Noida steps up pressure on bulk generators to treat, recycle waste

NOIDA: The Noida Authority is set to intensify its drive against commercial establishments that are not segregating and managing its waste. There are about 400 bulk generators and notices have been sent to 150 of them.

All commercial establishments in Noida that have an area of over 5,000 square metres and generate an average of more than 100 kg of waste every day are classified as bulk generators. Each of these bulk generators produce waste between 500kg to 2,000kg per day, depending on its size and scale of operation.

“In the past week, we have imposed fines worth over Rs 1 crore on various establishments for not complying with the Solid Waste Management Rules (SMW), 2016. We have found plastic being used extensively, especially in malls, and not being segregated before disposing,” said Omendra Srivastava, chief adviser to Noida Authority on Swachh Bharat Mission initiatives.

While notices have been sent to 150 commercial establishments, only few are effectively segregating and recycling their waste. Officials said that more notices will be issued in the next few days as the authority intensifies checking.

“The bulk generators are partially following the rules, but much more needs to be done, especially for managing wet waste within their premises. We still have to check many such premises regarding how they are managing waste,” Srivastava said.

Bulk generators include gated communities, shopping complexes, malls, educational institutions, offices, places of worship, and food joints among others. The Authority has directed all such establishments to segregate and store all waste, process wet waste within their premises and sell or give away the dry recyclable waste to authorised vendors.

“The amount of waste generated by the bulk generators is large and difficult for us to transport,” said S C Mishra, deputy general manager, Noida Authority.

Waste segregation at source and minimising the waste reaching the landfill are important criteria even in the annual Swachh Survekshan ranking, wherein Noida started participating from 2018.

Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) has sent notices to 31 industries regarding management of plastic waste.
All these industries have to submit a plan on how they are managing their waste. Of the 31 industries, 12 are brand owners who are covered under the ‘Extended Producer responsibility’. These industries have to apply to the CPCB with their waste management plan and need to ensure that all of their plastic waste is recycled.

Source : The Times of India