CSE's Fortnightly News Bulletin – February 21, 2008

Ethical MarketsGlobal Citizen

An e-bulletin from CSE, India, to our network of friends and professionals interested in environmental issues.

INSIDE:
Editorial: (By Sunita Narain)
* Witness to opposition

More in Down To Earth magazine
* Cover story: How to spread bird flu
* Related article: A bird flu over the commie nest
* News: Goa’s citizenry make themselves heard at a mining public hearing
* Feature: Clueless in Chambal (Gharial deaths)
* Feature: Pie in the sky (air traffic congestion)
* Feature: Pipe dream (Ganga Action Plan)

CSE’s short-term courses
* Agenda for survival: Two-month summer certificate course (June 4 – Aug 2, 2008)
* Gobar Times Green Schools Programme Teacher’s Training (April 22-23.2008)
* Urban Rainwater harvesting for professionals (March 17-21)

Book Release Event: March 5, 2008
6th State of India’s Environment – a citizens’ report
Rich lands, poor people: Is sustainable mining possible?
* Download a sample chapter
* India’s mining hotspots (clickable maps with data)


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Editorial: Witness to opposition

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By Sunita Narain

Every chair of the community hall of the Shree Shantadurga temple in South Goa’s Quepem taluka was taken. In a few minutes, the public hearing for Shakti bauxite mines was to begin. Then there arose a whisper: the temple had objected to the hearing being held in their premises; it was being called off. It was the second time the hearing was convened and this time, too, the villagers told us, the 30-day notice rule had been violated. The panchayats were informed just two days ago that people should state their objections, if any, to the expansion plan of the bauxite mine—an increase in production from 0.1 million tonnes per year to 1 million tonnes, requiring an increase in mining area from 26 ha to 826 ha—in this forest-paddy region of Goa’s hinterland.

From the open window I could see a large police battalion gathering. The whisper grew to a shout. Hefty transporters—owners of trucks to carry the bauxite—were shouting the expansion must be cleared. Within minutes, villagers responded. The voices became more strident; both sides were close to a fight. Things settled only when the local MLA insisted with district officials that the hearing be held as scheduled.

The hearing began. The company was requested to explain its project—a Powerpoint presentation in English was simultaneously translated into Konkani. A lot of fluff and technical verbiage followed: the geology of the region; the drilling techniques to be used; how bauxite was critical to the country’s development; how all clearances had been granted for extension of the mining lease; and how the company would ensure that environmental damage was mitigated at all costs.

Listening to the presentation, everything seemed taken care of. The company would stabilize waste dumps by planting trees, backfilling the pits so that rejects were minimized; it would not breach the groundwater table and, to top it all, it would set aside money for environmental management.

But this was before the residents—from politicians to villagers to church representatives—got up to speak. They ripped through the environmental impact assessment report prepared by an unknown consultant. They explained the company had got the number of people living in the area, and even the existing land use, completely wrong. The company claimed most of the land it would mine was ‘wasteland’. This, people explained, was a lie because the company was eyeing communidade land (common land) they intensively used for agriculture or grazing livestock. Thus, mining here would massively harm them, a fact completely neglected in the environmental impact assessment.

As speaker after speaker rose, it became awfully clear that even though the mine was coming up in the backyard of these people, the statutory environmental impact assessment could simply gloss over what would happen to people’s land, forests, water or livelihood. I then checked the report. There was not even a map that identified for me habitations or agricultural fields. The report said, rather glibly, there were no surface waterbodies in the vicinity of the project. It then concluded the project’s use of water, for spraying on roads and pits, would have no impact on availability for people. The river Sal, some distance away, was discussed for environmental impacts; even the Arabian Sea. But the numerous village streams, which flow from the hills and irrigate the fields found no mention.

At the hearing, villagers counted the streams. The area used to be extremely water-scarce. But the government spent substantial money under the national watershed programme to build check dams, plant trees and increase water recharge. As a result there was now enough water for good harvests. Villagers wanted to know why the same government, which had first invested in improving their water security, was now hell-bent on pushing an activity that would destroy their lives.

It wasn’t surprising when all those gathered agreed unanimously that the mines must not be allowed under any circumstance. The people said the regulatory clearances—the mine closure plan, the mine management plan—were worthless or even fraudulent. The company, already mining in the area on much smaller land, had flouted every existing condition, broken every trust. Life, they said, was already a living hell because of this small mine; what would happen if it expanded? More land taken, more streams destroyed, more rejects piled high for rains to turn into silt?

The questions we must ask are: how could the regulatory institutions even consider giving clearances for an expanded mine area without first checking the company’s compliance record? Does this not speak of the weak and non-existent capacities of our regulators to manage the mines so that local or regional environmental damage is minimized? Does this not suggest that people who live in these areas are doomed, because once clearance is given there is nobody to check if the stipulated conditions are met? Should I be surprised I was witness to complete opposition by people to the project?

What next? My colleague Chandra Bhushan tells me the rest is fairly predictable. The minutes of this public hearing will be sent to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests. Its expert committee will deliberate, or sit, on the matter for a few months (as it is controversial). Then it will call the company to explain how it will take into account the issues raised by the people. An improved Powerpoint presentation will be made by another consultant; more deliberations will follow; new conditions will be laid down. With these conditions the expanded mine will be cleared, people’s opposition be damned.

I hope he is wrong. Let’s track this one. The future might be different.

