THE SINGARENI COLLIERIES COMPANY LIMITED · 54,442 as on 31.01.2018. It is the only coal mining company in South India catering the needs of coal based industries. SCCL is currently

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF DRAFT EIA / EMP

FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PUBLIC HEARING OF

THE PROPOSED

KOYAGUDEM OPENCAST - III PROJECT

NEAR KOYAGUDEM,

TEKULAPALLI MANDAL,

BHADRADRI KOTHAGUDEM DISTRICT, TELANGANA STATE.

DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT

THE SINGARENI COLLIERIES COMPANY LIMITED (A Government Company)

(QCI / NABET Accredited EIA Consultant Organization)

KOTHAGUDEM COLLIERIES - 507 101 (T.S.)

FEBRUARY 2018

KOC - III PROJECT AREA

CONTENTS

1. Introduction …………………………………………………………….. 1

2. Description of Project …………………………………………….…… 1

3. Description of Environment …………………………………………… 3

4. Alternatives …………………………………………………………….. 6

5. Anticipated Environmental Impacts and Mitigation Measures …… 6

6. Environment Management Plan ……………………………………… 12

7. Environmental Monitoring Programme ……………………………… 13

8. Additional Studies ……………………………………………………… 13

9. Project Benefits ………………………………………………………… 14

10. Conclusion ……………………………………………………………… 14

Executive Summary of Draft EIA/EMP of proposed Koyagudem Opencast - III Project

The Singareni Collieries Company Limited

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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF IMPACTS OF PROPOSED KOYAGUDEM OC- III PROJECT ON ENVIRONMENT AND ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN

1 INTRODUCTION Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) is the only coal producing company in southern India and is jointly owned by Government of India and Government of Telangana. SCCL is the largest public sector undertaking in the state with manpower of 54,442 as on 31.01.2018. It is the only coal mining company in South India catering the needs of coal based industries. SCCL is currently operating 29 Underground Mines and 18 Opencast Mines and produced 61.34 MT during 2016-17. The coal production target for the year 2017-18 is 66.06 MT.

The main coal consumers of SCCL are power sector companies like NTPC, TSGENCO, APGENCO, KPCL, Maha GENCO and Cement Industry. Due to the increasing demand for coal from various industries, in order to meet the production targets fixed by Government of India and to compensate for the loss of production from the existing mines because of exhaustion of reserves, SCCL is taking up following measures:

1. Reconstruction of existing mines for optimum production by adoption high technology methods.

2. Improving the productivity in the existing mines by improving the utilization of the equipment.

3. Opening of new mines in the adjoining / superjacent areas / seams for higher production

4. Adopting opencast method of mining wherever possible for high rate of production. 5. Conversion of shallow underground mines to opencast mines for extraction of

balance coal reserves. 6. Expansion of the existing opencast workings further in to the dip side up to optimize

the production.

The present proposal is to extract additional coal reserves from the dip side property of Pit - II & Pit - III of existing Koyagudem OC - II Project (KOC-II Project) by increasing depth of workings from the present limit of 120 m to 175 m, under the name of “Koyagudem Opencast - III Project (KOC - III P roject).

2 DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT The proposed KOC - III Project is designed for extraction of 111.98 MT of total coal reserves during total life of the project by removing 866.60 M.Cu.m of OB (6.35 M.Cum is top soil and 860.25 M.Cum is hard OB, at an average stripping ratio of 7.71 Cu.m/T up to the depth of 175 m. This project is planned for 3.6 MTPA with peak production of 4.80 MTPA during a life of 29 years (excluding one year of construction period). The total project area is 1607.60 Ha, which includes forestland to an extent of 1158.93 Ha. The grade of coal is ‘G13' (93.61MT) and G17 (18.37 MT).

2.1. Location of the project The proposed Koyagudem OC-III project falls in Lingala Koyagudem Coalbelt of Godavari Valley Coalfields. The location plan of the project is enclosed as Annexure - I.

The location details of the proposed Project are furnished hereunder: Name of the Project : Koyagudem OC - III Project Nearest Village : Koyagudem Tehsil : Tekulapalli District : Bhadradri Kothagudem State : Telangana



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Latitudes : N 17°35’56” to N 17°39’15” Longitudes : E 80°28’13” to E80°30’54”

Survey of India Topo sheet No. : 65 C/6 and 65 C/10. Nearest Railway Station : Betampudi Railway Station (16 Kms) Nearest Highway : Kothagudem - Yellandu State Highway (12 km)

The proposed project falls in “Category – A” as per the EIA Notification issued by MoEF, New Delhi, vide S.O. 1533, dt.14.09.2006 & subsequent amendments and hence Environmental clearance has to be obtained from MoEF&CC, New Delhi.

