CHENNAI: Years of struggle of people of Vadavucode Puthencruz gram panchayat in Ernakulam district in Kerala seems to be paying-off with the Southern bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) terming Brahmapuram Waste Treatment Plant set-up by Cochin Corporation illegal and directing the Kerala Pollution Control Board (KPCB) to prosecute the officers concerned.
The bench comprising Justice P Jyothimani and expert member P S Rao noted that Kerala High Court has originally permitted the corporation to use only 8 acres as an interim measure for dumping municipal waste.
The pollution board gave the authorisation to the corporation from 2008 to 2011 and there was no renewal thereafter.
It is also clear that corporation didn’t obtain prior environment clearance under EIA Notification, 2006.
In the absence of such clearance, activities there cannot be said to be legal, the bench said. According to local environmentalists, the dumping yard measures over 100 acres and corporation dumps close to 400 tonnes of waste without proper segregation in the site violating every rule in the book.
The tribunal’s order, a copy of which is available with Express, directs Kerala Pollution Control Board (KPCB) to take immediate steps to prosecute the officers concerned and report to the tribunal about the action taken on the next date of hearing scheduled on July 21.
The court also asked the secretary of the corporation to be present in person before the tribunal with all the papers connected with the project and steps that were taken for the purpose of obtaining Environmental Clearance from SEIAA, besides steps for remediation of damage that has already been caused.
In another important direction, the green court permitted the Vadavucode Puthencruz gram panchayat to identify any other area within the corporation limits, which can be used for the sole purpose of temporary dumping.