Most of
the mills that were rated low were found to be having no environmental policy and using
outdated technology.
Thirty-one plants with a capacity of over 100 tonnes per day were
considered for the rating. These mills put together produce over 50 per cent of the
country’s paper and board. Three out of the 31 mills were closed during the GRP
period.
The green rating report reveals that the overall environmental health of
the sector is not very good. Not one mill could get a five leaves rating (75-100 weighted
score) or a four leaves rating (50-75 weighted score). Only two companies scraped into the
three leaves category. As many as 12 companies were in the very poor, one leaf category.
The sector is plagued by resource use inefficiency, improper sourcing of
raw material, outdated technology, and a highly-wasteful and polluting production process.
In the early 1970s, wood was dirt cheap and its utilisation efficiency in
Indian mills was extremely low. Today, wood constitutes a major proportion of total input
cost and most of the Indian mills have performed comparatively better than in the past.
But they are far from achieving optimum fibre use. Indian mills, on an average, have a
fibre use efficiency of 46.9 per cent, as against the maximum attainable efficiency of 100
per cent. Similar is the case with water, energy and chemical consumption.
The global debate over the use of chlorine-free bleaching has largely
bypassed the industry in India. Almost all mills continue to use chlorine to bleach paper.
Use of chlorine can release organochlorines, including the carcinogenic dioxin, that can
enter the food chain. Till now, not even one of the larger mills in India has progressed
beyond the use of elemental chlorine in pulp-bleaching to use an oxygen process before
bleaching. A few mills are generating chlorine dioxide in order to partially replace
elemental chlorine in the first stage of producing pulp for pre-bleaching and second stage
as a replacement for hypochlorite. The most recent initiative of some of the progressive,
larger mills in India limits itself to the recovery of chemicals from black liquor for
reusability.
Though the foundations of the modern-day big industrial houses have mostly
been the paper and pulp industry, the profits made from this sector have not been invested
back into these companies. Today, a modern mill of 100,000 tonne capacity, with a
chlorine-free bleaching process, can cost anywhere between Rs 600 to 1,000 crore. But
investing in such plants — though socially and ecologically desirable — does not
excite the industry economically.
Freshwater consumption by Indian mills is dangerously high for the health
of the water bodies. They should think in terms of harvesting rainwater and recycling its
effluents. A calculation made for Sinar Mas, a mill in Maharashtra situated in a dry
region, shows that it can meet 50 per cent of its current water needs through rainwater
harvesting.
The studies also found that almost all the companies are engaged in
serious conflicts with the local communities and complaints of water and air pollution are
widespread. But some companies like Seshasayee Paper and Paperboards in Tamil Nadu are
learning to work with the local people. A change is in the air. But still only a small
one.
Most of the
mills that were rated low were found to be having no environmental policy and using
outdated technology.
Thirty-one plants with a capacity of over 100 tonnes per day were
considered for the rating. These mills put together produce over 50 per cent of the
country’s paper and board. Three out of the 31 mills were closed during the GRP
period.
The green rating report reveals that the overall environmental health of
the sector is not very good. Not one mill could get a five leaves rating (75-100 weighted
score) or a four leaves rating (50-75 weighted score). Only two companies scraped into the
three leaves category. As many as 12 companies were in the very poor, one leaf category.
The sector is plagued by resource use inefficiency, improper sourcing of
raw material, outdated technology, and a highly-wasteful and polluting production process.
In the early 1970s, wood was dirt cheap and its utilisation efficiency in
Indian mills was extremely low. Today, wood constitutes a major proportion of total input
cost and most of the Indian mills have performed comparatively better than in the past.
But they are far from achieving optimum fibre use. Indian mills, on an average, have a
fibre use efficiency of 46.9 per cent, as against the maximum attainable efficiency of 100
per cent. Similar is the case with water, energy and chemical consumption.
The global debate over the use of chlorine-free bleaching has largely
bypassed the industry in India. Almost all mills continue to use chlorine to bleach paper.
Use of chlorine can release organochlorines, including the carcinogenic dioxin, that can
enter the food chain. Till now, not even one of the larger mills in India has progressed
beyond the use of elemental chlorine in pulp-bleaching to use an oxygen process before
bleaching. A few mills are generating chlorine dioxide in order to partially replace
elemental chlorine in the first stage of producing pulp for pre-bleaching and second stage
as a replacement for hypochlorite. The most recent initiative of some of the progressive,
larger mills in India limits itself to the recovery of chemicals from black liquor for
reusability.
Though the foundations of the modern-day big industrial houses have mostly
been the paper and pulp industry, the profits made from this sector have not been invested
back into these companies. Today, a modern mill of 100,000 tonne capacity, with a
chlorine-free bleaching process, can cost anywhere between Rs 600 to 1,000 crore. But
investing in such plants — though socially and ecologically desirable — does not
excite the industry economically.
Freshwater consumption by Indian mills is dangerously high for the health
of the water bodies. They should think in terms of harvesting rainwater and recycling its
effluents. A calculation made for Sinar Mas, a mill in Maharashtra situated in a dry
region, shows that it can meet 50 per cent of its current water needs through rainwater
harvesting.
The studies also found that almost all the companies are engaged in
serious conflicts with the local communities and complaints of water and air pollution are
widespread. But some companies like Seshasayee Paper and Paperboards in Tamil Nadu are
learning to work with the local people. A change is in the air. But still only a small
one. |