2.2. Land Requirement of the Project:

The total land required for the project is 1607.60 Ha, which includes1158.93 Ha. of forest land. Out of 1158.93 Ha. of forest land, 464.77 Ha. of forestland has already been diverted for mining purpose and is presently under SCCL possession. Balance forest land of 694.16 Ha. is to be diverted for mining purpose. In addition, 448.67 Ha. of non-forest land has to be acquired for the project. Activity-wise and ownership-wise land requirement details are furnished hereunder:

Land requirement for various activities of the Project

(Figures in Ha)

Sl. No

Activity

Land Use

Total Forest Land Non-forest

land Already Diverted

To be diverted

Total To be

acquired 1. Quarry area 70.72 308.58 379.30 344.75 724.05

2. External Dump Area 338.56 296.99 635.55 0.00 635.55 3. Inspection road, bund,

transmission line & for lighting and safety zone

15.86 43.81 59.67 67.86 127.53

4. CHP and Coal Yard 39.63 2.33 41.96 15.59 57.55

5. Mine Service Facilities 0.00 0.00 0.00 7.18 7.18

6. Magazine 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.36 0.36

7. Diversion of Public road 0.00 0.00 0.00 3.46 3.46 8. Nallah Diversion including

settling tanks 0.00 36.30 36.30 2.66 38.96

9. Belt Conveyor and railway siding

0.00 6.15 6.15 6.81 12.96

Total 464.77 694.16 1158.93 448.67 1607.60

2.3. Description of Opencast Mining Operations

Coal extraction in the proposed KOC-III Project will be done by deploying Surface Miner and OB will be excavated by using shovels & dumpers combination. Important inputs required for coal extraction are explosives, plant and machinery, diesel, lubricants, electricity, small quantities of cement and steel.

Opencast mining involves following operations: 1. Removal of topsoil for quarry area and external dump area, storing it separately in

earmarked dumpsite and its utilization for spreading on dumps after attaining the final profile in order to take up plantation.

2. Removal of overlying earthen strata (overburden) through drilling & blasting operations and dumping it at the earmarked site.



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3. Cutting of exposed coal strata by Surface Miner, transportation of coal by dumpers to pithead CHP.

4. Coal will be dispatched by providing a pre-weigh bin for truck loading system at pit head and also another pre-weigh bin at south eastern side of quarry for railway wagon loading system where a new railway siding including CHP is proposed.

5. Back filling / internal dumping of overburden within the quarry area after sufficient de-coaled area is available.

6. Take up phase-wise plantation over the external dump area and back filled area of the quarry after stabilization and subsequent spreading of top soil.

All the mining operations will be carried out as per the statutory provisions of Mines Act for the safety, health and welfare of the employees working in the mine. The conditions stipulated by Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and Telangana State Pollution Control Board (TSPCB) while according Environmental Clearance will be implemented in the project.

3 DESCRIPTION OF ENVIRONMENT Environmental baseline data was collected in the study area through EPTRI, Hyderabad, a NABL accredited and CPCB recognized laboratory during Summer Season, 2017 (March 2017 - May 2017) to assess the environmental status in respect of air, water, noise and soil quality in core zone and buffer zone (i.e. 10 Km radius study area) of the project. The environmental baseline data conforms to the requirement of EIA Notification, 2006 vide S.O. 1533, on 14.09.2006, its subsequent amendments and the Terms of Reference (ToR) issued by MoEF&CC.

Physiography The core area is undulatory, covered by brown sandy and black cotton soil. The elevation varies from 140 m in the South to 180 m in the North side with a gradient of 12.8m/km with a general slope towards North, East and Southeast. A hillock, Bairenigutta is located on the NW side of the quarry area which is proposed to be excavated.

The buffer area is gently undulating terrain with a NW-SE trending hill range on the western side. The general topographic elevation of the plains varies from 160 m above MSL in the northern part to 100 m in the southeastern periphery of the buffer area.

Drainage Drainage is moderately developed in the block area. Northern part of the area is drained in to Parkela vagu, an ephemeral stream of Murredu vagu. The 1st to 3rd order streams which feed the Lachigudem tank are in northeast of the project. In southern part of the project no significant drainage is developed. No tanks are present in the project area but some tanks are spread in the central and southeastern part of the buffer zone.

The buffer area is drained by north-easterly flowing Murredu vagu and easterly flowing Nalla vagu. Nalla vagu joins with Murredu vagu in the south east near Bommanapalli village. The Murredu vagu confluences with Kinnerasani river (a tributary of River Godavari), which is flowing outside the buffer area. Some part is in the catchment of Kinnerasani River in the north side of the buffer area. Kinnerasani reservoir is located at about 16 Km. distance from the project in the northeast direction. The regional drainage is of dendritic type with a density of 2.51 km/sq.km.

A seasonal nallah flowing between KOC - I dump and Pit - II of KOC - II from north to south is to be diverted to facilitate merging of proposed external dump yard and the internal dump yard in order to minimize the requirement of land for external dumping of OB. The length of proposed diversion is around 3.64 km.

Another seasonal nallah, situated in north side of Pit - II was already diverted for working of Pit - II.



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Meteorology (Climate) The area experiences typical tropical climate of a distinct hot summer from March to June with occasional dust storms, a good monsoon between middle of June and September and a pleasant winter from December to February. The temperature varies between 9.10 C to 48.60 C.

The nearest rain gauge station in the study area is at Tekulapally mandal. The rainfall varied widely from 580.2 mm (2009) to 1843 mm (2010) with a mean of 1116.2 mm.

The daily rainfall data of the region show that maximum monthly rainfall recorded was 609 mm (September, 2005), while the maximum daily rainfall was 134.2 mm (30th August 2010).

3.1 Air Environment Different air pollution parameters like particulate matter of less than 10µm size (PM10), particulate matter of less than 2.5µm (PM2.5), Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) and Nitrogen Oxides have been identified as critical parameters relating to project activities for representing baseline status of ambient air quality within the study area in accordance with the Terms of Reference (ToR) issued by MoEF&CC. To assess the base line ambient air quality, ten ambient air quality monitoring locations were identified in core zone and buffer zone (10 Km. radius study area) of the project.

Air Quality Status in Core Zone:

Ambient air quality data monitored in the core zone shows that PM10 concentration varied from 61 µg/m3 (Proposed Koyagudem OC-III Project) to 198 µg/m3 (Koyagudem OC-II) with a mean of 177.4 µg/m3. PM2.5 concentration varied from 29.5 µg/m3 (Proposed KOC - III) to 84.2 µg/m3 (Koyagudem OC - II) with a mean of 73.3 µg/m3. The SO2 and NOx concentration varies from 11.20 µg/m3 to 14.80 µg/m3 and 17.10 µg/m3 to 23.30 µg/m3 respectively. All the parameters are found to be within prescribed limits as per National Ambient Air Quality Standards and the Coal Mines Standards prescribed by MoEF&CC.

Air Quality status in Buffer Zone: The concentration of PM10 varied from 56 µg/m3 (Bodu Village) to 82 µg/m3 (Kistaram Village) with a mean of 72.7 µg/m3. The PM2.5 concentration varied from 27.80 µg/m3 (Sampath Nagar) to 42.70 µg/m3 (Kistaram Village) with a mean of 36.4 µg/m3. The SO2

and NOx concentration varies from 10.60 µg/m3 to 14.40 µg/m3 and 16.60 µg/m3 to 22.40 µg/m3 respectively. All the values are found to be within prescribed limits as per National Ambient Air Quality Standards prescribed by MoEF&CC.

Mineralogical Composition of Particulate Matter The mineralogical composition for the particulate Matter of size less than 10µm was analyzed at all air quality monitoring locations within the 10 Km radius of the study area and the concentration of Chromium, Nickel, Arsenic, Cadmium, Mercury, Lead, etc., were not detected in the samples.

3.2 Water Environment The impact of the proposed project on the water environment is assessed by studying the ground and surface water quality within the study area. A total of 11 water samples i.e., 4 samples from surface water, 1 mine discharge water, 6 samples from groundwater were analyzed for various physico-chemical and bacteriological parameters. The ground water quality results were compared with prescribed standards.

Surface Water: pH values were found to be in the range between 7.6 to 7.9. Nitrates, TSS, Chlorides concentrations were well within the tolerance limits.



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Total coli forms and fecal coli forms were present in all the surface water samples collected in the study area. E. coli was present in SW - 2 and SW - 3. The presence of coli forms indicates that the contamination might be due to the runoff water with bacteria in soil or sewage. Fecal coli forms and E. Coli presence might be due to animal droppings or human fecal contamination.

In accordance with CPCB water quality criteria, parameters studied were pH, DO, BOD and total coli forms. It may be observed that all the surface water samples have DO values ranging from 5.8 mg/L to 6.4 mg/L and BOD was found to be above the 3 mg/L at all locations except at SW-3 and hence fall under the CPCB water quality criteria below Class – E.

The surface water sample collected at one location (SW-3), fall under the CPCB water quality criteria, Class-C (Drinking Water Source with conventional treatment and after Disinfection).

From the analytical results, it can be observed that the surface water collected from all the locations require suitable treatment to make it suitable for drinking.

Ground Water: The pH of ground water in the study area varies from 6.1 to 7.2. The ground water quality indicated that the parameters are meeting the requirements CPCB ground water quality criteria except total hardness is more than the acceptable limits at GW2, GW3, GW4, GW5 and GW6 which may be due presence of bicarbonates of calcium and magnesium and alkalinity is also more than the acceptable limits at GW2, GW3, GW4 and GW5. Therefore, wherever hardness and alkalinity concentration has exceeded the limits, water shall be boiled for removing harness and to make the water potable.

Mine Discharge Water: The quality of mine discharge water of adjoining KOC-II Project was analyzed and the parameters are within the stipulated limits as per the standards prescribed for discharge of industrial effluents.

3.3 Noise Levels

A noise level survey was carried in and around the mine site to study the hourly equivalent noise levels. Equivalent noise levels were measured on hourly basis during 24 hours by using a High Precision Sound Level Meter at six locations within the study area of the project. It is observed that the noise levels measured during day time and night time in the core as well as in the buffer zone of the proposed project are within the stipulated standards.

3.4 Land Environment

The land use pattern in the project area has been studied using satellite imageries and the present land use in the project area is Agriculture area 6.29 Sq. Km. (39.19%), Forest area 2.98 Sq. Km. (18.55%), Waste land 2.45 Sq. Km (15.26%) and others 4.34 Sq.Km (27.00%).

3.5 Soil Quality

The physico-chemical properties of soil, which are important for plant growth and agricultural productivity, pH, EC, Organic Carbon, Nutrients and other trace metals are analyzed for four soil samples in the study area.

The texture of the soil varies from clay, loam, sandy clay and sandy clay loam. Soil of all the villages of the study area are neutral to slightly alkaline in nature having pH in the range of 7.3 to 7.8.

The macro nutrients Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K) were analyzed in the study area. The Nitrogen value ranged from 89 to 238 kgha-1 reflecting that the values are



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observed to be in less to better category. Phosphorus value ranged from 1.58 to 3.0 kg ha-1 and falls under 'very less category'. The Potassium value ranged from 244 to 392 kg ha-1 indicating that values are observed to medium to more than sufficient category.

3.6 Biological Environment

The flora study was aimed at enumeration of the available plant resources including endangered species and obtaining a broad representation of the existing floristic variations in the proposed mine lease area and surrounding mine lease areas.

The forest areas proposed for diversion for mining purpose basically come under scanty vegetation with dry deciduous forest and scrub jungle type. The forest areas proposed for diversion falls under Chatakonda Reserve Forest

The forest areas in buffer area of KOC - III Project also come under scanty vegetation with dry deciduous forest and scrub jungle type.

There are no National parks, Sanctuaries, Bio Sphere Reserve, Tiger Reserve and Elephant Reserves in the core zone of project. However, the periphery of Kinnerasani Wildlife Sanctuary is at a distance of 2.50 Km. from the project boundary. The project is not falling in the Eco-Sensitive zone of Kinnerasani Wildlife Sanctuary.

From the Flora-Fauna survey, it can be seen that, the core zone of the proposed KOC - III Project does not have any endemic and endangered species of Flora or Fauna.

3.7 Socio-Economic Environment

The project site is surrounded by 16 villages within 10 km radius of study area. The socio-economic aspects, demographic structure, economic and livelihood pattern of the 16 villages was analyzed based on the primary data collection.

Primary data is collected by adopting a simple random sampling method. Among all the villages, 208 of households were taken randomly for survey.

As the area is well developed and mining is being carried in Koyagudem area from quite long time, infrastructure, quality of life, other social factors are found to be good.

4 ALTERNATIVES Coal mines are site specific in nature and location of the proposed area is restricted to the geology and coal deposition of the area. Safety, economic and technical constraints determine the mining method to be employed in a particular project. Considering the gradient of seams, depth of seams and after evaluating different options, Surface Miner for Coal and Shovel Dumper combination for OB have been finalized as suitable mining methodology for the proposed KOC-III Opencast Project.

5 ANTICPATED ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS AND MITIGATION MEASURES The section summarizes the pollution potential of the proposed project, possible impacts on the surrounding environment during pre-operational and operational phases and the environment management plan proposed for prevention and control of pollution.

5.1 Impact due to Air Pollution and its Management

Air pollution is likely to be caused at various stages of mining operations such as excavation, drilling, blasting, loading and transportation of material. Suspended Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5) is the main pollutant that will emanate during mining operations.

SCCL will take following measures to mitigate the fugitive dust emissions from different operations:



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• Coal seam exposed for cutting will be made wet before cutting by Surface Miner to avoid dust generation.

• To avoid the dust generation from the drilling operations, wet-drilling will be adopted.

• There will not be any blasting in coal as it is proposed to deploy Surface Miner for excavation of coal. However, appropriate explosives will be used for blasting and avoiding overcharging of blast holes in OB will be followed while blasting.

• The volume of dust rising from dumps by the action of wind will be controlled significantly by planting grasses on slopes and native plants on dumps soon after their formation / attaining final profile.

• Haul roads will be the major source of dust in the opencast mines. To overcome the problems of dust generation from mine haul roads, the following steps will be taken.

- Black topping of permanent roads like routes to coal handling plant, permanent internal roads, railway siding etc.,

- OB & Coal transport vehicles shall pass through sensor operated water sprinkling network.

- Continuous water spray arrangements along haul roads, routes to coal handling plant, permanent internal roads, railway siding etc.

- Regular water spraying on haul roads and permanent transport routes at required frequencies. It is proposed to procure ten 28 KL water sprinklers for spraying water on coal transport haul roads.

- A time gap of minimum 5 minutes will be maintained between dumper to dumper movement during transportation of coal and OB in order to allow settlement of heavier dust particulates.

- Mechanical sweeping or grading of the haul roads with help of motor grader is proposed. Six motor graders of 145 HP capacity is proposed for this project.

- Avenue plantation along roads.

• Taking up plantation around the quarry and OB dumps in three rows, which will serve as a barrier to prevent the dispersion of dust and a fund provision of Rs.130.00 Lakhs is made.

• Effective dust suppression measures will be taken up at pit head coal handling plant (CHP). The crusher house will be enclosed to the extent possible and dust suppression arrangement will be provided at suitable locations in the CHP. All conveyors, screens, crusher etc. will be provided with covers to avoid fugitive dust during operation. Mobile mist generating machines will be deployed for dust suppression at CHP at a cost of Rs. 64.00 Lakhs.

• The exhaust emissions from HEMM containing CO, SO2 & NOx will be controlled by strictly adhering to the scheduled maintenance that includes periodical tuning of engines.

• Coal transportation dumpers will be passed through tyre washing system before coming on to the public roads in order to reduce the deposition of dust on the roads and the air born dust.

5.2 Impact on Water Environment

The main source of water pollution is mine discharge and surface run-off containing suspended solids. The mine discharge water will be passed through settling ponds for removal of suspended solids.



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About 1388 KLD water is required for various requirements of the mine like dust suppression (1260 KLD), HEMM washing at work shop (95 KLD), plantation (9 KLD) and domestic consumption (24 KLD). After meeting the mine requirements, the excess water will be let out into nearby irrigation tanks after necessary treatment

The following control measures will be adopted for controlling water pollution:

• Garland drains of proper size and length will be made and maintained along the quarry and external dump to prevent the surface run-off water from entering into quarry, adjoining forest and to dispose properly through natural drains to nearby tanks after channelizing through settling ponds. One diesel backhoe shovel is provided for construction of garland drains, settling ponds, etc.

• The excess mine water let out will be utilized for irrigation by nearby villagers.

• Check dams / rock fill dams and toe walls will be constructed wherever necessary to reduce siltation.

• Water accumulated due to rain as well as seepage will be led to the main sump of the pit and will be subsequently pumped to the surface.

• The mine water will be utilized for dust suppression, washing, drinking, fire fighting, plantation etc.

• Workshop effluents will be treated suitably in sedimentation tanks followed by Oil & Grease traps.

• One Sewage Treatment Plant of 1.00 MLD capacity is already existing in Tekulapalli Colony for treating domestic sewage. There is no proposal for construction of a new colony for this project as the required manpower will be drawn from the existing manpower of the other mines of the area.

• The sewage generated from mine office and other surface buildings will be treated in septic tanks followed by soak pits.

• The attitude of phreatic surface is being monitored periodically in this area on long term basis. It varies from 2.65 m to 8.90 m below ground level (bgl) during pre-monsoon period and 1.00 m to 7.80 m bgl during post-monsoon period.

• From the pumping test data and Piezometric surface data, it is inferred that the impact of this project on the ground water regime will not be beyond 1604 m distance from the edge of the mine. However, the mine water discharged into the local drainage network / tanks act as constant source of recharge, which improves the ground water in the region.

In view of the above, it can be inferred that there will not be any significant impact on ground water regime in this area. In the event of any adverse impact due to mining on the surrounding area, SCCL will take necessary measures to address the issue.

5.3 Impact due to Noise Pollution

The main sources of noise in the mines will be HEMM, drilling, blasting, dumpers and movement of coal transport trucks. Sound levels near HEMM would be above 90 dB (A). However, the HEMM cabins are sound proof and the employees working in the vicinity of HEMM will be provided with earplugs / muffs.

The following control measures will be implemented for noise reduction which includes:

• Controlled blasting techniques using milli-second delay detonators & relays will be adopted in this project for minimizing noise and blast vibrations.

• Secondary blasting is one of the major sources. Avoiding the secondary blasting with proper blast design, spacing and burden.



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• Creation of green belt of dense foliage between mine areas and residential colonies which will act as noise attenuator.

• Proper maintenance of machinery (including transport vehicles) including fine tuning of engines to reduce noise.

• Avenue plantation along the coal transportation roads.

With the noise abatement measures as indicated above, it is expected that the noise levels will be maintained in compliance to the prescribed limits.

5.4 Impact due to Ground Vibrations

Blasting in mining areas may give rise to ground vibrations which may cause damage to nearby structures. Fly rock is another problem that deserves attention. In order to control noise and blast vibrations, suitable control measures are being adopted in the adjoining KOC - II. The ground vibrations are being continuously recorded in the existing project by using seismograph instruments (Minimate / NOMIS) and the recorded ppv and noise levels are within stipulated limits.

Based on the ground vibration studies made earlier in the existing KOC - II Project, similar precautions will be taken while carrying out blasting operations in proposed KOC - III Project for controlling the ground vibrations as per DGMS Guidelines.

The following precautions will be taken up at the proposed project site for controlling noise and blast vibrations in adjoining project.

• Controlled blasting technique will be adopted in this project for reducing blast vibrations substantially.

• Optimum delay sequence and stem to column ratio will be maintained to minimize the fly rock distance and ground vibration intensity.

• Basing on the distance of the nearest sensitive areas from the epicentre of the blast, charge weight will be altered to meet the stipulated standards.

• Avoid concentration of explosive by using deck charging.

5.5 Impact on Land and its Management

Any mining activity will alter the land use pattern in the lease area. In order to minimise the adverse effects, land reclamation will be carried out concurrent with mining operations. At the end of the mining operations, quarry area and dumps left will be made acceptable to the society and surrounding environment. A detailed programme on Solid Waste Management and Land Reclamation has been given EMP for addressing land degradation. The following measures are proposed to be undertaken in the project.

• Plantation on the over burden dumps with native, regenerative and self-sustaining species.

• Plantation along the boundary of the lease area so as to minimise the visual impact.

• Top soil excavated from the site will be stored separately at earmarked place for spreading subsequently on external dumps and backfilled areas for plantation.

• Back filling of the mine pits concurrently with the mining operations (land reclamation).

5.6 Solid Waste and its Management

The opencast mining operations involve change in landscape and topography. Also a large amount of overburden has to be excavated during coal mining operations, external overburden dumps are formed and void will be created in the de-coaled area of the



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quarry. Hence, a suitable dumping strategy has been formulated for proper handling of overburden and ensuring better land management.

Dumping Strategy

All the options have been studied for optimizing utilization of land for OB dumping. The following precautions will be taken in the proposed project for proper dump management.

The following design criteria have been considered for waste dumps

• Separate spoil dumps for topsoil and hard overburden

• Maximum height of top soil dump is 10 meters.

• Hard overburden will be dumped in 30 m high decks up to a maximum height of 120 m and for internal dump it is planned with a maximum height of 90 m above GL.

• Dump slope for each deck to be at natural repose of 37½0 and overall slope at 26.50.

• Track dozers will be deployed for shaping the dumps and dozing of overburden.

• Top soil will be spread over dump slopes and non-active dump area for reclamation

Overburden Dump Management

Out of the total 860.25 M.Cum hard OB removed from the proposed KOC-III project, 460.26 M.Cum of OB will be dumped in the external dump yard and balance 399.99 M.Cum hard OB will be dumped in the internally in the de-coaled quarry area of KOC - III.

Out of 6.35 M.Cu.m topsoil to be excavated, 4.63 M.Cum. will be spread over stabilized external dump yard and the balance quantity of 1.72 M.Cu.m will be spread over internal dump yard area prior to taking up plantation.

The depth of the void at the final stage of mining operations i.e. by the end of 29th year will vary from 30 m to 175 m. The volume of the void is estimated as 643.81 M.Cum in an area of 462.25 Ha. The dumping strategy of OB is detailed hereunder.

Sl. No Location of Dump yard Hard OB

(M.Cum) Top Soil (M.Cum)

Total OB

(M.Cum

Storage Percentage of total OB

Area (Ha.)

Height (m agl)

1. External dump yard 460.26 4.63 464.89 53.65 635.55 120

2. Internal dump yard 399.99 1.72 401.71 46.35 415.18 90

Total 860.25 6.35 866.60 100.00

Land Reclamation: Phase-wise reclamation programme has been envisaged in the project. The mined out areas will be reclaimed and planted concurrently with the progress of mining operations. At the mine closure stage, out of 1607.60 Ha. of total land required for the project, plantation will be developed in an area of 969.28 Ha., void area of 499.73 Ha. will be used as a water body and the balance 138.59 Ha. of land will be utilized for public / other uses, as detailed hereunder.



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Sl. No. Description

Land Use Details (Ha.) Total Land Plantation Water

body Public /

other use 1 Quarry area 261.80 462.25 0.0 724.05

2 External Dump Area 627.19 * 08.36 0.0 635.55

3 Inspection road, bund, transmission line & for lighting and safety zone 64.97 0.0 62.56 127.53

4 CHP and Coal Yard 1.77 * 29.12 26.66 57.55

5 Mine Service Facilities 2.99 0.0 4.19 7.18

6 Magazine 0.0 0.0 0.36 0.36

7 Diversion of Public road 1.38 0.0 2.08 3.46

8 Nallah diversion including settling tanks 0.0 0.0 38.96 38.96

9 Belt Conveyor and railway siding 9.18 0.0 3.78 12.96

Grand Total 969.28 499.73 138.59 1607.60

*The area will also be left as water body at the closure stage as it was the quarry area of KOC-II.

5.7 Impact on Socio Economic Environment

SCCL has been carrying out mining operations in Godavari Valley Coal Fields (GVCF) for last 128 years. There is a positive impact on the quality of life, employment avenues and socio-economic development of the region. The local people get direct, indirect employment opportunities because of coal mining activities and infrastructure facilities being developed in these areas.

The project involves rehabilitation and resettlement of people living in the villages falling within 500

m of project area. SCCL will implement the R&R package formulated by District Administration as per the State Government Guidelines.

No significant changes have been observed in the traditional way of life and occupation of the local people in coal mining areas. The local people are rather benefited due to the provision of more infrastructure facilities provided by the management. There are avenues for indirect employment facilities in the mine as well as other ancillary activities for the local people.

SCCL is organizing Corporate Social Responsible (CSR) activities through well structured mechanism through:

1. Singareni Seva Samithi (SSS),

2. Sarrounding Habitat Assistance Programme (SHAPE),

3. Singareni Employees Wives Association (SEWA)

4. Local Communities.

5. Environmental safeguards beyond mandate



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Activities of Singareni Sewa Samithi (SSS):

Singareni Seva Samithi has conducted skill development / trainings programmes at Yellandu and surrounding villages and the details of the same is as given below.

Sl. No. Name of the Programme / Course No. of participants

attended No. of persons self

employed 1. Tailoring & Dress making course 440 22

2. Computer hardware /DTP 100 8

3. Fashion Technology course 60 48

4. Motor Driving – (As per RTA rule) 50 3

5. Beautician 80 10

6. Maggam Course 100 40

7. Army / Police 635 49

8. Motor Re-winding 40 15

9. 79 Medical Camps 2581 --

Total 4086 195

Surrounding Habitat Assistance Programme (SHAPE): Surrounding Habitat Assistance Programme is designed to develop infrastructure facilities to the surrounding people of 8 km from the SCCL townships and / or 10 Km from the mine. About 2% of average net profits of the company made during last three years were allocated for CSR at company level. The details of CSR works taken up by SCCL so far under SHAPE scheme in Bhagyanagar Thanda, Polampally Thanda, Rompaid, Koyagudem, Lachagudem, Tekulapally and Kistaram villages are as given below:

Name of the Work Amount spent in Rs. Lakhs

2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-09 2009-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 Total

Road Infrastructure 878.50 50.50 49.72 63.30 98.67 3.90 0.00 4.87 49.00 89.34 1287.80

Drainage & Sanitation 20.00 8.00 27.52 19.00 7.70 10.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 92.22

Education 40.00 50.00 29.20 10.00 17.50 1.40 1.00 2.15 0.00 0.00 151.25

Drinking Water Supply 10.00 25.50 6.80 8.15 23.00 13.15 0.00 5.55 0.32 31.33 123.80

Others 6.00 10.00 4.11 6.00 0.00 0.00 4.00 3.78 0.00 0.00 33.89

Total 954.50 144.00 117.35 106.45 146.87 28.45 5.00 16.35 49.32 120.67 1688.96

6 ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN Environment Management Plan (EMP) aims at the preservation of ecological system by considering in-built pollution abatement facilities at the proposed site. Mitigation measures at the source level and an overall environment management plan at the project area are designed so as to improve the supportive capacity of the surrounding environment. The EMP involves identification of pollutants, sources of pollution, utilization of suitable technology for mitigation of pollution, preparation of suitable management plan and provision of necessary resources including financial provision for its effective implementation.

