The project, with a proposed capacity of 1,720 MW, will harness waters of the Kamala River, a right-bank tributary of the Subansiri River, as per official documents. (Credits: wikimedia commons)Government enterprise National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) has sought clearance from Union Environment Ministry to divert for non-forest purpose 3,278 hectares of high-conservation-value forest in the lower Himalayas region of Arunachal Pradesh for its Kamala hydroelectric project.The project, with a proposed capacity of 1,720 MW, will harness waters of the Kamala River, a right-bank tributary of the Subansiri River, as per official documents.The Union Environment Ministry’s Forest Advisory Committee (FAC), which grants prior approval for non-forest work on forest land, will appraise the forest diversion proposal on October 23, as per the FAC’s official agenda.The diversion of the forest across Kra Daadi, Kurung Kumey and Kamle districts, if approved, will entail the felling of 23.4 lakh trees, the proposal documents show.Out of 23,40,213 trees earmarked for felling, 15.08 lakh are in the Hapoli forest division and 8.31 lakh, in Kra Daadi division.Compensatory afforestation in lieu of the forest diversion has been proposed over 7,018 hectares across many districts of Madhya Pradesh, as per official documents.Normally, when forest land is diverted for non-forest purposes, an equivalent patch of non-forest land must be found locally for afforestation.Story continues below this adSince Arunachal Pradesh already has a high forest cover, the Forest Conservation Act allows to fulfil the compensatory afforestation obligations on non-forest land in other states which have less forest cover.However, the FCA says that if no equivalent non-forest land is available, then a plantation twice the size of the diverted forest land has to be raised on degraded land. The same will be the case for the afforestation programme proposed in Madhya Pradesh.Also Read | Arunachal hydel project will impact 23.4 lakh trees, but compensatory plantations will happen in MPThe Kamala project is one among a cascade of hydel projects planned in the Subansiri River basin.The project was recommended for environmental clearance (EC) in January by the Environment Ministry’s sectoral expert panel on river valley and hydroelectric projects with the condition that final EC will be granted only after in-principal forest clearance.Story continues below this adThe site inspection report by officials of the Environment Ministry’s regional office in Shillong noted that the project site does not fall in any national park, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve, or elephant corridor.However, it added, the project “will undoubtedly affect the habitats of various wildlife. Moreover, the increased width of the submerged area will adversely affect the migration of wild animals from one bank to the other.” With this observation, it sought a wildlife mitigation plan/biodiversity conservation plan.Conceived as a run-of-the-river cum storage project, the Rs 2,400-crore Kamala hydel project involves a 216-metre-high concrete gravity dam equipped with approved flood moderation features. The reservoir area and the dam top areas are expected to take up nearly 2,960.49 hectares of forest land.Also Read | Arunachal’s Upper Subansiri project gets green nod recommendation, 1.35 lakh trees at riskThe Kamala River valley is almost entirely hilly and mostly covered by dense forests. A total of 5,440 families in 126 villages will be affected due to the project, as per its Social Impact Assessment report.Story continues below this adOf the 3,278 hectares of forest proposed for diversion, 439 hectares is classified as very dense forest and 1,119 as moderately dense. As per data collected from field surveys in all seasons, a total number of 155 plant species, belonging to 69 families, were sighted and recorded in the study area.An award-winning journalist with 14 years of experience, Nikhil Ghanekar is an Assistant Editor with the National Bureau [Government] of The Indian Express in New Delhi. He primarily covers environmental policy matters which involve tracking key decisions and inner workings of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. He also covers the functioning of the National Green Tribunal and writes on the impact of environmental policies on wildlife conservation, forestry issues and climate change. Nikhil joined The Indian Express in 2024. Originally from Mumbai, he has worked in publications such as Tehelka, Hindustan Times, DNA Newspaper, News18 and Indiaspend. In the past 14 years, he has written on a range of subjects such as sports, current affairs, civic issues, city centric environment news, central government policies and politics. ... Read More Tags:Arunachal Pradesh