ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN

Transcription

1 ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN 1.0 Introduction This report discusses the management plan for mitigation/abatement of adverse environmental impacts and enhancement of beneficial impacts due to the mining project. The EMP has been designed within the framework of various legislative and regulatory requirements on environmental and socio economic aspects. M/s. proposes to conduct opencast fully mechanised method quarrying for Manufactured Sand and Road metal extraction of Tons/annum in an area of ha at Survey No. 24 (569), 854, 855, 857, 858, 859 & 860, Somandepalli Village and Mandal, Ananthapuramu District, Andhra Pradesh State. In principle of mine lease application notice by The Deputy Director of Mines and geology, Kurnool vide notice no. 2923/Q3 M.Sand/ATP/2016 dated for a period of 10 years. Mining Plan was approved by the Deputy Director of Mines and Geology, Kurnool vide letter no. 3031/MP ATP/2016 dated Capital cost for the proposed quarrying activity is Rs. 4 Crores. M/s. is conscious of his environmental responsibility towards the society in minimizing the pollution load due to this project and accordingly decided to prepare. The objective of preparing environment management plan is to delineate effective measures to control and to mitigate the environmental pollution. This report presents the environment management plan, detailing the environmentally sound technology and the measures needed to contain and mitigate the anticipated environmental impacts due to the project. 1.1 Mine Location The proposed Quarry lease area of ha at Survey No. 24 (569), 854, 855, 857, 858, 859 & 860, Somandepalli Village and Mandal, Ananthapuramu District, Andhra Pradesh State. The quarry lease area falls in the Survey of India topo sheet no. 57 G/9 with the co ordinates of Latitude 13 59'42.55"N and Longitude 77 36'48.29"E with an elevation of 785 m. The nearest village is Somandepalli located at a distance of 1.4 km from the QL area in NW direction. The major road access is NH 7 (Bangalore Hyderabad) located at a distance of 1.5 km in North direction. Cart road is available from main road to lease area. Nearest town is Penukonda located at a distance of 9.5 km in NW direction. Railway Station is Chakarlapalli located at a 1 1

2 distance of 3.3km from the QL area in NW direction. Penukonda RF is located at a distance of 4.3 km in NW direction. Somandepalli RF is located at a distance of 1.6 km in NE direction. Kaligera RF is located at a distance of 6.7km in NE direction. Errakonda RF is located at a distance of 7.3 km in SE direction. There are no sensitive areas like national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, state/national boundaries observed in 10km radius from the quarry lease area. Quarry lease location map is presented in figure 1.1. Details of the quarry lease area are presented in table 1.1. GPS Coordinates are below ' 42.4''N, ' 35.7''E ' 48.4 N, ' 39.8''E ' 49.1 N, ' 44.6''E ' 50.6 N, ' 48.7''E ' 49.9 N, ' 58.4''E ' 46.7 N, ' 57.9''E ' 42.2 N, ' 59.1''E ' 38.1 N, ' 59.4''E ' 33.7 N, ' 43.2''E ' 40.6 N, ' 42.8''E Table 1.1 Details of the Quarry Lease area State and District Mandal and Village Survey No Andhra Pradesh and Ananthapuramu Somandepalli 24 (569), 854, 855, 857, 858, 859 & 860 Area in hectares Ownership and status of occupancy Govt land 1.2 Land use pattern of the lease area The Quarry lease area is located on a hill raised 156m above ground level within the quarry lease area. S. No Purpose Extent (Ha) 1 Area proposed for quarrying Waste Dump Area Road Infrastructure(Office, rest shelter) Green belt Stack Yard Vacant Total

