Centre mulls easing curbs on projects near protected zones, greens worried
CHENNAI: In what could be a controversial step, the Standing Committee of National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) may relax restrictions for projects that fall outside the notified Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) of national parks and wildlife sanctuaries, but are well within the default 10-km ESZ.
Environmentalists fear the NBWL’s latest move could lead to habitat fragmentation because in a majority of cases, the forest department, under political pressure or other considerations, reduces notified ESZ to 1 or 2 km. For instance, the Tamil Nadu forest department has proposed an ESZ of just 500 metres for Pulicat Bird Sanctuary.
During the 64th meeting of NBWL held earlier this month under the chairmanship of Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, a few committee members informed that many projects come to NBWL for clearance due to their location within the default ESZ. However, in several cases, the projects fall outside the ESZ once it is notified. The Environment Ministry has received requests for exempting such projects from the conditions imposed by the NBWL.
R Sukumar, member, stated that projects are usually approved by the NBWL based on recommendations or conditions imposed by the State Chief Wildlife Wardens and State Board for Wildlife. He suggested that the Chief Wildlife Wardens and the State Boards for Wildlife should examine these issues and decide whether exemption may be granted to the project. Some members also opined that if the location of the project is outside the finally Notified ESZ, compliance of conditions should not be insisted upon.
When contacted, Ritwick Dutta, a leading environmental advocate in Supreme Court and managing trustee of Legal Initiative for Forest and Environment (LIFE), told Express that the Wildlife Conservation Strategy of 2002 recommends a buffer of 10 km around sanctuaries. The Supreme Court, too, had upheld the policy.
“I do not know why NBWL members, who are supposed to protect wildlife landscapes, are speaking for industries. If projects are exempted from complying with conditions imposed just because they are a few metres away from Notified ESZ, then even the minimum protection we have for buffer areas will be lifted. This is damaging. I am currently handing a case where Telangana government notified 3 metres as ESZ for Kasu Brahmananda Reddy (KBR) Park in Hyderabad,” Ritwick said.
Citing the case of India-based Neutrino (INO) project, M Vetriselvan from Poovulagin Nanbargal, a Chennai-based environmental advocacy group, said it looked like all the hurdles are being cleared for INO project. The Union Environment Ministry had issued final ESZ for Mathikettan Shola National Park in Idukki district of Kerala in December last year.
“The national park is located on Tamil Nadu-Kerala border and the notification provided ‘zero’ ESZ towards the Tamil Nadu side, effectively placing the INO project outside the ESZ. This meant the INO project no longer needed wildlife clearance from the Standing Committee of NBWL. Because the project falls inside the Mathikettan-Periyar tiger corridor, it is currently pending with the State Board for Wildlife,” Vetriselvan said.
What are ESZs & why are they notified?
Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZ) are areas demarcated by the Union Environment Ministry around protected areas, national parks and wildlife sanctuaries. The purpose of declaring ESZs is to create ‘shock absorbers’ by regulating and managing the activities around such areas. The State governments have to notify ESZs, failing which a default 10 km around the protected area will be considered as ESZ as per law