PANAJI: Goa is known for its pioneering legislation on non-biodegradable garbage and for successfully achieving segregation at source in its capital city. But the fiasco over curbing the
plastic menace continues to be a sore point for both, citizens and tourists.
After a series of announcements of intentions to check the burgeoning problem, the government set a timeline of May 30 this year to implement measures. Enforcement had, in the past, been stalled by lack of political will, but this time it was chief minister Manohar Parrikar’s absence from the state that thwarted the initiative.
Goa has come a long way after it passed the Goa Non-Biodegradable Garbage (Control) Act in 1996 and enforced it in 1998. A state-of-the-art garbage management plant at Saligao and several other schemes were subsequently launched to treat
waste. The administration even brought almost all panchayats and civic bodies in the loop of segregation at source.
It was as early as the year 2002 that the state imposed a ban on plastics below 40 microns thick. Although the restriction was increased to 50 microns by the Centre a few years ago, activists have alleged that enforcement has been poor.
“The government has not shown much teeth where enforcing the ban on plastics below 50 microns is concerned. Till date, vendors continue to hand out single-use plastic bags of 10 microns,” Patricia Pinto, a former member of the state task force on garbage, said. “The government is not really serious about it. If one item on the agenda (a ban on plastics below 50 microns) cannot be enforced, how can a total ban on plastic be implemented?”
Single-use plastics are reported to be a major, if not the biggest, component of the 40 tonnes of plastic waste Goa generates everyday. While segregating waste at source is vital for successful garbage management, citizens, households and business establishments in Goa are still far from understanding its importance. Treatment of mixed waste presents a huge problem for waste managers and plants in the state.
The average citizen’s insensitivity and apathy on the part of local self-governing bodies pose a significant setback to the government’s campaign against plastic. While panchayats across the state have worked out some waste management models, lack of revenue and technical support affects collection, as members of a garbage awareness-oriented cycling expedition realised recently.
“Lack of funds forces the panchayats to make compromises, affecting the efficiency and success of the collection system,” a team member said.
