Timarpur-Okhla > Delhi > India DELHI’S OBSESSION WITH “WASTE-TO-ENERGY” INCINERATORS: The Timarpur-Okhla Waste to Energy Venture by Dharmesh Shah The state of Delhi is the largest producer of solid NEW DELHI Capital of India waste in India; nearly 8,000 metric tons of solid waste are produced every day.2 Over 78% of this waste is dumped in one of three garbage dumps in the city outskirts. As Delhi continues to grow, its appetite for landfill sites remains insatiable. Over 14 landfill sites have already been used up, and the three disposal sites currently in use have already far exceeded their capacity. Still, they continue to receive waste.Three municipal bodies—the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and the Delhi Cantonment Board (DCB)—are responsible for solid waste management in New Delhi. Of the three, the MCD covers almost 95% of the total area of New Delhi. Addressing the issue of waste has 2 become a priority for all Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) Area: 1,483 km Population: 11,007,835 in New Delhi. Several private companies have Population density: 11,297 inhabitants/km2 Waste generation per day: 8,000 tons been roped in to manage waste through various Official management: open dumping at 3 landfills technology-intensive methods. Unofficial management: 150,000 informal sector recyclers recover 2,000 tons of waste everyday Timarpur-Okhla > Delhi > India Delhi and the briquette plant at Bombay support the fact that This case study explores the political, socio-economic, and Timarpur-Okhla Integrated Waste Management thermal treatment of municipal solid waste is not feasible, in Company environmental implications of the proposed TIMARPUR-OKHLA Waste Management Pvt. Ltd’s integrated waste-to-energy (WTE) Photo Credit: Rajiv Bhatt, The Hindu, January 2010 situations where the waste has a low calorific value. A critical Despite strong legal and political reservations, the failure of the first plant only temporarily stalled plans for future investments project at Delhi1. Being promoted as a milestone, the project is analysis of biological treatment as an option was undertaken in WTE ventures. Based on new and untested innovations in the first of its kind in a series of projects across the country and for processing of municipal solid waste in Delhi and it has The 1987 Timarpur Incinerator Experience the field of WTE, a proposal for a new and “improved” is predicted to revolutionize waste management in India. But been recommended that composting will be a viable option. In 1987, the Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources plant on the old project site at Timarpur was floated within serious questions remain about its feasibility and desirability. (MNES)3 commissioned the Timarpur Refuse Incineration-cum- Considering the large quantities of waste requiring to be five years. In March of 2005, the private firm Infrastructure Power Generation Station at a capital cost of Rs. 20 crores processed, a mechanical composting plant will be needed.” Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS) signed a Memorandum (US$ 4.4 million). Built by Volund Miljotecknik Ltd. of Denmark, of Understanding (MOU) with the Municipal Corporation of These observations echo the views of several sustainability Challenges with Business as Usual the plant was designed to incinerate 300 tons of municipal solid Delhi to set up a municipal solid waste processing facility at the and zero waste experts who strongly oppose any thermal waste (MSW) per day to generate 3.75 MW of electricity.4 erstwhile Timarpur incinerator plant site. An estimated 100 sq. km of landfill space would be required to destruction of waste and emphasize segregation at source in meet the city’s waste disposal needs through 2050 if the ULBs The plant ran for 21 days of trial operations before shutting order to efficiently manage the organics. Located in the nation’s capital, the high-profile Timarpur-Okhla were to carry on with business as usual. This is impossible in a down due to the poor quality of incoming waste. It required project is touted to pave the way for the Indian WTE market, densely populated city like Delhi. Apart from posing serious waste with a net calorific value of at least 1462.5 kcal/kg, with a projected annual growth rate of 9.7% through 2013.6 But public health hazards, garbage dumps in major cities across but the calorific value of the supplied waste was in the range previous WTE projects elsewhere in India have been failures, of 600-700 kcal/kg. Plant operators tried to supplement the India, including Delhi, are in violation of the Municipal Solid both technically and economically. Worse yet, successful combustion with diesel fuel, but were unsuccessful. projects dismantle the country’s recycling system, which Waste Rules 2000. These rules mandate waste segregation at provides informal employment to over 15 million individuals. the source with the aim to gradually eliminate open dumping. Following this failure, the Delhi High Court