TIRUPUR: With the southwest monsoon setting in and heavy rain lashing parts of Tirupur district, residents have urged the district collector to act immediately on a letter from village panchayat block development officer (BDO) R Kokila seeking emergency measures to cover quarry pits in Muthalipalayam and Nallur, where mixed chemical and unsegregated municipal waste has been dumped.Residents and members of the Muthalipalayam–Nallur Environment Protection Committee said rainwater is directly entering the roughly 15-acre open dump, mixing with industrial chemical waste and generating toxic leachate that they fear is rapidly seeping into the groundwater table. They warned that any delay could severely impact drinking water sources and agricultural livelihoods in surrounding villages.Committee member P Velusamy said the issue was raised during the gram sabha meeting held on June 5 to mark World Environment Day. The meeting adopted resolutions calling for three immediate and medium-term actions: firstly, to remove the accumulated dark-green toxic liquid in the quarry pits by pumping it out using motors and sending it to treatment facilities; secondly, to prevent further rainwater ingress by temporarily covering the entire dump with thick plastic tarpaulin/HDPE sheets until the monsoon season ends; and third, to remove the overall toxic waste and undertake full remediation of affected land and groundwater in line with statutory procedures, including the Contaminated Site Rules, 2025.Following the gram sabha resolutions, the BDO has sought a technical clarification from the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board engineer on whether the decomposed waste could be assessed for potential co-processing or alternate use, including possible supply to cement plants.In her communication to the district collector, the BDO also forwarded the resolution copy and sought directions to the Tirupur City Municipal Corporation to implement urgent steps, including large-scale covering of the waste with tarpaulin to stop rainwater infiltration and pumping out chemical-laden wastewater for safe disposal.Residents said the local administration’s move offered some relief but insisted that only swift action by the collectorate to enforce temporary containment and safe removal measures could prevent further contamination during the peak rainy period.
