Areas along coastal belt, commercial capital continue to face acute collection problem
MARGAO
The problem is more acute along the coastal belt and semi-urban areas on the outskirts of the commercial capital, including villages such as Navelim, Davorlim, Aquem-Baixo, Rumdamol, tourist villages along Salcete belt either for want of space for waste segregation or dumping.
No doubt, many a panchayat body in coordination with the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) had put in place a mechanism for collection of dry waste, but a permanent solution has still eluded them.
Says Goa Pollution Control Board Member Secretary, Levinson Martins: “It is indeed sad that very few panchayats have been religiously doing the job of dry waste collection, while others have been found wanting in consistency. Goa is a high consumption state and Salcete taluka is no exception. Every panchayat should put a waste collection system in place especially for dry waste. The GSPCB is there to clear the dry waste collected by the panchayats”.
Martins warned that unless the panchayat bodies accord utmost priority for the job of dry waste collection, things will not improve in Salcete countryside. “I feel it is not a big thing to collect the dry waste. What is required is the will and the consistency to collect the waste door-to-door without fail”, he said, while reiterating that panchayat bodies should accord priority for waste management.
Environmentalist Clinton Vaz echoed similar sentiments. Clinton was closely associated with a couple of Salcete panchayats to put a system in place for dry waste collection. “Panchayats which are playing host to multi-storied buildings are facing the brunt of the waste problem. Since the buildings have no waste disposal mechanism, they put the mixed waste in plastic bags and dispose them off, further aggravating the problem”, he said.
Clinton pointed out that though many a panchayat has now mandated builders to construct composting units, there are hardly any checks maintained by the body whether the composting unit is put to use or not. “The panchayat should not only verify at the time of issuing occupancy certificate whether the builder has constructed the composting unit or not, but also find out at a later stage whether the unit is put to use”, he said.
While p;anchayats along the coastal belt such as Varca and Benaulim have joined the exercise of dry waste
