Pollution board to check violations by mining firms

PANAJI: The Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) on Tuesday decided to undertake a study on a case-to-case basis and issue showcause notices to mining companies if they had violated any consent conditions before mining came to a halt on March 16. Companies found to have violated consent conditions, would have to forfeit their bank guarantees, GSPCB officials said.
The pollution board had directed mining companies to take short and medium-term measures to control air and water pollution in the vicinity. The measures included installation, on a priority basis, of wheel-washing systems at all exits.

The GSPCB had stated that mining companies should install geo-net fencing at feasible places along the road in the vicinity of all residential areas of the villages concerned. Other conditions were tarring of untarred shoulders along roads leading from the mines to junctions, installation of cat-eyes and delineation measures to be carried out along mining routes passing through the villages, and washing of roads during times of no usage.

Other short-term measures included the regular cleaning of road shoulders and drainages that lie all along routes from the mines to major junctions, hotmixing at the mines’ exit and jetty exit (minimum 50-100m), continued deployment of truck-mounted, mechanised, roadsweeping machines, and repair of existing potholes.

The two long-term measures included the installation of rumblers at the start of tarred roads within mines — including the modifying of existing speedbreakers/humps with due no-objection certificates (NOC) from the public works department (PWD) — and the installation of wheel-washing systems at all exits before routes joined public roads.