Notification for identification of wetlands issued: MoEF tells NGT

The Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has informed the National Green Tribunal that it has issued a notification for identification and protection of wetlands which prohibit encroachments of any kind, waste dumping and discharge of effluents.

A bench of Justice R S Rathore and expert member S S Garbyal was told by the Environment Ministry that state governments have been directed to proceed in the matter as per the Wetland (Conservation and Management) Rules 2017 which was issued on September 26 last year.

The tribunal was also apprised that the Supreme Court has already identified certain numbers of wetlands and ordered that they should be protected.

"In our considered view that if any other wetland is not including in the order of Supreme Court, then the applicant should proceed before the Court and request for inclusion of such wetlands, which according to him has not so included in the earlier order. He may seek protection for those subsequently included wetlands.

"Above all, the applicant has already moved before the Supreme Court challenging the Wetlands Rules, 2017. In such as view of the matter the issue is already subjudiced before the Supreme Court and nothing further needs to be proceeded with by this tribunal," the bench said.

The tribunal's order came while disposing pleas filed by environmentalists Anand Arya and Pushp Jain seeking direction to the government to identify all wetlands within the state as per The Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules 2010.

The petition had alleged that the Centre had violated sections of the Environment Protection Act 1986 by not taking necessary steps to protect and save the environment which was increasing the risk of losing the wetlands.

The Centre is neither notifying wetlands in the country, nor coordinating actions of state governments and other authorities under the Act and the 2010 Rules to identify wetlands within states, it had said.

The plea had said it is "abundantly clear" that there is no protection available to a large number of wetlands across the country since these are not listed and hence "losing precious wetlands in the country is very high".