3 Fig 1.1 Quarry Lease Location Map of M/s. 1 3

4 Fig 1.2 Quarry Lease area of M/s. 1 4

5 2.0 Topography The quarry lease applied area is located on a hill rising 156m above the ground level within the lease area. 3.0 Regional Geology The district is underlain by various geological formations ranging in Age from Archaean to Recent. Major part of the district is underlain by the granites, gneisses and schists of Archaean and Dharwar Super group. Northeastern part of the district is occupied by the quartzites, limestone, shales of Cuddapah and Kurnool Group of rocks. Alluvium is restricted to Pennar, Vedavati and Papaghni rivers. The Archaean crystalline rocks include granites, gneisses and Dharwarian schists. The ground water in these formations occurs in the weathered and fractured zones under water table and semi confined conditions respectively. These rock types do not posses primary porosity. Due to fractured and weathering, they have developed secondary porosity often giving rise to potential aquifers at depth. The degree of weathering in the Archaean formation is less than 20 m. 4.0 Geology of Lease area Major rock types Granites, gneisses Quartzites. In the area forms dome shaped, steeply sloping hills. The rock is medium to coarse grained texture composed of greasy quartz, Hypersthene, orthoclase and plagioclase with or without garnet. The rock is massive, with widely spaced vertical to sub vertical joints trending in NE SW direction. It is observed that sheet joints are absent. Owing to its compact and hardness charnockite with stand to weathering and form huge, steeply sloping dome shaped hills in the area. 5.0 Details of prospecting carried out No prospecting operations were conducted. As the entire hill exposed is totally with boulders and massive sheet rock. 6.0 Reserves Estimation The deposit is found to be irregular in shape; the volume of the deposit is computed by Cross sectional Area method. 9 Cross Sections (B B1 to J J1) are drawn perpendicular to the slope direction for Reserves Estimation. The deposit up to datum RL 600 (i.e BM is fixed at Boundary Pillar "A" in Western border of lease area with value m). Hence, only G1 (Proved) scale category as (111) code is calculated. No resources are considered under G2 & G3 (Probable & Possible) scale of exploration. As per UNFC guidelines the G3 (333) (Possible) 1 5

6 category are not considered as they are not mineable unless proved by exploration on the continuation of the deposit. Table 1.2 Geological Reserves Section Category & UNFC Code Section Area in m² Sectional Influence in m Volume in m³ T.F Reserves in T B B C C D D E E F F1 Proved (111) G G H H I I J J Total Reserves Blocked under 7.5 m Buffer Zone Section Section Area Sectional Volume in m³ T.F Reserves in T in m² Influence in m B B C C D D E E F F G G H H I I J J Total Reserves blocked under Safety Slopes Section Section Sectional Volume in T.F Reserves in T Area in m² Influence in m m³ B B C C D D E E F F G G H H I I J J Total

7 6.1 Mineable reserves and life of quarry Based on the present Mining Method and the prevailing legislation it can be safely assumed that 100% of the Geological reserves can be safely extracted. Rest can t be excavated as they are left in Buffer zone, slopes etc. Proved Reserves = T Reserves blocked under 7.5 m buffer Zone = T Reserves blocked under safety slopes = T Total Reserves blocked = T Reserves available for mining = T Life of the mine = Total Reserves available for Mining/ Proposed Annual Production = / = Years or say 15 Years 7.0 Mining Method The Manufactured Sand and Road Metal in the quarry lease applied area is exposed on the surface with sheet. Hence, it is proposed to quarry the sheet by open cast fully mechanized method by developing the multiple benches of 10 m height and 12 m bench width with deep drilling and blasting. The development of benches in the sheet rock will be 60 safety slopes. 7.1 Year wise development and production It is proposed to take up quarrying operations in entire quarry lease applied area between the grids N & E The excavation activity will be taken up in southern part of the quarry area and advances westwards. It is proposed to initiate the quarry operations covering the peak of the hill from contour 811m, by slicing the rock with 10m bench heights. The successive years workings will continue beneath the first year and extends North and West directions. 1 st Year: In the first year the quarrying will be initiated covering the peak of the hill from Contour 811 m by slicing the rock with 8 m bench heights between the grids N & E covering surface area of m 2 the benches will reach RL 772 m. The quarrying advances westwards. The Volume of Rock mass to be excavated is calculated with cross sectional area method. A total Volume of m 3 excavated, producing

8 Tons of ROM generating 95% ( Tons) Metal, Sand and Aggregates, and 5% ( Tons) of OB and Intercalated waste is anticipated. 2 nd Year: In the second year quarrying will be carried out below the 1 st year and also extends North and West between the grids N & E covering surface area of m 2 the benches will reach RL 752 m. The quarrying advances westwards. The Volume of Rock mass to be excavated is calculated with cross, sectional area method. A total Volume of m 3 excavated, producing Tons of ROM generating 95% ( Tons) Metal, Sand and Aggregates, and 5% ( Tons) of OB and Intercalated waste is anticipated. 3 rd Year: In the third year the quarrying will continue in depth below and extends Northwards of previous year workings between the grids N & E covering surface area of m 2 the benches will reach RL m. The quarrying advances westwards. The Volume of Rock mass to be excavated is calculated with cross sectional area method. A total Volume of m 3 excavated, producing Tons of ROM generating 95% ( Tons) Metal sand and aggregates and 5% ( Tons) of OB and Intercalated waste is anticipated. 4 th Year: In the fourth year the quarrying will continue in depth below and extends westwards of previous year workings between the grids N & E covering surface area of 7157 m 2 the benches will reach RL m. The quarrying advances westwards. The Volume of Rock mass to be excavated is calculated with cross sectional area method. A total Volume of m 3 excavated, producing Tons of ROM generating 95% ( Tons) Metal, Sand and Aggregates, and 5% ( Tons) of OB and Intercalated waste is anticipated 5 th Year: In the fifth year the quarrying will continue in depth below and extends westwards of previous year workings between the grids N & E covering surface area of 7157 m 2 the benches will reach RL m. The quarrying advances westwards. The volume of Rock mass to be excavated is calculated with cross 1 8

