[Maps] Environmental path cleared for Great Nicobar mega challenge

The skilled appraisal committee of the Indian Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has really helpful the grant of environmental and Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearance for a giant infrastructure and tourism challenge in Great Nicobar Island that can result in the diversion of 15 % of its forest space and the felling of 8.52 lakh (852,000) bushes in phases. The challenge is being spearheaded by Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation underneath a imaginative and prescient plan conceived by the NITI Aayog. The island, principally coated by forests, has not witnessed large-scale human exercise to date.

While noting “the scale of impacts the proposed project may have” on the island’s wildlife and native populations, the committee, at its assembly on August 22 and 23, gave its go-ahead “considering the strategic nature of the integrated project” and the “submissions made by the project proponent.”

The essential parts of the Rs. 75,000 crore (Rs. 750 billion) challenge are an International Container Transhipment Terminal (ICTT), with the capability to deal with 14.2 million TEUs (unit of cargo capability) finally, a greenfield worldwide airport dealing with a peak hour site visitors of 4,000 passengers each methods, a township and a gasoline and solar energy plant, mentioned a pre-feasibility report for the Holistic Development of Great Nicobar Island ready by AECOM India Private Ltd. for Niti Aayog. The airport can be “developed as a joint military-civil, dual-use airport, under the operational control of the Indian Navy,” going by info made accessible to the skilled appraisal committee (EAC). The pre-feasibility report indicated that the primary part would prolong to 2036 (from 2021), and the second part would stretch from 2037 to 2051, however the container terminal would grow to be operational round 2027-28.

A complete of 166 sq. kilometres will likely be earmarked for ‘development,’ of which 72 sq. kilometres will likely be taken up underneath the primary of three phases wherein the challenge is to be applied, based on plans mentioned by the EAC.

The township will likely be made up of economic, industrial and residential zones, however a serious chunk of the land will likely be set aside for several types of tourism tasks and actions.

Conditions imposed

The EAC has imposed particular situations for wildlife conservation and tribal welfare, primarily plans to do with leatherback sea turtles, Nicobar megapodes, saltwater crocodiles and a number of other different species, in addition to mangrove restoration, coral translocation and welfare of the native Shompen and Nicobari tribal inhabitants. Three impartial monitoring committees are to be constituted to supervise points associated to environmental administration.

The committee famous that three new wildlife sanctuaries had been recognized at Little Nicobar (14 sq. kilometres, for shielding leatherback turtles), Menchal (1.3 sq. kilometres, for megapodes) and Meroe Islands (2.8 sq. kilometres, for corals).

Read extra: The container terminal that might sink the Great Nicobar Island

Over 95 % of the 911-square-kilometre Great Nicobar island is made up of nationwide parks, protected forests and tribal reserve areas, mentioned official paperwork. The Great Nicobar Biosphere Reserve covers a lot of the largely unspoilt island. UNESCO mentioned that the location, which is a part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves, covers “unique and threatened tropical evergreen forest ecosystems. It is home to very rich ecosystems, including 650 species of angiosperms, ferns, gymnosperms, and bryophytes, among others. In terms of fauna, there are over 1800 species, some of which are endemic to this area.”

The reserve encompasses two nationwide parks. One of them is the Campbell Bay National Park, and the opposite is Galathea National Park.

Forests and dense vegetation cowl virtually all the island. Data based mostly on latest satellite tv for pc imagery signifies that solely about 5-6 % of the land mass, made up of seashores and water our bodies, is with out dense vegetation. Built-up areas, together with villages, account for under a minuscule portion of the island space. Revenue land (excluding deemed forest areas) totals about 35 sq. kilometres.

An extended strip of the island predominantly coated by forests has been chosen for the implementation of the challenge. About 122 sq. kilometres of the 166 sq. kilometre challenge space is made up of forests, and almost 9 sq. kilometres, are deemed forests. The northern tip of the challenge space falls effectively throughout the biosphere reserve, which signifies that about 71 sq. kilometres of the biosphere reserve space would additionally should be earmarked for it. Galathea Bay, a serious nesting web site for leatherback turtles, was house to the Galathea Bay Wildlife Sanctuary. It was stripped off of its protected standing and denotified just lately. The central parts of the challenge, the ICTT and the worldwide airport are to be constructed on this a part of the island.

The Galathea National Park adjoining the challenge space will likely be largely left with no buffer zone. Though a big a part of the fast challenge areas adjoining the park has been earmarked for ‘ecotourism’ the place ‘major’ development tasks is not going to be allowed, the park space is prone to be uncovered to the fallout of the large-scale development and dredging exercise that can ensue – about 421 hectares (4.21 sq. kilometres) of land is to be reclaimed for the port and airport.

The establishing of townships and development exercise will lead to a steep rise within the island’s inhabitants. Currently, the most important among the many inhabited areas is Campbell Bay, which accounts for 69 % of the inhabitants (about 8,400 as per the 2011 census; a latest official estimate places the variety of inhabitants at 12,000). A couple of habitations and income villages are distributed alongside the island’s Eastern coastal belt. This quantity will rise to 52,000 by 2025 because the challenge implementation will get going and 1.65 lakh (165,000) by 2040, mentioned the pre-feasibility report.

The scale and depth of ecological degradation on the island will likely be decided by the style wherein the challenge takes form within the months and years forward.

Banner picture: A satellite tv for pc view of the Great Nicobar island. Modified Copernicus Sentinel information, 2022.