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The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change has introduced new rules for the management of debris from construction as well as demolition activities.
The move is intended to put an end to disposal of construction waste in open spaces, land fills, drains, water bodies and forests, as these are a major source of pollution and also result in coagulation of water bodies and drains. Further, construction waste is often laced with toxic materials that can be hazardous to the immediate environment.
Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said that according to an estimate by the Department of Science and Technology, over 530 million tonnes of debris are generated every year.
Reducing pollution The Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules are aimed at reducing pollution from this source.
The debris generated during construction and demolition largely consists of concrete, steel, wood, glass and dust, most of which is potentially recyclable. The government has said large generators of such waste would have to submit a management plan in order to secure permission to build.
Such generators would also have to either collect, transport and process debris themselves, or pay local authorities that can do this. “Every State government will give space to local authorities for setting up processing plants,” Javadekar said, adding that for cities with a population over 10 lakh, processing and disposal facilities would have to be commissioned within 18 months; in cities with 10-15 lakh population they would have to be completed in two years; cities with a population below 5 lakh would get up to three years.
Javadekar said State and local government bodies would have to use 10-20 per cent of products made from recycled construction debris for activities such as construction of roads.
Given that dust accounts for over 20 per cent of the pollutants in the air, and construction is one of the biggest sources of dust, the government had earlier mandated that all construction sites in the National Capital will have to be covered to ensure lower dispersal of dust, besides spraying water to achieve the same. This rule, too, will now be applicable nationwide.
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