The decks have been cleared for the establishment of a non-major port at Subarnarekha river mouth in Balasore district with the expert appraisal committee (EAC) of the Union ministry of environment & forests (MoEF) recommending grant of green nod for the project.
“The EAC has recommended to the MoEF for grant of environmental clearance for the proposed Subarnarekha port. The establishment of a port at Subaranrekha will definitely give a boost to the development of port sector in the state,” said a top official of state commerce & transport department.
The state department of forest & environment has already recommended environment clearance for the project to MoEF in a letter dated March 31, 2011.
The recommendation was made after the state government's empowered committee- Orissa State Coastal Zone Management Authority (OSCZMA) scrutinized the project proponent's Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) study.
The project had, however, hit a roadblock after concerns were raised over the impact of the port project on congregation of Olive Ridley turtles.
The Principal Chief Conservator of Forests- PCCF (wildlife) S S Srivastav had clarified that the construction of the port, its channel and movement of ships may disturb the congregation, mating and movement of Olive Ridley turtles in the sea.
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The PCCF had given his comments in response to the clarification sought by the state commerce & transport department over the possible impact of the port project on turtle nesting habits.
Earlier, the environment ministry had raised concern over the possible impact of the port project on nesting habits of turtles. The ministry had held up the environment clearance for the port project, demanding a certificate from the project proponent, assuring that the site of the project is not a turtle nesting ground.
The project proponent- Chennai-based Creative Port Development Ltd had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Orissa government in December 2006 and entered into a concession agreement on January 11, 2008.
The project needs 1,215.43 acres of land for the port area and 1,565.93 acres for the rail corridor. Out of 1,215.43 acres needed for the port area, 158 acres constitute Gochar land, 193 acres Bhudan land, 138 acres of encroached land with the remaining 724 acres being free land.
The port would have an initial capacity of 10 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) which was to be scaled up to 40 mtpa in 10 years. As per this agreement, the port developer would share revenue with the state government at the rate of five per cent from first to fifth year, eight per cent from sixth to 10th year, 10 per cent from 11th to 15th year and 12 per cent for the remaining 15 years.