The London-headquartered corporate conglomerate Vedanta Group seems to be a major beneficiary of the Narendra Modi government’s decision to remove oil and natural gas exploration activities from the ambit of environmental impact assessment. It has enabled the Anil Agarwal–headed company to fast-track a Rs.264 crore oil exploration project in a wildlife-rich and ecologically sensitive area of Assam flanked by densely populated rural settlements.
However, the project has hit a roadblock after the standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL), the country’s top authority on wildlife conservation, said in late October that the plan would not be approved until a site inspection was carried out. The issue has also led to opposition from activists and political leaders.
In the last week of August, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change gave the go-ahead to Cairn Oil & Gas, a Vedanta subsidiary, to prospect for oil on about 4.5 hectares of land within the notified eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) of a wildlife sanctuary (WLS). (The ESZ is a buffer zone that can extend up to 10 km from the boundaries of a sanctuary.) In September, the ministry’s Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) granted in-principle approval for oil exploration.
Assam government clearance
The project area is close to the boundary of the Hollongapar Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary in Assam’s Jorhat district. The Himanta Biswa Sarma–led State government had earlier this year recommended the clearance on the basis of the State forest department’s findings that the project would have only a minimal impact on flora and fauna, and also because it was of “national importance”. It will apparently help in mainstreaming disgruntled Nagas living on Assam’s border apart from reducing the country’s dependence on expensive imported oil. (In late August, Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi said that the Assam Forest Department’s recommendation was “deeply troubling” and urged the Union Minister concerned to reconsider the issue.)
The forest department’s findings are, however, contrary to a conservation report prepared by Cairn Oil & Gas in June 2020, which outlines measures to protect the endangered Hoolock gibbon and the Indian elephant in the wildlife sanctuary. It is also in deviance from the environmental impact assessment (EIA) report prepared by Vedanta in April 2019 for the Assam government.
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Cairn plans to drill 29 wells in the oil block area if there is a commercially viable discovery of hydrocarbons. Some of these oil wells have been planned near human settlements and infrastructure, including schools, hospitals, and other community places. Cairn Oil & Gas was allocated the Block AA-ONHP-2017/4 in early 2018 by the Narendra Modi–led National Democratic Alliance government during its first term. Following this, on October 1 that year, Vedanta and the Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas signed a revenue sharing contract for exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbons over an area of 839 sq km.
As exploratory and appraisal drilling activities required environmental clearance under the Environment Impact Assessment Notification, 2006, Cairn applied to the Environment Ministry for the terms of reference to carry out an EIA study. As per documents available in the public domain, on April 18, 2019, the ministry provided Vedanta with a set of terms of reference, following which it prepared a detailed EIA study for the project.
Plan to drill wells
As per the EIA report dated September 25, 2019, Cairn plans to drill 29 oil wells for the project. The report, submitted to the State government, states that the selection of well sites is primarily based on geological considerations and environmental considerations, that is, location of sensitive ecological habitats, settlements, schools, hospitals, water bodies, and so on. It also said that care had been taken to locate the wells at a safe distance from these locations. The report, which was prepared with the help of a private consultant, said: “The Hallongapara Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary is surrounded by the boundary of the block area, but it has been excluded from the area constituting the block. However, the block area along with proposed well sites falls within the 10 km buffer zone of the WLS. The land use comprises tea gardens, homestead plantations, agricultural lands, forest land and settlements. Besides these, river, canal, water bodies and marshy land have been observed in the proposed block area.”
Towering trees, which can reach up to 150 feet in height, create a dense canopy in the gibbon sanctuary. | Photo Credit: WILDLIFE INSTITUTE OF INDIA
On the flora and fauna of the region, the report said: “It [the proposed project site] has very rich biodiversity and is home to (apart from the western Hoolock Gibbon), Bengal slow loris, stump-tailed macaque, northern pig-tailed macaque, Rhesus macaque, and capped langur. There are Indian elephants, leopards, civet, wild boars, various type of squirrel, and mammals. Among flora species, the upper canopy consists mostly of Dipterocarpus Macrocarpus (Hollong Tree) rising 12 to 30 m and having straight trunks.
“Other species found in the top canopy include Sam (Artocarps chaplasha), Amari (Amoora wallichi), Sopas (Michelia sp.), Bhelu (Tetramels nudiflora), Udal (Sterculia villosa) and Hingori (Castanopsis sp.). Nahar (Mesua ferrea) which dominates the middle canopy with its spreading crown. Other middle canopy species include Bandordima, Ful Gomari, Dhuna, Otega, and Sassi. Lower canopy includes a variety of shrubs and herbs.”
The study divided the area of influence of the project into two divisions: the core area, where the villages are directly impacted by the project, and the buffer area, within 2.5 km radius of the project, where the proposed well sites are located.
