Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The Goa State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) has granted environmental clearance (EC) to previous mining leaseholders for managing iron ore dumps located outside their lease boundaries.
In a recent meeting, SEIAA decided to issue an EC to Chowgule and Company Pvt Ltd for a five-year term, following the recommendations of the Goa State Expert Appraisal Committee (SEAC), for the handling of ore dumps on a private property situated in Sirigao village in Bicholim taluka.
The authority has instructed the Project Proponent to adhere to the State government’s dump policy, established on September 13, 2023, which sets a ceiling limit of 25 million tonnes per annum for the transportation of dumps.
The company is required to install at least two online sensor-based ambient air quality monitoring stations to assess air quality along the transportation route and at the dump site.
“The validity of the granted EC will last for five years, and restoration, rejuvenation, or reclamation of the dump site must be completed within this period. If the Project Proponent is unable to finish the activity within the allocated time, they may seek an extension from the Authority, as long as it is within the validity period of the EC,” the statement added.
Last month, the State government amended its Policy for Regulating Iron Ore Dump Handling in Goa, allowing former leaseholders to manage the low-grade ore they had deposited on private lands or within another mining lease that had never been used.
The government stipulated that handling of such dumps is contingent upon the payment of conversion fees for their regulation on private properties, along with the payment of royalties.
Mining companies are authorized to remove the dumps within a five-year period.
