The inauguration of INOPOL II, the second phase of INOPOL project that focuses on reducing plastic pollution and persistent organic pollutants (PoPs) in Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand was held at SRMIST at Kattankulathur.
INOPOL (India-Norway Cooperation Project for Plastic and Chemical Pollution Reduction in India) was launched under Norway-India Marine Pollution Initiative.
First phase of this project (INOPOL I) was implemented in Gujarat and it identified key action points related to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and plastic waste following a comprehensive investigation into the impact of plastic wastes and POPs in the area surrounding the two rivers Tapi and Daman Ganga.
This second phase is being implemented by a team of international experts from Norwegian Institute of Water Research (NIVA) in association with leading institutions in India – Mu Gamma, SRMIST (SRM Institute of Science and Technology), CIPET,Toxics Link.
Speaking at the inauguration of the second phase of the project (INOPOL II), Director General of the Central Institute for Petrochemicals Engineering and Technology (CIPET), Prof. Shishir Sinha listed concrete statistics about the challenges posed by plastic waste and shared a positive outlook about the potential value addition from plastic waste and how opportunities associated with plastic management can be inculcated in young minds. He was the chief guest for the inaugural.
He also spoke at length about the danger of microplastics and nanoplastics. A technical session was also conducted, where details of Phase II of the project were disseminated along with a discussion between two expert panels for POPs and plastic waste management with scientists and project partners.
The panelists discussed about the synergy between POPs and microplastics and the importance of stakeholder involvement as well as the need for a strong technical foundation towards any in-depth scientific studies.
Questions and suggestions were also invited from the audience and questionnaires were shared to understand the current scenario of POPs and plastic waste management in the state.
(Dean – Research) of SRMIST,Prof. B. Neppolian spoke about SRMIST’s role in Phase I of the project and was optimistic for the Phase II implementation proceedings.
Research Director, Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA), Dr. Marianne Olsen, Introduction to the INOPOL Phase I was given by Managing Director, Mu Gamma, Dr. Girija Bharat and Phase II of the project was detailed by, Sr Research Scientist, NIVA, Dr. Hans Nicolai Adam.
Head, Centre for Research in Environment, Sustainability Advocacy and Climate Change of SRMIST, Prof. Paromita Chakraborty discussed the updates related to POPs research conducted as part of Phase-I and delivered the vote of thanks.