ordered an enquiry by the Comptroller Auditor General (CAG). In its findings, Following the MOU, the Unique Waste Processing Company submitted in its annual report dated March 1990, the CAG Implementation of these rules has been poor due to lack (a fully-owned subsidiary of IL&FS), in collaboration with the observed that “The Refuse Incinerator-cum-Power Generation of monitoring and awareness among citizens. In order to Andhra Pradesh Technology Development Center (APTDC), Plant installed by Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources overcome this, the Delhi government has adopted a policy incorporated the Timarpur Waste Management Company in March 1985 remained inoperative since its installation. The Limited (TWMCL) in April 2005. TWMCL (a special purpose which is a combination of Waste to Energy (WTE) and landfill Ministry failed to utilise or dispose off the inoperative plant vehicle) entered into a 25-year concession agreement with the projects. Two new sites have been earmarked on the outskirts and incurred an expenditure of Rs 1.25 crore (US$ 278,000) Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the New Delhi Municipal of Delhi—105 acres in Bawana to the northwest and 26 acres in on maintenance and insurance of the plant.” The project was Council under a Public Private Partnership framework to set up officially scrapped in July 1990.5 Jaitpur in the south—to accommodate the excess waste. These a 650 tons-per-day (TPD) Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) processing new landfill spaces are required in addition to two proposed facility, a 50 TPD bio-methanation plant, a 6 MW power plant, In the ”White Paper on Pollution in Delhi with an Action Plan,” and a 6 million gallons per day (MGD) sewage treatment plant WTE plants in Ghazipur and Bawana, along with the landfills the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) stated Photo Credit: Down to Earth at a total cost of Rs. 591.27 million (US$ 13.13 million).7 which are already operational. that, “The experience of the incineration plant at Timarpur, Timarpur-Okhla > Delhi > India major deviations in the project design from the EIA report and the conditions laid down by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) while granting the Environmental Clearance. Deviations since Project Approval These deviations from the original proposal require a thorough reassessment of the environmental impacts and the viability of the project. All these changes indicate that the project is now Original proposal by the company Deviations Delhi map, location of the plants reduced to a conventional mass burn incinerator similar to the (as approved by MoEF) old Timarpur plant that was decommissioned in 1989 due to its The plant at Timarpur will process 650 TPD of garbage to The Timarpur plant has been dropped. All the RDF production Eventually, the project developers proposed an expansion inability to handle Indian waste. produce 225 TPD of RDF. The Okhla site will process 1300 and combustion (2050 TPD) will take place at Okhla. that included project activity at an additional location: Okhla TPD of mixed garbage into RDF, and burn this along with the in south Delhi. In 2006, the company formally changed its 225 TPD of RDF from Timarpur to produce 16MW of power. name to Timarpur-Okhla Waste Management Company Private Power Games Limited (TOWMCL) and proposed the “Integrated Municipal Since the inception of the project, there have been several The Okhla plant will include a biodigester for 100 TPD of Biodigestion is no longer included. Solid Waste Processing Facility at Timarpur and Okhla.” conflicting reports and changes in the power generation and green waste. distribution arrangements of the project. These are largely due The power plant will have single boiler - single turbine The power plant is to now have 3 boilers - single turbine According to the Environmental Impact Assessment presented to the confusion arising out of the complex structure of the combination. combination. to the Ministry of Environment and Forests in December 2006, company ownership and the unproven nature of the technology. the salient features of the project were: There will be provision in the plant for firing methane gas The bio-methanation plant is not included in the new plan. The energy production capacity of the plant was revised three produced from bio-methanation plant. 100 TPD of green waste may be burned directly to produce 1. A 650 tons-per-day (TPD) processing plant that will times. As discussed above, the project was initially designed to power. generate 225 tons of Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) and a 50 produce 15MW of power which was soon revised to 16MW. TPD bio-methanation plant at Timarpur (North Delhi) In March 2011, an expansion proposal for an additional 2. A 1300 tons-per-day processing plant that will generate 4.9MW was presented before the Expert Appraisal Committee There will be a 4 TPD capacity pelletising facility to This is not part of the new plan.