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Need info on volatile organic compounds: NGT
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) directed the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) June 30, 2020 to file a report on how the assessment of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) was done in the outskirts of Maharashtra capital Mumbai.
The issue was over remedial steps being taken for control of air pollution at and around Ambapada and Mahul villages.
The major contributors to air pollution were logistics services storing oil, gas and chemical items and oil companies releasing emissions. The emissions included VOCs on account of loading, storage and unloading hazardous chemicals at various stages.
The CPCB earlier filed a report on March 18 which assessed the value of the damage to the environment, public health and the proportion in which the amount should be recovered from identified contributors.
The court went through the report and applications of those seeking compensation of Rs 1.5 crore. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd and Aegis Logistics Ltd raised objections to the report on the quantum of VOCs emitted.
They sought directions to the CPCB to disclose the basis of its assessment of quantum of VOCs which they said was unjustified.
No garbage dumped in Kudlu Chikkakere lake
The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) filed its inspection report before the NGT on Kudlu Chikkakere lake in Bengaluru Urban district.
The KSPCB informed the NGT that directions were given to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to take action against illegal construction in the buffer area of Kudlu Chikkakere lake and stop the entry of sewage into the lake by providing permanent barricades / barriers at all entry points to the lake.
At the time of inspection by the KSPCB, it was seen that the lake was filled with water and maintained by the BBMP’s lake division. An increase in water collection in the lake during an earlier inspection on February 4 was also noted.
BBMP authorities stopped the entry of sewage into the lake by providing barriers to sewage channels / storm water drains joining the lake at three points.
At one entry point, however, a small amount of sewage entered the lake due to damage caused to the barrier provided.
The municipal corporation authorities diverted the sewage from the lake to a new sewage treatment plant (STP) adjacent to the lake and with a capacity of 500 kilolitres per day. The STP worked at the time of inspection and treated sewage was being discharged into the lake.
There was no garbage currently being dumped into the lake, according to the report. The municipal corporation also identified projects and houses constructed in the buffer zone of the lake, the report said.
Dhampur Sugar Mills environmentally compliant
The CPCB filed a compliance report on pollution caused by four units of the M/s Dhampur Sugar Mills Ltd in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad, Bijnor and Bareilly.
The report — citing an earlier action-taken report by the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) — said the four units were now environmentally compliant. The UPPCB had submitted its report in response to earlier directions given by the CPCB.
The UPPCB carried out periodic inspections of all the units that complied with the recommendations of a Joint Committee constituted in response to an NGT order and also deposited environmental compensation levied on them.