9 sectional area method. A total Volume of m 3 excavated, producing Tons of ROM generating 95% ( Tons) Metal, Sand and Aggregates, and 5% ( Tons) of OB and Intercalated waste is anticipated. Year wise production and waste generation details are presented in table 1.3. Year Section Section Area in m² Table 1.3 Year wise Production Sectional Influence in m Volume in m³ 1 9 T.F ROM in T 95 % in T 5 % in T 1 B B Total B B C C Total B B C C D D E E Total B B C C D D E E Total B B C C D D E E Total Grand Total Average List of Machinery 9.0 Drilling & Blasting S. No. Machinery No's 1. Drilling Machines 2 2. Tippers 21 3 Excavator 2 4 Loaders 2 5 Rock Breakers 2 6 Compressors 2 Drill holes of 10.5 m depth will be drilled in a staggered pattern at 3 m x 4 m interval: i) Drill hole diameter : 102/115 mm up to 10.5 m long

10 ii) Depth and inclination of drill hole : Generally drilled vertically in an alignment, drilled iii) Explosive type : ANFO + Booster & Detonator Fuse and Nitrate Mixture, Cartridges, Shock Tubes, Delay Detonators Each blast hole will yield tons Drilling Machine required with 102 /115 mm drilling machine Bench Height = 10.50M Spacing = 3.00 M Burden = 4.0 M Bulk Density (Insitu) = 1.70 Depth of Drilling = M Yield per m of drilling = = x 3.00 x 4.00 x Tons Rate of drilling = 15 mtrs / hr Drilling capacity per day with effective 10 hours = 15x10 = 150 Yield per meter of drilling/day = 20.4 Rate of Proposed production per day = 7718 T Requirement of drilling per day for = 7718 / No. of 10.5 m drilling = say 36 No. of meters required = 36 x 10.5 = 378 m No. of Machines required per day considering 80% availability = 378/150=2.52 say 3 machinery 10.0 Transportation of the mineral from quarry to yard and to the destination The metal, sand and aggregates, intercalated waste will be loaded by excavators into the tippers and hauled to the stock yard for dispatch. The lessee will deploy 21 tippers for transportation of mineral and waste Solid Wastes Generation and Management Plan 5% of Intercalated waste is anticipated to be generated, most of the waste will be utilised for roads formation. However in the event of excess waste generated, waste will be dumped along the South Eastern part of the quarry lease applied area over an extent of 2.0 ha to a height of 30 m Employment Potential The following employees are required for the proposed mining operations 1 10

11 Table 1.4 Employment Potential S. No. Category No. of Persons 1 Agent st Class Mines Manager nd Class Mines Manager 2 4 Mine Foreman 3 5 Mine Mate 1 6 Blaster 1 7 Skilled workers 15 8 Semi Skilled Workers 10 9 Un skilled Administrative staff 8 11 Watch and ward 6 Total Site Services Temporary Office, Rest Rooms, First Aid Room, Shelters, Water for drinking will be provided in the quarry premises on make shift arrangement Water requirement Water requirement is mainly for drinking purpose, domestic purpose, green belt maintaining and for sprinkling on Mine haulage roads and on waste dump, the water shall be drawn from nearby village. The domestic waste water shall be sent to septic tank followed by soak pit. Rainwater storage tank of 5 KL capacity will be provided to collect the storm water for reuse and also water from nearby village. This will ensure that the rainwater is effectively used and minimizes the drawl of ground water resources. The water requirement is presented in table 1.5. Table 1.5 Water Requirement S. No Water Usage Quantity KLD 1 Wet drilling operation Water sprinkling on haul roads +1/4th for waste dump Ltr/Head (58 No s) Green KL 2 times a day 0.4 Total Environmental protection is an issue that no organization can neglect and hope to survive. The products of civilization are being dumped upon the environment to a degree that the environment finds difficult to assimilate. The key to the success of the integrated approach to 1 11

