Dutch firm to study feasibility of Bhalaswa SLF reclamation

North Delhi Municipal Corporation has appointed a Netherlands-based consultancy firm to carry out a feasibility study for re-use of the mammoth garbage dumped at the Bhalaswa sanitary landfill (SLF) in north west Delhi.
The Bhalaswa landfill, used for disposal of garbage generated in Civil Lines, Karol Bagh, Rohini, and West and Najafgarh zones of NMDC area, has completed its sanitation capacity life but due to lack of alternative site it is still being used, said a senior municipal corporation officer.
"The Department of Environment Management Services (DEMS) has replaced the previous consultant and appointed the Netherlands based consultant M/s Novax which will conduct a feasibility study of the SLF for its reclamation," the officer said.

The civic body had earmarked Rs 5 crore in its 2016-17 budget for the purpose of preparing the landfill site for re-use.
Tenders will be issued soon for preparing the Bhalaswa site for reclaiming it and also for generation of electricity from garbage dumped there.
The SLF which was started in 1993 is being used for dumping hundreds of tons of garbage everyday despite expiry of its sanitation life. It has attained a height of nearly 30 metres giving it an appearance of a hillock.
The reclamation process will involve digging up the landfill site and use the cleared space for dumping more garbage. The garbage will be segregated before being dumped and only organic portion of it will be dumped here so that its sanitation life capacity could be extended significantly, said the officer.

The DEMS committee has also proposed to install advertisement billboards on the overgrown landfill site to diminish its unsavoury look.