Western Ghat panel report to be delayed further

KOCHI: The submission of the final report by the experts’ panel on the eco-sensitive areas in the Western Ghats will be delayed. Sources said, contrary to the earlier plans, the panel had tentatively fixed August 17 for submitting its report before Union Minister of Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh. The panel will also submit its findings on various environmental aspects associated with the proposed Athirappilly project. Earlier, it was reported that the final report of the panel would be out by June 30. However, the panel has decided to extend the date of submission as it awaits more inputs in this regard. Also, the panel needs more time to review and compile the inputs received from various agencies.“Lots of processes are involved in the compilation of data. We have tentatively identified the eco-sensitive spots, which will be further marked and categorised as red, green and blue regions. It will be done according to the level of monitoring and restrictions on the activities in each area. The biodiversity status of the region, the forest area and its vastness and various other aspects will be taken into account while categorising these spots,” said Kerala Biodiversity Board former chairman V S Vijayan, who is also a member of the Western Ghats panel.The 14-member Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel under Madhav Gadgil was constituted by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) to protect the biodiversity in the region and identify the eco-sensitive spots. The panel has so far tentatively identified 18 eco-sensitive spots in the state. However, the final picture has not been emerged yet.The panel members checked various aspects of the report during the discussions held in Bangalore in the last couple of days. The areas selected by the panel as ecologically- sensitive areas will be notified by the MoEF based on the sensitivity of each area. “Instead of controlling the activities in a region completely, we have decided to categorise various zones according to the sensitivity of the region,” officials said.