While Salcete battles its monstrous garbage problem, thebiggest challenge for the coastal belt Village Panchayat’s (VPs) has been tofind a garbage dumping site, which the Goa State Pollution Control Board can approvewithout raising objections.
“Since 2009, the village has been barred from issuing constructionlicenses by the High Court since we have not been able to show a specific planas to how the village will handle its own garbage. The problem is that peopledo not want a garbage dumping site in their ward and immediately opposeearmarked places. Similarly the GSPCB has turned down a few places approved byus as low lying and too close to a water body,” stated Varca sarpanchVincentina Fernandes.
Similarly thevillages of Cavelossim, Orlim, Carmona, Benaulim and Colva are also in limbobecause of this attitude of the GSPCB. “The problem arises when people oppose adumping site. In Nuvem, the Panchayat has already constructed a plant. However,the sorting, composting and recycling of garbage has not commenced because the dumpingsite has been opposed by the villagers,” stated noted village activist RosarioPerreira.
GSPCB head, Simon D’Souza pointed out that they had reservationson having dumping sites in low lying lands next to water bodies, slopinggradients, near schools and residential colonies. The threat of leachate,infection, epidemics or water bourne diseases could make the village vulnerableto many health related issues besides contaminating ground waters.
When asked whether there are any set guidelines to reject agovernment dumping site, Mr D’Souza admitted that rules existed for a SolidWaste Disposal site in municipal areas, however there were no set guidelines toclear land for a garbage dumping site in Panchayat areas. “We have set a fewrules and guidelines to clear land. We do not want another Sonsoddo fiasco, areason why the GSPCB is very strict while clearing garbage dumping sites for VPs,”asserted Mr D’Souza.
Amicus Curie, Norma Alvares pointed out that a problemoccurs when the VPs zero in on a piece of land for garbage dumping site and nota garbage processing site. “Basically villages need land to sort, segregate, compostand recycle the garbage and not to store or pile it. Composting needs no approval of the GSPCB. But theproblem arises as the government does not want to take the responsibility tomonitor a garbage processing site. The GSPCB is afraid that the garbage won’tbe processed, so the Pollution Board is unreasonably rejecting sites shown bythese VPs. And the VP is trying to approach the GSPCB as only an affirmative responsefrom them will provide the government money, to acquire land for the garbagedumping site,” explained Ms Alvares.
