New landfill site to come up in Umber

Surat: The city’s municipal corporation took possession of around 3.4 lakh sq metre land near Umber village from district collector office on Friday for a landfill site. The land after completion of the process has been recently transferred to the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) by the district collector office. A team of officials from both offices completed the formalities on Friday at the spot.
During a survey by SMC officials, the land near Umber village was found suitable and of required size for the waste disposal site. Following identification of the land SMC sent a proposal to the district collector’s office requesting possession.
SMC has been in search of a new site for the past few years as its existing site Khajod has reached its maximum capacity. Currently, per day waste generation is around 2,200 metric tonnes. The civic body was searching for a site near the city to keep the transportation cost low. Further, after the inclusion of neighbouring villages in the city limit and increasing population the waste generation too is increasing. In recent past lands were identified at few other locations around the city but following protest by locals the proposals were dropped.
Now, SMC will appoint consultants to get various approval and clearances from departments. “The site will be useful for the next 15 years for disposal of solid waste with scientific methods. Waste disposal will be done in a manner that does not harm the environment and people living nearby,” said a SMC officer.