Bhubaneswar: A webinar on the theme ‘Fly ash: Environmental issues and the way forward’ was organised by the Orissa Environmental Society (OES), Monday where experts stressed the need to reduce the consumption of coal and dispose of fly ash without harming the environment.
Speaking on the occasion, Sambalpur University Chair Professor (S&T) Sanjat Kumar Sahu narrated how fly ash from coal-based power plants in the state is producing huge amounts of waste.
He urged the industrial units to make innovations in fly ash management to reduce the passage of particulate matters (PM 2.5 and PM 10), toxic gases, and heavy metals into air, water, and soil.
He described how fly ash use is increasing in sectors like brick making, cement manufacturing, road construction, and open-mine filling. He also discussed the breaches in ash ponds of different industries of Odisha in the past causing health hazards and damage to agriculture.
OES president Sundara Narayana Patro said that renewable and clean energy sources should be given priority instead of fossil fuels to address the problem of fly ash.
Earlier, OES secretary Jaya Krushna Panigrahi endorsed abandoning of coal as a source of energy, the call that is being repeatedly given at all UN climate conferences, including the recently held CoP 28.
Experts were of the view that coals produced in the state are mostly of low grade, which when burnt in power plants produce huge amounts of powdery residues in the form of ashes. They contain potentially harmful elements such as heavy metals, silica, alumina among others including unburned carbon, they said.