Online Monitoring Mandatory for Waste-to-Energy Plants and Landfills: CPCB

The Central Pollution Control Board has directed all state pollution control boards and pollution control committees to install Online Continuous Emission and Effluent Monitoring System (OCEMS) at waste-to-energy plants and sanitary landfill sites to strengthen surveillance and ensure compliance with environmental standards.

The order dated August 12 asked states to submit 'action taken reports' on the status of waste-to-energy units by August 18.

It said that all operational and upcoming municipal solid waste incineration-based waste-to-energy plants must install and operate OCEMS for real-time tracking of pollutants such as particulate matter, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrogen fluoride, hydrogen chloride and carbon monoxide.

Similarly, all waste-to-energy plants and landfill sites are required to put in place OCEMS for treated leachate, tracking parameters such as pH, total suspended solids, biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, ammoniacal nitrogen and fluoride.

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has also made it mandatory for sanitary landfill sites to be equipped with surveillance cameras at entry and exit points and inside active working areas to prevent illegal dumping and improve transparency.

The order states that all monitoring systems must be linked to servers of the respective state boards and the CPCB within three months of the directive.

The CPCB said that waste-to-energy plants and landfill sites are significant sources of leachate and air emissions which, if not managed as per norms, can have serious environmental impacts.

A large amount of fly ash and bottom ash is also generated at waste-to-energy units, which has to be managed under prescribed conditions.

The board said several matters related to waste-to-energy plants and solid waste disposal are under consideration in the National Green Tribunal, high courts and the Supreme Court, making strict monitoring necessary.

"Considering the growing need for remote and continuous environmental surveillance, it is necessary to bring waste-to-energy plants and sanitary landfill sites under online continuous monitoring regimes," CPCB chairman Vir Vikram Yadav said in the order.

The state pollution control boards and pollution control committees have been asked to acknowledge the directions and submit compliance reports on installation and connectivity of monitoring systems within 30 days.