Burning of the first 10-tonne batch of Union Carbide’s toxic waste begins
The Hindu
First trial run of disposing 10-tonne Union Carbide toxic waste in Pithampur begins after Supreme Court's decision.
The burning of the first 10-tonne batch of Union Carbide’s toxic waste began in the wee hours of Friday (February 28, 2025) as part of the first trial run to dispose of the 40-year-old waste, Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation Director Swatantra Kumar Singh said.
Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Singh said that the process is going smoothly so far and that the burning or incineration process will take about 72 hours to complete. The first trial run, out of the three allowed by M.P. High Court, is being conducted at a feed (burning) rate of 135 kilograms per hour.
The process began shortly after the Supreme Court rejected a petition that had challenged the Madhya Pradesh government’s plans to dispose 358 tonnes of Union Carbide waste in Pithampur. The top court also refused to stay the three trial runs of 10 tonnes each, allowed by the High Court on February 18.
The chemical waste, which had been lying at the now-defunct Union Carbide India Ltd (UCIL) factory in Bhopal for more than 40 years since the December 1984 gas tragedy that killed thousands, had been transported to a private waste treatment facility in Pithampur industrial town near Indore on January 2. The move had caused a massive uproar in and around the town in Dhar district, forcing the authorities to delay its plans.
The preliminary work for the trial run had been done in advance and the process was initiated after the Supreme Court’s decision not to intervene.
“It’s a long process before the waste burning begins. Opening the packaging has started, after which the waste will be loaded into the unit very carefully,” Mr. Singh said, adding that a dry run of the incineration machines will be conducted at night so that the unit is well-heated before the waste is loaded.
“It takes some 8-10 hours for the machines to heat up and get ready for the incineration,” he added.
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