Environment experts claim that the report on River Cauvery published by Anna University, Tamil Nadu, may be partially true, but, the river water is safe for consumption in Karnataka.
S Srikantaswamy, professor in Environmental Science, University of Mysore (UoM), said, the pollution level at River Cauvery will be high during summer as water flow is less. The professor, who had conducted a study on River Cauvery two years back, said, “We cannot ignore the report, but, the pollution level in the river varies at different points in time.”
“It is true that the river, which has its origin at Talacauvery, in Kodagu district, receives wastewater from the starting point itself. The river flows amidst coffee plantations and the coffee pulped water is directly let into the river without any treatment. Similarly, the industries located along the river discharge wastewater (including toxic effluents) without treatment,” he said.
An official of the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) said that he is unaware about the parameters of the study conducted by Anna University.
“The water in Karnataka comes under ‘C’ grade, which means it is safe for drinking after treatment. The report might be true as the river might be more polluted in TN,” he said.
In TN, a large number of small and medium textile dyeing industries, paper and sugar mills are located besides the river, and this could be the reason for high pollution levels. The pollution level during summer will be high as self-purification is low due to less volume of water flow, he said.
In Mysuru district, except sewage water in a few places, no industry releases wastewater into the river directly. The authorities monitor the quality of water every month at various places, commencing from Kodagu district up to the border of Karnataka, and the river water quality is good, he claimed.
Claiming that the River Cauvery in Karnataka is not polluted as much as River Ganga, he said, as per the physical appearance itself, the river is not much polluted.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District / by Ranjith Kandya / Mysuru – DH News Service / December 25th, 2017
