Team Herald
PANJIM: Nearly 160 scientists and academicians have written to the Director of the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) to consider assessing the cumulative environmental impacts of all three linear projects, passing through the protected areas of Mollem, instead of suggesting mitigation measures in isolation given the well-known synergistic effects of habitat fragmentation.
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The scientists have also written to the National Board of Wildlife (NBW) seeking a detailed review on the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) reports with regards to the mitigation measures of the three projects to assess the gap.
NBW has currently deferred a decision on the project running from Tinaighat-Castlerock (Karnataka) to Caranzol (Goa), passing through protected areas like Dandeli-Anshi tiger reserve, Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary and Mollem National Park.
In a statement issued, the signatories said that the letter highlights a reviewed critique of the existing EIA reports for all the three projects that has been submitted by a collective of 31 scientists with extensive expertise in various relevant fields to a peer reviewed journal.
The authors have also pointed out that some of the prescribed impact mitigation measures lack enough detail to be taken up and implemented correctly and effectively.
“It is a given that these three projects will have a range of potential effects on the local ecology (some of which are pointed out by your EIA reports) also have considerable spatial overlap, and are essentially connected to each other in function and mitigation measures cannot be effectively suggested without first studying cumulative impacts,” the statement said.
Over the past six months, thousands of citizens have sent multiple representations to the National Board of Wildlife and Central Empowered Committee of the Supreme Court against the clearance of the three linear projects.