12 pollution prevention and control is the management and operation of the organization. Effective committed management delivers a successful operation. As total commitment to the environment, not just for compliance with legal or regulatory compliance will be the essence of environment management. Many companies have recognized the benefits of implementing an effective environmental management system. Environmental management plan can be effectively implemented to mitigate the pollution levels by observing the following: a. Pollution will be prevented or reduced at the source b. Pollution that cannot be prevented will be recycled in an environmentally safe manner. c. Pollution that cannot be prevented or recycled will be treated in environmentally safe manner and d. Disposal and other releases into the environment will be used only as a last resort and will be conducted in an environmentally safe manner. The proposed project is stone quarrying. The mine owners are aware of the adverse impacts due to the mining activity and propose to initiate a number of measures for the environment protection within the mine area and in the surrounding areas. The company has a stated environmental policy of ensuring regulatory compliance with respect to the statutory laws and regulations and those periodically issued by the Ministry of Environment, GOI, New Delhi, CPCB, New Delhi and State Pollution Control Board Sources of Pollution and Control Measures The sources of pollution are air and noise from the proposed activity mainly from Mining, drilling, Blasting and transportation of mineral Air Pollution and its Control The Metal, sand and aggregates quarrying does not involve much dust formation. The dust would be generated during drilling, blasting, quarrying and also during handling and transportation of the material. The dust anticipated at drilling place will be suppressed by putting cloth around the hole. Use of sharp drill pits for drilling holes and drills with water flushing systems (wet drilling) to reduce dust generation. Water spraying to be adopted at Faces/sites before and after blasting, Faces/sites while loading. Over charging of blast holes should be avoided. Personal protective equipments like nose mask and goggles etc will be provided to the workers. Regular water spraying on haul roads during transportation of 1 12

13 mineral and waste by water sprinklers. Over loading of transport equipments should be avoided to prevent spillage. Also, measures such as covering tarpaulin over the loaded material will prevent spreading of dust particles from the trucks. Speed controls on vehicle movements to limited speed. Wind reduction control by plantation. Over burden dump has reached the optimum size, it will covered with top soil and water will spread on top soil and grass will be developed on the dump. Limiting the height and slope of the stockpiles can also reduce wind speed. Regular checking and maintenance of vehicles should be conducted and pollution under control certificate be obtained. Periodical monitoring of ambient air quality will helps to take steps to control the pollutants Noise pollution and its control The major source of noise pollution is due to drilling of drill holes, machinery, Blasting and vehicular movement. Blasting operations will be carried out only during daytime so as to avoid high noise intensity in night time. Noise barriers in the form of trees are provided to attenuate the noise levels and green belt of 3m width shall be developed to mitigate propagation of noise. Protective equipment to reduce the noise levels like ear muffs and other protective devices will be provided to the staff working near noise generating sources like drill machine operators and dumper drivers. Training would be imparted to mine personnel to generate awareness about the damaging effects of noise. The transport activity shall be restricted to day time to reduce impact on habitation. The engines of the tractors shall be switched off during loading operation, and shall be periodically maintained to ensure low noise levels. Proper maintenance of the equipment will also reduce the noise Occupational Safety and Health Health and safety aspects of the mine will be taken care off as per the World Bank (WB) guidelines on open pit mining. The guidelines provide the detailed information on the aspects that are required to be taken into account for maintaining proper health and safety issues. The workers continuously exposed to dust will be provided with protective devices like dust mask to prevent respiratory disorders. The workers continuously exposed to a high noise will be provided with ear muffs/ earplugs. Green belt in and around the mining area will be developed to attenuate noise and dust impact. The blasting carried out in the mine area will be carefully planned and executed under the supervision of a responsible officer, to avoid any accidents. Provisions of rest shelter for mine workers with facility of drinking water supply for 1 13

