Hydrocarbon exploration bid has many in state seeing red
Poovulagin Nanbargal, an environmental organisation, said hydrocarbon exploration will affect marine life as well as the fishing economy.
DTNEXT Bureau
Environmentalists say chemicals released during the hyrdrocarbon extraction could suffocate aquatic life
CHENNAI: Even as the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has issued the 10th round of bidding to explore hydrocarbon in deep sea off Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, environmentalists are opposing the move, citing the project will negatively impact the environment.
Poovulagin Nanbargal, an environmental organisation, said hydrocarbon exploration will affect marine life as well as the fishing economy. “Off the Tamil Nadu coast, several sea mammals, including Dugong, and other megafauna such as turtles are present. Dolphins and whales that communicate by sending sound waves will be affected due to the noise created during the exploration. Moreover, chemicals released during the extraction will suffocate them,” the organisation said in a statement.
The statement added that the bidding notice includes exploration in deep sea beyond the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The ecosystem of the islands and the livelihood of their tribal population are already facing threats from several projects, it said.
As per the bidding notice, the exploration will be auctioned out based on Open Acreage Licensing Policy. A total of 25 blocks covering more than 1.91 lakh sq km of sea will be explored across the country. Off south Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, around 9,991 sq km of shallow and deep sea will be explored.
The ministry has already identified the presence of hydrocarbons in 30,000 sq km of shallow waters and 95,000 sq km of deep waters off TN coasts.
Meanwhile, PMK founder S Ramadoss has warned of irreversible damages the project can cause Tamil Nadu. “Bids were floated in the past to extract hydrocarbons from land and sea. But they were stopped after opposition from the people. Now, the ministry has floated another bid,” he said.
The story ofNeduvasal
The last time the government explored hydrocarbon extraction was at Neduvasal in Pudukkottai in 2017. The project had met massive protests from farmers and residents in the delta region as well as the scientific community citing the project could lead to an ecological disaster. In 2020, the state passed a GO and prohibited industries from taking up non-agrarian projects in the region.