Vedanta's Odisha plant fined Rs 25 cr for green violations
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The Odisha plant of mining company Vedanta Limited has been fined by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) for violating environmental norms. The Alumina Refinery and Captive Power plant at Lanjigarh in Odisha's Kalahandi district did not follow the rules during expansion and will have to pay a fine of Rs 25 cr.
A special bench of NGT chairperson Adarsh Kumar Goel dealt with the appeal against the environmental clearance dated November 20, 2015. "The prosecution is now concerning illegal expansion".
Vedanta Limited argued that Rs 50,000 crore has been invested in the expansion of the plant. The project has undertaken the measures to protect the environment and comply with all statutory requirements.
The NGT said part of the expansion was undertaken with no prior environmental clearance from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC).
According to the tribunal, the main problem is drawing water from River Tel. The NGT stated the mining may not affect the flow of the water but the permission to draw water from the river should not remain static and unconditional forever. This has been decided in view of the increasing need for water from the river.
The order noted that the impact of drawing water from River Tel should be assessed from time to time. A provision to add further conditions should exist to safeguard this aspect.
The Green Court stated that the fine is charged in regard to the clear violation and financial capacity of the unit. It will be used for the restoration of the environment in terms of the plan NGT provided. The court's order has given directions for an environment plan to be prepared and executed.
The mining company is directed to deposit the fine amount with the State Pollution Control Board within one month. The money will be kept in a separate account so that it can be later utilised to restore the environment that was destroyed due to the actions of the MNC.
A panel has been constituted to formulate additional conditions for the environmental clearance given to the company by assessing the impact of the mining actions within three months.
A few days ago, Vedanta announced it will be sourcing 380MW of renewable energy to power its aluminium smelters in an effort to reduce its carbon footprint. The company recently won two iron ore mines in Odisha through auctions. The mining MNC already has three coal mines that will become operational in the next year.
In a recent announcement, CEO Sunil Duggal stated the company is working on increasing its alumina refinery capacity to five million tonnes per annum. Vedanta has a long-term contract with the Odisha Mining Corporation.