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Land Acquisition
Land acquisition for Renuka dam continues despite uncertainties - Press release from the Renuka Bandh Sangharsh Samiti
Posted on 21 Dec, 2010 12:24 PMForwarded to the portal by: Manshi Asher
Content Courtesy: Himvani
Author: Renuka Bandh Sangharsh Samiti
Despite protest against forced acquisition of land, Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (HPPCL) and revenue administration today notified Section 9 of the Land Acquisition Act 1894, for approximately 680 big has (about 57 hectares) of land of Panaar Village for the Renuka Dam Project. In a letter to the Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court sent today, activists appealed for a stay on land acquisition for the project, considering the uncertainty surrounding the project.
Mining - An increasing threat to our rivers - Article by Nitya Jacob
Posted on 20 Dec, 2010 12:29 AMContent Courtesy: Solution Exchange and Nitya Jacob
Author: Nitya Jacob
India’s arteries are choking. Her rivers, the lifeline of hundreds of millions, are over-taxed, polluted and encroached. They are being mined, dammed and emptied of water. Save for the four monsoon months, most rivers are streams of drains, depending on how many cities they pass through. This year people gaped in awe at the River Yamuna (I am sure they were over-awed by other rivers elsewhere too) as for the first time since 1978 looked like a river and not a drain.
Immediate moratorium sought on clearances for large dams in northeast India - Press release by Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (Assam)
Posted on 14 Dec, 2010 10:56 PM23rd November 2010, New Delhi
- Seeking a moratorium on clearances for large dams in Northeast India
- Withdrawal of clearances granted to 2000 MW Lower Subansiri, 1750 MW Demwe Lower & 1500 MW Tipaimukh dams
- Future steps on hydropower projects and dams only after full, prior and informed consent of people in the region
- Protect the Brahmaputra river basin as a cultural and ecological endowment
The Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules by Ministry of Environment and Forests (2010)
Posted on 10 Dec, 2010 07:27 AMThe Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules was notified in December 2010 by the Ministry of Environment and Forests to ensure better conservation and management and to prevent degradation of existing wetlands in India. Wetlands are critical for human development and wellbeing, especially in India where a large number of people are dependent on them for drinking water, food and livelihood. Despite their immense importance, wetlands are one of the most degraded ecosystems globally.
Coastal Regulation Zone notification (2010) - Critique by the Kerala Swathanthra Malsya Thozhilali Federation
Posted on 12 Nov, 2010 08:05 PM
The Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has issued the draft CRZ Notification, 2010 under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 on 15th September, 2010 inviting suggestions and objections from public within 60 days from date of its issue. The following are the new additions to the original 1991 notification:
Save agriculture in Narmada valley
Posted on 20 Sep, 2010 04:44 PMNarmada valley is facing yet another crisis beyond the gigantic dams, which has arisen due to the huge canal network of the Indira Sagar and Omkareshwar canals. The canals of these two dams are not yet fully planned, yet certain estimates, which are not yet final by the Narmada Valley Development Authority show that not less than 10,000 hectares of agricultural land is to be acquired, but a larger acquisition is yet to come up in numerous villages, where even a basic socio-economic survey of the affected land and families is yet to be undertaken.
Transparency demanded in a letter to Jairam Ramesh on Polavaram Project - Himanshu Thakkar
Posted on 04 Sep, 2010 10:43 AMFrom:
Himanshu Thakkar
South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers & People,
c/o 86-D, AD block, Shalimar Bagh,
Delhi,
To: Shri Jairam Ramesh
Union Minister of State for Env and Forests (IC), New Delhi
Respected Sir,
I have just seen your letter dated Aug 18, 2010 to Orissa Chief Minister on the aboves subject, uploaded yesterday on MEF website.
