The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has decided to put up floating booms in the city’s rivers to prevent an excessive amount of floating waste from drifting into the sea and being deposited on beachfronts.
The BMC said that the booms would be installed by April 15 in the first phase of the project in Dahisar, Mithi, Oshiwara and Poisar rivers. The floating booms will form a barrier to intercept debris and trash.
V. Khankar, chief engineer (storm water drain), said, “The floating waste that gets heaped up along the barrier will be cleared using a JCB or a Forklift. We have already tried this system at our storm water drains in Irla and Lovegrove pumping stations, where drains are open and people throw waste in them.”
The floating booms are placed on the river and the trash accumulated will be cleared up during river clean-up operations.
Shiv Sena’s Milind Vaidya said, “The BMC spends money in desilting the major storm water drains. However, garbage dumped in rivers end up on our beachfronts during high tides. The BMC then has to spend a lot of money to clean up beaches like Chimbai, Bandstand and Mahim.” The standing committee on Wednesday approved a ₹7.61-crore contract to clean up Mithi river.
