Uproar over dilution of eco norms

Environmental organisations and public interest groups are up in arms against the government move to dilute environmental laws for the mining industry in the State.

This follows a number of government orders and notifications issued by the Industries Department to amend the provisions of the Kerala Minor Minerals Concession Rules. A notification issued on October 5 on the renewal of quarry permits has already been challenged in the High Court.

According to the notification amending Rules 12 and 13 of KMMCR, quarries which had short-term permits on or before February 26, 2012 would not require Environmental Clearance (EC) or mining plan for renewal of permit. The notification also allows the permit holder to operate the quarry for three years before applying for a quarrying lease with EC.

Environmental activists say the amendments amount to a blatant violation of the directions issued by the Supreme Court and High Court making it mandatory to secure EC for all quarries. They feel the government was driven by its commitment to supply building materials for the Vizhinjam seaport project.

The State EIA Authority has also expressed apprehension that the amendment would make it possible to bypass environmental regulations.

A Division Bench of the High Court, in a judgment on July 15, had held that no mining operation can be carried out by any permit-holder without obtaining EC. The court had ruled that permit-holders who did not have EC could not be said to have valid permit.

A meeting of the SEIAA held here on October 16 feared that the notification would pave the way for potential lease quarries to operate as permit quarries. It wondered why permit quarries should be allowed to operate without EC for three years before making the shift to lease quarries.

‘A recipe for disaster’

Lawyer and environmental activist Harish Vasudevan who has moved the High Court against the notification said the amendments also violated the Environment Protection Act.

The government, he said, had no power to exempt any activity from the provisions of the Act.

Another Government Order permitting mining in land assigned for agriculture was produced in the High Court on Friday during the hearing on the petition filed by Mr. Vasudevan.

V.S. Vijayan, former Chairman, Kerala State Biodiversity Board and one of the founder leaders of the Kerala Paristhiti Aikya Vedi, said any further dilution of environmental laws would be disastrous for Kerala.