Interim progress report on fires at Ghazipur landfill, Delhi, 31/07/2022
Interim progress report of the Joint Committee, under the chairmanship of Justice S. P. Garg.
The committee was constituted by the orders of the National Green Tribunal vide order dated April 22, 2022 in Original Application No. 288/2022 in the matter of news item published in the Times of India, April 22, 2022 titled "Delhi: Another long drawn effort to douse fire at Ghazipur landfill”. Sandeep Sharma, Chief Engineer, East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) was requested by the committee to brief about the dumpsite and the fire incidents at Ghazipur landfill.
The committee was informed informed that Ghazipur landfill area was one of the biggest and oldest landfills. It is not an Engineered Sanitary Landfill (SLF). It is an unscientific dumpsite, not designed as per Schedule III of Municipal Solid Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000 and Schedule I of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016. Earlier bio-mining of legacy waste (old MSW) was being carried out using two types of trommels (30 mm and 6 mm screen size). Presently, 25 trommels have been installed for biomining of legacy waste.
Since October, 2019, about 9.5 lac MT of legacy waste has been bio-mined. Chief Engineer, EDMC informed that Integrated Solid Waste Management Facility of 2000 TPD capacity was proposed to be developed by EDMC in joint venture with NTPC at Ghonda Gujran, however, the Principal Committee constituted by the orders of the NGT has rejected the project in its meeting held on, January 14, 2022 as the said facility was falling under the flood plain of river Yamuna. EDMC was pursuing with DDA for allotment of alternative land. The Committee was surprised to know that dumping of fresh MSW at the Ghazipur dumpsite was more than the processed/disposed one.
The Committee was of the unanimous view that 100 per cent bio-mining of legacy waste at the dumpsite as per the orders of the NGT was the solution to the problems associated with dumpsites in Delhi. However, bio-mining of legacy waste at the Ghazipur dumpsite is very slow. Only about 7 per cent of the total legacy waste has been processed since July, 2019. Dumping of fresh unsegregated/partially segregated municipal solid of 2200-2300 TPD was aggravating the problems.