The Hindu Business Line : Pharma industry told to aim at zero discharge

The pharmaceutical industry and chemical industries should aim at zero discharge by adopting all the latest pollution control and mitigation technologies, especially in the coastal areas, accrding to Dr B. Sengupta, former member-secretary of the Central Pollution Control Board, and presently a member of the expert appraisal committee on industry set up by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests.

Dr Sengupta made these observations at a seminar on environmental concerns and challenges in the pharmaceutical sector, organised by the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board, in view of the pharma city project in Visakhapatnam district and several bulk drug units coming up in the north-coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh.

“The pharmaceutical industry and the chemical industries in Visakhapatnam district and elsewhere should aim at zero discharge and it is possible with the present technologies.

Invest in R&D

“However, if discharge is inevitable, the industry should be allowed to do so after complying with the stringent norms through a marine outfall. The State Pollution Control Boards have the authority to lay down even more stringent norms than the ones laid down by the CPCB,” he explained.

He said the pharmaceutical and the chemical industriesshould invest at least 5-10 per cent of the profits in research related to pollution control and that would yield great results.

“It is their social responsibility and it is all the more important in areas such as Visakhapatnam, which has been identified as one of the 24 critically polluted areas in the country,” Dr Sengupta remarked.

He said the amount of waste being generated in the pharma and chemical sectors was a matter of great concern. For every tonne of production, as much as 8-10 tonnes of waste were being generated and besides, too many toxins were being used, even when there was no need. Solvent recovery out of the hazardous waste generated was another crucial area and the industry should focus more on it, he said.

Waste disposal

Odour management, scientific segregation of waste and marine disposal of wastes after proper treatment were some of the key issues pertaining to the sector and they should all be addressed in earnest, he added. He complimented the AP Pollution Control Board, which he said was functioning better than many other State boards.

Earlier, Dr K.S.R. Murthy, of the National Institute of Oceanography (NIO), suggested a tie-up between the NIO and the APPCB, Vizag, for greater monitoring and control of coastal pollution. He sought regular monitoring of marine outfalls in coastal areas.

Stringent norms

Prof R. Rama Rao, environmentalist, said zero discharge may be ideal but it was not possible in Indian conditions and, therefore, stringent standards should be laid down and enforced in pharma industry for all pollutants. He also wanted the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC) to consultexperts and environmentalists before allotting land and sites for polluting industries such as bulk drug units and pharma cities.

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