The southern bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB), in coordination with the Fire and Rescue Services Department, to undertake a comprehensive fire safety audit of all industrial waste storage and treatment facilities in the State.

The Tribunal also directed the operator of a Common Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facility in Gummidipoondi, where a major fire broke out in May 2024, to implement all recommendations of an independent fire safety audit within three months and strengthen the storage and handling of combustible waste.

The directions were issued by a bench comprising Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana and expert member Prashant Gargava while disposing of a suo motu case initiated on the basis of a news report published in May 2024, which alleged that a fire at the Re-Sustainable IWM Solutions Limited facility in the SIPCOT Industrial Complex, Gummidipoondi, had engulfed nearby villages in toxic fumes.

According to reports before the Tribunal, the fire broke out on May 19, 2024, in a temporary scrap yard storing discarded HDPE liners, fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP) materials and other polymeric waste meant for co-processing in cement industries. 

The Tribunal noted that the fire did not occur in the hazardous waste landfill or incinerator and found no evidence of improper storage of hazardous waste. However, the Tribunal observed that facilities handling hazardous and combustible materials must exercise a higher degree of vigilance, particularly during peak summer. It said the storage of nearly 60 metric tonnes of combustible polymeric scrap required stronger safeguards, including limiting storage quantities, maintaining segregation, continuous surveillance and adequate firefighting infrastructure.

Expressing concern over similar fires continuing to occur in and around Chennai in 2026, the Tribunal said the recurrence pointed to deficiencies in risk assessment and storage practices. It directed the company not to accumulate combustible polymeric waste beyond operational requirements and to transport such material regularly to authorised facilities. 

The Fire and Rescue Services Department was directed to verify compliance with storage and firefighting measures, while the TNPCB was asked to initiate proceedings in the event of any non-compliance with the Tribunal’s directions or consent conditions.