In 14 hrs, fire erupts twice next to Bandhwari landfill

GURGAON: A pile of garbage dumped next to the Bandhwari landfill went up in flames two times in less than 14 hours in the vicinity of the Aravalis.
Fire was reported at 2.20pm on Sunday, and again at 4.17am on Monday, at a 2.5-acre parcel of land where daily waste from Gurgaon and Faridabad is being dumped. Sources told TOI around 6,000 tonnes of garbage is lying on this piece of land adjoining the landfill.
Officials said on Monday that both the fires were put out.They suspect it was caused by spontaneous combustion from methane gas released at the landfill.
Videos of the blaze circulated online and showed smoke billowing from the garbage site.
“After the first fire incident was reported, the fire department sent two water bowsers from the Sector 29 fire station. Two more bowsers were sent from the Udyog Vihar and Sector 37 fire stations as we got to the scale of the fire. Another incident was reported in the morning around 4.17am, and two fire tenders were sent. We’ve now stationed two tenders at the landfill site for safety,” said Gulshan Kalra, deputy director (technical), Haryana fire services, MCG.
MCG officials said the fires were brought under control within an hour and water is being sprayed continuously on the garbage mounds as a precautionary measure.
“I have asked the engineering department to examine the cause of the fire. The situation is under control,” said Pradeep Kumar, MCG joint commissioner for Swachh Bharat Mission.
Kumar said they are assuming that the fires erupted due to dry weather and high temperatures.
“Fire was likely triggered from the dry bio-remedied material and methane pockets. There are 14 powder-based fire extinguishers at different locations of the landfill site to put out small fires. Calibration and refilling of these cylinders have also been done. Moreover, a 24-hour fire brigade facility is also available at the site by MCG in the summer season,” he said.
Last year, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had directed the Haryana government to clear the Bandhwari landfill site and come up with an alternative waste management system.
On Monday, environmentalists questioned why MCG was allowing garbage to be piled up next to the landfill when all fresh waste should be processed and cleared immediately.
“MCG should have followed the norms to ensure that the fresh waste is not dumped at the new site. It is MCG’s failure that fresh waste is now accumulating at the site adjacent to the landfill, creating another landfill. Moreover, the ownership of that land has been challenged,” said Vaishali Rana Chandra, a city-based activist.