Updated Regulations for Chemically Polluted Locations

What constitutes contaminated sites?

The Central Pollution Control Board defines contaminated sites as locations where hazardous and various wastes were historically disposed of, resulting in the pollution of soil, groundwater, and surface water.

These locations consist of landfills, dumping grounds, waste storage and processing facilities, spill locations, and areas for managing chemical waste.

A total of 103 such locations have been recognized throughout India. Remedial measures commenced at just 7 locations utilizing technologies for cleaning soil, water, and sediment.

Requirement for the regulations

In 2010, the Environment Ministry launched a Capacity Building Program for the Industrial Pollution Management Project to develop the National Program for the Remediation of Contaminated Sites. This aimed at three goals:

Developing a list of potentially polluted locations;

Creating a guideline document for evaluating and addressing polluted locations; and

Establishing a regulatory, organizational, and financial structure for the cleanup of polluted areas.

Although the initial two steps have been implemented, the final step related to legal codification has not been completed

What are the regulations?

Initial Evaluation: The district administration would generate biannual reports on “potentially contaminated locations.”

The State Pollution Control Board (SPCB), or a ‘reference organisation’, will evaluate these locations and deliver a “preliminary assessment” within 90 days of obtaining information from the district.

After this, there would be an additional three months to conduct a thorough survey and determine whether these sites were truly ‘contaminated’.

This would entail determining the levels of potentially dangerous chemicals. Currently, there are 189 designated ones in accordance with the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016.

Public Announcement: Should these locations surpass safe limits, the sites will be disclosed and access to them will be restricted.

Remediation: The designated organization would be responsible for outlining a remediation strategy.

What defines contaminated locations?

The Central Pollution Control Board describes contaminated sites as areas where hazardous and diverse wastes were previously dumped, leading to the pollution of soil, groundwater, and surface water.

These sites include landfills, disposal areas, waste storage and treatment facilities, spill sites, and zones for handling chemical waste.

A total of 103 of these sites have been identified across India. Remedial actions started at only 7 sites using technologies to cleanse soil, water, and sediment.

Requirement for the rules

In 2010, the Environment Ministry initiated a Capacity Building Program for the Industrial Pollution Management Project to establish the National Program for the Remediation of Contaminated Sites. This targeted three objectives:

Creating a list of sites that may be contaminated;

Developing a guideline document for assessing and managing contaminated sites; and

Creating a regulatory, organizational, and financial framework for the remediation of contaminated sites.

Even though the first two steps have been executed, the last step concerning legal codification remains unfinished.

What are the rules?

Initial Assessment: The district administration would produce semiannual reports on "potentially polluted sites."

The State Pollution Control Board (SPCB), known as a ‘reference organisation’, will assess these sites and provide a “preliminary evaluation” within 90 days of receiving information from the district.

Following this, an extra three months would be allocated to perform a comprehensive survey and ascertain if these locations were genuinely 'contaminated'.

This would involve assessing the concentrations of possibly hazardous substances. At present, there are 189 identified ones as per the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016.

Public Notice: If these areas exceed safe thresholds, the locations will be made public and entry to them will be limited.

Remediation: The assigned organization would be tasked with defining a remediation plan.