Across Karnataka, nearly 35,000 barrels of waste oil that is generated every month are literally being converted into puffs of hazardous smoke for a penny.
More than 80 million litres of used and waste oil — generated at service centres, boilers, power plants, and other industries — annually bypass recycling centres and end up in industries where they are illegally used as cheap fuel. Apart from adding to pollution levels, this practice has pushed more than 75% of the recycling industries to the verge of closure.
Recycling of waste oil ensures that the oil is processed and spent additives and contaminants are removed so that fresh base oil is retrieved. “Our visits to a few service centres showed a big discrepancy in the oil procured and recycled. In these places, at least 40% of the waste oil isn’t recycled. This is a big concern. We have already had a meeting with oil recyclers to hear their complaints, and we will take up the matter with service stations, which are a big generator of waste oil,” said Lakshman, Chairman of Karnataka State Pollution Control Board.
But oil recyclers paint a grimmer picture of wasted potential with nearly 90% not reaching their plants. At present, there are 36 waste and used oil recycling centres — many set up to capitalise on what they thought was “untapped liquid gold”.
Illegal industries
When in use, oil remains a much-scrutinised commodity — from its cost to its imports. After its use, it seems to disappear from view into our air and water sources.
Though waste oil and by-products of industrial and mechanical processes are governed by the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016 — which prescribes a strict set of norms that ensure recycling — much of the oil ends up as severely polluting fuel in illegal industries.
Waste/used oil is rich in lead, cadmium, sulphur, and heavy metals that could raise the pollution level to above permissible limits when burnt. Similarly, improper handling of these oils has lead to their accumulation in storm-water drains, lakes and sewers, KSPCB said.
While the illegal market thrives, oil recyclers are fighting for a survival. “Waste or used oil is bought illegally by industries with furnaces or incinerators. They offer up to ₹5,200 per barrel (around 190 litres), and burn this low-quality fuel as it works out cheaper than diesel (₹27 per litre for used oil, compared to diesel rate of ₹63),” said S.A. Ahmed, president of Karnataka Oil Recyclers’ Association (KORA). He added: “However, we recyclers can give only around ₹2,500 to make it viable for us. At this rate, many service stations and other oil generators tend to look for illegal sales instead.”
The result is that the oil recycling industry is limping. Banding together to ensure better collection, the Karnataka Recycling Centre (KarRec) in Yeshwantpur was started as a one-point stop for spent oil last year. However, in the past year, barely 950 litres have been collected there — far below Bengaluru’s estimated generation of 1,000 litres a day.
“We get around 5-10% of our capacity. The sector cannot survive until the waste management rules are enforced strictly. Out of the 36 oil recycling companies, barely 10 are functioning now,” said Mr. Ahmed. The association has demanded strict enforcement of the law as well as a crackdown by the Transport Department on the use of trucks for illegally transporting used oil.
Among those in the process of closing down is Century Refineries, which was set up in the city about two decades ago and is among the largest oil recyclers in Bengaluru. “We can handle 10 million litres of waste oil a year. However, in the past two years, we have barely received 95,000 litres. We have had no choice but to stop production,” said K.S. Bharadwaj, owner of Century Refineries.
Great expectations
On paper, it seemed like striking gold within the city. These castles in the air have seen oil recycling industries pop up in the State, with capacities far exceeding their meagre collection.
“There should have been better control of licensing. Many [recycling units] were set up on the advice of consultants who thought there was money in recycling. Now, there is so much competition even for the little waste oil collected,” said S.A. Ahmed, president, Karnataka Oil Recyclers’ Association.
If collection is made mandatory, the economics favour the industry, say recyclers. While imported base oil (used for lubricants and other products) costs up to ₹50 in the market, recycled base oil costs just around ₹35. “If a crore litre is imported in a month, we can retrieve 70% from the waste. Our imports would also reduce drastically,” Mr. Ahmed said.
