Chennai: The southern bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has called for a comprehensive safety audit of all common hazardous waste treatment, storage and disposal facilities in the state.The audit — to be undertaken by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) in collaboration with the state fire and rescue services department — will assess the adequacy of prevention measures at such units, identify deficiencies and issue directions.The orders were passed on a suo motu case taken up by the Bench, comprising judicial member Justice Pushpa Sathya Narayana and expert member Prashant Gargava, after a heap of chemical waste caught fire at a toxic waste management facility of a private industrial unit at SIPCOT complex in Gummidipoondi, Tiruvallur, in 2024. Dense black smoke, triggered by incomplete combustion of polymeric materials, had engulfed the air around the area for some time after the incidentWhile the NGT noted that the fire broke out at a temporary storage area and there was no indication of incompatible hazardous wastes being stored together, a higher degree of vigilance and preventive safety measures was expected from the unit.The order, delivered by Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana, further said the incident happened in May, when ambient temperatures were at their highest and may have triggered an accidental ignition. “It is a foreseeable risk, which ought to have been taken into account while storing such materials,” the order read.As part of the audit, the fire department will inspect and verify compliance of units with storage practices, firefighting infrastructure, availability of mobile firefighting equipment, adequacy of hydrant accessibility, maintenance of fire water reservoirs and timely disposal of combustible scrap materials.The NGT also ordered the unit not to accumulate combustible polymeric wastes, including geo-textiles, plastic drums and similar high-calorific-value materials, beyond the quantity reasonably required for operational purposes and to transport them to authorized cement industries or other facilities at regular intervals.
