View source for Deonar dumping ground

{{Short description|Landfill site in Mumbai, India}}
{{Use Indian English|date=June 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2013}}
{{Coord|19.0671|72.9197|region:IN_type:landmark|display=title}}

The '''Deonar dumping ground''' is a waste dumping ground or [[landfill]] in the city of [[Mumbai]]. Located in [[Deonar]], an eastern suburb of the city, it is India's oldest and  largest<ref>{{cite news|first=Shweta|last=Desai|place=Mumbai|date=3 November 2008|title=Deonar dump ready for Rs 5000-cr makeover|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/deonar-dump-ready-for-rs-5000cr-makeover/381165/|accessdate=26 March 2012|newspaper=[[The Indian Express]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Jawdekar|first=Prachi|title=Mumbai scam: Rs. 2600 crore for services that are free|url=http://www.ndtv.com/article/cities/mumbai-scam-rs-2600-crore-for-services-that-are-free-41901|accessdate=26 March 2012|newspaper=[[NDTV]]|date=5 August 2010}}</ref> dumping ground, set up in 1927.<ref>{{cite news|title=Activists withdraw PIL on dumping ground|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-03-28/mumbai/29353701_1_scientific-closure-deonar-solid-waste-management|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120707094441/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-03-28/mumbai/29353701_1_scientific-closure-deonar-solid-waste-management|url-status=dead|archive-date=7 July 2012|accessdate=23 March 2012|newspaper=[[The Times of India]]|date=23 March 2012}}</ref><ref name=dna1/><ref name=mirror1/><ref>{{cite news|title=BMC in the dock over toxic gases at Deonar dump|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2008-11-26/mumbai/27922067_1_deonar-bmc-smoke-affected-residents-forum|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120702021009/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2008-11-26/mumbai/27922067_1_deonar-bmc-smoke-affected-residents-forum|url-status=dead|archive-date=2 July 2012|accessdate=24 March 2012|newspaper=[[The Times of India]]|date=26 November 2008|place=Mumbai}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Sayed|first=Nazia|title=Gang attacks deonar docs|url=http://m.mumbaimirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article&sectname=News%20-%20City&sectid=2&contentid=2009120820091208031522107c1c12665|accessdate=24 March 2012|newspaper=[[Mumbai Mirror]]|date=8 December 2009|place=Mumbai}}</ref> The dumping ground is managed by the city's civic body, [[Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation]] (also known as Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai), which also manages two other dumping ground in the city; one in the neighbourhood of [[Mulund]] and one recently opened in [[Kanjurmarg]].

== Geography  ==

The dumping ground extends over 132 hectares and receives 5,500 [[metric tonnes]] of waste, 600 metric tonnes of silt and 25 tonnes of bio-medical waste daily.<ref name=mirror2/> Between March and June the daily amount of silt rises to more than 9,000 metric tonnes because of drain cleaning in advance of the [[monsoon]] season.<ref name=dna1>{{cite news|title=45% of Deonar dumping ground to be cleared by May|url=http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_45pct-of-deonar-dumping-ground-to-be-cleared-by-may_1525207|accessdate=23 March 2012|newspaper=[[Daily News and Analysis|DNA India]]|date=28 March 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=45% of Deonar dumping ground to be cleared by May|url=http://news.inchembur.com/2011/03/28/45-of-deonar-dumping-ground-to-be-cleared-by-may/|work=23 March 2012|publisher=inchembur.com|accessdate=24 March 2012}}</ref>

The dump rises to around 114&nbsp;ft. high. However, in February 2012, [[Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai]] sought permission from the [[Airport Authority of India]] (AAI) to increase this to around 164&nbsp;ft.<ref>{{cite news|title=Mumbail locals 'raise' stink over Deonar dump height|url=http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_mumbail-locals-raise-stink-over-deonar-dump-height_1662544|accessdate=24 March 2012|newspaper=[[Daily News and Analysis|DNA India]]|place=Mumbai|date=15 March 2012}}</ref> As of December 2014, the waste had reached the height of an 18-storeyed tower.<ref>{{cite news|author1=Kunal Purohit|author2=Poorvi Kulkarni|title=Maximum city, maximum garbage|url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/mumbai/maximum-city-maximum-garbage/article1-1296569.aspx|accessdate=1 January 2015|work=[[Hindustan Times]]|date=14 December 2014}}</ref>

There is another old dumping ground in [[Mulund]] in the north-eastern part of the city, where about 2,000 metric tonnes of garbage are dumped daily.<ref name=mirror2>{{cite news|last=Suryawanshi|first=Sudhir|title=Soon, city will have no place to dump trash|url=http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/2/2010113020101130020441390a32bd9d9/Soon-city-will-have-no-place-to-dump-trash.html|accessdate=23 March 2012|newspaper=[[Mumbai Mirror]]|date=30 November 2010|place=Mumbai|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130401081227/http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/2/2010113020101130020441390a32bd9d9/Soon-city-will-have-no-place-to-dump-trash.html|archive-date=1 April 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> In March 2015, a new dumping site was opened in the city by the [[Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation|city's civic body]] in [[Kanjurmarg]] which happens to be the first dumping site which is processed scientifically.<ref>{{cite news|author1=Tanushree Venkatraman|title=Dumping grounds: Will shut only Mulund dump yard, says BMC |url=http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/dumping-grounds-will-shut-only-mulund-dump-yard-says-bmc/|accessdate=24 October 2015|work=The Indian Express|date=3 September 2015}}</ref>

