ICFRE favours extraction of iron ore up to 30 MT in Karnataka

The macro-level Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Study conducted by the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) in the mining areas of Chitradurga and Tumkur in view of the illegal iron ore mining, has recommended extraction of iron ore to 5 million tonnes (MT) per annum. In its earlier report on Bellary it had recommended for extraction of 25 million tonnes from Bellary district.

The ICFRE has said the ceiling of 5 MT should be permitted provided all environmental and other safeguards are in place and due diligence is exercised by all the agencies concerned.

Taking into account the prevailing situation and demand of iron ore in India, it concluded that only 30 MT of iron ore should be extracted in Karnataka, it said in the report a copy of which is available with Business Standard.

The ICFRE submitted its report on Chitradurga and Tumkur to the Supreme Court in December 2011. The apex court is likely to resume hearing on illegal mining case on January 20, 2012. From 2004 onwards, large quantities of iron ore were removed from the Chitradurga district as a result of a sharp increase in the international demand fuelled by China leading to environmental degradation of the area. The Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM) had given its approval for an upward revision of the quantities of ore that could be removed annually by a number of mines.

For Chitradurga district, this revision was from 3.95 MT to 7.26 MT under various clearances. The IBM had taken its decision based on the data furnished by mine owners. “There is a need to have an independent assessment of the ore reserves in individual mines and a stringent review of the environmental safeguards installed by the mine before raising the limits of annual extraction of ore. IBM has to keep in mind the ‘inter-generation equity’ while giving its consent for mining as iron ores are finite resources,” ICFRE said.

The study also suggested that IBM must fix an annual cap on ore extraction from the area, keeping in view not only the ore availability but also the ecological sustainability of the area.

The extraction of each mine within the area must be fine tuned to remain within the overall limit fixed for the zone. Over extraction should be severely penalised. The lessee must extract almost a uniform quantity of ore over the lease period which is generally 20 years, it said.

The ICFRE study has also established that rampant, unauthorised and unregulated mining in both Chitradurga and Tumkur districts has had a negative impact on the flora and fauna, biodiversity, agriculture and ambient air, along with adverse impacts on human health and well being. Mining/ overburden areas have impacted in an area of 4.1 square kilometres, of which 2.2 sq kms came from the forest in Chitradurga district. In Tumkur district, 3.5 sq km of forest area has been lost to other land use. An area of 5.7 sq km has been found to be mined beyond the designated leased boundaries.

“Therefore, there is a need to plan, implement and institutionalise a range of mechanisms and processes which will enable the country to meet the industrial and economic imperatives on one hand but also safeguard the environment,” it added.