Haryana to set up hot mix plants

The Haryana government has issued guidelines for setting up of hot mix plants in the state and has directed their operators to follow the prescribed siting criteria norms for establishing such plants in the state.

A hot mix plant is an assembly of mechanical and electronic equipment where aggregates are blended, heated, dried and mixed with binder to produce specified requirements. The plant may be stationary or portable. A spokesman of the department of environment said that a decision of setting up these plants has been taken to maintain ecological balance in view of the industrial development and to maintain quality of environment in order to avoid health hazards for the residents of the area.

He said that according to the prescribed norms, the minimum distance of the hot mix plant from the municipal limit should be five kilometres and minimum distance from revenue phirni (lal dora wherever there is no village phirni) would be one kilometre.

He said that the minimum distance from the nearest National Highway would be one-and-half kms. Similarly, the minimum distance from the nearest state highway would be one km. and minimum distance from the nearest major district road and other roads would be 200 metres. He said that minimum distance from vulnerable places like hospital, tourist spots, lakes, national monuments and national parks or wild life sanctuaries or conservation reserves would be two kms.

He further said the land required for each unit would be two acres. In the future, hot mix plants with latest technology of pollution control measures having fabric filter with reverse air cleaners with multiple wet scrubbers would only be allowed. The elevators at loading section should be fully covered, and a buffer green belt must face the road and the population, with a width of ten meters and a minimum of three rows of plants. The emission standards required to be achieved included suspended particular matter (miligram or normal cubic meter).

He said that any other emission standards prescribed by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forest, the Central Pollution Control Board or the Haryana State Pollution Control Board would also be applicable in future. The hot mix plant should have the stack height of atleast 25 meters. The existing units which do not have the latest technology, as defined above, would have to be provided with the latest technology for air pollution control measures within a period of two years.