MUMBAI, June 4: The anti-plastic campaign launched by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation received a boost with an Australian company proposing to recycle the plastic from garbage and use the remains to prepare compost at the Malvani dumping ground.Australia-based Orchid Waste Management sent its proposal on the recycling the waste in the city to the solid waste department of the BMC, said Subhash Sawant, incharge of the department. A decision proposal would be taken after a meeting with the company's representatives.According to the BMC's solid waste management (SWM) department, the city produces 6,000 tonnes of garbage including 180 tonnes of plastic, especially carry bags and mineral water bottles. Plastic junk has proved to be dangerous to the city's waste disposal system choking up drains and nullahs. Stray cattles were found choked to death after chewing on plastic bags. During the ongoing drain cleaning operation, the BMC had to clean up some nullahs more than once after plastic blocked theflow of sewage.``If the new plant is installed, the BMC will not have to spend at all. We will only have to provide them space to install their machinery,'' informed Sawant adding that Orchid will be allowed to sell the compost for a very nominal rate and take the recycled plastic to Australia to produce dustbins.The BMC also plans to rope in the state government in its campaign against plastic. The Council is likely to pass a proposal on reducing the use of plastic especially carry-bags and forward it to the state government seeking a ban on its use in daily use. SWM chief M R Shah added that the civic administration is exploring possibilities of declaring a ban on its own.Presently, rag-pickers collect the plastic from the four dumping grounds and sell it.
