In a bid to reduce pollution of the Cooum, the Chennai Corporation and Metrowater will commission interceptor drains along the river.
Interceptor drains will run parallel to the river and facilitate diversion of sewage from illegal sewer outfalls. The need for interceptor drains has risen because of the increasing number of illegal sewage outfalls along the river.
A few months ago, the civic body had planned to identify sewage outfalls along the river and plug them to prevent pollution. However, the drive did not meet with success due to lack of sufficient manpower.
“Neighbourhoods adjoining the river will become cleaner if such drains are there to prevent pollution. Public health too will improve,” said Pandian, a Corporation councillor.
The project is expected to reduce the volume of untreated sewage discharged into the river without affecting the operation of thousands of commercial and residential buildings. It is estimated that nearly 30 million litres of untreated sewage is released into the Cooum every day. Officials have identified such outfalls in Chintadripet, Chetpet and Anna Nagar. Most of the sewage is let into waterways through stormwater drains.
Metrowater will also increase the capacity of the sewer network to match the requirement of reducing pollution. Sewage pumping stations along the waterway will treat the sewage collected by interceptor drains before release it into the river, said an official.
The National Green Tribunal has already directed the Chennai Corporation, the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board and the Public Works Department to take action to prevent pollution of Cooum.
These agencies are required to submit an action plan and a time-frame for the restoration of Cooum river.
