not willing to pay its workers more than Rs. 205. We are paying the workers not only the minimum wages fixed by the Collector as per the Shops and Establishments Act under which the legal entity is registered, but are also contributing towards each worker's ESI, PF, gratuity and bonus, so the amount each worker earns is substantially higher than what is suggested in the media reports. The media reports regarding the demand for higher wages are shifting the focus in the minds of workers away from work and productivity and are disrupting operations.”

The company also denied the report that it doesn't have the required number of workers as mandated in the agreement. “The company does have the required number of workers but absenteeism has resulted in a shortage of workers. But we have resorted to hiring more than 500 workers as well as employing the workers of the previous conservancy operator to tide over the crisis.”

The statement from Ramky added that it was handling over 1,600 tonnes of waste per day, compared to the 1,500 tonnes of waste mandated in the agreement. “We are able to clear all the bins within our jurisdiction as per the time indicated. But unfortunately, there is no enforcement on the commercial establishments and bulk generators who are generating huge quantity of waste and dumping it in the bins at night, which is resulting in the overflow of bins. We have requested the Corporation to issue notice to these establishments to keep the waste with them in packed mode so that we can collect at their door step.”

“We are trying to bring more workers for night shift by paying additional wages, so that we can clear the main roads and commercial areas in the night. We recruited more than 100 sweepers in each zone for night sweeping. We will bring it to the maximum night sweeping level within a few months in coordination with the Chennai Corporation,” Ramky's statement added.

The statement pointed to the fact that sweeping operations in Hyderabad were carried out all through the night to have the city ready by morning. But in Chennai it is expected that sweeping operations be completed between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m. and this is proving very difficult for the sweepers, the statement said.

[kannan infratech]

Ward Counsellors are making a fast buck in hiring the JCBs, Dumper trucks etc. I do not mind for a short while if they bring back the streets to the original level.

They should have a combined Technical & Financial tender evaluation.

Right now they select the bidders based on the minimum technical qualification and after short listing the bidders based on that, financial bids are invited.

Invariably many - almost all - pass the Minimum Technical qualification and so the lowest financial bidder gets the order.