No.J-11015/750/2007-IA.II(M)

Government of India

Ministry of Environment & Forests

Paryavaran Bhawan,

C.G.O.Complex,

New Delhi -110510.

 

Dated: 31st July 2007

To

Director,

M/s Gondwana Ispat Ltd.,

Bissesar House, RN Tagore Marg,

Civil Lines,

Nagpur ? 440001.

 

Sub:            Proposed Majra Opencast-cum-Underground Coalmine Project (0.48 MTPA) of M/s M/s Gondwana Ispat Ltd., Located in villages Kondala, Yensa, and Salori Yensa in Tehsil Warora, district Chandrapur, Maharashtra -  Environmental Clearance ? reg.

Sir,

 

            This has reference to letter No. GIL/2007-08/044 dated 27.06.2007 with the application and subsequent letters dated 08.04.2008 and 17.06.2008 on the above-mentioned subject. The Ministry of Environment & Forests has considered the application.  The proposal is for opening a new Majra Underground-cum-Opencast Coal Mine of 0.48 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) production capacity. The total ML area is 707.10 ha, of which, 629.89 ha is agricultural land, 52.91 ha of forestland and 24.32 ha is Govt. land. Forestry clearance has not been obtained so far. There area no National Parks, Wildlife Sanctuary, Biosphere Reserves found in the 10 km buffer zone. Of the total lease area, area for excavation is 100 ha, 85 ha is for OB dumps, 3 ha is for storage of topsoil, 2 ha is for infrastructure. No colony/township is proposed for the project. The Dalvaari Nadi and Shirnal flow on the east and west of the block respectively. An Irrigation Canal passing through the NW corner of ML, which would be diverted. The project involves modification of the natural drainage by diversion of the Pothra Joint Project (Canal) outside the lease area. Approval of the State Irrigation Department has been obtained on 18.09.2006. Mining will be both underground (0.30 MTPA) and opencast (0.18 MTPA) by mechanised method. The OC mining would be in two quarries- Majra South and Majra North. Majra South would be operated from 1-9 years of the mine life, Majra North from 2 to 27 years and Majra UG from 3 to 30 years. Mineral transportation by both OC and UG mining would be by belt conveyor to CHP and from there to the linked DRI Plant. UG mining would be by Bord and Pillar method. An estimated 37.793 Mm3 of OB would be generated of which 31.20 Mm3 of OB would be from Majra North and 6.593 Mm3 of OB from Majra South. An estimated 21.10 Mm3 of OB would be dumped externally over an area of 88 ha of a maxm. height of 30m of 3 benches and the balance would be backfilled in the 44.5 ha of excavated void leaving void of 55.5 ha which would be converted into a water body. Maximum depth of mining in Majra North would be 80m and in Majra South would be 60m. However, since the opencast mining is restricted to only 100 ha of the area and the remaining area are being worked by underground mining, there would not be any disturbance to surface drainage of the area. Average mine discharge water is 8640 m3/d. There are 3 villages in the core zone ? Kondala, Salori Yensa, Yensa. No R&R is involved but the project involves land oustees. At the end of mine life a total 144.50 ha of the lease area would be covered with plantation and 504.05 ha would be left undisturbed due to UG mining. Life of the mine at 0.48 MTPA capacity is 30 years. Public Hearing was held on 19.04.2006. Mining Plan was approved by Ministry of Coal on 14.05.2007. Cost of the project is Rs. 30 crores.

 

2.         The Ministry of Environment & Forests hereby accords environmental clearance for the above-mentioned Majra Underground-cum-Opencast Coal Mine Project of M/s Gondwana Ispat Ltd. for production of coal at 0.48 MTPA rated capacity involving a total lease area of ha 707.10 ha under the provisions of the Environmental Impact Assessment Notification, 2006 and subsequent amendments thereto and under Para 2.1.1 of MOEF Circular dated 13.10.2006 and subject to conditions specified below:

 

A.            Specific Conditions

 

(i)         No mining operations shall be undertaken in the forestland within the lease area until clearance has been obtained under the provisions of FC Act, 1980.

