PANAJI
A meeting of all stakeholders held some two weeks ago by Science and Technology Secretary, Sanjay Goel, IAS, in his Secretariat chamber failed to break the logjam between industry in Goa and the facility to treat hazardous waste in Ponda -- Ponda Envorocare Ltd -- where the plant is not getting enough quantities although sufficient quantities are produced here.
Goel, who also holds charge of the waste management department, had held deliberations with representatives of industry, PEL and government officials from related departments in a bid to resolve the issues related to PEL's Ponda plant not getting sufficient volumes for optimal performance.
Industry in Goa which is estimated to produce close to 75.000 metric tonnes of hazardous waste annually is said to prefer routing it to cement plants outside the State instead of PEL at Ponda because of the latter's high pricing.
With the meeting not yielding the desired results, Goel has now tasked the Goa Waste Management Corporation (GWMC) to bring all parties on the discussion table and resolve the pricing issue.
Apart from technical and non-technical officials from the Department of Industry, Trade and Commerce, Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB), Goa Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC), the meeting was also attended by representatives of the Goa Industries Environment Management Association (GIEMA), Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry and officials of PEL.
Although GIEMA has inked an MoU with PEL assuring it of supply of waste both for landfilling and incineration, industries in Goa are reluctant to use the facility to treat its hazardous waste because of the "prohibitive costs" charged.
Top sources said, the initiative for the meeting was taken by Goel after PEL petitioned the government to issue statutory instructions to industry to route their waste to their plant in Ponda.
However, at the meeting the representatives of industry raised the issue of high prices charged for processing hazardous waste charged by PEL, much higher than the pricing regime of processors outside Goa.
"Although PEL had assured to come up with competitive rates, in practice it was not happening which is why industry is reluctant to route their waste there," an attendee at the meeting told The Goan.
After the deliberations resulted in a deadlock, Goel then insisted that GWMC step in and eke out a middle path by bringing all sides to the discussion table. While it is not clear if a timeline is prescribed, Goel insisted that the Supreme Court directives on hazardous waste be the template around which the logjam is resolved.
