Team Herald
PANJIM: Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) on Monday decided to grant Consent to Operate to six iron ore mining leases, which were under the scanner for operation without valid Environment Clearance (EC). The ECs had been issued under the 1994 environment impact assessment (EIA) notification, which were termed invalid by the Supreme Court.
Newly-appointed Goa State Pollution Control Board chairman Ganesh Babu Shetgaonkar chaired the first meeting of the Board on Monday morning, which had a single item in its agenda which was to decide on the Consent to Operate under Air and Water (prevention and pollution control) Act to these six mining leases, which were issued show cause notices last month asking why consent to operate should not be rejected in light of the observations and directions mentioned in a recent Supreme Court judgment.
In the Orissa mining case, the court had said that EC issued under the 1994 environment impact assessment (EIA) notification are not valid. The six mining lease, whose Consent validity expired on December 31, 2017, belongs to Vedanta Ltd Codli iron ore mine, VM Salgaocar & Bros Ltd Velguem- Surla mine and Sigao mine, Sesa Mining Corp Ltd Sirigao mine, Pandurang Timblo Industries Advona Iron ore mine and Beddrudin Mavani’s Kevona Mine. All the mining leases were issued EC under 1994 notification.
While Shetgaonkar remained unavailable for comments, sources said the Board ignored the Supreme Court judgment in the Orissa mining case stating that it is not applicable in case of Goa mines.
“The Board had issued show cause notices to 11 mines last month including these six. Based on the apex court order, the board had decided not to grant consent to operate to mining leases who possessed EC under the 1994 EIA notification,” sources said.
Goa Foundation and one Shankar Jog had in July 2016 challenged, before National Green Tribunal (NGT), mining activities undertaken by mining lease holders without valid EC in view of the Supreme Court judgment. NGT had directed the leaseholders to appear before the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) for a decision.
As per the site inspections undertaken by the Board, these six lease holders had also failed to adhere to the long term and short term measures, they were supposed to take to mitigate pollution in the area.
