Chennai: To monitor and curb the illegal dumping of construction debris along Cooum, the Greater Chennai Corporation will install cameras at various places in the neighbourhood along the river bank. Last year it was reported that more than 86,000 tonnes of construction debris have been found dumped along the river. In addition to it, Municipal solid waste amounted to 18,144 tonnes. Following the reports on the alarming rate of waste being dumped in Cooum, the officials have decided to act on it.
The Corporation has now identified that the estimated number of illegal debris dumpsites is more than 500 across all 200 wards of the city. “The dumping spots are concentrated along the Cooum bank from Maduravoyal to Koyambedu and spots in and around Aminjikarai,” an official said.
SMART CAMERAS
At present, the civic body is focused on dumpsites along waterways like the Cooum, Adyar and the Buckingham Canal. It has installed smart cameras with sensors that can track vehicles using number plate recognition technology. ‘We will identify the violators and impose fines on them,’ said an official.
“Soon, the smart cameras are expected to be installed in the Mugappair, Maduravoyal, Koyambedu, Arumbakkam, and Aminjikarai. The quantity of construction debris dumped along the river is huge. We have been asked by senior officials to show consistent progress in clearing debris,” he said
‘CONSTRUCT PERIMETER WALL’
S Sathish Kumar, a resident of Mugappair Eri Scheme said, ‘No one knows, who dumps as they do it in the middle of the night. But from time to time, we find fresh mounds of construction debris on the river banks. Seeing the huge quantity of debris, we can assume that they were unloaded directly from lorries.’
“The best way to prevent it would be to construct high perimeter wall barriers along the banks of Cooum. Mugappair is a hub of construction and developmental activities. So, the government must also hold frequent meeting and awareness initiatives with builders and educate them to not dump construction debris in waterways,” he said.
Accepting that this is a solution for the problem, a Corporation official said, “We have already fixed trash boom barrier on the Cooum near Ethiraj College. More boom barriers would be commissioned in the future. The stretches along Maduravoyal and Koyambedu are also under consideration. ”
After regulating illegal dumping, the civic body will commission facilities for recycling construction debris as part of a scientific waste management system, he added.