The Gujarat Government aims to implement the Liquid Waste Management Rules, 2024, which are currently in the drafting stage. The state government is expected to enforce these rules in the coming months. These rules address wastewater management issues across residential areas, urban local bodies and industrial areas across the state.
The new rules will focus specifically on existing and newly constructed residential areas, including the necessity of wastewater treatment and reuse. It will categorise residential societies as bulk water users, including societies that exceed 5,000 litres of daily water consumption or have a pollution load exceeding 10 kg of biological oxygen demand (BOD) daily.
A senior Urban Development Department (UDD) official told a section of media, “Stringent reporting mandates societies to provide monthly and annual data on their water consumption, wastewater generation, treatment, reuse and discharge through the online portal.”
This categorisation includes a majority of apartment complexes. These societies would have to register on the Central Pollution Control Board’s (CPCB) website. These new rules are focused on the concept of extended user responsibility (EUR), making the bulk users responsible for the treatment and reuse of wastewater they generate.
Implementing from April 2027, the rules state that the new residential societies must recycle 20% of their total water usage. From April 2030, this adjustment will increase to 50% wastewater recycling. The existing societies have lower targets to achieve. For the first year 2027–28, they must recycle 10%, gradually increasing to 25% from 2030–31. These targets aim to engage sustainable wastewater management practices in residential communities.
The official further claimed that “societies also cannot engage in wastewater management activities with any entity that is not registered under these rules.”
The industries must meet specific targets, calculated based on a percentage of their total freshwater consumption.
“These rules particularly apply to thermal power plants, the pulp and paper industry, and the textile industry, which are key sectors for implementing wastewater reuse initiatives,” the senior UDD official added.
Due to its elevated and large consumption, the textile industry will have to seek government help to achieve the reuse and recycling targets.
Viral Shah, Vice President of CREDAI Ahmedabad, said, “Real estate developers are reducing water usage in construction and implementing systems for recycled water use in residential buildings.”
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