More vacant lands in the city’s suburbs are turning into garbage dumping yards as several solid waste management projects are yet to take off.
One instance is the vast open space adjacent to Grand Southern Trunk Road in Urapakkam. Here, the local body — Urapakkam village panchayat — dumps garbage by the road and sets it on fire, say residents.
N. Srinivasan of Otteri near Vandalur says garbage is burnt frequently and the resultant smoke causes breathing problems for residents and motorists on NH45.
Officials of local bodies in the southern suburbs say as it is difficult for all local bodies to locate space for creating compost yards, integrated landfill sites have been proposed. However, there is a delay in getting environmental clearance.
In the southern suburbs, like in the rest of the city, the local bodies’ failure in implementing source segregation, added with the absence of landfill sites, has become an obstacle to introducing solid waste management practices.
The proposal for a compost yard near Sholinganallur to facilitate safe disposal of garbage collected in 43 local bodies is yet to take shape, says a block development official.
The combined landfill site proposed for Tambaram and Pallavaram at Venkatamangalam is being readied at a cost of Rs. 44.20 crore, and work has been expedited, says an official from the municipal administration and water supply department.