Pollution

Daily Court Digest: Major environment orders (September 16, 2022)

Down To Earth brings you the top environmental cases heard in the Supreme Court, the high courts and the National Green Tribunal 

 
By DTE Staff
Published: Monday 19 September 2022
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NGT slaps Rs 3,000 crore

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Government of Rajasthan to pay Rs 3,000 crore as environmental compensation for improper solid and sewage waste management.

A bench headed by Adarsh Kumar Goel was responding to an application September 15, 2022.

The amount must be deposited by the state government in a separate account within two months and utilised for restoration measures per the chief secretary’s directions.

The restoration measures concerning sewage management should include:

  • Setting up of sewage treatment and utilisation systems
  • Optimising the existing sewage treatment facilities
  • Ensuring compliance with standards, including faecal coliform
  • setting up proper faecal sewage and sludge management in rural areas

The waste management plan should include setting up required waste processing and remediation plants in 161 sites. Bio-remediation or bio-mining process must be executed according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) guidelines.

The stabilised organic waste from biomining and compost plants must comply with the mandated specifications.

The restoration plans must be executed in all districts, cities, towns and villages simultaneously in a time-bound manner, the tribunal warned. Additional compensations will be levied if violations continue, it added.

Restoration of Sai river

The NGT has directed the Government of Uttar Pradesh to constitute a monitoring committee to devise an action plan for preventing pollution of the Sai river, a tributary of the Gomti.

The tribunal was responding to an application September 14, 2022. 

The Uttar Pradesh government had failed to prevent the discharge of untreated sewage into the river, particularly in the districts of Pratapgarh, Rai Bareily and Jaunpur, the applicant alleged.

The action plan should include:

  • Operationalisation of sewage treatment plants (STP)
  • Interception and diversion of drains to the respective STPs
  • Maintenance of floodplains
  • Prevention of encroachment 
  • Desiltation of the rivers

 An environmental compensation of Rs 36.50 crore was earlier levied on the Municipal Corporation for not complying with the directions of the NGT. The compensation has not yet been paid.

Protection of Laxmi Tal 

Actions will be taken to protect the Laxmi Tal lake in the Jhansi district by controlling pollution and encroachments, stated the principal secretary for urban development, Uttar Pradesh, in their report, to the NGT.

The tribunal September 14 was responding to the complaints of unauthorised encroachments and pollution.

Against 26 minimal liquid discharge (MLD) of sewage, only 8-10 MLD is treated, which needs to be looked into and remedied. The MLD approach to the wastewater treatment problem uses dependable filtration-based technologies to achieve high water recovery.

Treated sewage compliant with biological oxygen demands and faecal coliform levels may be used for filling the Laxmi Tal and growing fisheries, it added.

Illegal sand mining

The NGT granted a week’s time to the geology and mining department in Uttar Pradesh to file a reply with respect to the illegal sand mining in Kanpur and Unnao.

A bench headed by Arun Kumar Tyagi was responding to a petition September 14.

An unauthorised bridge has also been constructed in the middle of the Ganga, dividing the river into two streams, the petitioner alleged.

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