Online marketplace for construction debris? HC suggests solution

the goan I network
PANAJI
Goa could soon see the operation of an "online marketplace" for, of all things, construction debris after the Bombay High Court at Goa suggested this as a solution to the government's failure to tackle the problem of construction debris which the court noted was ‘stark'.
"Simply transferring the construction debris from one place to another cannot be a permanent solution. Ideally, the debris should be recycled in a manner that it is subsumed in the same work or some other construction work," the High Court noted.
"Since there is a demand for filling material and there is a supply of construction debris otherwise available, both demand and supply can be reconciled," the court said adding that the State Government should also issue mandate to all the Departments and Local Bodies concerned that the option of using the construction debris available as a filler, must be explored first before any other material is used.
The Advocate General told the court that the possibility of issuing guidelines even for private construction would be explored.
He suggested a scheme whereby construction debris from one site can be used as a filler when a new construction is coming up elsewhere, more particularly, when the old structure is being brought down and new construction is put up.
"This is easily possible but will need coordination and collection of information on the part of the concerned authorities. We expect the Town and Country Planning Department along with Goa State Waste Management Board to take a lead in this regard. They can develop a software wherein exchange of information is easily available for those who require building construction debris to be used for fillers, to connect them to those who are looking for disposal of debris," the High Court noted in its order which while not specifying any straightforward directions has sought that the state "may also issue directions to withhold further constructions unless this option is first explored, unless it is technically impossible to use the construction debris as a filler, then for that construction there could be relaxation of this mandate."
Earlier the court noted how several municipalities in its replies appeared to be clueless as to how to deal with construction waste. "We are shocked at the dismal state of affairs," the court observed after perusing replies filed by several municipal councils and village panchayats.
"The reading of these Reports gave us an impression that the authorities are in a state of denial that a problem exists. There is a complete failure to evolve any lasting solution to the problem of construction debris almost all over the State of Goa in spite of the orders passed
by this Court almost a decade ago. There is utter failure to adhere to the directions of this Court in respect of the issue of construction debris," the court observed.