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NMCG Unveils Protocol to Combat River Plastic Pollution
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News18•29-09-2026, 21:45
NMCG Unveils Protocol to Combat River Plastic Pollution
- •The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has introduced a protocol for monitoring riverine macroplastics, aiming to standardize the measurement, classification, and tracking of plastic pollution in rivers.
- •This new protocol will help identify pollution hotspots and facilitate targeted actions to address the issue.
- •Visible plastic waste, such as bottles, bags, and packaging, is easily noticed, but the protocol emphasizes the need for a deeper understanding of the scale and movement of plastic pollution.
- •Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil released the Protocol for Riverine Macroplastics Monitoring during the ninth India International Water Week 2026.
- •Macroplastics are defined as plastic debris larger than 25 mm, and the monitoring exercise will help identify their sources and understand their origin, monitoring methods, and data insights.
Key Questions Answered
The Protocol for Riverine Macroplastics Monitoring is a standardised framework released by Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil to measure, classify, and track plastic debris larger than 25 mm in rivers. It helps identify pollution hotspots and supports targeted actions to manage riverine plastic waste effectively.
The protocol was released by Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil during the ninth India International Water Week 2026.
The NMCG promotes a circular water economy by positioning treated sewage as a resource rather than a disposal problem, supplying treated wastewater from STPs for industrial and non-potable uses to reduce freshwater extraction.
