Green curbs set to delay mega project for sewage disposal………Shweta Desai
Mumbai may have to wait beyond 2012 for a cleaner coastline and stench-free waters off its beaches. The Mumbai Sewerage Disposal Project (MSDP) that aims to overhaul the existing system and treat sewage before disposal is set for a further delay.
Four of the Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) proposed under MSDP Phase II fall within the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) and require clearing some patches of protected mangroves. These STPs are to be located at Versova, Malad, Ghatkopar and Bhandup. Following a Bombay High Court order against any non-forest activity on mangrove land, the BMC will now require clearance from the state and the Centre before it can proceed.
The state had cleared a proposal demarcating areas not covered by mangroves as “non-protected” forests, thus allowing the BMC and several government authorities to begin development projects, but the HC order in January said no non-forest activity could be permitted in areas with mangroves, even if they have not been yet been declared “protected forests”.
“We will once again need to send our plans for Central and state approval. Only when they are cleared can we float tenders and begin the project,” a civic official said. Officials said Central clearance usually takes time and the construction, which was scheduled from 2009 to 2012, will now be delayed.
The Rs 5,000-crore MSDP II project is being funded under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission and will involve replacing old, small sewer lines and extending the sewer network to the entire city. The city generates around 2,600 mld (million litres a day) of sewage, of which only 1,600 mld is given primary treatment. The rest is released into the sea without treatment.
The MSDP plans to treat around 3,400 million mld of sewage by 2025.
There are currently seven sewer treatment plants in the city at Colaba, Worli (Love Grove), Bandra, Versova, Malad, Bhandup and Ghatkopar and under MSDP-II. Their capacity will be enhanced with advanced treatment technologies. Construction of lagoons, effluent pumping stations and a pipeline on the seabed are other aspects of the project.
The new technology-activated process will also improve the quality of seawater and reduce its biochemical oxygen demand levels.