Down To Earth brings you the top environmental cases heard in the Supreme Court, the high courts and the National Green Tribunal
Tarapur Industrial Area
The second joint inspection-cum-monitoring report of the common effluent treatment plant (CETP) of Tarapur Industrial Area in Maharashtra was made available to the public on September 16, 2020.
The report by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) was in compliance to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) orders of September 26 and October 22, 2019.
The NGT had directed that the CPCB and MPCB jointly undertake extensive surveillance and monitoring of the CEPT at regular intervals of three months and submit their report.
'The analysis results of various effluent samples of the CETP collected during the joint inspection-cum-monitoring on March 12, 2020, revealed that no improvement had been made by the CETP operator to upgrade or improve its performance since the previous joint inspection conducted on November 13, 2019.
Some of the violations listed in the report include:
Kapali river
The NGT September 15 directed the secretary of water resources, Odisha, the district magistrate of Bhadrak and the Odisha State Pollution Control Board to furnish a factual and action-taken report in the matter of demarcation of the floodplain zone of the Kapali river.
The court was hearing the application asking for compliance of directions issued by the NGT December 16, 2019.
The direction was to identify and demarcate the floodplain zone of the Kapali at Nalanga in Bhadrak district. Further direction was that there should be no construction in the floodplain zone and requisite preventive measures must be taken against any adverse consequences on the floodplains of the river.
Musi river pollution
The Telangana State Pollution Control Board September 15 filed its report before the NGT on the steps taken for treatment of untreated sewage flowing into the Musi river.
The report mentioned that the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS&SB) submitted the status report of sewage treatment plants (STP) operational in and around the Musi and action taken on suggestions made by the CPCB.
The Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority submitted a compliance report for the enhancement of the existing treatment capacity of STPs presently under its control. They include the following:
HMWSSB has engaged Shah Technical Consultants, Mumbai for the preparation of a Comprehensive Sewerage Master Plan. According to the Master Plan submitted by the consultants, the total sewage generated for 2018 was about 1,782 MLD and projected sewage generation for 2036 is 2,815 MLD.
The present installed treatment capacity of existing STPs was 772 MLD. For the 2036 requirement, 62 STPs, with a capacity of 2,057 MLD have been proposed. Of the 62 STPs, the prioritised 31 STPs proposals were formulated into three packages and submitted to the Telangana government.
With respect to utilisation of treated sewage and utilisation of treated sewage to the maximum extent instead of discharging into the Musi, the HMWSSB, at present, was supplying treated waste water to gardens, the report said.
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