- Your letter says that the Forest Clearance has been given to the Polavaram Project on July 28, 2010 is subject to the condition, "... no submergence and displacement of people including STs take place in Orissa and Chhattisgarh...". However, this condition is in complete contradiction with the environment clearance given by your ministry on Oct 25, 2005, which says in para 2, "Total 1,93,35 persons are likely to be affected by this project, out of that 1,75,275 persons in Andhra Pradesh and 6,316 persons from Orissa and 11,766 are from Chattisgarh." It is clear the condition of no submergence and displacement on Orissa and Chhattisgarh, stated in your letter, in the Tribal Development Ministry's condition, and in the forest clearance letter is in complete contradiction with the environment clearance given by you. One of them have to be cancelled due to this contradiction, we would like to know, which one would be cancelled.
Movie reviews from 'Voices from the Waters 2010' film festival held in Bangalore
Posted on 28 Aug, 2010 08:58 AMReviews of some of the movies screened -
“Be water, My friend”
This UNESCO funded film, “Be water, My friend” tracks the research of Professor Gordon Lightgoot, an expert on ancient water monuments as he tries to understand and rectify the alarming drying up of Karez’s in northern Iragi region of Kurdistan.
Mountains of concrete: Dam building in the Himalayas - A report by International Rivers Network
Posted on 11 Aug, 2010 07:38 PMThis document by International Rivers Network provides a background for the recent plans initiated by India, Nepal, Pakistan and Bhutan to build several hundred dams on the Himalayan mountains, which store vast amounts of water and with their high slopes and fast moving rivers, present a huge potential for generating hydropower.
India, Nepal, Pakistan and Bhutan have been facing the increasing challenges of meeting their rising elecricity and energy needs and hydropower dams in the Himalayas are being proposed as solutions to meet a considerable part of these requirements.
The document examines the various arguments that have been put forward against the building of the dams as against the proposed advantages that the dams are claimed to have for these four countries, which share common geographical, topographical and eco-climatic features but have starkly different political and economic contexts.
Environmental flows: Free-flowing rivers around the world
Posted on 30 Jul, 2010 11:56 AMThis is the first in a new series of articles that IWP will host on various aspects of Environmental Flows. We welcome your comments and original articles for this series, please mail us at portal@arghyam.org
The other side of the story: Free-flowing rivers around the world
With around 5100 large dams, India ranks third in the world with regards to the number of large dams. The ongoing debate over the economic, social and environmental costs of large dams has indicated many times that these costs are not commensurate with their benefits. Although we have dammed all our major rivers, (except Brahmaputra and plans to dam its major tributaries are on way, some like Ranganadi have already been dammed), profoundly changing their hydrological, ecological, social and cultural systems, we are yet to form a policy which states that environmental flows in rivers are a necessity. It is more than clear now that environmental flows relate to well being of not only ‘birds and fishes’, but also of the entire human society . Take an example of fisheries, lack of flows in rivers and contractor-owned reservoir fishing has affected the livelihood of hundreds of thousands of small fishermen . Environmental flows also dilute pollution load, so let us not hide behind the fact that pollution is wiping out our riverine fish, not the absence of flows. It is also clear that environmental flows do NOT mean a decommissioning of all the present dams, nor do they mean any random figure like 60% or 10% of MAR . Eflows require reaching a wise compromise through science and local negotiations, for each river.
While many countries have put in place policies and laws for maintaining environmental flows in their rivers, there is also a rarer category: Rivers which have not been dammed yet, rivers which retain their connection from the source to the sea, nurturing myriad ecosystems and communities in their wake! These are known by many names like Free flowing rivers, Wild Rivers, Pristine/ Virgin rivers, Heritage Rivers, etc., each indicating their rare character and value. In ecological and cultural terms, the value of these rivers is immense and as more and more rivers are being dammed the world over, this value is increasing steeply. Unfortunately, in today’s economic terms, these rivers are still waiting to get their due recognition, but as human systems evolve, they will surely be seen as ‘invaluable’ service providers with phenomenal use and non use values.