BMC to spend RS 2,368 cr to clear Deonar landfill, floats tender

“The landfill will be cleared because the Union ministry has mandated the removal of legacy waste from all existing waste dumpsites in India. Alongside the part of the landfill that has been demarcated for the DRP, several other areas of the land parcel will also be cleared. This includes the portion of land parcel where a waste-to-energy (WTE) and a bio-CNG plant are coming up,” Kiran Dighavkar, deputy municipal commissioner, Solid Waste Management (SWM), told The Indian Express on Wednesday.

The entire 311 acres of land was handed over to the BMC in the early 20th century by the state government for the purpose of waste management, and the 124-acre portion was handed back by the civic authorities to the state government in September 2024, after the latter decided to build housing tenements on the plot.

On April 11, The Indian Express published a report highlighting how the government’s move of relocating residents to the Deonar landfill plot as part of DRP flies in the face of established environmental norms. According to a Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report, around 6,200 kg of methane is generated from the landfill every hour, making Deonar one of the top 22 methane hotspots in the country.

The CPCB rules also mandate that a minimum 500-metre distance should be maintained between WTE plants and residential zones. The rules also state that a 100-metre no-development zone needs to be maintained from the boundary of a landfill.

The process of bioremediation involves treating garbage items with the help of natural elements such as air and sunlight, and sometimes microorganisms. Over time, the biodegradable component of the waste gets decomposed through this natural process.

The remaining waste is either recycled or treated artificially. During this process, items like rock ores or mine waste are extracted from the waste, thus freeing the entire land parcel of waste.

Civic officials said that the entire remediation process will be carried out inside the landfill by creating makeshift facilities, following which the extracts will be transported for safe decomposition. The officials also said that soil and inert materials will be used for site-leveling or filling low-lying areas in accordance with prescribed environmental norms.

The role of bioremediation and biomining was mandated by the Union ministry under its solid waste management rules, published in 2016 in order to free the existing dumpsites from legacy wastes.

Details furnished by the civic authorities also that a total of 1.85 crore metric tons (MT) of solid waste will be removed from the land parcel. The BMC data shows that out of the total quantum of waste that is present in the landfill, 48% comprises soiled material, which mainly includes construction debris; 41% comprises inert waste, which comprises plastic waste; and the remaining 10% comprises dry and miscellaneous waste.

Civic authorities said 1,200 vehicles will be deployed daily to transport 23,000 MT of waste from the landfill. They also stated that the entire clean-up process would take three years.

“The overall period that the tender covers is 36 months, of which 12 months will be monsoon. Since bio-mining and bioremediation cannot be carried out during rain, the operational period for execution is 24 months,” Dighavkar added.

Meanwhile, civic officials also highlighted an array of challenges the authorities have to tackle while executing the work.

“One of the biggest challenges is that there is only one entry and exit point from the landfill; therefore, the passing of trucks so frequently will be a challenge. Considering the landfill is close to the Vashi Creek, we are exploring the possibility of being able to transport the waste from the creek to Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNPT) via vessels,” Dighavkar.

“The area is also close to eco-sensitive zones, for which we will require a slew of permissions, including CRZ clearance, as well as Mangrove Cell clearance, before starting the clean-up drive,” he added.

In 2018, the BMC initiated clearance of the 60-acre Mulund dump yard, which housed 60 lakh MT of waste, to reclaim the site. Civic authorities said that till date, 43 MT, or 70%, have been removed so far, which equates to 25 acres of area.