KURAVILANGAD (KOTTAYAM): When the urban swathe spreads disgorging large quantities of solid waste everyday, it is time for local self-government institutions to sit up and take note. The nightmarish consequences of waste left uncared for became a reality for the Kuravilangad grama panchayat when a quarry in disuse in the locality got filled up and the neighbourhood became increasingly restive.
When the problem began to acquire the dimensions of a local-level crisis, the panchayat decided to set up a bio-waste treatment plant in November 2006. “When we found that the people in the neighbourhood were beginning to feel agitated about mounting solid waste, we decided to go in for a decentralised system of waste disposal and simultaneously go in for a bio-waste treatment plant,” says panchayat president P.C. Kurian.
Under the plan, the people were encouraged to dispose of at source the waste collected from houses, schools, hospitals and other buildings. The panchayat also put in place a mechanism to collect market waste for conversion into biogas. The panchayat also imposed a ban on use of plastic with less than 30 micron thickness. “Soon, we began thinking about making a productive use of the biogas. This prompted us to think in terms of using the biogas to power the streetlights in the panchayat,” says Mr. Kurian.
The fallout was the setting up of an electricity-generation unit attached to the biogas plant within six months of its establishment. The power generation facility became operational on May 26, 2007, and it now provides power for 100 CFLs.
The plant, which gets roughly 250 kg of waste a day, is operated by a panchayat employee. Prior to treatment, proper care is taken to segregate plastic materials from the biodegradable matter.
The treated waste, after a process of repeated recycling, gets converted into biogas, which fuels the electricity generator.
The project, which was flagged off during the outbreak of chikungunya , had a positive cascading effect on the health of the local people. “The project led to a drop in the number of reported fever cases in the panchayat. Moreover, we were able to control the recent wave of dengue to a large extent thanks to our solid waste management system,” claims Mr. Kurian.
The project had an initial cost of Rs.19 lakh, funded by the panchayat from its own resources. In 2009, the plant came in for appreciation when Kuravilangad bagged the Nirmal Gram Puraskar, the Central government award for implementation of sustainable total-sanitation projects by local bodies.
source:The Hindu 13 July 2010
When the problem began to acquire the dimensions of a local-level crisis, the panchayat decided to set up a bio-waste treatment plant in November 2006. “When we found that the people in the neighbourhood were beginning to feel agitated about mounting solid waste, we decided to go in for a decentralised system of waste disposal and simultaneously go in for a bio-waste treatment plant,” says panchayat president P.C. Kurian.
Under the plan, the people were encouraged to dispose of at source the waste collected from houses, schools, hospitals and other buildings. The panchayat also put in place a mechanism to collect market waste for conversion into biogas. The panchayat also imposed a ban on use of plastic with less than 30 micron thickness. “Soon, we began thinking about making a productive use of the biogas. This prompted us to think in terms of using the biogas to power the streetlights in the panchayat,” says Mr. Kurian.
The fallout was the setting up of an electricity-generation unit attached to the biogas plant within six months of its establishment. The power generation facility became operational on May 26, 2007, and it now provides power for 100 CFLs.
The plant, which gets roughly 250 kg of waste a day, is operated by a panchayat employee. Prior to treatment, proper care is taken to segregate plastic materials from the biodegradable matter.
The treated waste, after a process of repeated recycling, gets converted into biogas, which fuels the electricity generator.
The project, which was flagged off during the outbreak of chikungunya , had a positive cascading effect on the health of the local people. “The project led to a drop in the number of reported fever cases in the panchayat. Moreover, we were able to control the recent wave of dengue to a large extent thanks to our solid waste management system,” claims Mr. Kurian.
The project had an initial cost of Rs.19 lakh, funded by the panchayat from its own resources. In 2009, the plant came in for appreciation when Kuravilangad bagged the Nirmal Gram Puraskar, the Central government award for implementation of sustainable total-sanitation projects by local bodies.
source:The Hindu 13 July 2010
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