BBMP to set up exclusive landfill for South Bengaluru in Hullahalli

The BBMP has secured the state government’s approval to establish a ‘scientific landfill’ on the 10-acre quarry in Hullahalli for South Bengaluru.

Though setting up such dumping yards are against the National Green Tribunal (NGT) guidelines, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike officials are hopeful of getting the mandatory consent from the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB).

They said the decision to set up a landfill in South Bengaluru was made to reduce the cost of transporting waste to Mitaganahalli in East Bengaluru. The civic body has proposed a much bigger landfill in Bagalur, which falls in North Bengaluru, but the proposal is yet to be approved.

The Hullahalli landfill is expected to be ready in about two months. “We plan to send about 250 tonnes of waste and rejects. The 10-acre land will take about a year’s time to fill up. Waste generated from three to four Assembly constituencies of South Bengaluru will be sent to this landfill,” a BBMP official said.

Currently, about half of the 4,000-tonne waste generated daily in the city is dumped in the Mitaganahalli landfill, but the dumping yard will run out of space in less than six months since most of the quarry pits in the village have been filled.

It is learnt that the BBMP is yet to complete environment impact assessment report on the proposed Hullahalli landfill. The civic body may face heavy environment penalty if it does not get all approvals, a source said.

Sarfaraz Khan, BBMP’s joint commissioner for solid waste management, clarified that the project has just been approved and all requisite norms will be followed.

“We had not taken the environment impact assessment report so far as the proposal was not approved,” he said, adding that only inerts and rejects would be sent to this landfill.

Sandhya Narayan, a solid waste management expert, said the city cannot do away with the landfills unless the BBMP is allowed to fully utilise all the six waste processing plans.

“Only four plants are currently operational and most of these are not running at their full capacity. In some cases, the resistance has come from the elected representatives themselves. The city needs a strong leadership to address political issues and make these waste processing plants work,” she said.

“Of the 1,200-tonne wet waste generated in the city, about 50% ends up in landfill,” she added.