KATHMANDU: World Environment Day! Prosperity and sustainable development is only possible when balanced development is executed.
The country is heading towards development and prosperity along with exit from long transitional period and political instability. The expectaions of people are growing higher. The government, aiming to address their ambitious projects assured during elections, has planned to execute them.
The plans such as east-west railway, national and international airports, operating own ships, widening highways, developing new highways, irrigation projects, completion of hydroprojects having more than 15,000MW capacity and constructing fast trac roads are on pipeline. The government’s interest in infrastructures development is certainly praiseworthy.
However, it is important concern how we have envisioned the approaches for development projects with sustainable and balanced preparations. In course of implementing these development projects from Mechi to Mahakali zones, the biggest impacts will have on environment and nature. The preliminary indications of impacts and destruction have clearly surfaced that can lead to long-term deadly consequences.
Some 2.4 million trees are being cleared in the name of Nijgadh International Airport development. It is still uncertain to where they are compensated. Millions of trees were cut down in course of fast-track road development while petroleum pipeline project has been launched without environmental impact assessment (EIA). Thousands of trees will be felled down in this project too. EIA reports, which are mandatory as per environmental laws, are not being publicized. These documents are concern of public entities.
The EIA reports are just taken as formal tool as show pieces. In fact, it is the multi-disciplinary managerial analysis of development activities. So it is the need of hours to prepare sound EIA reports and their effective implementation.
The environmental aspects were totally neglected while developing Ranijamara irrigation project of far western Nepal. A large number of deer in course of crossing the canal died of falling on the hot water. Hundreds of wild animals face death accidents along Barandabhar forest of Chitwan, which connects the national park with Mahabharat range, the roads inside banke and Bardiya national parks every year. There is not underpass developed for the animals to go from one side to another area. There is instance of rarest animal Bengal tiger was killed in road accidents . It should be carefully taken measures to mitigate such accidents in each place.
Envoronmental concerns raised for years are yet to be addressed. Among them, air pollution in urban areas is deadly. The government included to promote electric vehicles in its policy and programs for years. But it has not been implemented under pressure from transport entrepreneurs. Most of the pollution checking centers are defunct and batries have been stolen from some places. Nobody has thought to replace the trees removed in course of developing Kalanki-Koteshwor section of Ring Road. On the other hand, cycle lane has not been developed along the Ring Road.
The Chure region and rivers are extremely and continuously exploited by digging out sand, concretes, pebbles and other products. Brick and crushers industries are never regulated and unchecked. The reports prepared to shift crusher and mine industries have been concealed. The environmental issues are frequently misused as means of making money. Environment Protection Act, Regulations and guidelines are not effectively implemented. River pollution is on the rise. Industries and factories throw the polluted remains directly to the rivers without treatment. The outlet of chicken farm at Andhikhola of Syangja killed millions of fishes in the river.
All these instances indicate that there is extreme destruction of environment and nature. New plans are developed but environmental aspects are not cared in their implementation. What will be the effect if they are implemented without EIA? What will happen if they are not timely addressed? The government, specially Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, should keep eyes on it.
There are heaps of environmental problems and complaints. However, representatives of federal, provincial and local governments have not played satisfactory or effective roles to sort out the problems. Instead of addressing them legally, the political leaders are busy in rhetorics and temporary activities.
Therefore, Nepal Forum for Environment Journalists (NEFEJ) urges all to address the environmental issues legally and policy-wise interventions. It demands to establish effective system and mechanism to tackle the environmental and natural destruction. If it is done, only then environment day will be meaningful. We conclude that the government should be seriously firm on the environmental concerns.
Addressing the world environment day, PM Oli argued that the country will not achieve sustainable development goals without effective EIA. The concerns raised by PM are grave but the government has not adoped these measures in the projects it has brought. The opoinions of PM should be implemented in practice or PM should intervene in it.
NEFEJ urges not to confine the government statements in speeches. The country needs development, not destruction. NEFEJ concludes that the development works accepting nature’s existence will be only sustainable. NEFEJ has not imagined development without forests, wildlife, rivers, water animals and natural environment.