== Health issues ==
[[File:Mumbai oli 2016028.jpg|thumb|NASA Image: Smoke from the fire which broke out on 28 Jan 2016 at the Deonar dumping ground, Mumbai<ref>{{cite news|title=Fire Burns in Mumbai Landfill|url=http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=87429&src=eorss-iotd|accessdate=18 March 2016|date=28 Jan 2016|location=Mumbai}}</ref>]]

The Deonar dumping ground has caused health issues for the residents from Mumbai's neighbourhood of [[Chembur]], [[Govandi]] and [[Mankhurd]].<ref name=dna1/> Recurrent fires at the dump have caused conditions unfit for habitation for residents of the adjacent area.<ref>{{cite news|last=Kulkarni|first=Poorvi|title=Deonar dump smoke makes locals Fume|url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/Mumbai/Deonar-dump-smoke-makes-locals-Fume/Article1-820862.aspx|accessdate=23 March 2012|newspaper=[[Hindustan Times]]|place=Mumbai|date=5 March 2012}}</ref> In 2008, around 40 residents of Chembur went on a hunger strike to protest against the frequent fires and smoke.<ref>{{cite news|title=Residents protest fire at Deonar dumping ground|url=http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/residents-protest-fire-at-deonar-dumping-ground/288102/|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120731021653/http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/residents-protest-fire-at-deonar-dumping-ground/288102/|url-status=dead|archive-date=31 July 2012|accessdate=23 March 2012|newspaper=[[The Indian Express]]|date=25 March 2008}}</ref> Again in 2012, Chembur residents complained to the [[Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai]] about the smoke coming out of the dumping ground, which has been affecting [[asthma]] patients.<ref>{{cite news|title=Chembur residents fume over smoke from Deonar dumping ground|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-05-18/mumbai/31764530_1_kanjurmarg-major-fire-deonar|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120715172402/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-05-18/mumbai/31764530_1_kanjurmarg-major-fire-deonar|url-status=dead|archive-date=15 July 2012|accessdate=18 May 2012|newspaper=[[The Times of India]]|date=18 May 2012|author=Times News Network|author-link=Times News Network|location=Mumbai}}</ref> In 2015, neighbourhood surrounding to the dumping ground was identified as the city's most polluted area.<ref>{{cite news|author1=Richa Pinto|title=Chembur city's most polluted suburb, thanks to dump fires and industries in neighbourhood|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Chembur-citys-most-polluted-suburb-thanks-to-dump-fires-and-industries-in-neighbourhood/articleshow/49510779.cms|accessdate=24 October 2015|work=The Times of India|date=23 October 2015}}</ref> Another fire broke out at the Deonar dumping ground in January 2016 causing the [[Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation]] (BMC) to shut down 74 schools run by it for two days, as the smoke from the ground veiled the area causing breathing difficulties.<ref>{{cite news|title=Deonar dump fire chokes suburbs; smog across city|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Deonar-dump-fire-chokes-suburbs-smog-across-city/articleshow/50762897.cms|accessdate=2 February 2016|date=28 January 2016|location=Mumbai}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Smog from dumping ground fire shuts down 74 schools in Mumbai|url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/mumbai/smog-from-dumping-ground-fire-shuts-down-74-schools-in-mumbai/story-L2HqUMVUV8JHdOYEju9AXJ.html|accessdate=30 January 2016|date=28 January 2016|location=Mumbai}}</ref>

[[Infant mortality]] has also been a concern in the nearby areas; as the rate stands at 60-80 per 1000 live births, which is double the average of 35.2 for the entire city.<ref>{{cite news|title=Govandi residents raise a stink, CM vows solution to Deonar deadlock|url=http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-govandi-residents-raise-a-stink-cm-vows-solution-to-deonar-deadlock-1948987|accessdate=1 January 2015|date=11 January 2014|location=Mumbai}}</ref>

== Potential closure ==
In August 2008, it was reported that after receiving complaints from and pollution from the dump, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had decided to close down a section of the dumping ground and use it to generate 7 to 8 [[Megawatts|MW]] of power by [[methane]] extraction, adding {{INRConvert|400|m}} to BMC’s revenue.<ref name=mirror1>{{cite news|title=65 acres of Deonar dumping ground to be closed down|url=http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/2/20080815200808150321069084bbaa12e/65-acres-of-Deonar-dumping-ground-to-be-closed-down.html|accessdate=24 March 2012|newspaper=[[Mumbai Mirror]]|date=15 August 2008|place=Mumbai|last=Suryawanshi|first=Sudhir|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130129073141/http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/2/20080815200808150321069084bbaa12e/65-acres-of-Deonar-dumping-ground-to-be-closed-down.html|archive-date=29 January 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> A few months later, BMC granted a contract for the scientific partial closure of the dumping ground for {{INRConvert|7.04|b}}. Partial closing was to take place in two phases, 65 hectares in the first phase, and in the second phase construction of a processing plant and sanitary landfill on the remaining 55 hectares.<ref>{{cite news|last=Desai|first=Geeta|title=BMC mulls record Rs 704 cr contract to close part of Deonar dump yard|url=http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/2/200811102008111002201373673d63e46/BMC-mulls-record-Rs-704-cr-contract-to-close-part-of-Deonar-dump-yard.html|accessdate=23 March 2012|newspaper=[[Mumbai Mirror]]|date=10 November 2008|place=Mumbai|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120911205305/http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/2/200811102008111002201373673d63e46/BMC-mulls-record-Rs-704-cr-contract-to-close-part-of-Deonar-dump-yard.html|archive-date=11 September 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist|colwidth=33em}}

[[Category:Environment of Maharashtra]]
[[Category:Landfills in India]]
[[Category:Waste management in India]]