14 the employees will be provided by the project authority. The standard of the drinking water will be per WHO guidelines. Periodical training programme to inform the employees about their task, associated risk, and safe working practices will be undertaken. Conduct of mock drill, Safe storage & handling of explosives. Training will also include information on accident prevention, proper control and maintenance of equipment and safe material handling practices. Awareness on safety and ensure using of personal protective equipments (PPE) by workers. Regular maintenance and testing of equipments will be done. A regular monitoring of the Occupational Health and Safety will reduce the chances of accidents in the mine. Records of job related accidents and illness should be maintained. This information will be reviewed and evaluated to improve the effectiveness of Environmental Health and Safety programme. Occupational Safety and Health to Control Dust Inhalation Very little dust is expected to be generated during mining and does not affect the environment. However while drilling to avoid dust dispersion, wet drilling will be practiced. It is a small scale mining activity with few truck trips as production capacity is low. All the above precautions would be adopted to prevent dust generation at site and to be dispersed in the outside environment. However, for the safety of workers at site, engaged at the strategic locations/dust generation points like drills, loading and unloading points dust masks would be provided. Dust masks would prevent inhalation of RSPM thereby reducing the risk of lung diseases and other respiratory disorders. Regular health monitoring of workers will be carried out Occupational Safety and Health to Control Exposure to Noise Blasting will be done using non delay detonators to reduce vibrations, and the amount of explosive used will also be less at a time. There will not be heavy earth moving machinery which may create some noise pollution. Thus the vibration and noise will be well controlled within permissible limits. To protect the workers from exposure to high levels of noise, following measures would be adopted: Provision of protective devices like ear muffs/ear plugs to workers who cannot be isolated from the source of high intensity noise, e.g. blasting; Reducing the exposure time of workers to the higher noise levels by shift management. 1 14

15 Smooth blasting techniques, special explosives and silent non explosive demolishing agent will be used. Muffed blasting and use of Milli second detonators will help in reducing the noise pollution Control of Ground Vibration & Fly Rock generation In this area the applicant proposes to deploy blasting with less quantity of non explosives. There will not be any impact on surroundings, as there are less blasting and intended to use low power explosives in this mine. It is a small scale mine and only limited No. of holes are blasted. Ground vibrations due to blasting and its impact on various mine structures, should be studied in details when the mine becomes operational, especially the charge per delay factor. General measures to reduce ground vibration & fly rocks resulting from blasting are given below: Blasting should be carried out in the daytime, as during the night time the sound intensity becomes higher; Blasting should not be carried out when strong winds are blowing towards the inhabited areas; Maximum permissible charge per delay should be decided on the basis of the distance of structure to be protected from the blasting. The number of rows in a blast should not be more than four so that fly rock generation and ground vibration is reduced. Peak particle velocity or ground vibration for safety of nearby structures and residential buildings is 21 mm/sec (Standard 100 mm/sec); To contain fly rocks, stemming column should not be less than the burden of the hole, and the blasting area should be muffled; Each blast should be carefully planned, checked, and executed under the supervision of a responsible officer. Blasting data/observations should be recorded; and As per the mining plan, in order to ensure slope stabilization, controlled production blasting shall be adopted to avoid tension cracks and back breaks. Such cracks may get filled with water, which reduces the stability of excavated slopes and the angle of slopes Peak Particle Velocity The vibrations are measured as per the assessment criteria given under Bureau of Indian 1 15

16 Standard, IS: (Reaffirmed 2003) Criteria for Safety and Design of Structures Subject to Underground Blasts. Per the assessment criteria, the value of ground particle velocity may be computed from the following expression: Where V = K1 [Q 2/3 /R] 1.25 V = Particle velocity in mm/sec K1 = Constant which may be normally taken as 880 for soil, weathered or soft rock and 1400 for hard rock. Q = Charge per delay (kg), and R = Distance (m) from blast point Based on the above equation, the ground particle velocities at different distances (3 m, 5 m, 10 m, 20 m, 50 m, 70 m, 100 m, 150 m and 200 m) are calculated considering K1 as 880 for soft rocks and 1400 for hard rocks. As per the Standard, for safety of structures from threshold damage, the ground particle velocity should not exceed the following: Soil, Weathered or Soft rock Hard Rock 70 mm/sec 100 mm/sec The results are presented in the Table 1.6 below for the maximum charge Table 1.6 Peak Particle Velocity (V) S. No Peak Particle Velocity (V) mm/second Constant Charge Distance from the Blasting (R in meters) (K1) Per Delay Q= 0.2Kg Q= 0.2Kg It is clear that with Q = 0.2 kg charge per delay shall result in particle velocity of 70 mm/sec in soft rock within a distance of 1.14m, while in the hard rock the particle velocity is 100 mm/sec shall be within 1.16m. There shall not be any structure with in 1.14m of the quarry area, and it may be, concluded that the ground vibrations generated by blasting during the mining operations will not likely to effect the structures proposed in the vicinity of >1.14 m from the point of blast. Concrete structures like office, store etc should not be proposed within the core mine area. These structures otherwise will be affected by the ground vibrations. 1 16

