Green panel slaps fresh conditions on Posco

Rajaram Satapathy, TNN | Apr 16, 2013
BHUBANESWAR: A high-level committee set up by the Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) to review the mega Posco steel project in the state has spelled fresh trouble for the much-hyped project.

The committee headed by K Roy Paul was constituted as per the March 30, 2012 order of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), which had suspended the environment clearance granted to the project.

The Paul committee had submitted its report to the MoEF in October. Though the report has not yet been made public, information obtained through the RTI about its findings reveals that the project proposal may have to undergo a complete change in the coming days, including layout, study of its impact on the environment, livelihood of people, water requirement and waste disposal management.

The committee said during its visit, state authorities like the IDCO had informed that land requirement for the project had been reduced to 2,700 acres 'leaving out most of the private lands of Gobindapur and Dhinkia villages and a portion of the forest land where betel vines are grown by the villagers'. "This meant that the layout plan of the project would have to be altered substantially," the report said.

The state government has created an impression that the size of the mega steel plant had been reduced from 12 mtpa to 8 mtpa. Posco authorities, however, have denied such speculation. "Our first phase target capacity is 8 mtpa out of the total 12 mtpa capacity, hence we need reduced area," said Y W Yoon, chairman of Posco-India to a visiting media team at Pune recently.

The Paul committee, however, went by the statements made before it and said: "The project proponent should state unambiguously whether the reduced project area would be adequate to accommodate all plans of future expansion of the steel plant."

While obtaining special CRZ (coastal regulation zone) clearance for road and other infrastructures, 'environment impact should be reassessed for the revised layout plan with at least one month current baseline data for all the components of environment and submitted to the MoEF', the report suggested. The committee objected to any move to draw underground water and took note of the state water resources department's advice to Posco to seek alternate sources of water. "Water availability is a critical issue," the report observed, analyzing the inputs submitted by different government agencies.

The area being prone to cyclone, flood and sea erosion, the report also took note of concerns expressed over construction of a sea protection wall and said the issue must be 'seriously investigated' through nationally reputed agencies. "A long term study may be carried out on the impacts due to erosion of creeks, banks, deepening of the creek and widening of the river mouth (Jatadhari river mouth where Posco wants to set up its captive port)," the report said. "On assessing the documents submitted to the committee, which include the comprehensive EIA (environment impact assessment) for 4 mtpa steel plant, there is still no clarity as regards the scenario relating to future expansion of 12 mtpa capacity, especially about the availability of land, water, minerals and infrastructure," the report observed.

The committee said eight years after signing an MoU to start the project, the government and Posco have not yet carried out many basic studies on issues like actual water availability, the project's impact on fisheries, which support more than 20,000 people in the area, plan for management of oil spills, impact of dredging of material for the private port, impact on marine ecology and wildlife, etc.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bhubaneswar/Green-panel-slaps-fresh-conditions-on-Posco/articleshow/19569682.cms

National Highway To Doom

BAHAR DUTT

No, Mr PM. Our green laws are not impeding the country’s development

AT A recent Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh lamented that green laws are the new ‘Licence Raj’. This is not the first time the PM has expressed this view; in 2011, he emphasised at a public forum that “saving the environment could not be at the cost of development”.

In 2008, he laid the foundation stone for the 3,000 MW Dibang hydropower project in Arunachal Pradesh, even though it had yet to get the green clearance from the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF). The clearance was in limbo because the public hearing had not been held as mandated under the Environment (Protection) Act (EPA).

The PM’s attitude towards green laws seems to propagate a myth that such laws are impeding development. For every three projects rejected by the MoEF’S statutory bodies, 97 are cleared. And those that are rejected can apply again. Also, more than 100 projects on 9,000 hectares of forestland have been cleared by the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) in the past three months, which means we are losing forestland at the rate of 100 hectares per day.

Two coal mining projects were cleared in Odisha despite glaring violations found by the FAC. In the September meeting of the FAC, (Source: EIA Resource and Response Centre, New Delhi) more than 93 percent projects didn’t show any history of compensatory afforestation, yet they were considered. Worse, more than 90 percent projects were approved, even though the nodal forest officer, who has to give detailed comments on why the project should be given a go-ahead on prime forests, had either just signed or left the columns blank. Even areas rich in biodiversity are not spared, such as the Gola corridor, which is crucial for elephants and tigers in Uttarakhand.

The NHAI recently threatened to sue the MoEF over delays in green clearances. Here again, one needs to look at the ministry data. If you look at three highway projects that came up for discussion with the FAC, two were cleared and one sent back for additional information.

Take the example of Yamunotri-Saharanpur Highway. More than 1 lakh trees are facing the axe, and the application makes no mention of the damage to wildlife or biodiversity, yet it was cleared. Worse still, the project is based in UP, but a certificate from the collector of Mahasamand (a district in Chhattisgarh) was provided! Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan has made it amply clear that clearances are being held up because of incomplete application forms or false information. But these statistics seem to escape the prime minister’s eye.

In his 2011 Independence Day speech, the PM took credit for setting up the National Green Tribunal, but it faces many hurdles. Two years later, the regional benches are yet to be set up; there is no proper courtroom; many members have quit due to lack of accommodation; and a chairperson was appointed only after the SC forced the Centre’s hand.

Green laws are not ‘Licence Raj’, Mr PM. They were introduced by your government, the Constitution and Parliament. The development brigade may show you the example of China. China’s breakneck speed of development has overshadowed the environmental disasters facing the country. Sixteen of the 20 most polluted cities in the world are in China. More than 70 percent of China’s rivers, lakes and streams are heavily polluted. Every year, 6,000 square miles of grasslands and forests are lost to desertification and over 300 species are endangered or threatened. Is this the development model we want?

Of course, we want to develop. But not at the cost of our right to fresh air and clean water or our wildlife. That’s what the EPA and the Forest Conservation Act ensure. They protect our rights to have access to clean air; they ensure the industries you give the licence to operate do so with some system of checks and balances. You would do well by supporting your environment minister, who has a tough job of balancing the environment and development needs, while ensuring these checks are in place. And the industry could do well by respecting the law of the land instead of being a constant crybaby.

Bahar Dutt is Environment Editor, CNN-IBN
letters@tehelka.com

Source: http://tehelka.com/national-highway-to-doom/