Tiruchi Corporation to streamline functioning of micro compost centres

Tiruchi Corporation has stepped up measures to streamline the functioning of the micro compost centres (MCC) in the city and produce high-quality manure within a short time

Tiruchi Corporation has stepped up measures to streamline the functioning of the micro compost centres (MCC) in the city and produce high-quality manure in a short time.

On an average, the city generates about 470 tonnes of waste daily. There are 39 micro compost centres in five zones that collect, process, and recycle municipal solid waste of 40 tonnes daily. Three to five trained workers are engaged in the process.

According to a source, the micro compost centres should segregate and dispose of municipal waste daily to prevent accumulation. While biodegradable waste is converted into manure in about 21 days, plastic and other recyclable material are sent to cement factories.

In order to speed up the process and increase the manure output, the wet waste collected from door-to-door drive is segregated, regularly sprayed with organic solution to enrich the manure, and aid in quick composting. At present, the average manure output is about 20 tonnes a day per centre.

Overall maintenance work, including sharpening of blades, replacing the belts, and fixing corroded machines, would be carried out in all centres to check the efficiency of the machines. As each centre has a storage capacity of 100 tonnes, steps are taken to utilise it fully.

“Shredding machines at 14 micro compost centres are witnessing a snag due to which there is a delay in producing manure. Zone-wise repair work will be carried out and we will ramp up the use of the machines,” said M. Vijay Chandran, City Health Officer.

According to officials, the quality of manure varies according to the waste collected from households and commercial areas. For instance, the compost centres in zone II produced good quality manure as the zone mainly included market areas.