No powers to review EC for mining dump handling, says green authority
The Goa State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (Goa SEIAA) has decided to dispose of a case based on a complaint filed by the director of Goa Foundation, Claude Alvares, challenging the environmental clearance (EC) granted to a mining company for dump handling.
The Goa SEIAA stated that, as per the EIA Notification, 2006, the authority has not been provided powers to review or recall an EC grant.
The authority said the notification only allows for cancellation or revocation in cases where there is falsification or concealment of information, neither of which was applicable in this case. It therefore said that it could not review the EC in question.
Alvares, in his letter to the Goa SEIAA, stated that the EC could not be granted in the absence of a 'valid mining lease'.
He mentioned that the mining waste should be stored after being processed in the mining lease, which is in the Sirigao-Mayem area, and that it cannot be stored at the original dump site as it is located outside the lease area. The Goa Foundation director called for action against the mining company for violation before reviewing the EC.
The mining company argued that the claim that the EC could not be granted without a valid mining lease, and solely based on the approval granted under the Goa Dump Handling Policy, 2023, is without merit at this time as the matter is sub judice.
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'The authority noted that the complaint dated May 2, 2025 doesn't raise any legitimate grievances related to environmental impact assessment or degradation. Instead, the grievances pertain to the legal regime related to the Goa Dump Handling Policy, 2023, which falls outside the SEIAA's jurisdiction and is currently pending before the high court of Bombay. Notably, the Goa Dump Handling Policy, 2023, requires a proper plan for dump handling, which the project proponent has prepared, and a restoration and reclamation plan has been prepared taking the same into consideration,' the Goa SEIAA noted.
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