Saving rivers from irreversible destruction

The excessive and indiscriminate sand mining adversely affecting riverbed and water flow regime has given rise to a larger environmental issue in Assam that needs urgent attention. Balancing the rising demand for sand for the construction of roads and buildings and the conservation of river ecosystems has become a challenging task, but there is no alternative to sustainable sand mining. Sand is a minor mineral produced under the Mines and Minerals (Development & Regulation) Act, of 1957, and States have the power to frame rules for preventing its illegal mining, transportation, and storage. The Sand Mining Framework circulated by the Ministry of Mines to all the states addresses the policy and administrative needs of state governments for regulating sand mining. The four key objectives of the framework are sustainability, affordability, availability, and transparency. Sustainable sand mining requires that it does not obstruct water flow, trigger erosion of the bank due to scouring and conserves the sand layers on the river bed that is needed to conserve the flow regime. Mechanised or semi-mechanised sand mining is prohibited in Assam but in absence of an effective monitoring mechanism indiscriminate sand mining by using excavators, and suction pumps are continuing unabated in several rivers the except for occasional seizure of dumpers, excavators, and pumps by the Forest department. If sand mining is done in a manual method such as using a shovel or bucket and boats for transporting mined sand to the river bank in a regulated manner then after sand and gravel is removed, the river bed keeps filling up sand and gravel during monsoon. Hence in manual sand mining, the reserve of sand and gravel is replenished every year which is a natural process of restoration of the riverbed restoration after sand mining. The framework acknowledges that the availability of sand throughout the year for meeting the construction needs of citizens for building houses or renovation and of government for the construction of buildings and roads is critical to fulfilling development activities and progress. It proposes alternatives to river sand such as manufactured sand, artificial sand and alternative technologies in construction materials processing for reduced dependence on naturally occurring sand and gravel. The scarcity of sand contrasted with rising demand has led to spiralling of prices of sand which has been reflected in the steep rise in construction costs. The availability of sand at an affordable and reasonable cost is of prime concern for people and the government which the framework seeks to address. Sand extracted from the state rivers is also supplied to neighbouring states which makes it difficult to correct estimates of the actual production of sand without putting in a place robust and transparent mechanism of monitoring. Adequate funding for undertaking exploration of minor minerals in Assam and other states in the northeast region is an issue that needs attention from the Central government. The conclave of North Geology and Mining Ministers held earlier this month at Kohima resolved to request the Ministry of Mines to revive its funding under National Mineral Exploration Trust (NMET) to include minor minerals exploration at least for the North-Eastern States. Stating that minor minerals are the backbone of infrastructural development—building constructions, road and highway constructions, dam constructions etc., all require minor minerals, the conclave pointed out that NMET fund cannot be utilised for exploration of minor minerals and favourable response by the Ministry will go a long way in improving exploration of minor minerals in the region and achieving an accurate assessment of the availability of natural river sand. The Central government is to revive the "North East Special Assistance Scheme" under the Ministry of Mines that was stopped in 2016-17 as urged by the concave will go a long way in capacity building/ training of mining engineers and geologists, and supply of instruments and equipment in the region. Adoption and enforcement of scientific methods and preparation and approval of mining plans for minor minerals have become increasingly challenging with the rapid expansion of sand mining areas without increasing the strength of technical manpower. The framework suggests that there is a need to promote manufactured-sand units on a pan-India basis and underlines the importance of creating awareness for its usage given the overall environmental and illegal mining concerns associated with river sand mining. It claims that manufactured-sand concrete has a marginally higher bond strength, and mortar made of manufactured sand produced by crushing of rocks and quarry stones shows higher compressive strength and modulus for masonry, over those of river sand. Assam, being an agrarian state, conservation of the river ecosystem is vital for the sustainability of its economy. Whether manufactured sand can be a sustainable option for river sand, given the fact that hills sustain the forests, the conservation of which is equally important for climate change mitigation, any policy decision in this regard must be backed by the adequate and informed opinion of the domain experts. As of now, curbing indiscriminate and mechanised sand mining needs to be prioritised to save the rivers in Assam from irreversible destruction.