THOOTHUKUDI: In spite of the guidelines issued by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) directing the removal of copper slag dumped across various sites in Thoothukudi, several impending legal hurdles, contradicting court orders and politics have left the removal process in crossroads. Copper slag, which was once dumped in the landfills of captive lands, has a good market nowadays.
Copper slag generated by the now-defunct Sterlite Copper has been dumped at 19 sites in the district, including the Uppar Odai banks in Pudukkottai along the Thoothukudi-Tirunelveli national highway. The land owners, who had purchased the slag from Sterlite Copper and dumped it on their patta lands, opted to sell it to cement factories. However, they are now finding themselves in a difficult situation as a section of activists have opposed the move citing court orders.
Sources from Sterlite Copper said that they began distributing copper slag for landfills in 2010 at a ratio of 1:1 until 2014, which was later increased to 1:1.5, in line with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change's (MoEFCC) direction to discharge slag to landfills. By 2010, the Sterlite Copper premises had over 40 lakh tonnes of slag, sources added.
According to CPCB's guidelines on the management of pyro-metallurgical slags, which was released in August 2023, copper slag is generated during copper extraction in a smelter. The granulated copper slag is also known as ferro-sand due to the presence of iron and silica. It is estimated that at least 1.6-1.9 tonnes of copper slag is generated as waste during the production of every tonne of copper. Improper storage huge quantities of slag over a long period may pose a risk of seepage of heavy metals from unlined open disposal sites, the guidelines stated.
Further, MoEFCC has categorised copper slag as 'High Volume Low Effect Waste' and excluded it from the hazardous waste list as per the Hazardous Waste Management Rules issued in 2008 and 2016. It may be noted that the copper slag, once a dumping material, now is of huge demand due to its applications in production of abrasive tools and blasting materials, aggregate in cement-concrete, cement-concrete blocks and bricks, cement production, and road construction.
Insiders from the industry told TNIE that one tonne of copper slag costs around Rs 400 and cement factories are the leading buyers. Though the Sterlite Copper has already been closed permanently, the court orders prevent the removal of the slag, they added.
Legal issues
After activist SM Pon Gandhimathinathan sought a direction to remove the hazardous industrial waste of copper slag encroaching the Upparu odai, the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court on August 23, 2018, permitted the removal as per due procedure. Later on June 28, 2021, Gandhimathinathan himself obtained an injunction order from Justice TS Sivagnanam seeking to cease the slag removal from the course of Uppar Odai, claiming that the activity was not in tune with the order.
However, the court, in an order dated February 4, 2022, did not restrain a land owner, Jawahar, from selling the copper slag dumped at his yard in Meelavittan. In yet another order dated August 4, 2022, Justice GR Swaminathan maintained that "The respondents — Collector, Superintendent of Police and Assistant Director of Mines — shall not prevent or interfere with the removal and transportation of copper slag."
Subsequently, on October 20, 2022, one P Mani obtained an interim injunction to stop the removal of slag from Meelavittan and from the course of Uppar Odai. With the contradicting orders and the CPCB guidelines permitting the disposal of slag for sustainable applications, land owners, who earlier intended to remove the slag, are now unable to transport them.
Speaking to TNIE, an owner of a land located close to Uppar Odai said that he had also obtained a court order to remove the copper slag. "My land is a patta land and not part of Uppar odai. I have constructed a retaining wall to prevent the slag from reaching the water body. Hence, the order obtained by the activist is not likely to be applicable to my private land," he said.
When contacted, an official of Vedanta said that "Copper slag was sold by Vedanta for landfill application between 2010 and 2016 on Ex-Works sale basis to the land owners for developing Container Yard, Warehouse, Woodlog yard with a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). Currently Vedanta has no obligation over these copper slag, since it has been sold out already. However, if the court and TNPCB permitted to remove them, we are ready to facilitate these private parties."
Meanwhile, District collector G Laksmipathy was not available for comments.