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AMC gears up for e-waste segregation

In a bid to improve waste management, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) is considering segregation of e-waste in the city. The civic body will seek help from a consultant for this project. To spread awareness among consumers and electronics manufacturers, a seminar will also be held on June 5, the World Environment Day.

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In a bid to improve waste management, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) is considering segregation of e-waste in the city. The civic body will seek help from a consultant for this project. To spread awareness among consumers and electronics manufacturers, a seminar will also be held on June 5, the World Environment Day.

The seminar will be jointly organised by AMC, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) at the CII house, Panchvati. Speaking to DNA, the Chair of CII Young Indians (Ahmedabad chapter), Parag Gathani said, “The audience present in the seminar will comprise consultants, environmentalists, pollution control board members, government bodies etc. Also, we are working with AMC on e-waste collection.”

Speaking to DNA, municipal commissioner Guruprasad Mohapatra stated, “Now, central government has made e-waste segregation compulsory. So, we are mulling on how to proceed with it. We are also in the process of appointing a consultant to guide us in e-waste treatment.” He added that with the rule, it would be mandatory for manufacturers to collect e-waste and send it for treatment.

Elaborating on the talks with AMC, Gathani stated that the rule of segregating e-waste by central government was announced on May1. “Since, the rule has been announced recently; this is the right time to create awareness among manufacturers.”

Talking about future plans, Mohapatra stated that the entire plan is to start the treatment plant by 2012 end. “We are in talks with various agencies for treating different kinds of waste like animal waste, construction waste and e-waste. By December this year, we will be able to start treatment of different types of waste.”

Talking about the adverse affects of e-waste, Dipan Shah from Society for Environment Protection, one of the agencies working on the issue of e-waste, said, “Most of the electronic waste items are toxic due to heavy metals and poisonous elements, which can be hazardous if burnt with waste. For this, we need a proper system for proper segregation, treatment and destruction of e-waste.”

He further stated that as per central government’s new rules, it is the extended producer’s responsibility to collect the electronic waste from customers and send it for treatment.

Mohapatra pointed out that e-waste is hazardous as it contains harmful elements like lead, mercury etc. “Also, the amount of e-waste generated each day is increasing with more number of electronic goods moved to trash. Due to this, it is important segregate the waste properly and safely.”

The civic body has also plans to conduct an e-waste collection drive from June 6 to 9 where the citizens can dispose their e-waste. “The citizens will be given some amount equivalent to the e-waste they deposit just like they sell scrap to any scrap dealer. We will ensure that the waste is disposed of safely,” added Mohapatra.

Sources also stated that during the drive, the citizens may be given a certificate by AMC mentioning ‘Green citizen of Ahmedabad’. This will motivate more citizens to dispose their e-waste during AMC’s collection drive.

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