The timing of Goa State Pollution Control Board’s recentshow-cause notice has seemingly not gone down too well with MPT, even as theport trust is on a fast track to mechanize manual coal handling berth no.11 tocurb coal dust pollution in Vasco.
The Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) had earliercome under MPT’s scanner for its arbitrary and unwarranted action to unnecessarilydelay major infrastructure projects worth Rs 1,370 crore including the West ofBreakwater project.
“We don’t deny that operations at berth 10 and 11 are notentirely perfect but the notice has come at a time when it has been rainingheavily for the last one week and therefore was no question of dust pollution,”said MPT Chairman P Mara Pandiyan.
The member secretary of GSPCB, Levinson Martins issued thenotice on August 30 asking MPT why the order of consent to operate should notbe revoked for carrying out coal handling operations at berth nos. 10 and 11 inviolation of the board's directives, which causes severe air pollution.
“The High Court has said that operations cannot be held upabruptly at berth no 10 and 11 and asked us to mechanize the operation byOctober 2014. We are confident of meeting the deadline,” said Pandiyan.
However, the notice came at time when MPT is fast trackingthe mechanization of coal berth 11 and is in the process of shortlistingdevelopers.
Meanwhile the MPT and the pollution control board have hadissues with regard to the West of Breakwater (WoB) project too.
The MPT had submitted an Environment Impact Assessment (EIA)study for the WoB project in 2010, asking the pollution control board (GPSCB)to hold a public hearing. But the GSPCB instead asked MPT to conduct acomprehensive EIA study to assess the integrated impact on biodiversity within10 km radius of the port.
Speaking on the issue, the Member Secretary Goa State Pollution Control Board, Levinson Martins,said, “GSPCB has never acted in anarbitrary and unwarrantedly manner, at the behest of the government, againstany industries. Before issuing the notice we confirmed that pollution at berthno 10 and 11 was beyond permissible limits.”
