PANJIM, FEB 11: Around 100-odd mining leases in Goa surrounding wildlife sanctuaries and a national park may face an uncertain future with the recent guidelines of the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF).
MoEF’s National Board for Wildlife in its recent meeting has circulated guidelines for declaration of eco-sensitive zones around national parks and wildlife sanctuaries which bans mining within 10 kms radius of wildlife sanctuaries or national park borders.
The circular which is issued to Additional Principal Chief Wildlife Warden, last week, has said mining activity on the periphery was prohibited.
The wildlife board’s circular is part of the National Wildlife Action Plan 2002-2016. “The areas outside the protected area (PA) network are often vital ecological corridors and must be protected to prevent isolation of fragments of bio-diversity which will not survive in the long run,” the circular emphasises.
Deputy Inspector General, Wildlife, Prakriti Srivastava, in the circular observed land and water-use policies will need to accept the imperative of strictly protecting ecologically fragile habitats.
The board has prohibited or regulated several activities around the sanctuaries. The MoEF has asked the State Government to identify the eco-sensitive zones around the sanctuaries and national park, where this activity will not be allowed.
Mining comes as a first and foremost economic activity that is prohibited in the 10-km radius of the wildlife sanctuaries. The prohibition, however, does not cover digging of earth for construction or repair of houses and for manufacturing of country tiles or bricks for housing or personal use.
Forest officials said that there are nearly 100-120 mining leases in these areas, which were required to be stopped if ever these guidelines are made applicable.
The Forest Department would be soon filing its reply pertaining to the guidelines, whether these could be made applicable to Goa or not. The reply would be first placed before the State Government for suggestions and changes after which it will be forwarded to the Central ministry.
The felling of trees has also been regulated under the new circular while establishment of hydro-electric projects have been completely banned. Activities related to tourism like flying over the national park area by any aircraft or hot air balloon too will not be allowed.
The prohibitions come under section 5 C (1) of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, Section 3 of the Environment (Protection) Act 1986 and Section 5 (1) of the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986.
The ministry, talking in the national context, has said that many of the existing protected areas have already undergone tremendous development in close vicinity to their boundaries. “Some of the protected areas are actually lying in the urban set up,” it adds.
The circular says that defining the extent of eco-sensitive zones around protected areas will have to be kept flexible.
“The width of the eco-sensitive zones and type of regulation will differ from area to area. However, as a general principle the width of the eco-sensitive zone could go upto 10 kms around a protected area as provided in the wildlife conservation strategy-2002,” it reads.
In case, where sensitive corridors, connectivity and ecologically important patches, crucial for landscape linkage, are even beyond 10 kms width, these should be included in eco-sensitive zones.
MoEF has said that the eco-sensitive zones are created so that there is no negative impact of activities on the wildlife sanctuaries and national parks.