 

(ii)        Mining shall be carried out as per statuette at a safe distance from the seasonal nallah flowing within/close to the lease boundary. No OC mining shall be permitted near Sonari nalla, instead UG mining with stowing shall be undertaken. 

 

(iiii)            Diversion of the Canal flowing near the boundary of the lease and outside shall be done in accordance with the approval of the State Flood & irrigation Department.

 

(iv)       Topsoil shall be stacked properly with proper slope at earmarked site(s) and shall not be kept active and shall be used for reclamation and development of green belt.

 

(v)        An estimated 21.10 Mm3 of OB shall be stacked at the earmarked one external OB dumpsite within ML area which shall not exceed a maximum height of 30m and consist of three benches. The ultimate slope of the dump shall not exceed 28o. Monitoring and management of reclaimed dumpsite shall             continue until the vegetation becomes self-sustaining. Compliance status shall be submitted to the Ministry of Environment & Forests and its Regional office located at Bhopal on an yearly basis.

 

(vi)       Catch drains and siltation ponds of appropriate size shall be constructed to arrest silt and sediment flows from soil, OB and mineral dumps. The water so collected shall be utilised for watering the mine area, roads, green belt development, etc. The drains shall be regularly desilted and maintained properly.

                        Garland drains (size, gradient and length) and sump capacity shall be designed keeping 50% safety margin over and above the peak sudden rainfall and maximum discharge in the area adjoining the mine site. Sump capacity shall also provided adequate retention period to allow proper settling of silt material..

 

(vii)            Dimension of the retaining wall at the toe of the dumps and OB benches within the mine to check run-off and siltation shall be based on the rainfall data.

 

(viii)      While extracting panels in the lower seam by UG method, all water bodies in the subsidence area shall be drained. Dewatering of the old goaves of the upper seam shall be continued as long as the lower seam is worked to prevent accumulation of large water bodies over working area.

 

(ix)       At the time of depillaring, protective bunds and garland drains shall be provided so that no water from the surface enters the subsidence area and the shaft.

(x)            Sufficient coal pillars shall be left unextracted around the air shaft (within the subsidence influence area) to protect from any damage from subsidence, if any.

 

(xi)       Solid barriers shall be left below natural water courses flowing within the blocks to avoid any damage to the roads and prevent mine inundation.

 

(xii)       No depillaring operation shall be carried out below the roads and village area found within the lease until they are relocated.

 

(xiii)      Regular monitoring of subsidence movement on the surface over and around the working area and impact on natural drainage pattern, water bodies, vegetation, structure, roads, and surroundings shall be continued till movement ceases completely. In case of observation of any high rate of subsidence movement, appropriate effective corrective measures shall be taken to avoid loss of life and material. Cracks shall be effectively plugged with ballast and clayey soil/suitable material.

 

 (xiv)                 Crushers at the CHP shall be operated with high efficiency bag filters, water sprinkling system shall be provided to check fugitive emissions from crushing operations, conveyor system, haulage roads, transfer points, etc.

 

(xv)      Drills shall be wet operated only.

 

(xvi)            Controlled blasting shall be practiced with use of delay detonators. The mitigative measures for control of ground vibrations and to arrest the fly rocks and boulders shall be implemented.

 

(xvii)                 High efficiency bag filters/water sprinkling system to check fugitive emissions from crushing operations, conveyor system/ropeway, haulage roads, transfer points, etc. shall be installed and operated effectively at all times of operation.

 

(xviii)    An area not less than 144.50 ha of the lease area shall be covered with plantation and 504.05 ha shall be left undisturbed due to UG mining by planting native species in consultation with the local DFO/Agriculture Department. The density of the trees shall be around 2500 plants per ha.

