5 Million Kilos of Plastic Dumped Into Mumbai’s Sea Every Year, Study Names the Worst Offenders

The findings form the basis for TOC’s plan to deploy specialised trash interceptors at the mouths of key nallahs — points where waterways empty into creeks or the sea. The organisation intends to install two interceptors in Trombay and Malad before the onset of the monsoon, with an estimated recovery capacity of 61 to 92 tonnes of plastic in the initial phase.

Over the next three years, the NGO plans to scale up installations across all 50 major nallahs contributing to marine plastic waste.

Slat noted that Mumbai presents unique operational challenges due to its strong tidal movements. “What’s unique about Mumbai is that the rivers are highly tidal. The interceptor will be designed to capture trash travelling both downstream into the sea and upstream during high tide. In Vashi Creek, plastic is often carried upstream for tens of kilometres with the tide,” he said.

Mumbai has been identified as one of 30 global cities that together account for nearly one-third of river-based plastic pollution worldwide. TOC selected Trombay and Malad for the first phase due to their high impact potential and feasibility of rapid deployment, in coordination with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB). A local private firm will oversee day-to-day operations of the interceptors.

The BMC has already installed multiple trash booms across the city’s stormwater drains. Six were installed in the western suburbs in July 2022 and eight in the eastern suburbs in December 2025. Three additional booms have been funded through corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives. These floating barriers block solid waste from entering the sea and use conveyor systems to extract and transport debris.

According to BMC data, the six booms in the western suburbs have a daily collection capacity of 1 to 1.5 metric tonnes and have cumulatively removed about 8,000 metric tonnes of waste so far. Data for the eastern suburban installations indicates a cumulative collection of 250 metric tonnes to date.

Slat said the composition of plastic waste reflects local consumption and waste management patterns. “Valuable recyclable plastic is often collected by waste pickers before it reaches the waterways, leaving behind mostly low-value plastic packaging,” he said, referring to the survey conducted in partnership with The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI).