• How-to

Considering recent events, triple bottomline sustainable development, in particular concerning the environment, has become crucial to a startup’s growth. An understanding of environmental clearance procedures is indispensable for any entrepreneur. We answer a few of the questions.

Who needs to obtain a clearance?
Though every business impacts the environment in some way or the other, the magnitude and intensity of such impact varies. While some projects require a detailed analysis clause by clause, some may just get passed with an initial evaluation. An entrepreneur is required to obtain environmental clearance from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) for undertaking any new projects or expansion of existing projects that fall in the official list of the MoEF.

How long does it take?
Projects are grouped under three categories—Category A, Category B1, Category B2. While Category A is appraised by the MoEF, Category B is appraised by the state government. So procedurally, clearance for Category A involves more steps than for Category B. It takes about seven months for the former and three months for the latter.

How to obtain such clearance?
The procedure to obtain clearance can be broadly described in two phases.

PHASE 1: Before submitting the application. Broadly, there are 5 steps in this phase.
1. Site selection and site clearance
Ensure compliance with guidelines issued for the location chosen for the proposed plant. This involves obtaining an industrial license from the state pollution control board. The entrepreneur should provide details of proposed project site, pollution abatement measures and such other relevant information as required for review from the environmental angle. The detailed guidelines are available at the site of the MoEF.

2. Draft Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) study
An EIA study will have to be carried out by the entrepreneur. He/she can carry out the study directly or avail the services of a consultant.

3. Screening, scoping, public hearing
Screening: This phase is applicable only to Category B projects (state government). A state-level Expert Appraisal Committee carries out initial evaluation to determine whether a detailed EIA report has to be made, depending on the nature and location of the project. EIA reports are not required for the B2 category and are mandatory for Category A.

Scoping: This applies to Category A and Category B1 businesses where an expert committee will decide the Terms of Reference (TOR) for preparing an EIA report. This takes about 60 days.

Public hearing: The public hearing is a mandatory step in the process of environmental clearance for certain developmental projects that arouse public interest. This provides a legal space for people of an area to come face-to-face with the project proponent and the government and express their concerns. The hearing committee hears the objections/suggestions from the public and after inserting certain clauses, it is passed on to the next stage of approval. Announcement is made for such hearings through newspapers 30 days in advance. This takes 45 days.

4. Detailed EIA report, if required
If, after preliminary inspection and study, it is recommended that a detailed EIA report has to be prepared, then the entrepreneur will have to prepare one along the lines of the TOR recommended by the reviewing committee.

5. Submit application/other documents
The entrepreneur should submit the application along with the EIA report and/or site clearance, as required, to the MoEF. The application is available at the ministry website.

PHASE 2: After submitting the application
Once the application is submitted to the ministry, it may constitute an expert committee to review the application. The entire phase takes a maximum of about 105 days. The steps involved in this procedure are:

1. Appraisal by Expert Appraisal Committee
The Expert Appraisal Committee (for Category A) or State Level Expert Appraisal Committee (for Category B) then evaluates the application and other documents submitted by the applicant for grant of environmental clearance. This takes about 60 days.

2. Technical review by the MoEF
Once the expert committee gives the green signal, the ministry carries out one last technical review and makes the final decision within 30 days. Should the ministry fail to take a decision within the stipulated time, the decision made by the Expert Appraisal Committee stands to be final.

Thereafter, the entrepreneur needs to submit a half-yearly progress report for post-clearance monitoring. The validity period of the clearance is generally five years, but longer for certain projects. For instance, mining projects have a maximum lifetime of 30 years and river valley projects, 10 years.

The procedure is actually simple, inexpensive and as long as one doesn’t want to bend rules, a smooth sail. With rising concerns about the global climatic change, the future undoubtedly belongs to environmentally-sustainable businesses.

Cases where the EIA report is usually recommended
• Those which can significantly alter the landscape, land use pattern and lead to concentration of working and service population;
• Those which need upstream development activity like assured mineral and forest products supply or downstream industrial process development;
• Those involving manufacture, handling and use of hazardous materials;
• Those which are sited near ecologically sensitive areas, urban centers, hill resorts, places of scientific and religious importance.
• Industrial estates with constituent units of various types which could cumulatively cause significant environmental damage
©Entrepreneur January 2011

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environmental clearance, How-to