Context: The Supreme Court has clarified that its 2024 directive requiring prior approval for mining within a 10-km radius of the Asan Wetland Conservation Reserve applies nationwide to all wetland and community conservation reserves for the sake of parity.
About The SC Order on Mining Around Ramsar Wetland Sites:
What it is?
- The Supreme Court ruling establishes that mining activities within a 10-km radius of any notified wetland or community conservation reserve require prior permission from the Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) and/or the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC).
- This order provides judicial buffer protections to internationally recognized Ramsar wetlands and reserves, compensating for the lack of statutory buffer prohibitions under current domestic wetland rules.
Key Data & Stats on Wetlands in India:
- Total Ramsar Sites: India currently houses 101 designated Ramsar sites—the highest number among Asian countries.
- Recent Expansion: On August 3, 2026, Glaw Lake in Arunachal Pradesh became the nation’s 101st Ramsar site and the state’s first.
- Pivotal Asian Milestone: India’s Ramsar network expanded rapidly from 98 sites earlier in 2026 to cross the 100-site mark.
- International Commitments: India became a Contracting Party to the 1971 Ramsar Convention on Wetlands in 1982, committing to preserving the ecological character of its international waterbodies.
The Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2010:
- Explicit List of Prohibitions: Contained detailed prohibitions on activities like land reclamation, setting up new industries, and solid waste dumping within wetlands.
- Regulation of Influence Zones: Required prior approvals for any developmental or commercial activity occurring within a wetland’s “zone of influence”.
- Mandatory EIAs: Mandated comprehensive Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) for specified projects affecting wetland ecosystems.
- Centralized Oversight: Established a centralized regulatory framework under the Central Wetlands Regulatory Authority to enforce nationwide protection standards.
- Replaced in 2017: The 2010 framework was replaced by the 2017 Rules, which decentralized regulation to State Wetland Authorities and removed explicit central prohibition lists.
Recent Supreme Court Judgments on Wetlands & Mining:
- 10-km Clearance Buffer for Wetland Reserves: Mandated that no mining can occur within 10 km of the Asan Wetland Conservation Reserve without explicit approval from the Standing Committee of the NBWL or MoEFCC.
- Nationwide Parity Principle: Held that the 10-km prior-approval requirement applies to all notified wetland and community conservation reserves across all states for administrative and ecological parity.
- Mandated Fact-Finding Reviews: Directed the NBWL/MoEFCC to scientifically determine if wetland ecosystems cross state boundaries (e.g., from Uttarakhand into Himachal Pradesh) to extend protective mandates seamlessly.
Challenges to Wetlands Due to Mining:
- Hydrological Disruption & Siltation: Heavy mining runoff introduces sediment, blocking water channels and ruining habitats.
Example: Sand and gravel extraction near river confluences chokes feeding grounds for migratory waterbirds.
- Loss of Biodiversity & Avian Habitats: Noise and heavy machinery displace endangered aquatic flora and migratory fauna.
Example: Mining disturbances along wintering bird corridors disrupt winter roosting at high-altitude wetlands.
- Chemical Contamination & Silt Load: Toxic runoff from nearby quarrying degrades water quality beyond ecological safety limits.
Example: Unregulated stone quarrying near reserve catchments increases water turbidity and heavy metal toxicity.
- Regulatory Gaps in Domestic Rules: The transition to the 2017 Wetlands Rules removed explicit statutory buffer zones, leaving wetlands vulnerable to nearby industrial encroachment.
Way Forward:
- Notifying Statutory Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZs): Formalize statutory buffer zones around major Ramsar sites under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, similar to national parks.
- Strengthening State Wetland Authorities: Empower State Wetland Authorities with clear scientific guidelines and legal enforcement tools to monitor land-use changes along zones of influence.
- Restoring Explicit Prohibitions in Wetland Rules: Re-introduce explicit lists of prohibited industrial and extraction activities in national wetland frameworks to remove regulatory ambiguity.
- Mandatory Environmental Audits: Conduct periodic impact assessments and satellite monitoring of mining leases operating near waterbodies and ecological corridors.
Conclusion:
The Supreme Court’s mandate requiring NBWL and MoEFCC clearances within 10 km of wetland conservation reserves fills a crucial gap in domestic environmental law. Extending this protection nationwide safeguards vital aquatic habitats and migratory bird corridors from industrial degradation. Ultimately, balancing economic activities with strict judicial safeguards is essential to uphold India’s international ecological commitments under the Ramsar Convention.