—Sunita Narain

Read the editorial online >>
http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover_nl.asp?mode=1

To comment, write to >>
[email protected]

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More in Down To Earth magazine

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Cover story: How to spread bird flu
In December 2007, the Indian government was preening about its bird flu control plan. Less than two months later, a panoply of surveillance mechanisms could not detect avian influenza till it assumed threatening proportions in West Bengal.
Read more online >>
http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover_nl.asp?mode=2

Related article: A bird flu over the commie nest
Abhijit Banerjee writes about erosion of authority in communist West Bengal to fight the threat of bird flu.
Read more online >>
http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover_nl.asp?mode=3

News:Goa’s citizenry make themselves heard at a mining public hearing
On January 31, a public hearing was convened to discuss the renewal of mining lease to Shakti Bauxite Mine.
Read more online >>
http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover_nl.asp?mode=4

Feature: Clueless in Chambal (Gharial deaths)
India never invested in understanding the gharial. Now, a crisis has emerged. More than 90 of the critically endangered species have died since early December, all within a stretch of about 25 km of the river flowing along the Uttar Pradesh-Madhya Pradesh border.
Read more online >>
http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover_nl.asp?mode=5

Feature: Pie in the sky (air traffic congestion)
Fuel wastage, lack of ATCs, fog etal. Airborne India is growing at a steep rate. But there is the downside: congestion, flight delays and diversions; all leading to enormous fuel wastage.
Read more online >>
http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover_nl.asp?mode=6

Feature: Pipe dream (Ganga Action Plan)
DTE finds that despite all efforts to clean the river, Ganga still remains polluted.
Read more online >>
http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover_nl.asp?mode=7

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Gobar Times

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Gobar Talk
Environment Education team will organize a monthly get together of all Gobar Times readers and Green Schools Programme enthusiasts. The topic of discussion will be this month’s cover stories of Gobar Times magazine. Other key environmental concerns that participants are keen to raise will also be discussed.
On: 25th Feb, 2008
At: CSE office – India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi
Time: 3 pm

More about EEU Programmes:
http://www.cseindia.org/programme/eeu/eeu-index.htm

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New edition of the Green Schools Programme manual
The Green Schools Programme is an environmental audit of a school done by its students. With backgrounders on key issues, additional chapters on sanitation and oxygen balance, the new edition allows students to explore a whole new way to understand their school environment.

More details >>
http://csestore.cse.org.in/store1.asp?sec_id=1&subsec_id=18

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Short Training Programmes

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CSE’s Anil Agarwal Green Centre (AAGC) seeks to make knowledge investments in society through education and training programmes. Courses help participants better understand issues that lie at the interface of environment and development policy, science, technology, poverty, democracy and equity.

* Agenda for survival: Two-month summer certificate course on policies, politics and practices of environmental management in India (June 4 – August 2, 2008)
The two-month certificate course for students and young professionals will — through lectures, readings, debates, weekly outings, reportage and a five- day field tour to rural India — explore the complexities underlying the environment-development debate in the country. Several fellowships are available to support students.
Register online >>
http://www.cseindia.org/aagc/agenda.asp

For more information contact:
Sharmila Sinha <[email protected]>

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*Gobar Times Green Schools Programme Teacher’s Training (April 22-23.2008)
A two-day training programmes for teachers, educators, development workers and people interested in environment education.

More details >>
http://www.cseindia.org/programme/eeu/html/training.asp?id=4

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* Rainwater harvesting for working professionals (New Delhi, March 17-21)
For civil engineers, architects, urban planners, environment consultants, municipal water managers and NGOs interested in urban rainwater harvesting – the theory, practice and policy.

– Overview: Traditions, current paradigms
– Science of RWH: groundwater, hydrogeology & hydrometeorology
– Technology of rainwater harvesting
– Harvesting the city’s water endowment
– Policy framework for rainwater harvesting
– Making water everybody’s business: Strategies for catalysing RWH

Register online >>
March 17-21 course:http://www.cseindia.org/aagc/rwh-prof-march.asp
Course contact: Salahuddin Saiphy <[email protected]>

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6th State of India’s Environment – a citizens’ report
Rich lands, poor people: Is sustainable mining possible?

=============================

BOOK RELEASE EVENT:
In: Ranchi, Jharkhand (March 5, 2008)
Venue: Hotel Ranchi Ashok. Time: 6.00 pm
The Governor of Jharkhand, Shri Shri Syed Sintey Razi, will release the publication.
Media contacts: Souparno ([email protected]) / or Monali ([email protected])
Tel: (011) 29955124 (Ext. 248 or 266)

ABOUT ‘RICH LANDS, POOR PEOPLE’
This book illustrates the immense challenges facing the mining sector in India – ecological security together with inclusive development assessing the sector’s efficacy in promoting growth in mineral-rich areas, governments’ initiatives to prepare and implement regulations, and documents the responses of civil society in different parts of the country (355 pp.).
Available in Paperback / Hardback
* E-book (.pdf) is now available for download
* Online store (secure payment gateway) > http://csestore.cse.org.in

Quick links:
Download sample chapter >>
http://www.cseindia.org/programme/industry/mining_order.asp

India’s mining hotspots (clickable maps with data) >>
http://www.cseindia.org/programme/industry/mining/home.htm

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Books & Films

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Environment & Sustainable Development: Films
These twenty-four films on environment and its link with sustainable development have been compiled for use by schools, researchers, students, civil society groups, institutions and concerned citizens.
* Online store (secure payment gateway) > http://csestore.cse.org.in

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Climate change: Books & films
A careful selection of 22 films & 3 books on climate change. A vital educational and information-loaded resource for researchers, students, civil society groups, institutions and concerned citizens.
* Online store (secure payment gateway) > http://csestore.cse.org.in