The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) didn’t take mandatory certificate from Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) for setting up Casting Yard at Ulwe for the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL), also called as Atal Setu. This was revealed in a reply to the RTI application filed by an environmentalist from Navi Mumbai.
“From the record available with this office in respect of consent granted to MMRDA for setting up Casting Yard for MTHL at Sector 12, Ulwe, is not available,” the MPCB said in a reply to the RTI application filed by the Director of NatConnect Foundation, B N Kumar on April 6, 2024 asking for the copy of the consent.
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Stating that the construction is a highly polluting industry, Kumar said, “The MMRDA played havoc with the environment for five years with absolutely no check. This is punishable under Environmental and CRZ Law. Cement mixing, steel cutting, effluent discharge, air pollution, material transfer etc always pose danger to the flora and fauna and the concerned authorities should take serious cognizance of the same.”
“As per the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) report submitted by MMRDA to the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA), the labour establishment and construction materials will be stored at the casting yard site on Sewri and Nhava side. It will also have material stacking yards like godowns for cement, HT steel, admixtures etc. which require weather protection,” Kumar said.
“The EIA report also said that the impact on Ambient Air Quality (AAQ) during the construction stage of MTHL is anticipated. The adverse impact will be primarily due to transportation of construction material, road construction activities, loading and unloading of construction materials, and plying of construction vehicles along unpaved shoulders of access roads, emissions from asphalt mix plants, casting yards etc. Emission from these sources will have temporary but not significant impact on air quality,” Kumar said adding, he will write to the Chief Minister soon requesting him to take action against both, the MMRDA and MPCB.
MMRDA also said in the EIA report that fugitive dust entrainment at site and casting yard will be controlled by sprinkling water, and without MPCB who would have checked? Kumar asked.
“A project of this nature requires quarried materials like murrum, aggregate, and sand in large quantities. This material will have to be transported to the site for storage till it is consumed in the project. It has to be kept in mind that the area available for the work site is limited to have a large storage space as it will have to accommodate the casting yard, stacking yards, fabrication yards, workshop, stores etc. Transportation and storage of the material will be a stupendous task demanding heavy toll of transportation cost besides double handling and loss of material in the process,” Kumar added.
Earlier, in another RTI query raised by Kumar, MMRDA said that it has not entered into any agreement with the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) for the 12 Ha casting yard. MMRDA had occupied the plot for nearly six years for the work on the Rs 17,840 crore bridge. Kumar had sought the information on the land lease agreement details in connection with his ongoing case at the National Green Tribunal (NGT) against alleged environmental violations in the allotment of a 10-acre plot from the casting yard for Tirupati Balaji temple on Ulwe coast. MMRDA informed NatConnect that no agreement was signed and hence no information could be provided.
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