Industries in Coimbatore, especially those with Rs. 5 crore or more investment, are going in for a green belt on their premises, nearby locality or on the access roads.
Apart from the tree planting initiatives by several organisations in the city, more industries have started looking at a green campus.
The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board insists that medium and large-scale industrial projects should develop greenery on 25 per cent of the total area of the unit. In the case of projects where land availability is a problem, the industries can develop the green cover on the road sides or on any other premises. The board asks for a photograph of the green effort to be attached to the application for consent for operation.
The objective is to increase the green belt and reduce pollution, explains K. Kamaraj, District Environmental Engineer of the board. Though it is not mandatory for the small-scale and tiny units, they too can adopt it if they have land, he says.
An official of the Southern India Mills' Association points out that usually mills go in for a vast green space on their premises to control pollution. Adopting this is not a problem in textile mills and even in the case of space shortage, the units now have the option to develop greenery on any other site.
N. Ramasamy, Chairman of the Institute of Indian Foundrymen, Coimbatore, says there are several units located on just 25 cents plot. They will not be able to develop a green cover in six cents. While the new units are able to develop the required area of greenery, the older ones are trying to.
M. Kandhaswami, President of Coimbatore District Small Industries' Association, says all industries should go in for developing the green cover. The association has also appealed to the Pollution Control Board to extend, as incentive, other relaxations to those adopting this norm.
