A CLARIFICATION
A news item has appeared
in the Indian Express dated 16th April 2003 "Ministry
of Environment stands up for miners". A number of issues
have been raised on the MOEF’s affidavit dated 2nd
April 2003 regarding mining operations in the State of Haryana
and these need to be clarified and factual position brought out.
The Ministry of Environment
and Forests, in order to ensure that uniform procedures are adopted
throughout the country for environmental clearance of mining projects
involving major minerals and having lease area greater than 5
hectares, amended the Environmental Impact Assessment Notification,
1994 and the Aravlli Notification of 1992. As a result, mining
of major minerals in Gurgaon and Alwar districts also require
environmental clearance from MOEF if lease area exceeds 5 hectares.
The Ministry of
Environment and Forests would like to clarify the issues as follows
:
- Contrary to the news report, the
MOEF affidavit DOES NOT recommend that all mines be reopened.
- Of the 34
mines in Faridabad, only 14 mines have been recommended to be
reopened as they are complying with conditions imposed by the
relevant agencies.
- In Gurgaon,
of the 76 mines, 65 mines have been found complying with major
conditions and have been recommended to be reopened.
The remaining mines
can be considered only subject to compliance of conditions by
the various regulatory agencies including the Indian Bureau
of Mines, Director General Mines Safety, State Government and
MOEF including forestry clearance, etc.
- The recommendations of the Central
Ground Water Board for imposing additional conditions with regard
to issues on ground water have been incorporated in the affidavit.
Accordingly, with regard to seven mines in the District of Faridabad
where ground water table has been encountered, the MOEF’s affidavit
clearly states "it is recommended that the 7 mines in Faridabad
where mining has encountered ground water table, further mining
may be permitted only in consultation with CGWB and conditions
imposed by them for compliance by the mines owners. In case
of all other mines in Gurgaon and in Faridabad where the ultimate
working depth during mining is likely to encounter ground water
table, such mining operations may be permitted subject to additional
conditions that may be imposed by the CGWB. The State Government
may also invite a representative of the CGWB in its Expert Committees".
Therefore the
issues of protection of ground water has been adequately addressed
in the MOEF affidavit.
- The State Governments are being
asked to direct closure of such mines whose owners have not
applied to MOEF for environmental clearance as on 31sr March
2003 following the MOEF Public Notice dated 14th
and 15th March 2003 regarding ex-post facto environmental
clearance to units set up without prior environmental clearance
under the provisions of the EIA Notification, 1994.
- MOEF statement that "afforestation
of diverted plantation is not practically feasible as areas
become refractory and hence difficult to establish green cover"
has been quoted out of context. The relevant paras of the
affidavit clearly state that small areas of plantations (either
created from external help or from own resources), if require
to be diverted for projects of national importance, may be done
on merit/case by case basis. In such cases, whether commercial
mining over an already existing valuable national resource such
as forestry (even if created through plantations) should be
taken up at all needs careful examination. Refforestation of
such diverted plantations is also not practically feasible as
areas become refractory and hence difficult to re-establish
green cover. The resources required to afforest such areas would
be more because of the degradation of the area.
