About 30 to 40 tonnes of poultry, meat, and seafood waste is dumped at the Ariyamangalam yard every day
| Photo Credit: M. MOORTHY
In an effort to improve waste management practices, the Tiruchi City Corporation has taken steps to establish a poultry and seafood waste recycling plant at the Ariyamangalam dump yard.
On an average, the city generates around 30 to 40 tonnes of poultry, meat, and seafood waste every day, and it the figure rises to 50 tonnes on weekends. At present, a Tirunelveli-based recycling firm is collecting and processing poultry and seafood waste.
Since the recycling firm faced controversy because of illegal dumping of medical waste, it has been facing challenges to run the unit, thereby delaying collection. As a solution, the civic body has decided to allow the agency to set up the recycling unit in the reclaimed land at the Ariyamangalam dump yard.
A space has been identified to establish the unit, and the Corporation plans to collect a rent of ₹56,000 a month from the agency. The unit will operate under contract for three years and will have the capacity to process around 50 tonnes of waste daily. The agency will collect the waste from meat shops and transport it to the unit.
“The agency will relocate the machinery to Tiruchi within a week. Electricity connections have been sought to set up the unit,” said a senior Corporation official. The waste will be ground into pellets, which will be used as feed in fish farms.
According to officials, setting up a recycling unit here would ensure effective collection of waste and would prevent vendors from disposing of the waste in waterbodies and on vacant land. Vendors often dump rotting fish waste into the Uyyakondan canal flowing near Kasivilangi Market. Similarly, poultry waste is dumped into the canal near Alwarthoppu. Vacant land on the banks of the canal in Vayalur Road and M.M. Nagar are exploited by the poultry shops.
Published – April 27, 2025 06:43 pm IST