Activists, Residents and Locals living at areas close to the Vellalore dumpyard have expressed concerns over the proposed Waste to Energy (WTE) project that is expected to be established inside the dumpyard.
Activist K.S.Mohan who is also the secretary of Kurichi-Vellalore Pollution Prevention Action Committee also appealed the Member Secretary of State Level Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA), Tamil Nadu to not provide the Environmental Clearance, No-objection Certificate, Consent to Establish letter and other approvals needed to start the project, stating that similar projects undertaken elsewhere in India have only affected the health of residents near them, and also hurt the environment.
He shared that when a similar WTE plant was planned in Chennai’s Kodungaiyur, a delegation from Chennai visited Hyderabad in May 2025, to know the kind of impact such a plant has made on communities living near it there. The findings by the delegation was shocking
The delegation included members from FNCRWA (Federation of N.Chennai Residents Welfare Association), Councillor from Ward 4 of Greater Chennai Corporation, Environmentalists from Centre for Financial Accountability and Chennai Climate Action.
“They visited different localities – these were communities affected by the WTE, and shared their findings. They found that the WTE plant had significantly affected the health of the locals there. They had to endure skin diseases, respiratory diseases, infertility and eye problems,” Mohan said.
The delegation found a report by the Telangana Pollution Control Board which mentioned that the plant in Hyderabad has also made a series of violation since it started operating in 2020. The plant reportedly failed to monitor hazardous pollutants like HCL, HF, CO, Cd+ Th and their compounds, Total organic carbon, Hg and their compounds, CO2 concentration in tail gas, heavy metals, and other toxins.
“Waste to Energy plant is not the solution Coimbatore needs. Likewise, we also do not want any incinerator inside the dumpyard. What we need right now is the government to give up any plans to set up a WTE plant in Vellalore, Coimbatore,” said Mohan.
“We need Coimbatore Corporation to ensure that the waste produced in 5 zones of Coimbatore are handled in a decentralized way. The zone that produces the waste should have facility to remove it; for that we need to adopt sustainable waste management solutions,” he urged.
“For decades, Vellalore has been deprived of development. We sincerely appeal the Tamil Nadu government to consider our plea, and halt the WTE Project from seeing the light of the day, remove the legacy waste in dumpyard, stop fresh dumping of waste, and develop the ground as cricket stadium or other sports complex, so that it could give Vellalore the growth it is waiting for,” he added.
