The excavation of around 46,700 metric tonnes of legacy waste lying at the dumping yard of the Kalamassery municipality as part of the biomining project will begin next week.
The firm that won the government contract to carry out biomining and retrieval of land at 20 dumping sites in the State has started deploying the equipment required to carry out excavation of old waste.
The agreement was part of the Kerala Solid Waste Management Project under the Department of Local Self Government and funded by the World Bank. The cost expected for biomining at Kalamassery is ₹9.2 crore. Among the sites identified in Ernakulam, the civic body’s site at North Kalamassery has the highest quantity of legacy waste that is lying at a height of around 11 metres, of which 8.5 metres of waste is below the ground level.
The municipal authorities said the work was likely to start by April 16 or 17. The contracting agency and officials of the civic body had held discussions on carrying out biomining as per the Kerala State Pollution Control Board norms. The remediation works included excavation of legacy waste, stabilising waste using bioremediation, segregation of excavated waste followed by sustainable management and its safe disposal.
Biomining and waste remediation works will be done in accordance with the ‘Guidelines for Disposal of Legacy Waste’ prescribed by the Central Pollution Control Board. The land redeemed through the project will be utilised for executing waste management projects.
The contractor must have a clear plan for removal of refuse derived fuel, which is used as an alternative to coal in cement plants. According to the authorities, necessary steps will be taken to avoid contamination of soil and water sources following the process.
