Leachate posing health hazards, says panel

Emanating from the waste dumping site on the Brahmapuram campus of the Kochi Corporation, it is adding to the contamination of waterbodies

The health woes of Kochi are best summed up by this picture.

Leachate from the waste dumping site on the Brahmapuram campus of the Kochi Corporation is adding to the contamination of waterbodies and raising serious health concerns, said the expert panel of the State-Level Monitoring Committee on the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act 2008.

The “leachate from waste was polluting freshwater sources such as Kadamprayar, Chitrapuzha and Manackkapuncha canal. These water bodies join together to form the Chambakkara Canal, which in turns joins the Vembanad Lake and then leads to the Arabian Sea,” the report of the panel said.

Residential waste pile-up

The panel pointed out that huge quantities of waste from residential areas, industrial units, hospitals and e-waste was being dumped at the Brahmapuram site in an unscientific manner.

The pollution and contamination of these waterbodies are directly affecting the water sources of Thripunithura and Thrikkakara municipalities and eight village panchayats. Thiruvaniyur, Chottanikkara, Edathala, Kunathunad, Kizhakkambalam, Vadavukode, Puthenkurishu and Mulanthuruthi panchayats were being hit, the report said.

The pollution of waterbodies pollute Vembanad Lake, a Ramsar site, which is also an internationally important wetland habitat. As the pollution eventually reaches the Arabian Sea, it will affect the ecosystem and the biota too, it said.

The pollutants, including heavy metals, could get into human beings through aquatic bodies and the associated food chain.

The contamination could hit millions of people who depend on these water sources, the report cautioned.

The large population of stray dogs, mosquitoes, rodents, giant African snails, and other pathogenic insects present in the area cause huge health concern