Jawaharnagar dumpyard emits 5.9 tonnes of methane daily

Metro India News | Hyderabad 

A new NASA-supported satellite study has revealed that Hyderabad’s Jawaharnagar dumpyard is emitting 5.9 tonnes of methane every hour, making it the highest methane-emitting waste site in India and the fourth-largest globally. The findings, based on data from UCLA and Carbon Mapper with support from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, have sparked alarm over the city’s waste management model.

According to the report, the landfill releases nearly 49,000 tonnes of methane annually, creating an estimated climate impact of 3.96 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent each year. Environmental groups say this exposes the failure of Hyderabad’s centralized waste-to-energy strategy.

The site houses two Waste-to-Energy plants with a combined capacity of 48 MW, processing over 3,000 tonnes of waste daily. However, despite these large-scale operations, methane emissions continue at dangerous levels, indicating that significant amounts of waste remain untreated and decompose in landfill conditions.

Experts note that nearly 60 percent of Hyderabad’s waste is biodegradable wet waste, which is poorly suited for incineration because of its low calorific value. Incinerating such waste can release around 1.7 tonnes of CO₂ per tonne, in addition to toxic pollutants and hazardous ash.

Residents near the landfill say the environmental burden is directly affecting their lives. “People here suffer from breathing problems, skin diseases, constant headaches, and contaminated water. Children fall sick frequently, and families are forced to live with this pollution every day,” said Sandeep, a resident of Jawaharnagar.

Climate campaigners argue that the findings demand urgent government action. “The scale of methane emissions is so severe that it is now being detected by NASA-supported satellite systems. What Hyderabad needs are decentralized, climate-friendly waste solutions, not climate bombs,” said Ruchit Asha Kamal of Climate Front Hyderabad.