In groundwater near a Delhi landfill- heavy metals like lead and cadmium
- October 3, 2022
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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In groundwater near a Delhi landfill- heavy metals like lead and cadmium
Subject: Environment
Context–
- In May 2022, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) issued notices to the Secretary of the Union JalShakti Ministry, the Chief Secretary of the Delhi government, and the Chairman of the Central Pollution Control Board, asking for detailed reports on contamination of groundwater near landfill sites in Delhi and steps taken or proposed to be taken to deal with the problem.
- The samples of groundwater from the Bhalswa landfill got tested by a NABL-accredited laboratory. Here’s what the results show-
- LEAD UP to 50 times the acceptable limit, cadmium up to seven times— shows the analysis of groundwater near Bhalswa landfill.
Source of toxicity–
- Sources of toxicity can be any way of ingestion, inhalation, or contact with the skin or things contaminated with lead.
- There are multiple sources of lead and cadmium since they are used in multiple products at home and in industrial processes.
- Plastic can be a big source, both lead and cadmium are used as stabilisers.
- When you dump a lot of plastic, it can leach over time.
- Electronic products dumped at the site, batteries, and circuits in lights might have these metals.
- Pigments and paints all of these might have these metals.
Impact of the toxicity of water–
- These are heavy metals so they are
- Cadmium can cause cancer of organs, including the lungs and prostate.
- Lead can cause a type of anaemia where the haemoglobin is less.
- There is a permissible limit that the body can take out, beyond that level, lead can cause iron deficiency.
- The presence of cadmium can also lead to kidney involvement. It can cause tubular defects in the kidney.
- It can cause developmental abnormalities in children.
An analysis of the results by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) flagged the following:
- Submersible pump:
- Very high amount of total dissolved solids (TDS) around 5 times the permissible limit, hardness, heavy metals such as lead and cadmium, and total alkalinity were above permissible limits.
- If this water is used to grow vegetables, the vegetables can be contaminated.
Response from local bodies–
- A list of questions was sent to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD). On whether the MCD has any plans to address the issue of groundwater contamination due to the landfill.
- A response from the MCD spokesperson said that the civic body has started biomining of legacy waste to clear the dumpsite.
- On whether the MCD is aware of groundwater contamination as a result of leachate from the Bhalswa landfill, the MCD said that there is no such study available with the department.
Way forward–
- Cleaning the aquifer is very costly.
- Once it’s contaminated with heavy metals or bacteriological contaminants, it’s very difficult to clean.
- But if the hardness or TDS level is high,recharge of groundwater can help in improving the quality.
- Piped water is available in the area only once in two days.
- The areas around landfills also have informal sector operators who reprocess some of the waste.
WHAT THESE PARAMETERS MEAN–
- TOTAL DISSOLVED SOLIDS: inorganic and organic matter dissolved in water, includes calcium, magnesium, sulphate, chlorides. “TDS in water supplies originate from natural sources, sewage, urban and agricultural runoff, and industrial wastewater”: World Health Organisation
- TOTAL COLIFORM:“Total coliforms are bacteria that are found in the soil, in water that has been influenced by surface water, and in human or animal waste. These bacteria themselves do not normally cause any serious illness, however, their presence is used to indicate that other pathogenic organisms of fecal origin may be present in water:” CPCB.
- LEAD, CADMIUM: Heavy metals. “These metals can be toxic and carcinogenic. Sources can be industrial solid waste dumping and leaching into groundwater through rainwater”: 2007 report on groundwater quality, CPCB
- SULPHATE, CHLORIDES, AND BICARBONATES ALONG WITH CALCIUM AND MAGNESIUM INCREASE HARDNESS OF WATER: These are inorganic dissolved salts. Hard water can create gastrointestinal problems: 2007 report on groundwater quality, CPCB