17 18.0 Water Quality Management There is no chemical discharge either from the quarry or from the processing quarry, there will not be water pollution. The proposed quarry workings will not touch the ground water aquifer. Quarrying Operations will be carried out on the slope of the Rocky terrain. The ground water level in this area is 35 45m BGL and the quarrying will be done on above the surface level. Maximum depth of the quarry will be 25m from top of the hill which is about 156 m height from ground level, flooding by ground water is not anticipated. Hence neither ground water table nor the general surface drainage pattern is affected Hence there will not be water pollution. There will be no change in quality of water. However during rainy months, there is a possibility of wet conditions developing in the working pit this will be minimized, if not altogether eliminated, by adopting simple techniques like digging trenches all round to drain off rainwater and preventing surface run off from entering and flooding working pit. The water from the pits will be pumped by deploying suitable pumps, if and when required, the mine drainage can be effectively managed and the pit kept dry to keep up the production schedule Water Resources In this area water table is at greater depth of m BGL and the workings are carried out on top of the hill which is at 156 m height. There are no wells or springs in the area. Hence there will not be adverse effect on ground water due to quarrying. The daily water requirement for the quarry operations would be approximately 4.5 KLD. Water sprinkling on mine haulage roads etc shall consume 5.0 KLD. Wet drilling operations consume about 15 KLD. For green belt development water consumption is about 0.4 KLD. Domestic water requirement is about 2.6 KLD. The required water is sourced from nearby village through tankers. The generation of wastewater from domestic sources is expected to be approximately 2.0 KLD, which will be sent to septic tank followed by soak pit Water Management Following measures will be adopted to mitigate the impact on the water resources: The blasting activities will have to take care on the sinkholes, cracks and fissures in the site activities. During excavation and drilling activities effort must be taken to avoid face collapse at these cracks and fissures. 1 17

18 To prevent surface water contamination by oil/grease, leak proof containers shall be used for storage and transportation of oil/grease. The floors of oil/grease handling area will be kept effectively impervious. To prevent degradation and maintain the water quality during rainy season, adequate control measures should be adopted to check the mine run off into the natural streams. Garland drain and siltation pond need to be constructed of appropriate size to arrest silt and sediment flows from soil. The water so collected will be utilised for watering the mine area, roads, green belt development etc. The drain should be regularly desilted and maintained. The garland drain (size, gradient and length) and sump capacity will be designed keeping 50% safety margin over and above the peak sudden rainfall and maximum discharge in the area adjoining the mine site. Sump capacity should also provide adequate retention period to provide proper settling of silt material. The surface water around the mine, and infrastructure will be regularly tested and appropriate control measures adopted in case of any pollutant is detected above the prescribed limits Waste Management plan During the plan period a total volume of t will be excavated out of which t of waste will be produced. Most of the waste will be utilized for roads formation Dump Area During this plan period about T of waste will be produced. This waste will be dumped in area of 1.0 ha to a height of 30 m in SE part of the quarry lease area. By the end of lease period about 2.0 ha will be utilized for dumping of waste material. Most of the waste will be utilized for roads formation Land Management Land degradation is one of the major adverse impacts of opencast mining in the form of excavated voids. The quarry lease area is part of sloping hill side and reclamation is not possible by backfilling. The pits will be utilized for water storage and water harvesting structures Soil Conservation Measures The applied area is hill in the wavy and irregular. Therefore, the growth of trees and plants is uncertain and not satisfactory. Hence, in this area few small plants and thorny trees are grown here and there. Except this, no big trees are seen in this area. Top soil, if any will be 1 18

19 properly stacked with adequate measures and the same will be used for afforestration in the mined out areas. To prevent soil erosion from freshly excavated benches following measures shall be adopted: Garland drains will be provided around the mine wherever required to arrest any soil from the mine area being carried away by the rain water; Toe drains with suitable baffles will be provided all along the toe of the soil dumps to arrest any soil from the dump slopes being carried away by the rain water; Loose material slopes will be covered by mineation by making contour trenches at 3 5 m interval to check soil erosion both due to wind and rain; Retaining walls (concrete or local stone) will be provided, around the stockpile or wherever required, to support the benches or any loose material as well as to arrest sliding of loose debris House Keeping Proper housekeeping and cleanliness will be maintained in the infrastructure facilities. Wet mopping will be adopted to conserve water. Sign boards will be provided in the work area, along the road and building highlighting the safety and occupational aspects Transport Systems The major road access is NH 7 (Bangalore Hyderabad) located at a distance of 1.5 km in North direction. Cart road is available from main road to lease area. Railway Station is Chakarlapalli located at a distance of 3.3km from the QL area in NW direction. The finished product and waste material is transported by road using trucks of 18 Tons capacity. The number of trips will be approximately 100 per day for transportation of mineral and the trucks are covered with tarpaulin. The lessee will deploy two tractors to transport the finished product, waste mineral, unfinished and finished mineral from quarry site to yard and trucks to transport mineral from yard to destination. The materials while transporting do not pose any hazard. Sufficient parking facilities will be provided for vehicles loading and unloading of material. Safety signs will be displayed inside and outside the mine to avoid road accidents Environmental Greening Program Environmental greening program is an important component of the Environment Management Plan and is an imperative requirement for sink of air pollutants including noise 1 19

