Polluters don't pay

Polluters don't pay

Moreover, compared to the lowest achievable emissions levels (20 mg/Nm³), India's cement sector does not do well (see graph: Still dusty). Average emissions are 3.6 times higher than the lowest possible in case of kilns. Similarly, for clinker cooler, average emissions are 3.3 times higher. There are technologies available to achieve low emissions. Plants continue to use older but cheaper technology, thanks to lenient regulations. Bag filters give more effective in controlling emissions, but they have high operational costs. So, only 54 per cent of plants have installed electrostatic precipitators in most polluting kiln stacks.

Still, in terms of dust load (dust generated per tonne), the sector's performance is improving -- it fell from 369 grammes per tonne of product in 1999-00 to 261 in 2003-04. The industry has slowly been upgrading pollution-control technology. Even then, it performs poorly when compared to some global players. The Japanese multinational, Taiheiyo Cement, generated just 32 grammes per tonne -- 3.5 lower than the best Indian performance by Lakshmi Cement and the Alathiyur Works of Madras Cements Limited.

Point source emissions have been controlled to an extent, because there are regulation, albeit lax. But fugitive emissions is a problem territory, because there are no regulations. There is an economic logic: the loss of a few tonnes of material is irrelevant. Many fugitive materials like flyash and cement dust are of fine quality. While cement dust ranges between 0.1-1 00 micron, flyash is between 1-100 microns and coal dust around 2.5-100 microns. Though it is known that smaller particulate matter penetrate further into the lungs, there are no regulations governing fugitive emissions.

Water can be used to suppress dust emissions. However, really effective control requires infrastructure that can suck dust, cover storage yards, mechanically unload material, inter alia . This doesn't get done because investment is needed. Just one plant has provided an enclosed limestone crusher hopper and dust-suction mechanism to reduce emissions. Eight per cent have enclosed storage , while 70 per cent of plants have open storage yards.

Look at flyash. Though its use has been increasing, many plants do not have proper infrastructure. The only way to control fugitive emissions is to handle it pneumatically and store it in concrete structures. Nearly half of the flyash is handled manually, and around half a million tonne is stored in the open.

Clinker is another problematic area. It gives cement makers headaches because it causes a storage problem. The industry has increased capacity without investing in infrastructure for increasing storage. The plants rated by grp store more than 30 per cent of clinker outside.

The problem of emissions is another indication of what can happen if regulations are not in place. Government regulators have not pushed for improvement, other than in Himachal Pradesh. 12jav.net12jav.net