CHENNAI: Six months after the Senneer kuppam panchayat near Thiruverkadu began dumping waste abutting the Cooum river, forming a landfill, the trash is now being removed after intervention of the Tiruvallur district administration officials.
The area was among the first to be restored under the Cooum river eco restoration project under the Chennai Rivers Restoration Trust (CRRT) in 2016 when the accumulated solid waste was removed and the boundaries were fenced. However, with daily waste from the panchayat, including medical and poultry waste, being dumped on the road abutting the river, not only did the solid waste spill over to pollute the river but also proved to be a menace to local residents and commuters due to the stench. Landfills also produce leachate which can contaminate surface and groundwater.
Locals said once the panchayat began dumping the waste here, trucks on their way back from Koyambedu market would stop in the wee hours of the day and unload vegetable or fruit wastage here. S Amrizhthamannan, block development officer, Poonamallee said after complaints were raised, most of the waste was cleared in a period of two nights and there are only about two loads of garbage left. “We have made arrangements for the waste to be transferred to Kodungaiyur. We are also looking at composting in micro-composting centres and material recovery facilities here on,” he said.
Poonamallee officials also said waste will not be dumped in the site again. To aid this, trees are to be planted in the space. When asked where the daily waste from the panchayat is to be dumped here on, officials said that a space has been designated outside residential limits where garbage will be dumped and the accumulated garbage will be transferred to Kodungaiyur twice a week. A senior official of the Tiruvallur district administration said that they have taken cognisance of the matter and that their team is working on shifting the waste.