20 as per the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Environment and forests, Govt. of India. Conceptualization, design and implementation of the proposed activity, taking into account the specific requirement of the proposed mining activity and the site conditions are presented. Green cover in mining area not only help in reducing pollution level, but also improves the ecological conditions and prevent soil erosion to great extent. It further improves the aesthetics and beneficially influences the microclimate of the surrounding. The applicant proposes for afforestation in the Western boundary of the quarry lease applied area within the 7.5 m buffer zone over an extent of 750 m 2 in phased manner during the plan period with Neem plants. The environmental greening program as designed comprises the location and development of a shelterbelt and Afforestation in about Hectares. The shelterbelt will contain species, which act as windbreakers so that the environment within the mine is contained; the planting of different species in rows is envisaged in general in the greenbelt. A dedicated cell in the mine should be established for post plantation care, which include, regular watering, manuring, protective measures etc. Diseased and dead plants should be uprooted and replaced by fresh saplings. Regular monitoring on survival rate and remedial action should be done in an organized and planned manner Socio economic Environment The project provides an opportunity for the local people to get employment directly or indirectly and helps in the upliftment of the socioeconomic status of the area. The proposed project would generate an employment of 58. The local inhabitants of the area live in the villages surrounding the mine area and their main occupation is Agriculture. In a small way they rear cattle and sheep for sustenance. The mining activity in this belt will benefit the locals both directly and indirectly. The direct beneficiaries will be those who get employed in the mines as skilled and un skilled workers. The indirect beneficiaries will be those who open small business to sell goods required by the residents whose Per Capita income will be enhanced by the mining activity, and thereby their purchasing power. In the long run a lot of social good is expected in the comparatively backward area when the inhabitants will be able to send their children to school. The change, though slow, is bound to be perceptible. The management will involve in social activities of stakeholders/surrounding community by planning the betterment of neighboring social conditions through awareness and welfare programs to ensure an improved relation, useful in the long run. Many of the beneficiaries of 1 20

21 such programs will include own employees as well. The goodwill of the local populace can never be ignored. It is proposed to supply drinking water and medical facilities to the villagers. The management will also support for vocational training and assistance in utilizing government programs. The channels employed may vary either through direct contact or by means of local organizations. Another important facet of social environment identified by the project proponents is a green appearance; hence the management will develop a green belt towards aesthetic beautification as the same is necessary to be considered as a responsible, social neighbour Disaster Planning The following natural/ quarrying hazards may occur during normal operation Slope failure at the mine faces; Accident due to explosives; Accident due to heavy equipment/machinery; Sabotage in case of magazine; and Accidents due to fly rocks and boulders. In order to take care of above hazards/disasters, the following control shall be adopted: All safety precautions are strictly followed during all mining operations; Checking and regular maintenance of garland drains and earthen bunds to avoid any inflow of surface water into mining area; Entry of unauthorized persons shall be prohibited; Fire fighting and first aid provisions in the mines office and mining Area; Provision of all the safety appliances such as safety boots, helmets, dust masks, ear mufflers, goggles etc. would be made available to the employees and regular check to ensure the use; Training and refresher courses for all the employees working in the hazardous premises; Working of mine as per approved plan, related amendments and other regulatory provisions; Cleaning of mine faces shall be done regularly; Handling of explosives, charging and blasting shall be carried out by competent persons only; Provision of magazine at safe place with fencing and necessary security arrangement; 1 21

