Eco-Sensitive Zones

Why in News?

  • The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) had issued a new draft notification for reducing the Eco-Sensitive Zone of Bannerghatta National Park (BNP), Bengaluru in Karnataka.
  • The reduction in the ESZ, may open more areas in the vicinity for mining and commercial development around the rapidly-urbanising Bengaluru city.

Background

Section 3 of the Environment (Protection) Act 1986 (EPA) gives power to the Central Government i.e. the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests to take all measures that it feels are necessary for protecting and improving the quality of the environment and to prevent and control environmental pollution. To meet this objective, the Central Government can restrict areas in which any industries, operations or processes or class of industries, operations or processes shall not be carried out or shall be carried out subject to certain safeguards. Thus, the government came up with the concept of Eco Sensitive Zones.

What are they

ESAs are defined as those areas ‘that are ecologically and economically important, but vulnerable even to mild disturbances, and hence demand careful management’. Therefore ‘ecologically and economically important’ areas are those areas that are biologically and ecologically ‘rich’, ‘valuable’ and or ‘unique’, and are largely irreplaceable if destroyed.
Further, by virtue of their biological richness, they could be potentially of high value to human societies, help in maintaining the ecological stability of the area, and be significant in conserving biological diversity. Similarly, their ‘uniqueness’ may be recognized either by the rarity of the living systems they harbour, that are difficult to replace if lost, or by the uniqueness of the services they offer to human society.
Their ‘vulnerability’ could be determined by physiographic features that are prone to erosion or degradation under human and other influences such as erratic climate and based on historical experience.
  • Eco-Sensitive Zones or Ecologically Fragile Areas are areas within 10 kms around Protected Areas, National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries.
  • ESZs are notified by MoEFCC, Government of India under Environment Protection Act 1986.
  • In case of places with sensitive corridors, connectivity and ecologically important patches, crucial for landscape linkage, even area beyond 10 km width can also be included in the eco-sensitive zone.
  • The basic aim is to regulate certain activities around National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries so as to minimise the negative impacts of such activities on the fragile ecosystem encompassing the protected areas.
Location: Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India

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