PANAJI
With Goa government’s assurances to save the environment falling flat, this time after the central government granted environmental clearance (EC) to South West Port Limited (SWPL) for enhancing coal handling capacity at its two berths; Curtorim legislator Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco has asked the State to legally challenge the approval.
The Union Ministry of Environment & Forests, and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) recently hiked coal handling capacity at SWPL from 5.5 MMTPA to 13 MMTPA, and aggregate port coal capacity to 20 MMTPA from 12.50 MMTPA at Berths 5A and 6A of the port.
The legislator cited former Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s repeated pleas to the central government not to permit SWPL’s proposal for capacity enhancement, as he submitted a two-page letter to CM Pramod Sawant on Monday to explore options such as challenging the EC in the interest of the State, and Vasco in particular.
“Despite repeated assurances that Goa will not be converted into a coal hub and transportation corridor, the EC permits an almost 40 per cent jump in permitted coal capacity at MPT, the entire cargo that will eventually be carted away by rail and road through Goa into the Karnataka hinterland,” he further said, adding that he too received assurances in the House against the expansion projects.
Lourenco, who has repeatedly raised concerns over serious coal pollution, pointed to government’s past replies in the Assembly confirming high incidence of serious respiratory ailments among residents of Vasco and Mormugao.
“The proposed expansion was vociferously countered at the environmental public hearings held in April 2017. All speakers including politicians like me, cutting across political and ideological lines, had unanimously opposed the SWPL project and other coal expansion proposals at MPT,” Lourenco said urging the CM to challenge the EC before the Court.
He also referred to a study by IIT Mumbai that confirmed about 30 per cent of air pollution is due to port-related operations. With no plausible changes proposed in the coal handling processes, the MLA apprehended that the pollution level will surge through capacity expansion.
In the just-held winter session of the Assembly, Minister for Environment Nilesh Cabral, in his reply to Lourenco’s question, stated that IIT Mumbai’s final report on particulate source apportionment study for air quality at Vasco suggested four factors influencing levels of particulates at five different independent locations and three clusters.
“Vehicular emissions, road dust, port related activities and biomass burning, and marine aerosols are the four factors. The percentage contribution of PM 10 and PM 25 ranged from 16.8 per cent to 28.6 per cent and 18.2 per cent to 29.4 per cent respectively at the five independent locations. The percentage of all the three clusters PM 10 and PM 2.5 ranged from 21.4 per cent to 29 per cent and 20.5 per cent to 29.6 per cent respectively,” the minister replied. Lourenco is expected to write to the PMO expressing concern over the EC and the prevailing pollution.
