PANJIM: In a major blow to the organizers of mega electronic dance music festivals (EDMF) -Sunburn and Supersonic- the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) has given its “no” for holding such big events on the beach belts of Candolim and Vagator, where it’s held annually in December, attracting several lakhs of visitors across the world.
Three large sites in south Goa have been suggested for holding EDM festivals-Betul plateau, Cananguinim hill top and Cabo de Rama cliff / hill top.
GCZMA is of the view that the site at Candolim cannot be rented out for such a large magnitude commercial event as the area constitutes a sand dune complex, classified as CRZ I, where no activity can be permitted. On the other hand the site at Vagator is best suited for exhibitions and festivals, where the influx is far less compared to the EDM festival attendees.
“GCZMA noted that there should be change in the venue of the mega festivals / events held in Goa and hence decided to forward the same to Department of Tourism for comments / views,” the minutes of the meeting held on May 26, reads.
The authority reached to a conclusion following site inspection and observation by the expert members- Dr. Antonio Mascarenhas and Dr Nitin Sawant, who visited the mega event sites- Candolim on December 31, 2014 and Vagator on January 3, 2015 to gather information whether or not such activities can be damaging to a sensitive coast
“The holding of mega-festivals along the coastal areas of Goa in December 2014 has taught us certain lessons,” they observed. Both the EDM festivals are held for four days from December 27 to 31.
The experts observed that at Candolim large undulating sand dune area was severely trampled upon and vegetation was found uprooted in totality. “Plastic waste was scattered all over. The four huge stages / platforms had its share of impacts. It was also noticed that long trailer trucks were moving all over the dune field thus creating further remobilization of dune sands,” GCZMA said adding that movement of large trucks in the dune fields are by itself a violation of CRZ regulations.
“Therefore, the human impact in the non-development zone (NDZ) of Candolim was significant,” the observations added.
In comparison, at Vagator, better sense prevailed. Except for the scattered plastic waste, only some nominal damage could be observed. The site of the festival falls outside NDZ.
Suggesting the alternative sites, GCZMA has noted that all the sites are composed of massive laterite and almost devoid of vegetation. Of the three sites, a part of Cabo de Rama plateau falls within the NDZ. “Either one or all three sites can be designated as permanent venues for major festivals,” it added.
No adverse impacts can be envisaged on these hill tops as these are barren areas composed of hard rock. However, the views of the owners / residents are needed and respective local panchayats need to be taken into confidence.
The EDM organizers in the past had refused to shift their venue, after different sections from society demanded shifting it to south Goa. Even Tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar was not in favour of conducting EDMs in south.
