24 polluted lakes in Thane to be treated of odour, algae

The lakes in the city may soon be free of pollution and odour.

The Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) has decided to carry out probiotic treatment on the lakes. The treatment was earlier used on Makhamali lake on a pilot basis. After its success, 24 lakes in Thane will now be conserved by using probiotic products.

With more than 36 lakes, Thane is known as the city of lakes. But with most lakes polluted, the city is struggling to keep the water bodies alive.

As per the environment report of TMC, the biological oxygen demand (BOD), harmful for the biodiversity of the water bodies, levels are not only increasing, but the level of dissolved oxygen has also decreased in these water bodies.

The municipal corporation earlier used bioremediation which makes use of aeration to maintain the level of oxygen in the lakes. However, probiotic treatment will not only increase the oxygen level but also deal with other pollution issues.

An official from the pollution department said, “In probiotic treatment, we will use bio-products to reduce the hardness of water, control the growth of algae and reduce the foul odour. We will conduct this treatment on 24 lakes across the city.”

The probiotic treatment includes the use of bacterial products such as aquatic waste degraders, products for removal of ammonia and nitrate, products which remove the sludge and odour from the water bodies. The aim of using the product is to ensure that the natural system regains its capacity of selfpurification. The products used will be biologically safe and not harm the marine life.

“In bio remediation, we needed aeration to maintain the level of oxygen in the water. There was no scope to reduce the hardness and density of water,” the official added.

The bio-products will be added every three months to the lakes. The cost of the process will be one lakh per lake for one year. The corporation will thus spend around Rs24 lakh for treating the lakes with probiotic products.