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Sunday, Jul 29, 2007
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Environmental groups seek participation in CZM

Special Correspondent

Appeal to make it “open and participatory”

“Matter being brought to notice well before the draft Notification was gazetted and put out for public comment”
CRZ Notification 1991 is being replaced by the CZM Notification

NEW DELHI: Several environmental groups and environmentalists have appealed to the Union Environment and Forests Ministry to make the process of Coastal Zone Management (CZM) “open and participatory” — before it is gazetted—to enable the coastal and fishing communities and civil society organisations to express their views on the issue.

This was missing in the drafting of the recommendations in the Swaminathan Committee, and finalisation of the draft CZM notification, said an open letter to Union Environment and Forests Secretary Meena Gupta.

Serious concerns

Bringing to her attention some serious concerns with the process of drafting and content of the new proposed notification, the letter said the matter was being brought to notice well before the draft Notification was gazetted and put out for public comment for the mandatory 60 day period.

“Our experience with responding to other draft notifications and policies issued by the Ministry, such as the National Environment Policy, 2006 and the Environmental Impact Assessment Notification, 2006 has been that once the draft is issued for comments, the Ministry neither has the openness nor motivation to incorporate fundamental changes no matter how critical the concerns regarding the clauses in the draft,” the letter said.

Group’s appeal

The environmental groups have impressed upon the Secretary to open up the present drafting process and facilitate a participatory assessment of consequences of the proposed draft. “We also urge you to call for suggestions on what needs to go into an appropriate coastal regulation legislation. Until this is done, the State Governments and the Ministry should implement the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification of 1991 and take legal action against the violators until an appropriate regulation legislation was made.”

The CRZ Notification, 1991, is being replaced by the CZM Notification on the basis of Swaminathan Committee recommendations.

Some of the signatories to the open letter are: Kalpvriksh, National Fisherworkers Forum, United Artists Association of Orissa, ATREE, Corporate Accountability Desk, Community Environmental Monitoring (Chennai), Bombay Environmental Action Group, and San Francisco Bay Area.

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