Latest news with #Forest(Conservation)Rules
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Take steps to fast-track and streamline forest clearances, says FAC
In a bid to streamline the forest clearance process, the forest advisory committee (FAC) has recommended curbing multiple enquiries for essential details, not insisting on hard copies of project details, and reviewing pendency of forest clearance applications every fortnight. FAC also decided that some proposals need not be referred to it or regional empowered committees. (HT Photo) Prior forest and environmental clearance are mandatory for any major industry or infrastructure project which is coming up in or near forest land. FAC, a statutory body under the ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC) has also decided that some proposals need not be referred to it or regional empowered committees (RECs). These include proposals involving: a change in the name of the user due to inheritance by legal heir; change in name of company, etc; transfer of approval from one user to another such as transfer of mining leases; change in some of the patches of compensatory afforestation (CA) sites due to unforeseen reasons; delay in submission of compliance of in-principle approval conditions after the stipulated period when this is done with valid and cogent reasons for the delay. In an FAC meeting on June 12, the deputy director general of forests (central), various regional officers, and nodal officers of states discussed how forest clearances can be granted in a time bound manner. FAC has stressed that the authorities, while processing proposals, need to adhere to the timelines as provided in the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Rules, 2023. The nodal officer, along with the concerned divisional forest officers in the state/UTs may review the pendency of proposals on a fortnightly basis to process and dispose of the case within the prescribed time lines, it said. HT reported on Feb 27 that the Union environment ministry has developed new features on Parivesh (Pro-active and responsive facilitation by interactive and virtuous environmental single-window hub) 2.0 –– an integrated environmental management system for environment, forests, wildlife, coastal zone clearances –– for quicker processing of forest clearances. One of the changes is to auto-forward a proposal to the next processing authority if 'essential details sought (EDS)' by the central government or regional officials is not provided within three days by state authorities. As per Forest (Conservation) Rules, 2022, projects covering 5 to 40 ha land should be disposed in 120 days, and those above 40 ha should be disposed within 160 days. Fast tracking of forest clearances has been a priority for the government. Union environment minister Bhupender Yadav in an interview to HT on June 5 said the Centre is trying to make the environment and forest clearance system efficient and fast in recent years. Dredging of rivers FAC has also decided that dredging of rivers with the objective of removing debris that accumulated during and after natural disasters, or after extreme weather events, intended to safeguard the natural course of the river, and with the objective of ecological restoration, with a specified plan and for a specified period, prepared for the purpose, cannot be considered as a commercial mining activity. The Himachal Pradesh government had requested the environment ministry to incorporate 'dredging of riverbeds' as a distinct category in the online Parivesh portal to facilitate prompt approvals, ensuring effective disaster mitigation while restoring river flow and preventing flood-like situations. To mitigate such risks, the district disaster management authority, Kullu, initiated dredging under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. Earlier guidelines said that in case the dredged out material is to be used as minor mineral, prior forest approval is needed.
Time of India
20-05-2025
- General
- Time of India
Western Ghats under direct threat from Sharavathi project: Report
Western Ghats Karnataka Power Corporation Limited Lion-Tailed Macaque biodiversity conservation environmental clearance Varahi Pumped Storage Project A report from a city-based non-governmental organisation has highlighted that legally protected wildlife sanctuaries in theare under direct threat from various projects, especially the Sharavathi Pumped Storage to the report by Mapping Malnad, the's (KPCL) Sharavathi Pumped Storage Hydroelectric Project is advancing based on 'inadequate, misleading, and flawed data,' raising significant environmental and legal concerns. The project, which proposes to divert 279 acres of dense evergreen and semi-evergreen forests in the Sharavathi(LTM) Wildlife Sanctuary, has already been approved by the State Wildlife Board and the Karnataka government. It now awaits Stage-I approval from the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF&CC).'This project will create a system that consumes eight hours of coal-powered energy to generate just six hours of hydropower. It is fundamentally inefficient and results in a net energy loss,' said Nirmala Gowda, founder of Mapping Malnad. 'More critically, it opens up dense evergreen forests—vital carbon sinks and turns them into carbon sources.'The report argues that the project, while marketed as a green initiative to stabilise the power grid, is actually a setback to climate goals and. It also warns that the project'shas been obtained by misrepresenting forest land use. KPCL claimed a requirement of 39.79 hectares in its application, but clearance was granted for 54.155 hectares. As per the Forest (Conservation) Rules, any diversion above 50 hectares necessitates a Biodiversity Impact Assessment—one that KPCL successfully avoided through while KPCL claimed only 20 trees would be felled, Mapping Malnad estimates the true number at over 16,000, including massive girth evergreen trees. The project also involves the use of 18,000 tons of industrial explosives and will generate approximately 14.49 lakh cubic metres of excavated muck adding to the environmental sanctuary is a crucial habitat for numerous endangered species, particularly the Lion-tailed Macaque, a primate found only in the Western Ghats. The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 allows diversions within sanctuaries only if they are in the interest of wildlife, a standard that, the report argues, this project fails to said that project documents submitted to authorities contain misinformation and key omissions that compromise the integrity of the clearance process. The project has also been fragmented into smaller components, which environmentalists say is a tactic used to bypass comprehensive review of its ecological the Sharavathi project is not an isolated case. The report flags that the proposedwill require about 612 acres from the Someshwara and Mookambika Wildlife Sanctuaries. It warns that the approvals granted so far are setting a dangerous precedent, with at least 11 more such projects potentially targeting protected areas across the Western Ghats.'No hydroelectric project that clears 279 acres of evergreen habitat, fells nearly 15,000 trees, and disrupts a fragile forest ecosystem can credibly claim to be in the interest of wildlife,' Gowda said. 'Yet, the Karnataka government has greenlit it.'The report was developed in consultation with grassroots activists and reflects growing citizen concern over weakening environmental governance. Gowda called for the immediate establishment of a 'Western Ghats Ecology Authority' to strengthen protections and ensure accountability.'These forests are not just ecological treasures—they are also Bengaluru's most vital water infrastructure,' she said. 'We hope the authorities will reconsider this project in light of the facts. It simply doesn't make sense.'
