Dumpsites in Bengaluru are contaminating soil: study

BENGALURU: Scholars from Bharathiar University, Tamil Nadu, St. Joseph’s College, and Christ University in Bengaluru took samples from seven dumpsites in the city. On the basis of physiochemical parameters as well as on vegetation parameters, researchers tested the soil. A comparison was conducted with similar tests on ‘unrumpled’ soil next to the dumpsites.

According to the study, the dumpsites were more alkaline in nature due to degrading organic waste but the electrical conductivity was 1.5-times higher as compared to the non-dumpsites due to the leaching of sodium and potassium salts from the waste. The concentration of heavy metals, such as cobalt, chromium, and lead were found to be 74 per cent more in dumpsites than in adjacent non-dumpsites.

The study was published in the Journal of Applied and Natural Sciences recently. Jayarama Reddy, Department of Botany, St. Joseph’s Post Graduate Centre, and one of the authors of the study says this is an emerging concern considering that there are hundreds of blackspots and areas of municipal dumping that  can  be leaching into the soil or into waterbodies when it rains.

Reddy further added that the dumpsites have been used between 2.6 and 9 years. The toxic effect in the soil was seen from the third year itself. “The dumpsite will be cleaned and newer sites chosen, but the toxic effects will linger for long. The presence of batteries, old medicines and plastics contributes to the leachate that will percolate into the soil,” he said.