Delhi: New 30MW waste-to-energy plant in Bawana gets green nod amid protests

A proposed 30MW waste-to-energy plant in Bawana, Delhi, has received environmental clearance despite ongoing resident opposition due to pollution concerns.

A proposed 30MW waste-to-energy (WTE) plant in north Delhi’s Bawana has received environmental clearance (EC) from the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC), even as residents continue to oppose the project since last year.

the plant will process approximately 3,000 tonnes of waste per day (TPD), making it the city’s fifth WTE facility. (Sanchit Khanna/ HT Photo)

The clearance, dated June 18, was made public via the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) website on Monday. The plant is slated to come up in the DSIIDC Industrial Area in Bawana and will be managed by M/s Jindal Urban Waste Management (Bawana) Limited. Land for the project—spanning 15 acres—has already been allotted by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), the document noted.

According to the project proposal, the plant will process approximately 3,000 tonnes of waste per day (TPD), making it the city’s fifth WTE facility. Delhi currently generates over 11,300 TPD waste, of which around 8,100 tonnes is treated through segregation and existing WTE plants. The remainder typically ends up in the city’s overburdened landfills.

The capital already has four WTE plants located at Bawana (2,000 TPD), Tehkhand (2,000 TPD), Okhla (1,950 TPD), and Ghazipur (1,300 TPD). The upcoming facility in Bawana is expected to further reduce landfill dependency by incinerating solid waste from across a 12km radius.

The project comes at a cost of ₹660 crore, with ₹91.6 crore earmarked for environmental protection measures. An annual recurring cost of ₹14.1 crore has also been proposed for environmental safeguards. Of the total project area, six acres have been designated as green belt.

The EC report noted the presence of a slum colony within 1km of the site, and several villages—including Naya Bans, Holambi Khurd, Iradat Nagar, Sanoth, and Ghoga—within a 5 km radius. The waste-to-energy plant is expected to generate approximately 357 tonnes of leachate daily, for which treatment units will be installed.

A natural nallah passes through the project site, and the Western Yamuna Canal lies about 32 metres away. According to the clearance document, mitigation measures will include storing waste in closed pits, and designated provisions for fly ash and fuel oil to prevent cross-contamination.

As part of the environmental clearance process, air quality sampling was conducted between March and May 2023. The results showed PM2.5 concentrations ranging from 46 to 228 µg/m³—well above the daily safe standard of 60 µg/m³.

Despite the approval, opposition to the plant continues. At a public hearing held last December by the DPCC in Bawana Industrial Area, residents from nearby villages raised concerns about air pollution and the potential health effects of toxic emissions. The hearing drew 680 objections and suggestions, most of which called for relocating the plant to a different site.

Similar resistance has been ongoing in Okhla’s Sukhdev Vihar, where residents have long protested against the operation and expansion of the Okhla WTE plant.