Centre approves diversion of 4.75 ha of forest land in Assam again

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: Amidst concerns over diversion of forest land for non-forest use causing loss of forest cover, the central government has now accorded in-principle approval to the diversion of 4.75 hectares (ha) of Unclassed Forest land for Oil & Gas Well Drilling located within an Unclassed State Forest in the Dima Hasao district in favour of Oil India Limited (OIL). In the recent past, the Centre had approved diversion of another 4.9 ha of forest land in the Tinsukia district for exploration drilling of hydrocarbons by OIL.

Recently, a meeting of the Advisory Committee of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change held in New Delhi gave its nod to the OIL's proposed diversion of 4.75 ha Unclassed Forest land for Oil & Gas Well Drilling in the Dima Hasao district. The Committee, however, set certain conditions for granting such approval.

During the meeting, all the facts and background of the proposal, along with an examination of the proposal in the Decision Support System (DSS), were presented and explained by the member secretary before the Committee for their examination and analysis. The Committee was also apprised of the relevant provisions under other Acts, Rules and guidelines relevant to the proposal and their significance.

After thorough deliberation on the proposal, the Committee noted the following: The proposal involves diversion of 4.75 ha of Unclassed Forest land for Oil & Gas Well Drilling at location ODHB located within the Unclassed State Forest in the Dima Hasao District in the State of Assam under OALP-III Block AA-ONHP-2018/3; as per component-wise details submitted in the proposal, 0.56 ha is required for the approach road, 3.47 ha for the plinth, 0.12 ha for the flare & 0.6 ha for the safety zone; canopy density in the proposed area is reported to be 0.2 of Eco class I with 22 tree fellings involved during implementation of the project.

The Committee after detailed discussion and deliberation, recommended the proposal for grant of 'in-principle' approval for diversion of 4.75 ha Unclassed Forest land in favour of M/s Oil India Ltd, subject to the general, standard and following additional conditions:

To avert disasters, the hazardous zone around the borewell, oil pads or pipelines or other ancillary infrastructure, including the Blow Out Preventer (BOP), should be maintained by the user agency engaged in the mining or transportation of mineral oil as per the norms stipulated in the Oilfields (Regulation and Development) Act, 1948, and rules framed thereunder.

Recommendations made in the Nineteenth Report of the Standing Committee on Petroleum & Natural Gas 2022-23 (Safety and Security of Oil Installations of Public Sector Oil Companies with specific reference to the Baghjan Blowout incident) shall be strictly adhered to by the user agency to avoid disasters in the future.

The user agency, in consultation with the State Forest Department, should maintain a clear fire control line by keeping the forest area of optimum width along the boundary of the proposed diversion area free of vegetation.

The user agency must use silent transformers during exploration activities to prevent noise pollution from affecting nearby wildlife.

The user agency shall ensure proper collection, management, and scientific disposal of waste from earth-cutting activities, preventing spillage into nearby areas, including water bodies, during exploration.

Also Read: Assam Diverts 1,879.59 Hectares of Forest Land for Non-Forest Use