Karnataka - Mysore   

Expert calls for treating sewage as resource

By Our Staff Correspondent

MYSORE, SEPT. 14. D.C. Sharma, Zonal Officer, Central Pollution Control Board, said here on Tuesday that strong political will was required for taking steps to effectively treat sewage in urban areas. Sewage should be considered a resource rather than waste, he added.

He was speaking at a workshop on "Decentralised waste-water treatment system (DEWATS) and community-based sanitation" organised here by the Rural Literacy and Health Programme and the city corporation.

Dr. Sharma said sewage had immense value, and the public was yet to realise the importance of wastes.

Technology was available to treat sewage effectively, and it was time this was adopted everywhere.

New technology

According to him, the "anaerobic baffled reactor" technology helped generate oxygen from human waste and released it to the atmosphere. This did not require any experimentation. All that was required to implement it were strong political will and land.

Lamenting that only a few were aware of this technology, Dr. Sharma said there was a need to create awareness among the public about it. He expressed happiness that Bangalore was on the international map in the implementation of this technology.

Though sewage collection in urban areas in the State was appreciable, there was a need to improve it in rural areas, he added.

Ravi Kumar, director of the Centre for Appropriate Rural Technology at NIE, said sewage in every layout should be treated in the respective areas. Decentralised collection of wastes should not be confined to slums. Sewage should be considered a resource, particularly to arrest the spread of water-borne diseases, he added.

Workshop

Earlier, in his inaugural address, the Mayor, Dakshinamurthy, said the corporation would organise a workshop on renewable energy on October 16. Mayors, deputy mayors and commissioners from across the State would be invited to participate.

He said 30 to 35 per cent of the population of the district live in urban areas. The health concerns of such a huge population should be taken into consideration, he added.

DEWATS

The community-based sanitation system and DEWATS promote personal hygiene and health of people, while trying to preserve the environment. DEWATS, a technical system used to treat wastewater from toilets without mechanical or chemical procedures through three stages of treatment, is said to be cost effective.

The treated water can be used for agriculture and other purposes, and the innovative procedure is aimed at preserving soil and water, recharging groundwater and making re-use of water possible.

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