BMC to involve private firms in treating construction waste

“We have asked private firms to come forward with technologies that will help in treating and recycling construction waste,” said deputy municipal commissioner Prakash Patil,adding that the BMC had not yet fixed a budget for the project. “We are ready to spend,based on the effectiveness of the technologies,” he added.

The civic administration,which is drafting the final proposal,will invite companies in the next two months. Subsequently,a tender to finalise the firms will be floated.

“Companies that list successful recycling technologies will be considered. The technology could either be foreign or indigenous,” said a senior civic official. “Recycling construction debris can give out crushed sand and crushed stone,which can be used again for building houses,” said the official.

“Around 500 acre of mangroves was destroyed during 1998-2002 near Lokhandwala Complex in Oshiwara due to illegal dumping of debris,” said Rishi Agarwal of Mangroves Society of India.

In June 2012,a builder dumped debris on a mangrove plot in the Oshiwara-Lokhandwala belt. Following a complaint,the builder was arrested.

“The BMC has been making empty promises when it comes to treating the debris and construction waste. Earlier suggestions by activists and resident groups to set up recycling plants have not yet been implemented,” said Agarwal.

While the onus of dumping construction debris in private projects is with contractors and developers involved in building projects,the BMC had asked its own civic-contractors in 2009 to look for a place to dump the debris generated at the construction sites.