MPCB to Khaparkheda Thermal Power Station: Clean up Nandgaon ash pond in 15 days
Mumbai: The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) has issued directions to Khaparkheda Thermal Power Station (KTPS) in Nagpur district to restore 258 acre ash pond in Nandgaon village, where the power plant was found to be dumping fly ash -- a toxic byproduct of burning coal -- without adequate permissions or safety measures in place
Mumbai: The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) has issued directions to Khaparkheda Thermal Power Station (KTPS) in Nagpur district to restore 258 acre ash pond in Nandgaon village, where the power plant was found to be dumping fly ash -- a toxic byproduct of burning coal -- without adequate permissions or safety measures in place.
The directions were issued just a day after cabinet minister for environment, Aaditya Thackeray, visited the site and met with communities affected by fly ash being deposited in their fields and surrounding water bodies.
“You shall remove the entire accumulated ash in the Nandgaon ash pond and restore the ash pond... to achieve its original state of land within 15 days,” states the direction notice, issued under relevant sections of the Water Act (1974) and Air Act (1981). KTPS has also been directed to deposit a bank guarantee of ₹20 lakh to ensure compliance with this and other directions, which also include permanently removing the network of pipes in the vicinity of the Nandgaon ash pond used to transport ash slurry.
KTPS has also been directed to ensure “100% utilisation of fly ash for eco-friendly purposes” as per the centre’s rules governing utilisation and disposal of the material, and also to submit a time bound action plan for removal of legacy ash accumulated at an older ash pond in Waregon.
MPCB has also said that no further disposal of dry ash produced at KTPS can be dumped in Waregaon.
On Monday, Thackeray announced a slew of measures to ensure a “phasing down” of coal-fired power plants in the state including a comprehensive study, and to ensure that coal-based thermal power plants (TPP) comply with pollution control norms in the interim. This move is significant in light of statements made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Conference of Parties (COP26) at Glasgow last year, to achieve net-zero by 2070 for the country, and in light of Maharashtra’s commitment to reach net-zero emissions even earlier, by 2050.
“An audit of all power plants in Maharashtra for pollution control measures will be done. The power plants that are not meeting prescribed standards will face decisive action. A mitigation plan will be developed for this,” Thackeray said at the time. The state currently has an installed capacity of 13,602 MW of which coal-fired thermal power accounts for nearly 75% or 10,170 MW. State-owned thermal power stations include: Chandrapur, Koradi, Khaperkheda, Nashik, Parli, Bhusawal and Paras.