Goa asks Centre to allow mine waste dumping outside lease area

The Goa government had made this request earlier, too, without success

The government of Goa has asked the central government to make some changes in the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment (MMDRA) Act, 2015, to permit mining companies to dump their waste outside their leased area.

In a letter to Union mines minister Narendra Singh Tomar, state chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar has asked him to incorporate provisions to this effect and thus get over last year’s Supreme Court judgment. While lifting the ban on Goa mining last year, the SC had refused to permit the companies to dump their waste (tailings, rejects, et cetera) outside the leased area.

Such discarding of waste outside of the mining area has been a common practice in Goa, as the leasehold area given to a company is usually not more than 100 hectares.

However, during the peak period of mining (2007-12), it was observed that such waste was also sold to countries like China without any permission or royalty being levied on it. As a result, the SC decided to end this practice completely.

According to Goan mining companies, the SC ruling makes it very difficult for them to resume operations. Particularly as market prices of Goa’s low-quality ore (58 per cent iron content or below) have fallen to $30-35 a tonne.

“In fact, by incorporating provisions for dumping outside of leasehold areas, the operational and logistical difficulties faced by leaseholders in scientific and efficient extraction of ore, especially in smaller leased areas…would have been resolved by lawfully addressing any perceived conflict between the extant situation and the SC judgment dated April 21, 2014,” says the Goan CM’s letter.