THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Now that the Corporation has made plans to decentralise its garbage disposal, the next big hurdle before it is the heap of plastic waste generated each day in the city. To tackle the issue, the City Corporation is all set to hold talks with some public sector companies which could find alternative use of plastic as a raw material. The Corporation has already held talks with a company based in Tirunelveli, which has a branch in Coimbatore, to sell its plastic waste. However, the huge conveyance charge has dimmed the chances of any agreement. “It is only if we transport the plastic to Coimbatore or Tirunelveli are they willing to take it. But when we considered the charges, it would be above Rs. 15 lakh a month for conveyance alone. A poor Corporation like us cannot shoulder the burden,” said Mayor K Chandrika. The Mayor said that she had communicated with the Industries Minister to consider public sector companies under the Department which could buy plastic waste as raw material from the Corporation. The local body has been making plans to install plastic collecting and crushing units at three points in the city. However, nothing has materialised as yet. It had bought a compactor, which is a vehicle that crushes the plastic waste and converts it into small pellets or modules. However, only one vehicle, bought under the JNNURM project, has been put to service. To avoid plastic waste from forming heaps at the Vilappilsala waste treatment plant, the Corporation had also modified its garbage collection schedule by the Kudumbashree Cleanwell units. As of now, plastic waste is collected once in three days only. But even that has not helped in reducing the collection of plastic waste. The previous Council had tried out a similar method in dealing with plastic waste. It had zeroed in on a small-time plastic collecting company based in Chennai and had signed an agreement with them. However, the group had to employ ten women to segregate the plastic from the biowaste from the huge heaps at Vilappilsala plant. After a short stint, the group left the city. According to the Corporation officials, biowaste is not as dangerous as plastic waste, the disposal and treatment of which has become a grave issue. Though there is a ban on plastic below 40 microns, nobody seems to care.
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