World Bank assisted Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project
EQUATIONS
28.12.2009
This is our letter to Shri. Senthil Vel, Additional Director, Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), demanding that proceedings on Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project (ICZM) should stop until the public consultations on Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification are completed. The public consultations were started by the MoEF to strengthen the CRZ Notification following the lapse of the draft Coastal Management Zone (CMZ) Notification, 2008. The MoEF had invited public comments on the Draft Summary Report of (ICZM) Project to be piloted in three states of Gujarat, Orissa and West Bengal.The backdoor entry of the ICZM is unethical.
Dr. A. Senthil Vel,
Additional Director,
Ministry of Environment & Forests,
Paryavaran Bhavan,
New Delhi.
Dear Dr. Senthil,
Greetings from EQUATIONS!
We are deeply concerned on the move by the Ministry of Environment & Forests to go ahead in building national capacity for implementation of the new integrated management approach for India’s coastal zones and piloting the Integrated Coastal Zone Management ICZM) approach in three states of Gujarat, Orissa and West Bengal.
The very concept of Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) was pushed in the terms of reference given to Dr. Swaminathan Committee which was constituted by MoEF in July 2004 to review the reports of various committees appointed by the MoEF on coastal zone management, international practises and suggest the scientific principles for an integrated coastal zone management best suited for the country. Based on this Dr. Swaminathan Committee recommended for the integrated coastal zone management approach in February 2005. The draft Coastal Management Zone (CMZ) Notification, 2008 which again mooted the idea of ICZM was then widely critiqued by associations, movement and networks of coastal community and civil society organisations, fish workers forum, academic organisations and UN agencies on its claims of being scientific and trying to infuse scientific aspects in coastal protection with integrated coastal zone management processes.
After the Ministry lapsing the draft CMZ notification on 22nd July 2009 and holding consultations for strengthening the existing CRZ notification, the push for the implementation of ICZM projects through back door is unethical. We understand from the World Bank website that the idea of this project was initiated in 2007 itself.
We are enclosing our comments on the Draft Summary Report of the World Bank Assisted Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project Environment & Social Assessment while we urge you to stop any proceedings on this project until the consultations on CRZ to strengthen it are through.
Sincerely,
Saroop Roy B.R.
EQUATIONS