Wastewater treatment plant in schools can reduce pollution by half: TN Environment Minister
The wastewater recycling and reuse system with a capacity of 10,000 litres per day has been installed inside the campus.
CHENNAI: While inaugurating the wastewater recycling and reuse system in Madras Christian College (MCC) Higher Secondary School in Chetpet, the Environment Minister Siva V Meyyanathan said that if all educational institutions followed the school’s footsteps, environmental pollution would be reduced by half in the State.
“The school management is taking initiatives to protect the environment in the premises. Nature gives fresh water and clean air, but burning of plastic causes air pollution. Now, noise pollution is increasing. This causes neurological diseases,” he said, while addressing students.
The wastewater recycling and reuse system with a capacity of 10,000 litres per day has been installed inside the campus. Presently, the school uses around 40,000 litres of fresh water daily. The recycled water can be used for gardening and other purposes.
“Plastic is the biggest threat and it should be avoided. The TN government has banned 14 types of one-time use plastics already. Also, the Meendum Manjappai campaign was launched to create awareness. Now, the plastic usage in the State has come down by 25%. Burning plastic will emit dioxin that can travel upto 4,000 km,” he added.
Listing out the measures taken by the TN government in protecting the environment, Meyyanathan pointed out that 243 landfills were identified for bio-mining of legacy waste projects and works are completed in 143 landfills. “The government is giving preferences to recyclers, who process construction waste, hazardous waste, e-waste, bio-medical waste and others,” he stated.
The minister also explained that the State government had launched the Green TN Mission to increase green cover and already planted 10 crore trees. “Under the Panai Pathukappu Iyakkam (Palmyra Palm Protection Movement), 1 crore palm seeds were dispersed in the past one week. Also, the GreThe wastewater recycling and reuse system with a capacity of 10,000 litres per day has been installed inside the campus.en Schools project is launched to promote sustainable practices in the school,” he said.