Move to exempt Waste-to-Energy projects from mandatory environmental clearance draws flak

CHENNAI: With the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change issuing a draft notification proposing to exempt Waste-to-Energy (WTE) projects from mandatory prior environmental clearance, environmentalists and political parties have strongly opposed the move, citing significant health and environmental threats.

Geo Damin, a solid waste management researcher with Poovulagin Nanbargal, noted that the central government has already reclassified WTE plants from the "red" (highly polluting) category to the blue category. "Now, the government has initiated steps to categorise these projects under 'Essential Environmental Services (EES)', thereby exempting them from mandatory Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) under the 2006 notification," he added.

According to a recent draft notification, all projects coming under Common Municipal Solid Waste Management Facilities (CMSWMF), including incinerators and WTE plants, may no longer require prior environmental clearance.

He warned that exempting WTE facilities from EIA requirements will severely weaken safeguards, reduce public participation in decision-making, and increase environmental harm. Numerous studies, including those on Okhla, Bawana and other WTE plants, have consistently shown toxic emissions and severe public-health impacts, he noted.

"The notification also limits the scope of public hearings, thereby curtailing the rights of affected communities to raise objections. This also contradicts Supreme Court rulings that mandate prior environmental clearance for all projects with potential environmental impacts," he stated.

He urged the public to register strong objections to the draft notification, as any project capable of harming the environment or public health must undergo rigorous assessment.

In a separate statement, PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss condemned the central government for the draft notification and said that WTE plants emit 28 times more dioxins than coal power plants, three times more nitrogen oxides, 14 times more mercury, six times more sulphur dioxide, and 2.5 times more carbon dioxide.

He further warned that fine ash particles released from incinerators can travel several kilometres, contaminating lakes, ponds, and food prepared in nearby restaurants. Calling the Ministry's claim that WTE plants "protect natural resources" a "cruel and dangerous falsehood," he emphasised that the risks of these projects are too severe to ignore.

Anbumani also criticised the Greater Chennai Corporation's plans to build massive WTE plants at Kodungaiyur and Perungudi at over Rs 1,248 crore and added that PMK has been opposing these projects through public hearings. "The new rules may help the state government push these projects forward rapidly," he said.