The Chennai Corporation is planning to raise select hen and duck breeds at decentralised waste processing centres to control houseflies. Decaying material in the decentralised waste processing centres have led to a rise in houseflies in the vicinity, affecting residents. At a recent meeting, civic officials in the 15 zones have been directed to find suitable breeds of the birds to control houseflies in areas where residents report such problems. “We will identify suitable breeds of duck shortly,” said an official.

In a bid to close the city's dumpyards in Perungudi and Kodungaiyur by December 2020, the Chennai Corporation has kicked off a project to decentralise waste processing in all the 200 wards in 426 sq km of the city. However, the civic body has started receiving complaints from residents in some of the 2,258 localities where decentralised waste processing has already begun. “As many as 5,535 waste processing plants have been set up with a capacity of 653 tonnes of waste in the 2,258 localities. The city generates 5,300 tonnes of waste every day,” said an official.

Official sources said houseflies have increased only in areas that use huge quantities of food waste for composting when compared to areas that compost garden waste. At least 50% of the decentralised waste processing facilities predominantly use food waste for composting.

Ornithologist Arul Velan said raising certain breed of duck to control flies may not help in achieving desired results in a city like Chennai. “Many farmers in Karur and Namakkal do it. Indian runner duck is good. It is well adapted to our areas. But it may work only if the area is limited,” said Mr. Arul Velan.

“Biological control is good. Muscovy duck is also good at controlling flies. But it may not be successful in urban areas like Chennai,” said Mr. Velan. “Hen breeds may not be of much use in controlling flies,” said Mr. Velan. Egmore MLA K.S. Ravichandran said the civic body should focus more on improving manpower for processing instead of biological control of pests.

Corporation officials said the plan to stop dumping of waste in Perungudi and Kodungaiyur by December 2020 could be implemented only after all biodegradable waste is processed onsite.