22 Suppression of dust on the haulage roads by providing water sprinkling Environment Management Cell A Cell for Environmental Management within Mine lease area at the project level, will take the overall responsibility for co ordination of the actions required for environmental management and mitigation, and for monitoring the progress of the proposed management plans and actions to be taken for the project. The Cell will be under the overall supervision of the Mine Manager, and responsible for monitoring of the implementation of the various actions which are to be executed by the agencies specified in the EMP. The Cell will be headed by Mine Manager and the other members of the cell that will include a Horticulturist. The EMC will prepare a formal report on environmental management and mitigation for the Environmental issues at the Mine, at six monthly intervals. Reports on any urgent or significant issues may be prepared at shorter intervals. Apart from responsibilities listed above, the EMC will have the responsibility of the following: Collection of water and air samples within and outside the work zone; Analyzing the water and air samples; Implementation of the control and protective measures; Land reclamation and vegetation; Co ordination of the environment related activities; Collection of the statistics of health of workers; Green belt development; Awareness and implementing safety programmes; and Monitor the progress of implementation of EMP Post Project Monitoring The survey of post project monitoring comprises of the following monitoring aspects; a. Ambient air quality survey b. Noise Level Monitoring c. Water quality monitoring Ambient air quality and noise level Monitoring will be carried out at minimum four stations, two stations within mine site and two stations nearby residential areas outside the mine. Parameters like particulate matter, sulphur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen carbon monoxide and lead will be monitored in case of ambient air quality. Water quality monitoring will be carried 1 22

23 out in the mine working area, sump and nearby village. The frequency of monitoring is preferably once in three months on 24 hour basis. The samples will be collected in accordance with the procedures given by CPCB Other Management Aspects Records will be maintained for the analysis of ambient air quality, noise levels and water quality. These records are not only required for the perusal of the Pollution Control Board authorities to take preventive action against the environmental pollution. The management will maintain the records as per the hazardous waste regulations and EPA regulations and apply for the annual consents for air and water, and renewal of authorization for the storage of hazardous waste as per the Hazardous Waste (Handling & Management) Rules, The records of hazardous waste manifest will be maintained. The mine will obtain the consent for establishment (CFE) and consent for operation (CFO) from State Pollution Control Board as required under section 25/26 of the Water act, 1974 and under section 21/22 of Air Act, 1981, before commissioning and production as directed by the Hon ble Supreme Court of India. The CFO will be renewed each year by the management in consultation with SPCB. The mine will submit environmental statement every year before September 30. The management ensures that it will comply with all the directions and regulations issued by the Ministry of Environment Forests and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), New Delhi, State and Central Pollution Control Boards. The Consent for Establishment, Consent for Operation will be displayed in a conspicuous location for the information of the inspecting authorities of different departments Cost proposed for Environmental Protection Measures The cost estimate of environment management is presented in table 1.7. Table 1.7 Environment Management Cost Estimate S. No. Description Item 1 Air pollution Nose masks 58 No's Cloth for drillers 50 no's 1.0m each. Gunny bags for covering the surface of jackhammer holes Road wetting and waste dump settling (1/4 of wetting) 5000 Ltrs tank 1 23 Capital cost (Rs.) Recurring cost (Rs.) Remarks Once a week. Replaceable, and cost may increase with time Issued quarterly As and when needed, Lump sum. Water tanker one tankers per day for 300 days

24 Plantation on road side 3m interval and buffer zone 3m interval plus maintenance Sub Total Construction of garland drains De silting operations Re plant the non surviving plants, watering and protection from animals 2 Water pollution Once only for the lease period/life of mine Yearly and manual operations Construction of check dams Once in year, cost incurred is to buy sand bags and filling sand Construction of retaining wall Cost of construction of wall for waste dump in slope side Sub Total Noise pollution Maintenance of machinery Included in main cost suitably Rs per 3 months PPE's like Ear muffs Rs. 15 each Once in six months Sub Total Occupational First aid kits 2 No's Fire Once in year, replace by Safety and extinguishers 2 No's conducting periodical checkup Health 5 Environmental monitoring PPE's to all employees (hand Rs. 30, safety Rs and Rs. 100) Training and awareness programs on risk factors during emergencies by the experts Periodical medical checkup and supply of medicines Rs per head Sub Total Ambient air quality studies Once in six months locations Water quality studies Once a year 2 Locations 3000 Noise studies Once in six months 2 Locations 4400 Vibration studies Once in year 1 locations 7800 Sub Total Grand Total Safety shoe twice in a year, helmets once in three years and hand gloves thrice in a year Once in six months and create sign boards about the risk and safety precautions regularly Once in a year and supply of medicines for every three months Will be done through MoEF&CC/NABL recognised laboratories 1 24