As Coronavirus threatens the world, the urgent release of the Central Government's Environmental Impact Assessment Draft 2020 has come as a shock to ecological activists. If this is implemented, India will become an uninhabitable country with no water to drink and no air to breathe for future generations.
As Coronavirus threatens the world, the urgent release of the Central Government's Environmental Impact Assessment Draft 2020 has come as a shock to ecological activists. If this is implemented, India will become an uninhabitable country with no water to drink and no air to breathe for future generations.
What is EIA?
Large enterprises in India are required to obtain permission under the Environmental Protection Act 1986 to set up factories and prepare an environmental project report under the 2006 Act. A committee set up under the Ministry of Environment examines and approves the project after it determines it is not harmful to the environment or prohibits it if detrimental.
What are the changes to EIA 2020?
Earlier, a public consultation would be held first to set up the factory, which would be heard directly or indirectly, but the draft has been amended to make it mandatory to amend the existing rule and hold a public hearing. Page 19 of the report states that the referendum may be canceled if the people are unable to express their views freely.
We spoke to Prabhakaran, an ecological engineer from the Poovulagin Nanbargal Amaippu, who said, "If a factory is to be set up in one place, it should hold a public hearing. Only then can the plan be implemented. Changes have been made in this practice as well. Earlier, feedback can be reported directly or indirectly for up to 30 days upon arrival of the factory, but the deadline has been reduced from 30 days to 20 days. Consultation meetings have also been changed from 45 days to 40 days. This disables public opinion reaching the departments. Businesses are required to prepare a plan and submit it to the Pollution Control Department twice a year, once every 6 months, to clarify waste management, safety equipment, and the amount of waste discharged, but this draft has been revised to once a year instead of 6 months.
He lamented, "Any industry will start building the factory only after obtaining the ecological permit, but now a factory can be built without obtaining permission. This draft makes it possible to start a project without an environmental impact assessment report and expand an existing project. Many old rules have been thrown to wind."
He accused, "This will make it easier to implement mineral mines, eight-lane roads, methane/hydrocarbon/neutrino projects and so on through this draft despite public opposition.The draft allows 50 years' permission to extract ore from coal and mineral mines by the Ministry of Environment which was 30 years."
Environmental activists are shocked that no statement has been issued on behalf of the Tamil Nadu government. Former Union Minister Jairam Ramesh, senior officials, political parties and film actors have strongly condemned the draft. The public has been expressing their views on Twitter and Facebook against the draftThe hashtags #scrapeEIA2020 and #withdrawEIA2020 are trending on social media spaces.
Destroying natural resources and setting up factories is not development. If it is considered a sign of growth, then future generations will be left with null and void.
You can send your comments and objections to [email protected] by August 11.