Webinar: Green or gone? Development projects and their impact on environment

Join this discussion on Feb 11th, on how real estate projects in Bengaluru are getting Environment Clearance, and how effective this process is.

The existing state of urban biodiversity, environment and natural heritage in Bengaluru is a matter of urgent concern. The impacts of ecological degradation is already felt in the city – for example, monsoons are often accompanied by the grim news of many areas getting flooded. Many of these vulnerable sites are found in large layouts and real estate projects that are built in valley zones and adjacent to lakes/rajakaluves (primary stormwater drains).

A favoured market for the real estate sector, Bengaluru has witnessed an increase in built-up area that has replaced its green cover and wildlife habitats.

Map showing how built-up area has replaced green cover in Bengaluru over time
Built-up area has been rapidly replacing green cover and wildlife habitats in the city. Graphic courtesy: T V Ramachandra, Indian Institute of Science

Clearly, construction projects in the city are worsening pollution and exacerbating climate change. So it is worth examining whether the processes designed to mitigate these effects are working as intended.

Depending on the size of the project, a real estate developer is supposed to submit an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report or an Environment Management Plan (EMP), to get approval. A project with built-up area of 20,000 sq m or more needs to get an Environment Clearance (EC) , along with other permissions from the BBMP, BWSSB, etc. The State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) is the agency responsible for giving EC to projects in Bengaluru.


Read More: Not just Lalbagh, your small neighbourhood park too can protect Bengaluru’s biodiversity


Vidhi Legal and BIC, in collaboration with Citizen Matters, is organising a webinar which tries to bring out the framework of EIA processes in Bengaluru, how these processes work, and why they have not been effective. (Citizen Matters had recently reported on the standard copy-pasting of information in forms that developers submit as part of EIA process.) And given this background, what impact would the Centre’s proposed changes to the EIA notification entail?

EIA Webinar poster

Read more: Unchecked tree loss is wiping out the Slender Loris from Bengaluru


Event details:

Event title: Green or gone? Development projects and their impact on environment
Date: February 11, 2022
Time: 6 pm (The webinar will be followed by a brief Q&A session open to participants.)
Register here: https://bit.ly/Green-or-Gone

Speakers:

  • Dr K C Jayaramu: Ex-Chairman, State Environmental Impact Assessment Authority, Govt. of India
  • Ulka Kelkar: Director of the Climate program, World Resources Institute India.
  • Mohan S Rao: Environmental Design and Landscape Architecture professional
  • Bhanu Sridharan : Independent journalist
  • Moderated by Meera K, Co-founder of Citizen Matters

Also read:

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Similar Story

Garudachar palya: The “hot spot” in Whitefield’s IT Hub

Examining the heat island effect in densely built-up Garudachar Palya ward in Whitefield’s IT Hub, which also has limited tree cover.

Garudachar Palya is part of Mahadevapura constituency, with an area of 6.5 sq km, which includes four revenue villages — Garudachar Palya, Hoodi, Seegehalli, and Nallurahalli. These villages have stayed mostly the same, while the city has expanded around them with more organised development from the BDA. This mismatch has led to issues like narrow village lanes becoming crowded with traffic, as they’re now used as shortcuts to bypass main roads. Looking at population growth, between 2011 and 2024, the ward has seen an estimated increase of 62.24%. This rapid growth adds to the existing strain on infrastructure. Ward no…

Similar Story

Saving Dwarka Forest: Citizens approach apex court to protect forest land near Delhi airport

Delhi’s Dwarka Forest has seen brazen destruction thanks to a railway redevelopment project. A recent SC stay order has raised hopes.

According to a recent World Bank report, India presently accounts for a meagre 1.8% of the global forest cover. Even more concerning is the fact that an enormous ‘46,759 acres of forest-land have been sanctioned for mining’ across the country, over the course of the last five years, by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) itself. According to many ace climate scientists and researchers, our planet has already hit “the tipping point”. In this backdrop, the people’s struggle to save Dwarka Forest, one of the last remaining natural forest lands in a choking capital city, is a…