Government Implements New Hazardous Waste Management Rules to Safeguard Environment and Health
Government Implements New Hazardous Waste Management Rules to Safeguard Environment and Health
29/July/2024
The Indian government has put out the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) (HOWM) Rules, 2016 to replace the previous Hazardous Wastes (Management, Handling and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2008. These rules aim to ensure the safe handling, treatment, and disposal of hazardous wastes without harming the environment or human health. Additionally, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has released technical guidelines for the effective management of hazardous waste in the country, which can be found on the CPCB website.
Additionally, to repurpose hazardous and other wastes as a resource, the CPCB has developed 102 Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for 71 various hazardous waste categories. You can find these SOPs on the CPCB website. In the timeframe from 2018 to 2024, the CPCB has received proposals from 08 State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs)/Pollution Control Committees (PCCs) to take action against 283 non-compliant units under Rule 23.(2) of the HOWM Rules, 2016 by the respective SPCBs/PCCs. The details by State/UT are provided below:
1. Chhattisgarh – 16
2. Gujarat – 17
3. Haryana – 2
4. Karnataka – 4
5. Maharashtra – 238
6. Odisha – 2
7. Puducherry – 1
8. Tamil Nadu – 3
https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2038294…
According to the CPCB, there are 127 contaminated sites in the country. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has allocated funds for the preparation of Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) for the remediation of 19 contaminated sites. MoEF&CC has also issued a guidance document for the assessment and remediation of contaminated sites in India. Additionally, the CPCB has released a reference document titled ‘Identification, Document Inspection, and Assessment of Contaminated Sites’. Furthermore, State Governments have taken steps to initiate the remediation of 13 contaminated sites. This update was provided by Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Shri Kirti Vardhan Singh, in a written response in the Lok Sabha today.
