Notification/Circular No.: S.O. 523(E)
Document Date: January 29, 2025
Applicable Act/Rule: Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
The amendment to the EIA (Environment Impact Assessment) Notification clarifies which building and construction projects, as well as township and area development projects, require prior environmental clearance.
In the said notification, in the schedule, for the item 8 and their entries are substituted with following:-
Project or Activity | Category with Threshold limit | Condition if any | ||
A | B |
| ||
(1) | (2) | (3) | (4) | (5) |
“8 | Building or Construction projects or Area Development Projects and Townships | |||
8(a) | Building and Construction projects |
| ≥ 20,000 sq.m. and < 1,50,000 sq. m. of built up area | The term “built up area” for the purpose of this notification is defined as the built up or covered area on all floors put together, including its basement and other service areas, which are proposed in the building or construction projects. Note 1.⸺ The projects or activities shall not include industrial shed, school, college, hostel for educational institution, but such buildings shall ensure sustainable environmental management, solid and liquid waste management, rain water harvesting and may use recycled materials such as fly ash bricks. Note 2.⸺ General Conditions shall not apply |
8(b) | Townships and Area Development Projects |
| Covering an area ≥ 50 ha and/or built up area ≥ 1,50,000 sq. m. | A project of Township and Area Development Projects covered under this item shall require an Environment Impact Assessment report and be appraised as Category „B1‟ Project. Note. ⸺ General Conditions shall not apply.”. |
The amendments were introduced to provide clarity on the types of construction projects requiring environmental clearance following previous legal rulings, including directives from the Supreme Court and the Kerala High Court. The intention behind these changes is to ensure that large-scale construction projects do not harm the environment and comply with necessary sustainability practices.
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