Thursday, January 05, 2006
Chennai Online News Service
Chennai, Jan 5: More than 100 persons consisting of farmers, fishermen and other residents of Mettur and Cuddalore today handed over a petition to the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) demanding action against environmental violations in their areas.
The petition alleged that TNPCB had failed to check the pollution caused by Chemplast Sanmar’s PVC plant at Mettur in Salem district.
The group questioned the board’s decision to clear Chemplast’s proposal to set up PVC plant with 40,000 tonnes annual production in Cuddalore, despite massive public opposition and expert recommendations against it.
Chemplast’s existing facility at Mettur had caused tremendous harm to life and environment during the past 50 years, the group alleged in the petition.
PVC is a poison plastic and its production, usage and disposal are associated with the release of deadly environmental poisons such as dioxins and furans. The permission granted to Chemplast is apparently illegal, unscientific and arbitrary as it does not consider checking the pollution caused by new components added to the proposal, it claimed.