The Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has tightened pollution monitoring norms for power projects with a generation capacity of 500 Mw and above, integrated steel plants with a capacity of 1 million tonnes per annum and cement plants with a capacity of 3 million tonnes per annum which have already been granted environmental clearance.
Further, the existing quantum of penalty prescribed under the Environment (Protection) Act of 1986, which is too meagre, would be made sufficiently high without any ceiling on the quantum of penalty amount for serious offences. This could be possible only through an amendment to this Act. Serious offences are likely to be made cognizable by police and non-bailable.
An MoEF official, who did not want to be quoted, told Business Standard that continuous monitoring of stack emissions as well as ambient air quality would be carried out and continuous records maintained.
Based on monitored data, necessary corrective measures would be taken from time to time to ensure that the levels are within the permissible limits. The results of the monitoring would have to be submitted to the respective regional office of MoEF regularly.
The operators of thermal, steel and cement projects would have to put on their respective websites the biannual monitoring report and the monitored data on various parameters as stipulated in the environment clearance conditions.
They would have to be regularly updated and the monitored data would have to be submitted to the respective state pollution control board and union territory pollution control committees, and the regional offices of MoEF.
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Further, in a bid to keep the members of the public informed about the ambient air quality data and the stack emission data, the companies would have to display it in public domain at some prominent place near the main gate of the company and it should be updated in real time.
A Mumbai-based environment analyst, who did not want to be named, said display of emission data in the public domain was quite essential to gain public confidence in regulatory agencies. This will be quite helpful in formulating a reliable database for continuous monitoring.
According to MoEF, it has been observed that certain areas are known to have concentration of developmental activities which are detrimental to the environmental health of areas such as Raigad and Ratnagiri in Maharashtra, Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh, Singrauli in Uttar Pradesh, and Korba in Chhattisgarh having concentration of thermal power plants; Bellary Hospet in Karnataka, Goa, and Bara Jamda in Jharkhand having concentration of iron ore mines; IB Valley and Jharsuguda in Orissa for mining and other large industries.
The official informed that these areas would be monitored regularly and comprehensively to assess the environmental matrices of the region in terms of the impact of these activities on air, water, flora and fauna and critical habitat.
Because project-based monitoring in these areas may not be able to bring the desired results and may not be even cost effective, such a regional-level regular monitoring in such areas is considered to be essential.
“For carrying out these assessments, some of the identified premier institutions like Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai; and Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad, may be designated as the nodal institutions to undertake the work through a multidisciplinary team of experts. To start with, assessment would be considered in Raigad and Ratnagiri areas, known for their rich biodiversity and the plantation of Alphanso variety of mangoes, and Srikakulam, known for wetlands and water bodies. A large number of coal-based thermal power plants are being planned in these areas,” the official said.