How will the Supreme Court order impact mining around Ramsar wetland sites? | Explained
The Supreme Court of India has clarified that its requirement for prior environmental approval for mining within a 10-km radius of the Asan Wetland Conservation Reserve applies to all wetland conservation reserves nationwide. This judicial intervention aims to ensure parity in environmental protection for Ramsar sites, which lack explicit statutory buffer zones under current Indian law.
Why it matters
This ruling significantly tightens regulatory oversight for mining projects near ecologically sensitive wetlands across India, potentially impacting industrial development and land-use planning in these regions.
The story so far: The Supreme Court has clarified that its February 2024 direction, requiring prior approval before mining can take place within a 10-km radius of the Asan Wetland Conservation Reserve , would, for the sake of parity, apply to wetland conservation reserves across the country. The clarification potentially extends a judicial safeguard that was earlier confined to the Asan Ramsar site in Uttarakhand to similarly notified wetland conservation reserves elsewhere.
The clarification arose while the Supreme Court was hearing an application from the Himachal Pradesh government. The State argued that the February 14, 2024 interim order concerning the Asan Wetland Conservation Reserve in Uttarakhand should not automatically apply to it because the Asan reserve was not located within Himachal Pradesh and, unlike national parks and wildlife sanctuaries, wetland conservation reserves do not have a statutory buffer zone.
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