Mumbai's Juhu Beach plastic waste crisis: Residents urge BMC to stop trash at source

Fresh waste returns on Monday with every high tide despite daily clean-ups. Pic/By Special Arrangement

Every morning, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) clears tonnes of plastic from Juhu Beach. By the next high tide, much of it is back. Residents, activists and public representatives say the recurring problem cannot be solved by beach clean-ups alone. Instead, they are urging the civic body to stop plastic waste from entering the sea through creeks and stormwater drains before it washes ashore.

Why the plastic keeps returning

According to residents and activists, waste enters the Arabian Sea through...
>> Creeks
>> Stormwater drains
>> Nullahs
>> Illegal dumping into water bodies
>> Tidal currents that carry marine litter back to shore

Residents' suggestions

Paul Creado, Juhu resident
‘We need to stop plastic before it reaches the sea.'

Key demands
>> Install debris-catching nets across major creeks
>> Deploy clean-up workers evenly across the beach
>> Involve citizens in monitoring clean-up operations
>> Take strict action against those dumping waste into creeks

Suggested locations for debris-trapping nets...
>> Marve
>> Versova
>> Moragaon
>> Juhu Koliwada
>> Khar Danda
>> Mahim
>> Worli

Civic representative speaks

Sudha Singh, BJP corporator
‘The BMC is regularly cleaning the beach, but plastic waste continues to reach the shoreline.'

She has urged the civic body to...
>> Inspect existing trash-trapping nets
>> Repair damaged interception systems
>> Upgrade inadequate debris barriers
According to Singh, functioning interception systems could prevent a significant amount of waste from reaching the beach.

Activists' view

Mehjabeen Barwani, Juhu Beach Cleanliness Monitoring Committee

‘We continuously monitor the cleanliness of Juhu Beach along with the BMC. During high tide, fresh waste is often washed ashore, making the task more challenging.'

Barwani said committee members regularly inspect the shoreline and participate in cleanliness drives alongside the BMC.

Official speak

Ameet Satam, BJP MLA
‘The BMC is actively carrying out beach-cleaning operations, and we will ensure that the removal of waste brought in by tidal action continues without interruption.' Satam said the situation is being closely monitored in coordination with the civic administration.

The bigger question

Residents argue that crores spent annually on
>> Beach cleaning
>> Desilting
>> Nullah cleaning could deliver better long-term results if more resources were invested in preventing plastic from entering the sea.