SANITARY LAND FILLING,
ECONOMICALLY VIABLE SOLUTION FOR MSW DISPOSAL FOR SL:
The most feasible and economically viable solution for the disposal of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) for a developing country like Sri Lanka is sanitary landfilling, the Megapolis and Western Development Ministry yesterday said responding to concerns over the Aruwakkalu Landfill.
Responding to the article ‘Two Chinese Companies to Run Aruwakkalu Landfill’ published on Daily Mirror on Tuesday, the Ministry said it is an accepted fact that the most feasible and economically viable solution for the disposal of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) for a developing country like Sri Lanka is sanitary landfilling.
The Ministry of Megapolis and Western Development (MMWD), in consultation with the relevant stakeholder agencies found a location at Aruwakkalu owned by the Cement Corporation of Sri Lanka which is leased out to M/s Siam City Cement (Lanka) Ltd for extraction of Limestone for cement production.
The implementation of the Metro Colombo Solid Waste Management (MCSWM) Project, which was initially planned to implement over a period of three years from 2017, was fast tracked to 18 months as a means of providing an expeditious and longterm solution for the grave national issue of waste disposal which was aggravated by the sudden collapse of Meethotamulla waste dump claiming human lives and destroying a lot of other properties.
Subsequently, considering the urgent need and essentiality for a sanitary landfill to address the issue of disposing ever increasing MSW, the MMWD, with the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers granted on 05th July 2017 called quotations under limited/ Restricted International Competitive and Restricted National Competitive Bidding from a) International Contractors working in Sri Lanka, b) Contractors with CIDA (Construction Industry Development Authority) registration under grade CS2 (highest grade), c) International Contractors with joint ventures with Sri Lankan contractors of the CIDA grade CS2.
The collapse of the Meethotamulla dumpsite highlighted the need to take immediate action to safely manage waste, thereby preventing further environmental and human health disasters
The implementation of the Metro Colombo Solid Waste Management (MCSWM) Project, which was initially planned to implement over a period of three years from 2017, was fast tracked to 18 months
Out of the 18 bidders who purchased the Request for Proposal (RFP) for Design & Build contract, 7 bidders have submitted their proposals (Attachment
II). The TEC appointed by the Department of Public Finance carried out detail technical evaluation of the bids submitted by all 7 bidders with a view to select a substantially responsive Design & Build contractor.
The TEC, with the outcome of the Expert Panel, has finally recommended two bidders (M/s Kolon-hansol-kecc Joint Venture and M/s China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd) whose technical proposals were concluded to be responsive since they have secured minimum requirement of 750 scores for the technical proposals.
Therefore, these two bidders
(M/s Kolon-hansol-kecc Joint Venture and M/s China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd) were taken-up for next step of financial evaluation.
The remaining five bidders who were unable to secure minimum of 750 scores for their technical proposals were concluded to be technically nonresponsive therefore, eliminated from further evaluation. With the approval granted by the SCAPC at its meeting held on 04th October 2017 (SCAPC Minutes attachment VII), the TEC opened the financial proposals of M/s Kolon-hansol-kecc Joint Venture and M/s China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd and recommended to award the contract on design, supply and installation/construction of municipal solid waste sanitary landfill facility (Aruwakkalu) to M/s China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd, being the lowest evaluated, substantially responsive, qualified bidder .
The SCAPC in its sitting on 17th October 2017 approved the aforementioned TEC recommendation (Attachment IX). Subsequently, all the six bidders except M/s China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd were informed of the SCAPC decision to award the contract to M/s China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd.
M/s Kolon Global Corporation (the Appellant) made an appeal to Procurement Appeal Board (PAB) of the Presidential Secretariat against the decision of the SCAPC to award the Contract to M/s China Harbour Engineering Company Limited. An appeal hearing by the PAB with the participation of the MMWD, M/s Kolon Global Corporation and M/s China Harbour Engineering Company Limited was held at the Presidential Secretariat on 01st November 2017. The recommendation of the PAB had been forwarded for the consideration of the Cabinet of Ministers with a copy to the Secretary, MMWD on 20th November 2017.
