Government Focus on Reclaiming Landfill

Ministry of Urban affairs has launched advisories on landfill reclamation and sewage management practices. Over 10,000 hectares of urban land is locked in as dumpsites in India.  These dumpsites generate methane and other gases which contribute to global warming, the advisory said, adding that the reclamation project must adopt an integrated approach to propose all the activities required for dumpsite remediation. “Scientific processing of solid waste which was mere 18 per cent at the start of the Swachh Bharat Mission in 2014 has more than tripled to 65 per cent,” said Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri “The treatment and disposal of legacy municipal solid waste can be done by bioremediation. A total station survey or drone-mapping of any landfill/dumping site must be done prior to start of the project. Hence, it is suggested to ensure a precursor study with history of the site,” he added. Urban Local Bodies were asked to set up an eco-friendly and non-polluting processing system for reducing the impact of the dumping site on their adjacent areas.