The Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) of India's Union environment ministry has given in-principle approval for several major mining and infrastructure projects, including coal blocks and a hydroelectric project. The committee recommended approval for the diversion of over 1,000 hectares of forest land for a coal block and around 470 hectares for a coal mine in Madhya Pradesh, and allowed round-the-clock exploratory drilling in Assam. However, the decision on a 680 MW hydroelectric project in Arunachal Pradesh was deferred due to lack of information.
The FAC recommended appropriate mitigation measures to reduce tensile strain on the surface caused by underground workings, and required the user agency to pay the net present value and carry out compensatory afforestation in case of subsidence. The committee also granted in-principle approval for the diversion of forest land for the proposed Kendudihi North Iron Ore Block in Odisha and the Shree Jagannath International Airport in Puri.
Environmental experts have raised concerns about the impact of mining on the environment, citing the risk of subsidence and deformation of the overlying strata. The Independent Expert Scientific Committee has observed that any form of underground coal extraction results in some degree of deformation of the overlying strata, which can range from a few millimeters to significantly higher levels.
