PANAJI: Accepting the demand of the state government and the general public as regards to saving the houses, tenements of the traditional fishermen and others, the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests has made some Goa-specific provisions to the Coastal Regulation Zone notification, in its pre-draft to the proposed amendments.

Announcing this at a press conference the state Environment Minister, Mr Aleixo Sequeira said that as per the proposed amendment it could be notified in about 3-4 months’ time and accordingly the Goa government should survey and map the fishing villages all along the Goa coast. He further said that another provision provided in the amendment was that facilities required for fishing and fishery-allied activities such as traditional fish processing yards, boat building/repair yards, net mending yards, ice plants, ice storage, auction hall, jetties should be provided.
Besides, there was also a provision in the proposed amendment to permit reconstruction, repair works of the structures of local communities in CRZ, said the state Environment Minister adding that sand dunes, beach stretches along the bays and creeks should be surveyed and mapped and no commercial activity should be permitted on sand dune areas.
Mr Sequeira further said that yet another provision was that the eco-sensitive low lying areas which were influenced by tidal action known as khazan lands should be mapped and the mangroves along such khazan lands should be protected and a management plan for the khazan lands prepared. As per the provision in the pre-draft, no developmental activities should be permitted in the khazan lands.
As per the draft amendment, the beaches of Morjim, Galgibag and Agonda would be designated as turtle nesting sites and protected under Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. These areas should be surveyed and management plan prepared for protection of these turtle nesting sites. Besides, no developmental activities should be permitted in such turtle breeding areas, said Mr Sequeira.
The Environment Minister has called upon people of the state to send their suggestions and objections to the proposed amendments by May 15 to the department of Science, Technology and Environment, so that the government could forward the same to the Union ministry for consideration and inclusion in the CRZ notification. The last date set by MoEF for submitting suggestions/objections is May 30.
The Minister thanked Mr Jairam Ramesh, the Union Minister of Environment and Forests, for accepting the demands of the state and incorporating Goa-specific provisions. He also thanked the Congress president, Ms Sonia Gandhi and the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh. Later replying to queries from the reporters as regards to legalisation of commercial buildings, Mr Sequeira said that as per the provisions made in the draft amendments to the CRZ notification there was hardly any provision that would permit validation of these structures.
Mr Sequeira, who is also the Power Minister, said that the government had no proposal to set up gas-based power plants in the state, even as he said that there were several proposals from the private firms to set up gas-based power plants. “The government would rather purchase power from producers,” he said adding that the government has made arrangements to procure 800 mW of power from other states to meet the expected demand of 721 mW by the year 2012.