 

(xix)      A Progressive Mine Closure Plan shall be implemented by backfilling of OB in the 44.5 ha of excavated void which shall be reclaimed and afforested by planting native plant species in consultation with the local DFO/Agriculture Department. The density of the trees shall be around 2500 plants per ha. The balance 55.5 ha of decoaled void, which is being converted into a water reservoir, shall be gently sloped along the upper benches, terraced and reclaimed with plantation. The outer periphery of the water body shall be fenced.

 

(xx)      The company shall obtain prior approval of CGWA/CGWB Regional Office for use of groundwater if any, for mining operations.  Although the area falls in the safe category from exploitation of groundwater resource, specific measures to reduce water requirement shall be taken including recycling of domestic wastewater for green belt development and water from rainwater harvesting measures in mining operations

 

(xxi)      ETP shall also be provided for workshop and CHP wastewater. No mineral processing through establishment of coal washery shall be permitted in this project. 

 

(xxii)          Groundwater modelling shall be undertaken along with monitoring of groundwater level and quality including for acid mine drainage shall be carried out by establishing a network of exiting wells and construction of new peizometers in observation wells in the core zone and within 1km distance in the buffer zone. The monitoring for quantity shall be done four times a year in pre-monsoon (May), monsoon (August), post-monsoon (November) and winter (January) seasons and for quality in May. Data thus collected shall be submitted to the Ministry of Environment & Forests and tot eh Central Pollution Control Board quarterly within one month of monitoring.

 

(xxiii)    The Company shall put up artificial groundwater recharge measures for augmentation of groundwater resource in case monitoring of ground water table indicates a declining trend. The project authorities shall meet water requirement of nearby village(s) in case the village wells go dry due to dewatering of mine.

 

(xxiv)    Besides carrying out regular periodic health check up of their workers, 10% of the workers identified from workforce engaged in active mining operations shall be subjected to health check up for occupational diseases and hearing impairment, if any, through an agency such as NIOH, Ahmedabad within a period of two years and the results reported to this Ministry and to DGMS.

 

(xxv)     A Final Mine Closure Plan along with details of Corpus Fund shall be submitted five years before completion of OC operations  to the Ministry of Environment & Forests RO, Bhopal for approval.

 

(xxvi)    For monitoring land use pattern and for post mining land use, a time series of landuse maps, based on satellite imagery (on a scale of 1: 5000) of the core zone and buffer zone, from the start of the project until end of mine life shall be prepared once in 3 years (for any one particular season which is consistent in the time series), and the report submitted to MOEF and its Regional office at Bhopal.

 

(xxvii)    The amount to be compensated for the land oustees shall be higher than that given in the National R&R Policy and shall include alternate and indirect employment schemes and skill development schemes. .

 

 

B.            General Conditions

 

(i)                  No change in mining technology and scope of working shall be made without prior approval of the Ministry of Environment and Forests.

 

(ii)                No change in the calendar plan including excavation, quantum of mineral coal and waste shall be made.

 

(iii)               Four ambient air quality monitoring stations shall be established in the core zone as well as in the buffer zone for SPM, RPM, SO2 and NOx monitoring.  Location of the stations shall be decided based on the meteorological data, topographical features and environmentally and ecologically sensitive targets in consultation with the State Pollution Control Board.

 

(iv)               Fugitive dust emissions (SPM and RPM) from all the sources shall be controlled regularly monitored and data recorded properly. Water spraying arrangement on haul roads, wagon loading, dump trucks (loading and unloading) points shall be provided and properly maintained.

 

(v)                Data on ambient air quality (SPM, RPM, SO2 and NOx) shall be regularly submitted to the Ministry including its Regional Office at Bhopal and to the State Pollution Control Board and the Central Pollution Control Board once in six months.

 

(vi)               Adequate measures shall be taken for control of noise levels below 85 dBA in the work environment. Workers engaged in blasting and drilling operations, operation of HEMM, etc shall be provided with ear plugs/muffs.

