GSPCB refuses operating consent to 107 mining leases

The mining industry in Goa has been hit by another setback with the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) refusing operating consent to all 107 mining leases in the state under the Air and Water Pollution Control Act.

The GSPCB, in its order on Monday said that since the case against these mining leases is pending with the Supreme Court, their application for consent stands withdrawn.
The apex court is hearing the petition filed by NGO Goa Foundation against the illegal mining activity in the state, pending which all mines have been asked to stop operations.
GSPCB chairman Jose Manuel Noronha, who heard the petitions filed by the mining firms before the board, said that the apex court has halted the mining operations, the board cannot renew the consent under Air and Water Pollution Act to these mining leases.
The consent to operate under these Acts have expired on July 31, 2012. "The mining firms will have to re-apply once the Supreme Court decides on the matter," Noronha said. The state's mining industry is in doldrums after the Supreme Court halted the mining operations asking the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) to investigate illegal mining in the state.