As garbage pills up, both LDF and UDF have little to offer

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Both the LDF and the UDF released their manifestoes two weeks after the ministry of environment and forest (MoEF) notified solid waste management and handling rules, but had very little to offer on one of the gravest issues facing the state: managing waste.
The manifesto released by UDF did not even reserve a chapter for waste management as though it is hardly an issue.The LDF, which promised a minimum of 20 projects in sectors like power, education and health glides over waste management by rehashing its objectives endorsed since 2007.
As per the new MSW rules, state government need to implement 11 directives within time frames ranging from one year to five years. The most significant among them is the framing of a solid waste management policy by the state government, an aspect not touched upon by the LDF and the UDF.
The MSW rules also strongly contradict the policies advocated by UDF , a reason which might have prompted them to omit issues related to waste from the manifesto. While the new rules lay stress on reducing waste and using biomethanation or composting, UDF government had pressured Kochi Corporation into signing a contract for setting up a gasification plant at Rs 295 crore.
If the current policy stresses on reduction, one of the critical reasons for success in the waste-to-energy project in Kochi is ensuring 300 tonnes of waste per day . Signing agreements with adjoining local bodies to meet the demand is also part of the deal. The same flaw had spelt doom for waste treatment plant at Vilappilsala in 2011. Unsegregated waste, which was not fit for composting piled up and resulted in leachate.
LDF , which merely highlights the success model at Alappuzha is silent on handling construction waste and plastic waste. It only says alternatives for plastic will be promoted, a mission that had failed badly before. Directives on setting up common regional sanitary landfills and proposals to make industries use refuse derived fuel as mandated in MSW rules also find no mention.
Home minister Ramesh Chennithala said that the government had failed in addressing the waste management issue properly . “In my opinion, decentralised waste management is the way ahead. I practise it personally at my home. The government has not been able to address this issue as they should,“ said Ramesh Chennithala, while taking part in ManifesTOI programme.