Huge Covid biowaste in one year took toll on ecology in northeast

GUWAHATI: Covid-19 has taken its toll on the environment in the northeast with an increase in biomedical waste in the region and with little scope for proper scientific disposal.
As per a government reply tabled in the Lok Sabha on Friday, Assam alone generated 337.4 ton of Covid-19 infected waste between June-2020 to June-2021. This mammoth biomedical waste is more voluminous if the Covid infected biomedical waste produced by six other northeastern states (254.4 ton) during the period is taken into account.
Even as lack of a Common Biomedical Waste Treatment Facility (CBWTF) for disposal of such waste has emerged as a major issue in the northeast with only one CBWTF in Assam, these huge quantities of waste may be a threat to public health during the monsoon floods.
Underground burial is the preferred option in most parts of the state which lacks CBWTF. As per Central Pollution Control Board guidelines, such burials must be performed under close and dedicated supervision and it must be ensured that no contamination occurs to surface water or groundwater. However, lack of manpower with the pollution board to monitor the situation raises a question over burials during Covid times, said officials in the forest and environment department.
"CBWTF should be encouraged for proper scientific disposal. Floods make deep burial more vulnerable. Besides, groundwater level is not far below the surface in states like Assam, if we compare the scenario in some of the states in West India," said Jagat Deka, assistant engineer at the Pollution Control Board, Assam (PCBA).
Organizations involved in the biomedical waste management feel that if important towns and cities in the region are not brought under the ambit of CBWTF, there can be a disastrous impact on public health if another deadlier and prolonged wave of Covid-19 hits the country. The NE states are still struggling to bring down the case numbers even when the worst Covid-hit states have significantly recovered.
The only CBWTF of Assam is operating in Panikhaiti, on the outskirts of Guwahati, run by Fresh Air Waste Management Services Pvt. Ltd. But the area under its jurisdiction is currently about 150 km radius, covering some parts of lower and central Assam districts.
Fresh Air director Partha Pratim Pathak, who is also an executive member of eastern zone of All India CBWTF association, said "People are trying to build a common biomedical waste treatment facility in NE but the biggest hurdle is viability. Revenue generation is dependent on the number of hospital beds in an area. In India, a CBWTF needs at least 5,000 beds under it to sustain."
Pathak said that there have been attempts in states like Meghalaya and Mizoram to set up CBWTF but it could not get the shape of industry due to a fewer number of hospitals choosing such a common facility. Even many of the government hospitals around Guwahati are not connected to the common facility and prefer deep burial.
As per the Biomedical Waste Management Rules, 2016, no occupier shall establish on site treatment and disposal facility, if a Common Bio-medical Waste Treatment facility is available at a distance of 75KM. In case where service of the CBWTF is not available, the occupiers shall set-up requisite biomedical waste treatment equipment like incinerator and autoclave.
Nevertheless, Covid-19 has reminded the need for common biomedical waste facility to protect the fragile ecology and the virgin areas of northeast after an unimaginable volume of biomedical waste was generated in the region in the last one year. While Manipur and Meghalaya generated 56.5 and 92.2 tons between June-2020 and June-2021, smaller states like Nagaland and Mizoram produced biomedical wastes amounting to 34.1 and 29.2 tons during the period. Tripura generated 7.6 tons, Arunachal Pradesh generated 34.8 tons.