Honouring the direction given by the Cabinet of Ministers, the SCAPC directed the TEC at its meeting held on 22nd November 2017 to open the Financial Proposals of the 5 unsuccessful bidders in the presence of SCAPC Members as recommended in the PAB decision, though it appears to be in contrary to the National Procurement Guidelines. Further, the SCAPC has directed the TEC to assess all the bids giving 80% - 20% as the appropriate weightages to the technical and financial proposals of the bidders respectively. In a Design and Build Contract of this nature, it is important to give more weightage for the technical proposal which is a globally accepted practice.
Finally, Cabinet of Ministers has granted approval to award the Design & Build contract to M/s China Harbour Engineering Company Limited at a total bid price of US$ 90,482,259.16 plus Rs 1,622,936,211.10 (approximately equivalent to Rs 15,641,352,623.47 or US$ 100,957,546.14 at the exchange rate of Rs 154.93 per 1 UD$) without VAT.
The project comprised of four components; Package-a (Transfer Stations at Kelaniya and Aruwakkalu), Package-b (Sanitary Landfill at Aruwakkalu), Package-c (Rail Track Extension and Connectivity Line) and Package-d (Rail equipment, Machinery).
The sanitary land fill method is one of the best methods of disposal of garbage and accepted worldwide and the project continues smoothly without any remarkable hindrance.
Further, the collapse of the Meethotamulla dumpsite highlighted the need to take immediate action to safely manage waste, thereby preventing further environmental and human health disasters. The Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) declared sustainable management of solid waste a top national priority including: (i) the stabilization and closure of existing dump sites; (ii) the establishment of an adequate sanitary landfill for the Metro Colombo Region (MCR); and (iii) the establishment of a governance structure (including financial mechanisms) for the solid waste management sector. The GOSL requested assistance from the World Bank to address this priority. Having been involved for years in local service provision in Sri Lanka, specifically in the solid waste management sector, and with deep knowledge of the challenges and opportunities, a joint World Bank and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) are well positioned to support the GOSL during this emergency.
Moreover, the Bank’s involvement at this stage, given the current strong GOSL support for an immediate solution for the sector, will be critical for the long-term development of an integrated solid waste management sector. With the World Bank’s support, it is likely that the sector challenges are approached in an integrated manner, and that the focus will be not only on short-term solutions to the most visible issues, but also on enhancing the governance of the sector to establishment of an effective and sustainable solid waste management system.
As per the above, World Bank and the AIIB, mission (the Mission) visited Sri Lanka in several times and expressed its interest to consider providing financial support for the waste management sector of the country under a different approach by identifying a new Project called ‘Emergency Solid Waste Management Project (ESWMP)’. The proposed ESWMP would follow the condensed procedures provided under the World Bank’s policy instruments: Projects in Situations of Urgent Need of Assistance or Capacity Constraints due to a natural or man-made disaster.
Accordingly, the Experts of World Bank assessed the potential of the reclaimed limestone quarry at Aruwakkalu site for the construction of Sanitary Landfill. After the site evaluation, they recommended to incorporate state-of-the-art detailing provisions for ground and surface water protection as well as proper coordination with mining activities. In these circumstances, this Ministry has prepared Environmental Management Framework and the Environmental Management Plan according to the World Bank Guidelines. However, due to the lengthy and tedious procurement procedures of the WB, which consumes a considerable processing time, this ministry compelled to use the funds of GOSL to complete the project early to receive garbage from Colombo.
As per the contract agreement project has been planned to operate 240 days as partial completion with a capacity of receiving up to 600T/day of waste collected from Colombo Municipal Council. This waste is transporting to Aruwakkalu Sanitary Landfill by hiring minimum 35Nos. ten wheeled tippers until the rail transportation of waste from KTS to Aruwakkalu would be in place. Tippers transport waste from Kerawalapitiya and unload the waste directly in to the designated cell at the Aruwakkalu landfill. All waste received at Kerawalapitiya is transferred daily without accumulating at site.