The 2020 Environment Impact Assessment Draft: A Way Forward or a Disaster in-the-making?

In March this year, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) in India issued the controversial Draft Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification 2020 to amend the former EIA notification of 2006. The EIA acts as a regulatory tool for developmental projects to inculcate environmental norms and provisions to maintain minimal adverse ecological impact. It is done to assist the decision-makers to consider the impact on the environment before reviewing a developmental or construction project in India. The EIA notification regulates an environmental clearance procedure for developmental projects in India. The draft EIA 2020 is open for public feedback. After receiving heavy criticism from various stakeholders across India, the Delhi High Court decided to extend the time period for suggestions from the public on EIA 2020 till August 11, 2020. The amendments in the draft EIA 2020 are being perceived as diluents to the existing laws that seek to protect the environment and the rights of forest dwellers. Numerous concerned citizens, civil societies, and environmentalists believe that the new amendments only benefit the industrialists, that too at the cost of the environment. Given India’s deteriorating economic situation amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the MoEFCC believes such amendments will give a boost to the flailing economy.

The central government is striving to encourage Ease of Doing Business and to make the procedure more transparent and reliable in practice. However, on the ground, the policy is at a crossroads with many international environmental principles like the Precautionary Principle or Polluter Pays Principle, which have been cited in various environmental jurisprudence cases in India. In one of the famous cases, the Vellore Citizen Welfare Forum vs Union of India 1996, the apex court formally recognized the need for sustainable development, including environmental protection, in India. However, recent political trends indicate a gradual drift away from the core principles of sustainable development.

The one lesson that countries should learn from the ongoing global pandemic is to treat planet Earth and its resources judiciously. However, the latest amendments depict a different story. The Draft EIA 2020 has reduced the time period for public consultation from 45 days to 40 days and the monitoring period of industrial projects has been relaxed to 1 year, which earlier used to be every 6 months. Historically, the companies did not have a provision to make an appeal against the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) environment clearance norms. With the draft EIA 2020, companies can now challenge the NGT’s decisions. This will make a mockery out of the autonomous power given to the NGT for environmental protection against the wrongdoings of the industries. The most controversial loophole of the newly drafted EIA 2020 is to permit ‘post-facto approval’ for industrial projects. This decision favours the industrialists since they can run developmental projects or construction activities without securing environmental clearance before the commencement of the project. It seems as if the government is indirectly giving a green signal to these industries to go ahead with environmental violations. A minimal amount of fine or punishment would be expected from the companies, but it would not restore the detrimental impact that has already been caused to the environment. Additionally, the projects that have been classified as ‘strategic’ by the Central government would not be placed under public feedback, thereby, reducing transparency. Such amendments in the EIA 2020 have left many worried, as it poses serious threats to our environment and our ecosystems.1 Globally, India has improved its ranking in World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business 2020 survey by climbing 14 places and standing at 63 out of 190 countries.2 At the same time, India performs poorly and ranks 168th out of 180 countries, on the Environmental Performance Index 2020 formed by the researchers at Yale and Columbia Universities.

The recent event resulting in a Gas leak at the LG Polymer plant at Vizag (Vishakhapatnam) killed 11 people and affected more than 1000 people within the radius of the leak, along with damaging the regional ecosystem. Soon, it was found out that the plant operated without proper environment clearances. Similarly, the Assam Oil and Gas leak which resulted in the deaths of two firefighters were due to the absence of adequate safety norms. The draft EIA 2020, if turned into a law, would legitimize such violations with greater ease. Recurring instances as these are a wakeup call for India to realize the significance of sustainable development, and to secure the objectives laid down by India in the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2019 (COP).

The government should equally focus on both, social impact assessment (SIA) along with boosting the economy of India (through the Ease of Doing Business). Instead of reducing the time for public consultation, the government should make it of utmost importance to hear the voices of forest dwellers and tribal populations, since they are the ones getting directly affected due to the advancement of developmental projects. Forest dwellers, Adivasis, tribal populations and indigenous people must be given adequate representation in the decision making bodies for deciding the fate of developmental projects in India. The landmark Supreme Court judgement - the Orissa Mining Corporation Ltd. Vs Ministry of Environment and Forest 2013, and the unanimous rejection by the 12 villages against the bauxite mining undertaken by the mining corporation Vedanta should act as a precedent for setting the guidelines of EIA 2020. An unbiased and independent agency should be appointed by the Judiciary to have non-partisan feedback on the developmental projects in India. Poor regulation of environmental norms leads to a rise in the number of never-ending environmental degradation cases in India. The current EIA 2020 needs to strike a balanced approach between environment and development.

Definitions :

Precautionary Principle: It allows decision-makers to adopt precautionary steps or measures to reduce the adverse impact on the environment rather than waiting for the damage to happen.

Polluter Pays Principle: It refers to those who are responsible for producing pollution which is hazardous to the environment and human health must bear the cost of the burden to prevent the damage.

References-

http://moef.gov.in/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Draft_EIA_2020.pdf

https://www.livemint.com/news/india/india-jumps-14-notches-in-world-bank-s-ease-of-doing-business-rankings-11571882591868.html

https://www.nationalheraldindia.com/national/india-ranks-168th-on-environmental-performance-index#:~:text=IANS&text=India%20has%20ranked%20168th%20out,risks%2C%20including%20poor%20air%20quality.

By-

Parni Sharma-

(parnidavsv@gmail.com)

She is a policy researcher focused to bring a change in the society. She has recently completed her Master’s in Law, Politics and Society at School of Law, Governance and Citizenship, Ambedkar University, Delhi. She also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Delhi. In her free time, she loves to take care of stray dogs and read non-fiction books.