The assessment cited Census 2011 data to state that of the villages in which the wells were proposed to be located, Cinnamara (3,045 households), Meleng Grant (1,842 households), and No.160 Grant (1,475 households) were the most populous. In contrast, Mout Gaon, Sukanpania Gaon (Sukanjonia Gaon), No.11 Grant, and Bengalis Gaon had fewer than 100 households each.
Highlights
- Cairn, a Vedanta arm, plans to fast-track a Rs.264 crore project in a wildlife-rich and ecologically sensitive area of Assam. The National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) said that the plan would not be approved until a site inspection was carried out.
- Cairn plans to drill 29 wells in the oil block area if there is a commercially viable discovery of hydrocarbons.
- In 2020, gas leakage in Oil India Ltd’s Baghjan project in Tinsukia highlighted the danger of providing clearance for oil projects in ecologically sensitive areas.
Change in policy
In January 2020, when the EIA of the project was still under its consideration, the Central government effected a change in policy, whereby oil block allottees were no longer required to obtain environmental clearance before drilling and exploratory activities. The provisions of the 2006 notification would, however, continue to remain applicable for extraction of hydrocarbons for commercial purposes as per the Environment Ministry’s Gazette notification issued on January 16, 2020.
At the time, environmentalists and conservationists criticised the move and alleged that it was made for the benefit of corporate conglomerates, as almost all oil blocks, onshore and offshore, were in ecologically sensitive areas.
A 1.65-km-long single-track railway line passes through the gibbon sanctuary, causing a canopy gap of about 50 m, which is too big for the gibbons to cross. To rectify this, the Railways plans to build canopy bridges across the track. | Photo Credit: WILDLIFE INSTITUTE OF INDIA
Following this, a statement by the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons said: “As exploration activities in the hydrocarbon sector have been moved from Category A to Category B2, [they] will now require environmental clearance only from the States concerned and will not require preparation of an EIA report or conduct of public hearing. However, development or production, both on offshore/onshore fields as hydrocarbon blocks, will continue to merit assessment as ‘Category A’.”
Baghjan incident
The same year, on May 27, gas leakage in Oil India Ltd’s Baghjan project in Tinsukia district of Assam brought several issues to the forefront, including disregard of the environment while providing clearance for oil projects in ecologically sensitive areas.
Following the leakage, on June 9, the oil well caught fire, in what was one of the worst oil well disasters in the country. The fire was brought under control after several months but not without considerable loss of lives, displacement of local communities, and large-scale environmental degradation to the Dibru Saikhowa National Park and the Maguri Motapung Beel, a wetland near the park. Issues pertaining to compensation and rehabilitation of communities affected by the disaster have allegedly not been resolved to date.
In June 2020, Vedanta prepared a comprehensive plan outlining the description of the project and for the conservation of Schedule I species (Indian elephant and Hoolock gibbon) in the project area.
The report on its comprehensive plan stated: “The Ministry of Environment and Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has issued an approved ToR [terms of reference] vide file No. IA-J-11011/93/2019-IA-II(I) dated April 18, 2019. The approved ToR is attached as Appendix 1.1. However as per the recent amendment published by MOEF&CC on January 16, 2020, exploration activity is categorised as B2 project and needs to obtain environmental clearance from State Environmental Impact Assessment Authority [SEIAA]. Cairn has applied to SEIAA Assam for environmental clearance of drilling of exploratory & appraisal wells vide proposal no. SIA/AS/IND2/142005/2020 dated February 11, 2020. This EIA study has been carried out as per the earlier ToR issued by MOEF&CC as early production activity was already included in the Form 1 and PFR submitted for that ToR.” It is a matter of legal debate whether policy changes can be made applicable in a post facto manner to projects after issuance of ToR by the Environment Ministry for the purpose of EIA studies. Nevertheless, in the report on its comprehensive plan, Vedanta further elaborated on its plan to carry out production activities as quickly as possible, in case of discovery of commercially viable hydrocarbons following exploration.
NDRF personnel carrying out search and rescue operations after an Oil India Ltd well caught fire at the Baghjan oilfield in Assam’s Tinsukia district, on June 9, 2020. | Photo Credit: PTI
It said: “The proposed project in AA-OHNP-2017/4 hydrocarbon block, includes setting up of 6 EPUs [early production units] with capacity of 2,000 BFPD [barrels fluid per day] each and production of up to 12,000 BOPD [barrels of oil per day] crude oil and up to 2.4 MMSCFD [million standard cubic per day] associated natural gas. Vedanta Ltd (Division: Cairn Oil & Gas), as an interim plan, in case of commercially viable discovery (s) of hydrocarbons in the block and having established the size of the hydrocarbon field (s), proposes to bring the field (s) into production [of] oil and gas immediately using one or more successful exploratory & appraisal wells by setting up of EPUs or quick production units (QPUs). Early production of the crude oil will enable the country to reduce dependence on import of crude oil.”
