MoEFCC issues SOP: Violations may lead to closing, demolition of projects

What is the News?

The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change has issued the Standard Operating Procedure(SOP) to deal with cases of environmental violations.

Background:

• The SOP is a result of orders from the National Green Tribunal which earlier in 2021 directed the ministry to put in place penalties and an SOP for green violations.

Key Features of the SOP:

Nodal Authority:

• The SOP gives powers to government agencies such as the CPCB, state pollution control boards and state environment impact assessment authorities to identify cases of environmental violations and take penal action against them.

Categories of Green Violations:

• Projects without environmental clearance: These are those projects where construction work including expansion of an existing project has begun without the project proponent having acquired environmental clearance.
• Non-Compliance: These are those projects in which prior environmental clearance has been accorded to the project, but it is in violation of norms prescribed in the approval.

Non Permissible Projects:

• Projects that are not permissible for environmental clearance are to be demolished.
• Projects which are permissible according to environmental law but which have not acquired the requisite clearance are to be shut down.

Expansion of Project:

• In cases of expansion of a project where environmental clearance has not been received, the government agency can force the project proponent to revert to the level of construction/manufacturing before the expansion.

Permissibility of a Project:

• Permissibility of the project shall be examined from the perspective of whether such activity/project was at all eligible for grant of prior Environmental Clearance(EC).
• For instance, if a Red Industry is functioning in a Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ)-I area, it means that activity was in the first place not permitted at the time of commencement of the project. Such projects shall be closed and demolished.

Penalties:

• In Violation cases, where operations have not commenced, 1% of the total project cost incurred up to the date of filing of the application (for instance a fine of Rs 1 lakh for a project worth Rs 1 crore) will be levied.
• In cases where operations have commenced without the required environmental clearance, 1% of the total project cost and in addition 0.25% of the total turnover during the period of violation will be levied.