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Nearly five months after the Madras high court asked the Corporation of Chennai to address environmental concerns while relaying roads using plastic, sources said most of the central mixing plants belonging to the contractors where plastic is added to bitumen are functioning in violation of the guidelines set by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB).

In March this year, the high court took suo motu notice of a TOI article on the corporation dropping plan to relay roads with concrete and asked the civic body ensure quality and address all environmental concerns. Sources said most mixing plants in the city are not equipped with necessary equipment as per the guidelines and continue to emit poisonous dioxin gas, which is harmful to the environment.

There are more than 100 central mixing plants across the city but only less than 20 of them have the TNPCB approval. “Most mixing plants are meant to prepare bitumen mix and are not equipped to mix shredded plastic. Toxic gases are released when shredded plastic is exposed to a temperature of 800C to 900C,“ said a road contractor.

Activists say releasing poisonous gas is an offence punishable under the Air (prevention and control of pollution) Act, 1981.

Chennai Plastic Manufactures and Merchants Association president G Sankaran said a section of contractors has been trying to sabotage the civic body's plastic road plan.“The idea was to collect plastic from residents and use it for road laying to increase the lifespan. The contractor lobby is against laying stronger roads because that means fewer tenders for work“.

Corporation has stopped collecting plastic waste from residents for use in relaying of roads. Several plastic shredding machines at corporation zonal offices are lying idle and unable to shred any plastics due to technical glitches. Several contractors now source plastic from the market at inflated rates, collect the money for the procurement and then do not use plastic while laying roads.