Tourism Finance

Comments to the Draft Summary Report of the World Bank Assisted Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project

- Environment and Social Assessment

Letters and Submissions
The Central Government move to build national capacity for implementation of the new Integrated Management Approach for India’s coastal zones and piloting the Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) Approach in the three states of Gujarat, Orissa and West Bengal is dubious. The draft Coastal Management Zone (CMZ) Notification lapsed in 2009. The concept of Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan was mooted in the draft CMZ Notification. Civil society groups have raised concerns on the CMZ notification and the need to strengthen the existing Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification. Point no. 8 of the draft summary of the World Bank assisted ICZM says the ‘GoI has already initiated steps to operationalise one part of the agenda, which is to create a suitable policy environment for integrated management of coastal and marine area’. Allowing commercial activities in the coast and then managing them are in sharp conflict to protection of coast provided in the CRZ notification. Although the MoEF has allowed the lapse of the proposed CMZ notification, the process to strengthen the existing CRZ notification by taking in the concerns of the coastal communities through public consultations, initiated by the MoEF is yet to be completed in all the proposed 10 states. Then the need for ICZM projects in pilot states for replication at national level is contradictory.
This brief paper is our comments on the Draft Summary Report of the World Bank Assisted Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project’ Environment and Social Assessment.
EQUATIONS Comments to MoEF on Draft Summary Report of the

World Bank assisted Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project

EQUATIONS
28.12.2009

This is our letter to Shri. Senthil Vel, Additional Director, Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), demanding that  proceedings on Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project (ICZM) should stop until the public consultations on Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification are completed. The public consultations were started by the MoEF to strengthen the CRZ Notification following the lapse of the draft Coastal Management Zone (CMZ) Notification, 2008. The MoEF had invited public comments on the Draft Summary Report of (ICZM) Project to be piloted in three states of Gujarat, Orissa and West Bengal.The backdoor entry of the ICZM is unethical.
 

Dr. A. Senthil Vel,                                         
Additional Director,
Ministry of Environment & Forests,
Paryavaran Bhavan,
New Delhi.

Sub: Comments on the Draft Summary Report of the World Bank Assisted Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project Environment & Social Assessment

Dear Dr. Senthil,

Greetings from EQUATIONS!

We are deeply concerned on the move by the Ministry of Environment & Forests to go ahead in building national capacity for implementation of the new integrated management approach for India’s coastal zones and piloting the Integrated Coastal Zone Management ICZM) approach in three states of Gujarat, Orissa and West Bengal.

The very concept of Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) was pushed in the terms of reference given to Dr. Swaminathan Committee which was constituted by MoEF in July 2004 to review the reports of various committees appointed by the MoEF on coastal zone management, international practises and suggest the scientific principles for an integrated coastal zone management best suited for the country.  Based on this Dr. Swaminathan Committee recommended for the integrated coastal zone management approach in February 2005. The draft Coastal Management Zone (CMZ) Notification, 2008 which again mooted the idea of ICZM was then widely critiqued by associations, movement and networks of coastal community and civil society organisations, fish workers forum, academic organisations and UN agencies on its claims of being scientific and trying to infuse scientific aspects in coastal protection with integrated coastal zone management processes.

After the Ministry lapsing the draft CMZ notification on 22nd July 2009 and holding consultations for strengthening the existing CRZ notification, the push for the implementation of ICZM projects through back door is unethical. We understand from the World Bank website that the idea of this project was initiated in 2007 itself.

We are enclosing our comments on the Draft Summary Report of the World Bank Assisted Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project Environment & Social Assessment while we urge you to stop any proceedings on this project until the consultations on CRZ to strengthen it are through.

Sincerely,

Saroop Roy B.R.
EQUATIONS

Geographies
India
Local Regions/Cities
Gujarat, Orissa, West Bengal

EQUATIONS is a research, policy, and advocacy organisation working on tourism and development issues in India. Our work has focused on the economic, environmental, social, cultural, political and administrative impacts of tourism particularly on people living in and around tourism destinations. We collaborate closely with organisations and peoples movements, to influence people-centered forms of tourism & policies that ensure significant local benefits and take into account the negative impacts of an unbridled growth of tourism.

 

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