MUMBAI: Ready-mix concrete (RMC) plants in the city will not be allowed within 200m of schools, colleges, hospitals and courts and they must maintain a 100-m buffer zone from residential areas as well as arterial roads and highways. RMC plants will be allowed to function only during the day and the operator will have to file an affidavit stating that all conditions for operating the plant will be complied with.
These are some of the measures suggested by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) in the draft guidelines for RMC plants in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. The board has sought suggestions and objections to its guidelines within 30 days.
While RMC plants were earlier banned within municipal limits, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find space to set up such plants necessary for the construction industry. Hence, the MPCB has decided to frame guidelines to regulate them.
To prevent air pollution, the draft guidelines have recommended covering all material transfer points and tree plantation along the periphery of the RMC plant. The draft guidelines also suggested a separate drainage system and water treatment facility. The MPCB will give old plants one year to implement the norms. No consent to operate will be given unless these conditions are fulfilled by new plants too, said Rajiv Mital, member secretary, MPCB.
Sumaira Abdulali, convenor, Awaaz Foundation, said, "Air pollution is affecting the city badly; the health of citizens must be taken seriously. The building industry can afford to implement these measures in phases."
