20160128 India Fire breaks out in Deonar, local contractors come to rescue
India Jan 28 2016 “Other”
Dead : dead 0 or unknown Burnout : 0 or unknown Injured : injured 0 or unknown
Fire breaks out in Deonar, local contractors come to rescue
Updated: 2016-01-28-15:13
A fire broke out so deep within the garbage dumps of Deonar on Thursday morning that a fire-brigade vehicle was unable to reach it. Eventually, the local contractors handling the garbage were able to douse the flames, say fire brigade officials, adding that “small fires” are a routine occurrence in the dumping ground. Environmentalists, though, are horrified at the routine nature of such fires, given the toxic compounds being burnt. Worse still, nobody quite knows what exactly is being burnt, or what is being released into the atmosphere.
While the fire is supposed to have begun at 6.30 am, TOI received pictures of the smoke billowing out of the dump at 7.30 am, taken by a concerned citizen, Saurabh Shah, who was driving past the area. Shah himself is garbage manager at Mobitrash, an organisation working on the mobile collection and treatment of organic waste, and was horrified at the burning of an untreated mix of organic and inorganic waste lying in the garbage dump. He was especially worried about the burning of plastic, which releases dioxins into the environment___a compound believed to be carcinogenic.
“I took photos of the smoke at Deonar while driving along the link road connecting Ghatkopar with Vashi. It was clear that the smoke was blowing in the direction of Mumbai,” he says.
Chembur resident Sandip Rane says the entire areas was full of smoke, with residents virtually choking on it. “I had filed a contempt of court case against the municipal commissioner over the unscientific treatment of garbage some years ago, but withdrew it when the BMC promised to go in for the proper treatment of garbage. I now plan to take up the matter with the National Green Tribunal,” he says.
In addition to plastic, environmentalist Sumaira Abdulali pointed to other substances like thermacol which are very dangerous when burnt. “I’m sure the garbage dump will have large quantities of both thermacol and plastic. What’s particularly worrying is that we have no clue what is being burnt,” she adds. While she points to several private initiatives that deal with recycling waste, she rues the absence of a formal government mechanism for doing so.
“Mumbai is sitting on a smouldering toxic bomb,” says D Stalin of NGO Vanashakti. “Why are garbage dumps operational in such a manner that the fire brigade is not able to access large parts of it?” he asks. Stalin points to the carcinogens released into the environment by a whole range of waste material including electronic waste.
There could well be a slow simmering within the dumping ground, much like what goes on in underground mines, says Rakesh Kumar, who heads the Mumbai centre of the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute. While the burning of plastic remains one of the most worrying aspects of garbage burning, Kumar goes on to say that there are various kinds of plastics whose burning release a variety of different compounds into the environment, like for instance a mixture of rubber and plastic, or, say, polythene. Releasing such compounds into the environment should not be taken lightly, he adds.
Web Source: TIMES OF INDIA
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/navi-mumbai/Fire-breaks-out-in-Deonar-local-contractors-come-to-rescue/articleshow/50756411.cms