Vedanta report
This report mentions in detail the environmental settings and human settlements in proximity to the project. The oil block lies across Mariani, Jorhat West, Jorhat East, Teok, and Titabor tehsils in Jorhat. At least one of the major settlements, Mariani, is just 170 m to the north of the oil block. Two other settlements, Teok and Titabor, are outside but in close vicinity to the block boundary.
The report said: “No part of the block area is falling within the Hollongapar Gibbon WLS. However, a portion of the block area is falling within the notified ESZ around the Hollongapar Gibbon WLS. The part of the block area (181.31 sq km) which is falling within the ESZ is not part of the proposed project and excluded from the present EC application.... None of the development & production activity is planned inside the notified ESZ and within the forest area in this hydrocarbon block.... The land use comprises of tea gardens, homestead plantations, agricultural lands, forest land and settlements. Besides these, river, canal, water bodies and marshy land have been observed in the proposed block.”
“The Himanta Biswa Sarma–led State government had recommended the project’s clearance as it will apparently help in mainstreaming disgruntled Nagas living on Assam’s border apart from reducing the country’s dependence on expensive imported oil. ”
The report is explicit about the presence of scheduled fauna in the project area. It states that as per the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, two species belonging to Schedule I, namely Hoolock gibbon (Hoolock hoolock) and Indian elephant (Elephas maximus indicus), were found in the study area.
It provides a detailed conservation action plan for each animal, adding: “Hoolock gibbons usually are found at elevations ranging from 152 m to 1,370 m. This species prefers undisturbed forested areas like thick evergreen, mixed evergreen, and scrub forest.”
Protecting wildlife
The action plan, as per the report, includes plantation activities, wildlife protection display boards, and creation of awareness programme among working personnel, with a total budget of Rs.1 crore over a period of 10 years. On the other hand, Vedanta submitted a separate application on June 6, 2023, with the Environment Ministry seeking consent for diversion of about 4.5 hectares of reserved forest land for oil and gas exploration drilling under the provisions of the amended Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980. The ministry’s FAC considered the proposal during two meetings held on July 4 and August 27 this year. A few discrepancies emerge in the project proposal as per the minutes of these two meetings. The minutes of the meeting held on July 4 say that the drilling site would be located within the notified ESZ of the Hoolock Gibbon WLS. This is in contrast to Vedanta’s conservation plan.
It says that the area proposed for diversion is 4.4998 hectares and only 17 trees are proposed to be felled in the proposal, and that one borehole of drill cutting size 1,023 cubic m is proposed. The document quotes the proposal as saying that the project area lies within the notified ESZ of Hollongapar Gibbon WLS. It said: “Species like Elephant, leopard, and Hoolock gibbon have been reported in the area proposed for diversion.”
It further quotes a report by the Divisional Forest Officer of Jorhat as stating that the project is in a “relatively small area” and that “no major construction is anticipated”. “Hence, the impact will be minimal and if necessary, a wildlife management and mitigation plan shall be prepared and all precautions shall be taken to cause minimal disturbance to the wildlife and to mitigate man-animal conflict.”
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Contrary to Vedanta’s conservation plan, after a site inspection conducted on April 9 this year, the State forest department in its report makes no mention of the presence of Hoolock gibbons in the project site area. Nevertheless, in its report, the department recommended obtaining prior consent from the NBWL as the proposed area is located withn the ESZ of Hollongapar Gibbon WLS.
It also recommended that the Chief Wildlife Warden approve a human-elephant conflict mitigation and wildlife conservation plan with special emphasis on protecting the gibbon. The report also mentions the presence of elephants in the area.
Despite these studies, reports, and inconsistencies, the Environment Ministry’s FAC recommended the project for clearance in a meeting held on August 27. The minutes of the meeting also state that as many as 17 trees will be felled for the exploration project.
In tune with the Assam government, the FAC, too, recommended in-principle approval for the project based on “national interest” while listing a number of terms and conditions.
Cairn response
A set of queries were emailed by this correspondent to Cairn Oil & Gas on the exact number of trees that will be felled for the project and the sighting of Hoolock gibbons, if any, during its own site visits.
In a response, a spokesperson of Cairn said: “As an environment conscious company, Cairn Oil & Gas strongly believes in protecting the biodiversity of the regions we operate in. We follow the highest standards of ESG [environmental, social and governance] compliance in our business operations, to keep the environment and lives safe. We continue to strictly adhere to the stringent environment guidelines as stipulated by both the State government and Central government Ministries. We are strongly committed to our goal of ‘No Net Loss to biodiversity due to our operations’ and further strive to make ‘Net Positive Impact to local biodiversity’.”
Ayaskant Das is an independent journalist and writer based in Delhi-NCR.
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