Even as the city’s handling of solid waste comes under scrutiny, a “major”, hitherto unaddressed problem, has come to the surface: handling of animal waste and road kill.
During a recent meeting with the former High Court judge Subhash B. Adi, who is Chairman of the National Green Tribunal State-Level Committee (SLC) on solid waste management, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike officials said management of dead animal waste is one of the major problems in the city.
It is estimated that over 40 tonnes of animal waste — which could be offals, skin, feathers, bones, and other leftover animal meat — from butcher shops are disposed daily without a “systemic” plan.
D. Randeep, Special Commissioner, Health and Solid Waste Management, said, “Often, they are put in plastic covers and dumped in garbage black spots. We can’t even take them to landfills, as they attract birds.”
The other challenge is road kills. Officials say pourakarmikas are not mandated to pick up dead animals, and that it is left to the health officers in each ward to attend to calls. More often than not, however, the carcasses are dumped in empty plots.
In a new circular, the BBMP Commissioner has assigned responsibilities for various departments on clearing waste, including road kill and dead animals, dumped by the roadside.
Currently, there is only one crematorium for animals at Sumanahalli on Magadi Road. Officials said it processes around 60 animals monthly, but operates on an outdated, highly polluting technology. “It is only for dogs, cats and other smaller animals. We can’t cremate larger animals, such as horses, donkeys, and cows,” said an official.
‘Reuse carcasses, waste’
During the NGT meeting, officials proposed three animal rendering plants in the city, for which land had been identified and ₹15 crore under the Nagarothana scheme had been granted.
“With these, over 100 tonnes of animal waste or carcasses can be processed. The fat will be removed, and will be sold, while the rest of the meat will be churned and boiled to form fish feed. The current rate for this product is around ₹20 per bag,” said G. Anand, Joint Director, Animal Husbandry, BBMP.
This arrangement exists informally with many farmers from neighbouring Tamil Nadu, where small-scale rendering plants have been established, procuring waste from the city as input for their catfish farms, said BBMP officials.
The SLC technical committee — formed to approve composting and bioremediation technologies — has been requested to select suitable technologies for the rendering plants, said Mr. Randeep.