 

(vii)             Industrial wastewater (workshop and wastewater from the mine) shall be properly collected, treated so as to conform to the standards prescribed under GSR 422 (E) dated 19th May 1993 and 31st December 1993 or as amended from time to time before discharge. Oil and grease trap shall be installed before discharge of workshop effluents.

 

(viii)            Vehicular emissions shall be kept under control and regularly monitored. Vehicles used for transporting the mineral shall be covered with tarpaulins and optimally loaded.

 

(ix)               Environmental laboratory shall be established with adequate number and type of pollution monitoring and analysis equipment in consultation with the State Pollution Control Board.

 

(x)                Personnel working in dusty areas shall wear protective respiratory devices and they shall also be provided with adequate training and information on safety and health aspects.

            Occupational health surveillance programme of the workers shall be undertaken periodically to observe any contractions due to exposure to dust and to take corrective measures, if needed.

(xi)               A separate environmental management cell with suitable qualified personnel shall be set up under the control of a Senior Executive, who will report directly to the Head of the company.

 

(xii)             The funds earmarked for environmental protection measures shall e kept in separate account and shall not be diverted for other purpose. Year-wise expenditure shall be reported to this Ministry and its Regional Office at Bhopal.

 

(xiii)            The Regional Office of this Ministry located at Bhopal shall monitor compliance of the stipulated conditions. The Project authorities shall extend full cooperation to the office(s) of the Regional Office by furnishing the requisite data/ information/monitoring reports.

 

(xiv)            A copy of the will be marked to concerned Panchayat/ local NGO, if any, from whom any suggestion/representation has been received while processing the proposal.

 

(xv)             State Pollution Control Board shall display a copy of the clearance letter at the Regional  Office, District Industry Centre and Collector?s Office/Tehsildar?s Office for 30 days.

 

(xvi)            The Project authorities shall advertise at least in two local newspapers widely circulated around the project, one of which shall be in the vernacular language of the locality concerned within seven days of the clearance letter informing that the project has been accorded environmental clearance and a copy of the clearance letter is available with the State Pollution control Board and may also be seen at the website of the ministry of Environment & Forests at http://envfor.nic.in.

 

3.         The Ministry or any other competent authority may stipulate any further condition for environmental protection.

 

4.         Failure to comply with any of the conditions mentioned above may result in withdrawal of this clearance and attract the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

 

5.         The above conditions will be enforced inter-alia, under the provisions of the Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, the Air (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 and the Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 along with their amendments and Rules.

 

(Dr.T.Chandini)

Director

Copy to:

1.       Secretary, Ministry of Coal, New Delhi.

2.       Secretary, Department of Environment, Government of Maharashtra, 15th Floor, New Admn. Bldg., Madam Cama Road, MUMBAI ? 400032..

3.       Chief Conservator of Forests, Regional office (EZ), Ministry of Environment & Forests, E-2/240 Arear Colony, Bhopal ? 462016.

4.       Chairman, Maharsashtra State Pollution Control Board, Kalapataru Point, 3rd & 4th Floors, Sion, Matunga Scheme Road No. 8, Opp. Cine Planet Cinema, Near Sion Circle, Sion (E), Mumbai ? 400002.

5.       Chairman, Central Pollution Control Board, CBD-cum-Office Complex, East Arjun Nagar, New Delhi -110032.

6.       Member-Secretary, Central Ground Water Authority, Ministry of Water Resources, Curzon Road Barracks, A-2, W-3 Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi.

7.       Shri M.K. Shukla, CGM, Coal India Limited, SCOPE Minar, Core-I, 4t Floor, Vikas Marg, Laxminagar, New Delhi.

8.       District Collector, Chandrapur, Government of Maharashtra.

9.       EI Division, Ministry of Environment & Forests, New Delhi.

10.   Monitoring File                  10.                  Guard File                  11.                  Record File.

 

 

(Dr.T.Chandini)

Director