Goa: In Sanguem, strict eye to stop forming of quarrying clusters

PANAJI: Fearing that a cluster of quarries may come up at Antorem village of Sanguem, the Goa State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (Goa-SEIAA) has rejected the application for a stone quarry at its meeting last month.
In recent years, authorities have received a number of complaints against illegal stone quarries operating in interior areas of Sanguem and Quepem talukas.
“After scrutinising the documents submitted by the project proponent, the authority noticed that there is another existing quarry within 300m of the proposed site. Therefore, this may form a cluster...The application for prior environmental clearance stands rejected,” the Goa-SEIAA said at its recent meeting.
Earlier this month, the flying squad headed by Sanguem mamlatdar, conducted raids at two different locations over complaints of illegal stone quarrying in private properties. But no one could be arrested as the site was found abandoned though there were fresh signs of quarrying having been carried out.
Similarly, last year, residents of Uguem in Sanguem held a protest, stating that basalt quarry operations in the village have endangered houses and temples in the locality as frequent blasting are causing cracks in the walls.
Also, the director of mines and geology, in September this year, in an affidavit has told the high court that action, including heavy fines, are being contemplated against all the illegal laterite stone quarries operating across Goa.
Meanwhile, in the case of another basalt stone quarry at Vantem, Sattari, the Goa-SEIAA had imposed a fine of Rs 1.80 lakh on the project proponent for not submitting the six-monthly compliance report. Based on the request of the project proponent to consider waiving the fine, the Goa-SEIAA has now reduced the fine to Rs 1.50 lakh, after the authority was told that no operations were conducted during the period when compliance report was not submitted.
“After scrutinising the application and documents submitted, the authority suggested to comply with the following— to asphalt all internal roads within lease area to minimise dust and sound pollution, to submit the details of the trees to be planted and to plant the same varieties of trees which have been removed from the site to conserve the biodiversity,” the Goa-SEIAA told the basalt stone quarry operator.