THE GOAN NETWORK
MARGAO
Four days after Sonsodo was engulfed in a massive fire, the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) on Thursday issued a notice to Margao Municipal Chief Officer to show cause within three days why stringent legal and criminal prosecution should not be initiated against him for negligence in the management, handling and disposal of the unsegregated municipal waste at Sonsodo.
Even as Margao Municipal Chief Sidhivinayak Naik was in the process of drafting a reply to the GSPCB notice, listing out the various steps initiated by the Civic body since the fire broke out at Sonsodo on Monday noon, a pollution control team descended in and around Sonsodo to monitor the ambient air quality.
GSPCB also issued a host of directions to other authorities, including Director Fire Services, Urban Development Secretary and the Director of Municipal Administration to initiate steps to contain the burning waste at Sonsodo.
Action against the Chief Officer has been contemplated under the Environmental Protection Act and Solid Waste Management rules.
In the show cause notice, the MMC Chief Officer was directed to immediately take all necessary steps to ensure that the fire at the Sonsodo site is extinguished in an environmentally sound manner and to render all necessary assistance to the staff of the GSPCB that will be deputed to the site in order to carry out ambient air quality monitoring, which is required by the Board for the purpose of assessing the damage being caused to the environment in the area due to the burning of waste at the site.
Chairman of the GSPCB Ganesh Shetgaonkar has warned that failure to satisfactorily comply with the directions within the stipulated time period will compel the Board to initiate stringent legal action against the Chief Officer under the Environment Protection Act and the Solid Waste management rules without any further notice.
The Chief Officer is required to submit a detailed reply to the show cause notice along with a detailed action plan/compliance report with regard to the directions within a period of three days from the date of receipt of notice.
The show cause was issued to the MMC Chief Officer following an inspection carried out by the GSPCB, wherein it was observed that large quantities of unsegregated mixed waste was dumped at the site and that the unsegregated wasted dumped at the site was being burned and there is a massive fire burning at the site.
The inspection also revealed that an area admeasuring 8000 square meters at the site was under fire.
The Director, Fire services has been directed to take immediate steps to ensure that the fire at the Sonsodo site is extinguished in a safe and environmentally sound manner.
The GSPSCB show cause says the South Goa district Collector is required to initiate necessary action in the matter burning of waste in terms of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016.
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