CHENNAI : The Tamil Nadu government is yet to submit second status report for September to the Central Pollution Control Board on how many industrial units discharging trade effluents or causing emissions exist in the State, how many are having their own sewage treatment plants, effluent treatment plants connected to the Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP), according to a Central Pollution Control Board official.
This comes after the National Green Tribunal (NGT) directed the CPCB to devise a mechanism to continuously monitor industrial waste discharge in all states and Union Territories.The NGT has also asked the CPCB to appoint a nodal officer to work in tandem with a representative of the Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change to monitor issues such as functional effluent treatment plants, establishment and proper functioning of Common Effluent Treatment Plants (CETPs) and taking action against erring industrial units and putting the same on public domain. Interestingly, the CPCB has nominated Ajay Agarwal, Scientist ‘E” as nodal officer while the Ministry of environment and Forest, Climate Change has nominated Susan George K, as its representative.
The NGT has also asked the state pollution control boards to file a statement on how many industrial units discharging trade effluents or causing emissions exist in the State, how many are having their own sewage treatment plants (STPs) and effluent treatment plants (ETPs) connected to the Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) and whether any such CETP or ETP or STP is properly functioning and treating the effluents as per prescribed limits or not.
Submitting the status report on October 26, the CPCB said that Tamil Nadu submitted its first report for August after the September 10 deadline. Interestingly, the first report had some shortcomings. A CPCB official said some of the numbers such as the numbers of effluent treatment plants or common effluent treatment plants in the state were not tallying.
Interestingly, 17 states and Union Territories have yet to submit their first status report, the official said, adding, “We are now concentrating on these states to submit their status report.” He said that the NGT order is a game-changer as it will ensure that no industry is operating without effluent treatment plant. Tamil Nadu figures in the list of 27 states and Union territories which have yet to submit the second status report for September. “Till October 26, 2018, Tamil Nadu has yet to submit the report,” he said. The order was passed by an NGT bench led by its chairperson Adarsh Kumar Goel on August 3 while acting on a Supreme Court judgement.