MARGAO
Ahead of the resumption of the bio-remediation work at Sonsodo, heavy-duty machinery is seen at the waste dumping site, with the Goa Waste Management Corporation (GWMC) planning to remediate the legacy dump by May 2021.
GWMC Managing Director Levinson Martins along with the representative of the contractor Patil made his presence felt at Sonsodo to take stock of the situation ahead of the resumption of the remediation work.
The contractor has mobilized around five heavy-duty machines at the site, while a lone machine was engaged for the task of churning the waste so that it gets dried up before being taken up for remediation.
Martins told the contractor to take up the legacy dump for remediation which is situated around the Komex waste treatment shed that is lying half-buried under the waste.
He pointed out that the GWMC has drawn up a plan to clear up the legacy dump near the Komex shed so that the entire area around it is made available to the Margao Municipal Council in case it has any plans to set up any new shed.
The GWMC has roped in its architect at the Sonsodo legacy dump last week and he is believed to have suggested to the Corporation to first take up the legacy dump near the Komex plant for remediation.
Martins later told The Goan that the contractor would soon resume the bio-remediation work at Sonsodo hopefully before the year-end, so that the entire legacy dump is cleared by May 2021.
“The contractor has been told to put in additional machinery and ensure that the legacy dump is cleared by May 2021. We are hopeful of achieving the deadline since the contractor has assured to deployed additional machines at Sonsodo,” he added.
Presently, two bio-remediation machines have been mobilized at the site and will be in operation for a couple of days, with the contractor promising to mobilize a total of six such machines.
The GWMC Managing Director said that apart from the legacy dump, the RDF which was generated during the remediation process was lying at Sonsodo since transportation of the dry waste to the cement factories in Karnataka had gone haywire during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The GWMC had started bio-remediation of the Sonsodo legacy dump after a local NGO Citizens for Sonsodo had knocked on the doors of the High Court with a plea to direct the government to remediate the thousands of tonnes of legacy waste lying at the site.
