BENGALURU: The Karnataka Tank Conservation and Development Authority (KTCDA) on Sunday proposed a scientific modification of buffer zones around lakes and nalas, linking buffer widths to the size of water bodies, which is said to be the first-of-its-kind move in the country.
According to KTDCA, the proposal follows a comprehensive study of buffer zone practices across states and aims to address disproportionate restrictions caused by the current uniform 30-metre buffer prescribed by the Supreme Court in 2019, which replaced the earlier National Green Tribunal (NGT) directive of 75 metres for lakes.
After deliberations chaired by the Deputy Chief Minister in August 2024 and the Chief Minister in April, a committee headed by the Chief Secretary examined practices in other states before framing incremental buffer zones. It was decided that for water bodies up to five guntas, no buffer zone will be required; water bodies between five guntas and one acre will have a three-metre buffer; and those above one acre and up to 10 acres will have a six-metre buffer.
Larger tanks ranging from 10 acres to 25 acres will require a 12-metre buffer, and those between 25 acres and 100 acres will have a 24-metre buffer. For bigger water bodies, above 100 acres, the buffer zone will remain 30 metres.
Revised nala buffers are 15 m for primary, 10 m for secondary, and 5 m for tertiary nalas, replacing the earlier 30/15/10 m system. KTCDA clarified that the modified buffers will permit only public utilities like pipelines, STPs, pump houses, roads, and bridges, without obstructing natural inflows or reducing tank capacity.
However, Nagesh Aras, a lake activist, told TNIE, “The government’s buffer zone plan ignores key factors, making it ineffective. Reinforced Cement Concrete-lined drains nullify the very purpose of buffer zones, and it does nothing to tackle industrial or domestic pollution. A real buffer must have proper vegetation, because roads or concrete strips offer no protection. Smaller lakes need larger buffers as they have far less tolerance to pollution,” he added.