Thiruvananthapuram: The City Corporation on Tuesday swung into action to devise plans to check the seepage of pollutants from the garbage treatment plant at Vilappilsala that forced the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) to stop the supply of drinking water to the Vattiyoorkavu panchayat on Monday. Corporation officials held discussions on Tuesday with the operators of the garbage plant to come up with a plan to check the pollution.

Corporation Health standing committee chairman G.R. Anil said the leachate from the dumpsite was responsible for the pollution of the Chowalloor stream, which joins Karamana river downstream. He said the Corporation would try to stem the flow of leachate by dumping sand near the dumpsite as a temporary measure.

The KWA had suspended the operation of the pump house at Manalayam on Monday after local people reported dead fish on the surface of the foul-smelling water. The KWA has three downstream water treatment plants on Karamana river. The pollution of the Chowalloor stream threatens to affect the quality of water from the Vellaikadavu and Kundamankadavu plants also.

The KWA resumed pumping of water from the Manalayam plant on Tuesday evening after samples collected from the river revealed no contaminants.

Vattiyoorkavu panchayat officials also carried out a visual inspection of the river water.

Mr. Anil said the capping of the dumpsite would provide a permanent solution to the pollution caused by the treatment plant. The Corporation had signed an agreement with the Centre of Science and Technology for Rural Development (COSTFORD) for the project that is expected to take off next Monday.

The leachate from the dump will be collected in tanks, recycled in an oxidation plant and diverted back to the processing plant, in accordance with the guidelines issued by the Pollution Control Board.

The accumulated waste will be covered with multiple layers of clay, High Density Poly Ethylene (HDPE) and hard soil. The sealed dump will be landscaped to regenerate the environment.

The project involves the construction of a drain around the site to divert rainwater to the nearby stream. A diaphragm wall is to be built at the bottom of the slope to prevent water from seeping. A network of pipes and a flaring unit will also be installed to collect greenhouse gases from the waste.

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