KOCHI: Remember Joy Thakkolkkaran, the character in Punyalan Agarbattis, who attempts to make incense sticks using elephant dung? The initiative by Koovappady block panchayat member M P Prakash reminds one of the movie and the protagonist played by Jayasurya.
If Joy tried to make incense sticks, Prakash, the Welfare Standing Committee chairman of the block panchayat, has decided to make maximum use of the available resources — elephant dung and deer scat at the Abhayaranyam Eco-Tourism Centre — to produce bio-manure and biogas under the Abhayaranyam cleanliness project. The initiative is being implemented with the support of Shuchitwa Mission and the block panchayat.
More than a commercial venture, the project, which was launched at the centre last Sunday, is a necessity to manage the waste generated here. Prakash said it’s a first-of-its-kind project in the state.
Spread over around 250 acres in the Periyar Valley in Koovappady, the eco-tourism centre is home to six elephants and over 300 deer.
“Due to the accumulation of animal poop and other waste materials and the lack of facilities to scientifically treat the waste, the area has been witnessing serious environmental issues. During monsoon, the waste materials flow into the Periyar. The other problems are the stench emanating from the area and the increasing mosquito menace. The residents and visitors have been complaining about the issues. This prompted us to think about the project,” said Prakash.
“A healthy elephant excretes around 100-150kg dung a day and it cannot be directly used as manure. Hence, it should be converted into bio-manure. The Forest Department has given maximum support to the project. Ten aerobic compost bins have been installed at the facility. The plan is to supply the bio-manure to farmers at a reasonable price,” he said.
For processing deer scat, two floating drum biogas plants have been installed. The plants can collectively treat 100kg of waste everyday. The per-day capacity of the plant is 4kg of biogas. The gas produced will be connected to the big burners used for cooking food for elephants. Of the total project cost, `15 lakh was allotted by the Koovappady block panachyat while `4 lakh was availed under Gobardhan project of Suchitwa Mission.