Ghazipur landfill solution soon, trial run of waste-to-energy plant to begin

The East Corporation’s waste-to-energy plant, set up to provide a scientific solution to the problem of garbage disposal at the Ghazipur landfill site, will start its trial run by March 31.

East Delhi Mayor Meenakshi said the waste-to-energy plant follows Euro norms for emissions, including the highest standards of pollution control measures.

The waste management plant is an environment-friendly initiative which aims to mitigate 8.2 million tonnes of greenhouse gases over the coming years, said officials with East Delhi Municipal Corporation.

“Thus combating global warming with zero discharge,” an official added.
The project, based on a public-private-partnership framework, has been started by IL&FS Environment.

Meenakshi said the plant is installed to process 1,300 tonnes of waste per day to generate 12 MW of green power.

“Its built-in capability has been increased to process 2,000 TPD. It is expected to reach 32,000 mark in coming years,” an official said.

A social initiative by IL&FS – Gulmeher – has created an alternative livelihood for ragpicking families in addition to providing them jobs at the plant.

“This programme is a step towards the emanicipation of these families. A small-scale sanitary napkin unit is being run by women after being trained at the Gulmeher center,” said the official.

Gyan Prakash Mishra, vice-president (Special Projects) of IL&FS said nearly 1,500 bank accounts have been opened by these families.

“This project has transformed the lives of the ragpickers and converted them to skilled entrepreneurs,” he said. The decomposition of organic waste generates methane and carbon dioxide which pose a serious threat to the environment.

A separate plant for capturing methane is being run by GAIL near Ghazipur landfill site. The project is started by Gas Authority of India Limited with an estimated cost of Rs 17 crore.

“For this project, additional amount is being spent for the installation of generator to convert gas into energy. The project has around 30 pipelines through which methane gas is captured from the waste so that it does not pollute the environment,” said an official.

“So far, 8.5 lakh cubic metre methane gas has been captured and burnt to save the environment.”
DH News Service