6.1 Fund Provision for Environment Protection and Management

In order to implement the environmental protection measures, an amount of Rs. 480 lakhs excluding rehabilitation and resettlement is provided towards capital cost. In addition to this, an amount of Rs. 286.00 Lakhs has been provided in the project as indirect capital towards environment related works. A recurring cost of Rs.200.50 Lakhs



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per annum will also be spent on environmental management, which is in-built in the cost of production.

6.2 Mine Closure Plan

Mining being a time bound activity and must be closed after extraction of the minerals deposit. Closing of mining operations involves numerous issues like reclamation and environmental protection, community issues, socio-economic consideration, planning for alternate use of available facilities, cost estimation and asset disposal. The total Mine closure cost estimated based on the typical mine closure cost for the project is Rs 131.29 crores. However, by considering 5% incremental cost to be deposited additionally every year towards the mine closure, the total estimated closure cost will Rs. 282.16 Crores.

7 ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING PROGRAMME: Environmental monitoring programme has been prepared for the proposed project for assessing the efficacy of implementation of Environment Management Plan and to take corrective measures in case of any degradation in the surrounding environment. An environment management committee will be formulated at the project level to monitor the implementation of environmental protection measures in the project.

Air quality, water quality, noise levels, ground water levels will be periodically monitored in compliance to the conditions stipulated by TSPCB and MoEF&CC and necessary mitigation measures will be taken as and when necessary.

8 ADDITIONAL STUDIES i) Rehabilitation and Resettlement Study:

Dantala Tanda, Ippala Tanda and Babugi Tanda are falling within 500 m. of proposed quarry area. Hence, it is proposed to provide Rehabilitation and Resettlement package for these villages with a cost of Rs. 143.55 crores. The number of Project Displaced Families (PDFs) in Dantala Tanda, Ippala Tanda and Babugi Tanda are 125, 100 and 150 respectively. In the Project Affected Families (PAFs), Rural Artisans/ small traders are 41 and persons covered under RoFR are 470 as per initial survey.

SCCL has been formulating suitable Rehabilitation Package to the PAFs & PDFs. The same would be finalized after a detailed socio-economic survey conducted by the Administrator appointed by State Govt in consultation with the District Administration. SCCL has no separate policy and is ready to implement the R&R package formulated by the Government.

ii) Risk assessment and Disaster Management Plan

Mining and allied activities are associated with several potential hazards to both the employees and the public at large. A worker in a mine should be able to work under conditions which are adequately safe and healthy.

Risk Assessment is to be performed on a regular basis. The goal for each risk assessment is to identify hazards, determine risk rating and controls and to review the implementation of risk controls from previous risk assessment sessions.

KOC - III Project is a new mine proposed with same method of mining / technology (i.e Opencast with Surface Miner and Shovel Dumper combination technology) being adopted in adjoining KOC - II Project the Hazards are identified basing on the previous experience with the following criteria.

• Design parameters of the proposed mine

• Work process evaluation

• Accidents or occurrences



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• Consultation with employees.

• Safety statistics

• Significant incident, near miss or accident reports

• Inspection in the mine

Accordingly, a detailed risk assessment and disaster management plan has been prepared for the proposed project basing the Technical Circulars issued by Directorate General of Mines Safety for implementing safety management systems in coal mines.

9 PROJECT BENEFITS

The proposed KOC - III Project is essential for maintaining coal supplies from the area and fulfill the committed supply to various users. The proposed project will also result in following benefits:

• Indirect employment opportunities to local people and improvement in communication, education, community development and medical facilities.

• The project will help in socio-economic development of the area and also the state • The project helps in development of infrastructure facilities in and around project

area.

10 CONCLUSION

The industrial and economic growth of India depends to a large extent on coal, which is the prime source of energy. Our requirement of coal has significantly increased and the major requirement will come from the power sector. The other major requirement of coal comes from other industries like Cement, Sponge iron etc.

As a strategy of SCCL for maintaining / increasing the coal production, the present proposal is made for extraction coal reserves from Koyagudem OC-III Project through opencast mining.

From the detailed analysis of the environmental impacts and the mitigation measures proposed in the EMP, it is anticipated that no significant deterioration in the eco-system is likely to occur due to the proposed opencast mine. On the other hand, the project is likely to have several benefits like improvement in indirect employment generation and economic growth of the area, by way of improvements in the infrastructure facilities and better socio-economic conditions.

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THE SINGARENI COLLIERIES COMPANY LIMITED · 54,442 as on 31.01.2018. It is the only coal mining company in South India catering the needs of coal based industries. SCCL is currently