The relaxed norms for river sand-mining may kill the rivers of Kerala, besides reducing the availability of drinking water.
The
Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has done away with the
norm of environment clearance for river sand-mining for sites below the
extent of five hectares. Sites with a mining lease area between five
hectares and 25 hectares would be appraised on the basis of a
pre-feasibility report and an application in the prescribed format, it
said.
The decision will have far-reaching
consequences in Kerala, where rivers have been exploited to the hilt. As
all sand-mining areas in Kerala are below five hectares, the new order
would impact States such as Kerala most, according to those in the
sector.
Mining plan
The
MoEF order also suggests that mining should be done manually to a depth
of five metres or water level, whichever is less. In case of mining near
bridges or embankments, a safety zone should be marked where no mining
would be permitted. The mining plan approved by an authorised agency of
the State government will study the situation to show that the annual
replenishment of sand in the mining lease area is sufficient to sustain
the mining operations at levels prescribed in the mining plan, it said.
If
the mining lease area is likely to result into a cluster situation or
if the periphery of one lease area is less than one km from the
periphery of another and the total lease area equals or exceeds 25
hectares, it should require environment impact assessment (EIA), the
order said.
According to Harish Vasudevan, a
specialist in environmental laws, the MoEF has negated the recent order
of the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal which prescribed
EIA for all such mining activities.
The tribunal has
since August restrained mining or removal of sand from riverbeds without
obtaining environmental clearance from the MoEF or the State
Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) and licence from
competent authorities, he said.
‘A joke of SC order’
The
Ministry has made a joke of the Supreme Court order, which too has
prescribed EIA for such activities. Though sand auditing for rivers was
suggested in the State earlier, it has not been effectively carried out
in the State, Mr. Vasudevan said.
A. Lata of the
River Research Centre, Chalakudy, said the MoEF order has come at a time
when environmentalists have been calling for sand-mining holidays for
Kerala rivers. The rivers should be allowed to recover from the damage
imparted by unregulated sand-mining, she said.
Sand auditing
Environmentalists
have been campaigning for sand auditing to find out the volume of sand
that could be mined from the rivers. The new order would hasten the
degradation of the river ecosystem and also worsen the drinking water
availability in the State, Ms. Lata said.
N.K.
Sukumaran Nair, general secretary, Pampa Parirakshana Samithi, said the
order would bring in irrecoverable ecological damage to the State.
Unregulated sand-mining has resulted in the lowering of riverbed and
depletion of groundwater levels.
It has also led to saline water incursion in unprecedented areas.
The situation would turn worse if no check measures are put in place to protect the rivers, Mr. Nair said.
A
member of the SEIAA, who wished not to be quoted, has shared the
concerns expressed by environmentalists. With the order, the check
measures, including public hearing and EIA, would have no meaning, he
said.
No clearance needed for sites below five hectares
All sand-mining areas in State are below five hectares
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