ARIYALUR: Spelling cheer for locals who have put up with uncleared garbage mounds for over 30 years, Ariyalur municipality's `114.85-crore bio-mining project to rid the 'old' dump yard on Ariyalur-Tiruchy Road of waste is expected to get rolling by the end of this month.
Extending over 2.5 acres, the dump yard had garbage piling up so much that newly collected waste was shifted to the Thideerkuppam lot in 2018. The 'old' dump yard, however, continued to be used to burn garbage. In this situation, the municipality decided to initiate the bio-mining project to clean up the dump yard and prevent further waste disposal.
Gorantla Geosynthetics Private Limited signed the contract to undertake the project. Municipality Commissioner (in-charge) D Damayanthi told TNIE, "Under the bio-mining project, the company (Gorantla Geosynthetics) has been directed to dispose of 16,055 cubic metres of waste from the dump yard in the span of a year.
The work will commence by December end." Steps are being taken for an afforestation drive on the premises after the project, she added. With garbage dumping now being stopped at Thideerkuppam also, Damayanthi pointed out that since this December the 14 metric tonnes of waste collected per day are sent off to the micro-composting centre and a cement plant.
"Biodegradable waste is converted into fertiliser at the micro-composting centre, while non-biodegradable waste is provided free of cost to a private cement factory in the district," Damayanthi said. J Venkat, a resident of Ariyalur, said, "Motorists have been the most affected as stray dogs tend to drag garbage from the dump yard to the middle of roads, posing threat to commuters.
Now, we are happy that the authorities are about to clean the dump yard. The authorities should ensure that the work gets completed without delay." V Murali, an activist, said, "Garbage is still dumped and burned at the old dump yard, which should be brought to an end. Awareness on source segregation should be raised to avoid disposal of waste to dump yards.
