Mines Ministry told to reclassify minor minerals

The panel had recommended that the Ministry of Mines along with states classify minor minerals and set environmental safeguards based on the scale of production. For example,while sand falls in the category of minor mineral,depending on which industry it is mined for,though the scale of production is much higher. The report points out that the total value of minor minerals comes to as much as 10 per cent of total mineral production.

Noting that there are “significant adverse impacts on environment” by the mining of minor minerals,the MoEF has also recommended that the uniform sizes of leases over a regulated time period be given out so that proper environmental safeguards be made.

The MoEF has now recommended that states give leases for five hectare plots for a minimum period of five years. For riverbed quarrying,the environment ministry has asked for a cap on depth at three metres.

Further,a recommendation has also been made for creating mine clusters where possible to keep stretches contiguous. Echoing the Central Empowered Committee’s suggestion in the Aravalli case,the MoEF has asked for the creation of a corpus fund to rehabilitate mines–so far an idea expressed only for major minerals.

Minor or major

AS per existing rules,minerals like sand and limeshell are classified as ‘minor’ depending on their end use in a particular industry. So,while sand used for glass industry will not be ‘minor’ mineral,for other,less industrial,uses it can be classified as minor. However,these minerals,especially silica sand and limestone,are quarried at scales which exceed that of industrial mines. The loophole is thus the classification of the production,and environmental safeguards and impacts on the water table are ignored.