While the state government has handed over a 124-acre portion of the Deonar dumping ground to build housing units for the proposed Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP), clearing the land of the existing mound of solid waste will be a lengthy and costly process for the administration.
The Deonar landfill is Mumbai’s oldest waste yard, spanning 311 acres (126 hectares), and in operation since 1927. According to data from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the Deonar dump stores 2 crore metric tonnes (MT) of solid garbage, which has accumulated in mounds as high as 40 metres, equivalent to a 12-story structure.
The state government has set aside 124 acres (50 hectares) of the total land area for the DRP project. Civic officials claimed that the area of land set aside for DRP has around 80 lahks MT or 40% of the total solid garbage contained at the Deonar landfill.
Civic officials further stated that the process of reclaiming land from solid trash would take at least 6-7 years and could cost more than Rs 1,000 crore in the current circumstances.
Meanwhile, the landfill’s eastern limit crosses Vashi Creek. As a result, a toxic liquid called leachate, which arises from rubbish mounds, mixes with creek water, causing water contamination. Following a court decision in 2021, the BMC suggested constructing a boundary wall made of vinyl sheets to prevent leachate from being discharged into the water body.
However, civic officials stated that following the allotment of land, BMC authorities are unsure who will build the wall.
Source: The Indian Express
