HC pulls up Meghalaya govt over coal mining
- March 9, 2022
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
HC pulls up Meghalaya govt over coal mining
Subject: Environment
Section: Pollution
Context:
The Meghalaya High Court Monday directed the state government to set up a committee “without any political interference “to implement the ban on rat-hole coal mining put in place by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) and the Supreme Court
Concept:
- The Jaintia Coal Miners and Dealers’ Association claims there are some 60,000 coal mines across 360 villages in East Jaintia Hills district. Moolamylliang used to be one such village until the National Green Tribunal banned rat-hole mining in April 2014.
- Though the NGT ban did not stop illegal mining in the district, it helped Moolamylliang reform — in part because unregulated mining had contaminated its farmlands and turned the streams acidic, and also because the village dorbar, or traditional governing body, had a change of guard.
Rat Hole Mining
- Rat hole mining involves digging of very small tunnels, usually only 3-4 feet high, which workers (often children) enter and extract coal.
- The National Green Tribunal (NGT) banned it in 2014, on grounds of it being unscientific and unsafe for workers. The state (Meghalayan) government has challenged the NGT ban in the Supreme Court.
- According to available government data, Meghalaya has a total coal reserve of 640 million tonnes, most of which is mined unscientifically by individuals and communities.
- Since the coal seam is extremely thin in Meghalaya, no other method would be economically viable.
- In 2018, at least 15 workers died after they were trapped in one such mine in East Jainitia Hills.
Impacts
- The water sources of many rivers, especially in Jaintia Hills district, have turned acidic.
- The water also has high concentration of sulphates, iron and toxic heavy metals, low dissolved oxygen (DO) and high BOD, showing its degraded quality.
- The roadside dumping of coal is a major source of air, water and soil pollution.
- Off road movement of trucks and other vehicles in the area for coal transportation also adds to the ecological and environmental damage of the area.
- The practice has been declared as unsafe for workers by the NGT.
- The mines branch into networks of horizontal channels, which are at constant risk of caving in or flooding.
The Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA)
The Countering America’s Adversaries through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) is a United States Federal Law that has imposed sanctions against Iran, Russia and North Korea. This act prevents trade partners of the United States from entering into bilateral contracts with these three nations.
It was enacted in 2017 and empowers the US President to impose at least five of the 12 listed sanctions on persons engaged in a “significant transaction” with Russian defence and intelligence sectors. For example- The USA administration has recently imposed sanctions on Turkey for its purchase of the S-400 missile system from Russia.
Its “ultimate goal”, “is to prevent revenue from flowing to the Russian Government.
Types of Sanctions:
- prohibition on loans to the sanctioned person.
- prohibition of Export-Import bank assistance for exports to sanctioned persons.
- prohibition on procurement by the United States Government to procure goods or services from the sanctioned person.
- denial of visas to persons closely associated with the sanctioned persons.
There are only two sanctions that may impact either India-Russia relations or India-US relations.
- Prohibition of Banking transactions: likely to have an impact on India-Russia relations,this would mean difficulties for India in making payments in US Dollars to Russia for the purchase of the S-400 systems.
- Export Sanction: The second sanction will have greater consequences for India-US relations. It will deny the license for, and export of, any items controlled by the US.
Waiver Criteria: The US President was given the authority in 2018 to waive CAATSA sanctions on a case-by-case basis.
impact –
- Russian Origin Weapon Systems-It will also affect India’s purchase of spare parts, components, raw materials and other assistance along with major defence purchases.
- Hamper global trade and risk of future trade war.
- Hamper the United States Asian allies in resisting a rising Chinese influence.
- Discourage other nations from building a defensive relationship with the United States as concerns regarding strategic autonomy.
- Rise of parallel trading system leading to decline of the US$ dominance.