With continuous monitoring and sample-testing, the Gujarat Pollution Control Board is apparently keeping these industries on their toes. The result: 98 per cent of chemical, dyeing and other industries in Vapi use Asia’s biggest CETP, which has a capacity to treat 54 million litres per day. Most of the industries in Ankleshwar use the two CETPs set up there, while neighbouring Jhaghadia will soon get its own treatment plant. With this system in place, the State’s Pollution Control Board argues that there is very little chance of untreated wastes being released into the rivers and streams of southern Gujarat.

But the most impressive gains seem to be in terms of air pollution control. Both Ankleshwar and Vapi were declared ‘unattainable’ by the Central Pollution Control Board due to its air pollution. However, an ‘Air Action Plan’ put into place in January 2005 has not only brought down air pollution levels, they are now under permissible levels. The GPCB’s strategy of putting the onus of air pollution above permissible levels on the industries themselves appears to have paid off. They do that by monitoring air quality regularly, and identifying erring units through regular inspections. If the treatment process of hazardous gases is not satisfactory, industries are simply asked to upgrade to new technology or face closure. After the ‘Air Action Plan’ was put in place, most of the industries have shifted to newer technologies like the use of wet scrubbers, bag filters or the more superior electro-static precipitation.

As for hazardous solid waste, the state government has created, at Ankleshwar and Vapi, two landfill sites built according to the guidelines of the Central Pollution Control Board. The bottom of the landfills are layered with two coatings of high density polyethelene and the walls are lined with clay that is non-permeable. This makes it almost impossible for the waste to contaminate groundwater or land. Right now all the solid waste from Ankleshwar and Vapi is dumped into these two landfills.

... contd.