Image: The News Minute
The Greater Chennai Corporation’s (GCC) proposal for a Rs 1,026-crore Waste-To-Energy (WTE) plant, which would burn unsegregated waste, has sparked significant environmental concerns among activists and local residents. Many fear that the plant will exacerbate pollution and public health risks, especially given that similar, smaller incinerators in the city have already been linked to environmental degradation. A recent ground investigation by TNM uncovered evidence of improper ash disposal and harmful emissions from existing plants, lending further credibility to these concerns.
The GCC passed the resolution to build the facility on February 27, despite protests from residents and documented evidence of the environmental and public health damage caused by the burning waste—evidenced most notably in the country’s capital city of New Delhi. The proposed facility is expected to burn 2,100 metric tonnes (MT) of garbage daily, including 358 tonnes of rigid and flexible plastics, 105 tonnes of paper, and 42 tonnes of PET bottles, constituting 35 per cent of the total average waste of 6,000 MT that Chennai generates daily. Activists note that the CO2 emissions from burning 2,100 MT of waste each day will be equivalent to the emissions from 10.5 lakh cars.
A WTE plant, as the name suggests, will produce thermal electricity by burning garbage. The gas, after treatment, will be released through a stack or a chimney, while the ash residues, called bottom ash, will be transported out of the plant and secured in scientific landfills. Notably, a 2015 study commissioned by the Government of India—and conducted by the Japan International Corporation Agency (JICA)—found that Chennai city would not need waste incineration or WTE technology for managing its waste until 2030.
The Alliance for Incinerator-Free Chennai (AIFC), a citizens’ collective, has condemned this as a highly expensive and polluting solution to the waste management problem. The group also criticised the GCC for choosing to set up the WTE plant in North Chennai’s Kodungaiyur, a red industrial zone that houses marginalised communities and working-class people.
This is especially concerning, since a WTE plant causes fly ash that contains harmful compounds to be emitted along with the flue gas, a mixture of gases and smoke that comes out of a chimney after burning materials like waste or fuel.
Moreover, the bottom ash generated as a result of burning the garbage could become a major cause for soil and groundwater degradation if not secured properly.
Chythenyen DK, a researcher on WTE incineration projects, told TNM that the government claims that this 2,100 MT plant will only produce 300 MT of bottom ash. “The number doesn’t come anywhere close to the real figure. As per our calculations, the facility will generate 500-800 MT of ash. What is concerning is how the bottom ash will be secured in landfills. Bottom ash requires a scientific landfill to ensure that heavy metallic compounds do not penetrate into the soil,” he added.
Scientific landfills are enclosed areas where several metres of clay form the base layer, ensuring the chemicals do not contaminate the soil and groundwater. Atop the base layer, a drainage layer is laid to ensure that water doesn’t enter the landfill. The setup is also closely monitored and sealed once the landfill reaches capacity.
Chennai’s activists, however, are concerned that this bottom ash may not be properly secured in the landfills, since one of the city’s existing waste incinerators—one that does not generate electricity—is openly dumping its bottom ash.
On March 1, TNM visited the 10-tonne waste incinerator plant located in Chinna Mathur, Manali, run by MAK Green Incinerator, and found this allegation to be true.
Ground reality
Subbiah (name changed), a resident living just a few metres from the plant, said, “They started the plant in 2019. Initially, they were making blocks out of the ash, but after the first few years, they have just been pouring the ash into the empty land next to the plant. The land is not even enclosed with a gate—cows and dogs walk in and out regularly.”
On paper, MAK Green is supposed to ensure that the bottom ash from burning waste is used to make paver blocks, which would then be used for laying roads by the corporation. “This itself is a risk because the ash contains heavy metals. By preparing paver blocks and laying roads, we are increasing the risk of these metals penetrating the soil in multiple localities,” Chythenyen noted.
When TNM visited, ash was being openly dumped on the land next to the plant, as pointed out by the residents. The empty land also contained a small pond. Devi (name changed), a resident living 50 metres across the plant, complains of foul smell in their drinking water. “We have been living here for 15 years. In the last few years, the bore water has had an odd smell, especially during the monsoon season when the groundwater levels rise. Most of us now buy water cans,” she said.
Residents also reported that the flue gas released from the stack has sometimes come out black in colour, leaving black stains on the walls of a few of their houses.
“Sometimes, the small black particles have stained washed clothes that were drying on my terrace,” alleged Vanmathi (name changed), another resident.
Apart from the Chinna Mathur waste incinerator, two other waste incinerators are operational in the city: a 50-tonne incinerator in Kodungaiyur and a 5-tonne mobile incinerator.
Residents of Kodungaiyur said that on many mornings, they have noticed smoke and smog coming from near the dumpyard where the 50-tonne incinerator is located. But since they live in a red industrial zone with over 30 other red-category industries, they added that they cannot pin the blame solely on this one plant.
Activists from AIFC have raised doubts about whether paver blocks are actually being made from the ash generated from this plant, since the practice has stopped at the Chinna Mathur plant, which is run by the same entity. They suspect that the ash could be dumped in the Kodungaiyur landfill, located right behind the plant.
“The mobile incinerator has mostly been making the rounds around Marina beach, burning the waste found there. We don’t know how the ash from it is being disposed of,” said Geo Damin, an environmental activist and member of AIFC.
The ‘electricity’ question
The GCC’s pitch is that the new plant would be beneficial, particularly as a potential source of electricity. But does the benefit truly outweigh the cost?
The proposed facility is expected to generate 31 MW (Mega Watt) electricity per day, according to the corporation. “To put things in perspective, 31 MW generated from this proposed incinerator meets only 0.1% of Tamil Nadu’s daily electricity demand,” said Damin.
On an average, the state’s electricity demand is 20,000 MW per day. “If we look further, they are spending Rs 33 crore for producing 1 MW of electricity from this WTE plant. By comparison, coal-powered thermal projects cost only Rs 8 crore per MW, and solar power projects cost Rs 5 crore per MW,” Damin added.
Sustainable solutions
Activists from AIFC believe that sustainable waste management is the key solution. This includes capping the production and usage of single-use plastics, lowering overall plastic consumption, promoting waste segregation at source, and focusing on waste composting and recycling.
They also cited the CSIR-NEERI report submitted to the principal bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), which states that the practice of burning mixed waste defies the purpose of waste segregation at source. “Promoting WTE incineration plants for mixed waste (mass burning), defeats the purpose of waste segregation, which is mandatory, as per the prevailing SWM Rules, 2016. The mass burning of MSW also·defeats the opportunity of Circular Economy for the waste sector,” the report reads.