The Environment (Protection) Second Amendment Rules, 2021

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate on 6th August, 2021 has issued the Environment (Protection) Second Amendment Rules, 2021. The amendment has provided a list of Pharmaceutical Bulk Drugs and Formulations and has provided the effluent standards for the same. The standard is applicable to all discharges except to CETP and shall be applicable to all discharges to land and surface water bodies including use of treated wastewater for horticulture or irrigation purposes. Limits shall be applicable to industries that are using Benzene, Xylene, Methylene Chloride, Chlorobenzene.

MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

NOTIFICATION

New Delhi, the 25th June, 2021

G.S.R. 443(E).—Whereas the Central Government had, in exercise of its powers under section 3, section 6 and section 25 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (29 of 1986), read with rule 5 of the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986 (thereinafter referred to as the said rules), made rules further to amend sub-rule (8) of rule 3 of the said rules vide notification number S.O. 1561 (E), dated the 21st May, 2020, inter-alia, mandating use of „middling‟ and „rejects‟ from coal washeries by the Thermal Power Plants having Fluidised Bed Combustion (FBC) technology;

And whereas, the Central Government had, in exercise of its powers under sections 6 and 25 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (29 of 1986), read with sub-rule (3) of rule 5 of the Environment (Protection) Rules, in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, vide notifications number S.O. 3305 (E), dated the 7th December, 2015 and G.S.R. 593 (E), dated the 28th June, 2018, published the emission standards of fly ash and specific water consumption for various category of thermal power plants, based on capacity of power generation and date of installation of power plant, to be achieved in time bound manner;

And whereas, the Ministry of Coal represented that the restrictive item (ii) of Clause (1) of sub-rule (8) of rule 3 of the said rules clause (4) of said sub-rule (8) will result in a crisis in the Coal beneficiation industry by limiting its sale of washing rejects, in view of the fact that presently the Fluidised Bed Combustion (FBC) plants in the country are very limited in number and that the thermal power plants are already mandated to follow the emission norms and have obligation to utilise fly ash as per specific notification under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, and the sales of reject also generates revenue that helps in sustaining washing operations;

And whereas, it has also been represented that Large and Conventional Thermal Power Plants (Pulverised Coal-Fired Boilers), with advanced technologies, are fully equipped for benign combustion and also to handle the emissions and ash, generated during combustion of rejects duly blended with Coal of higher Gross Calorific Value (GCV) and that all prevalent environment and pollution norms, stipulated for the operations of power plants, can also be ensured with such combination, and the coal rejects, generated during coal-washing process can therefore, be considered for utilisation in large scale conventional Pulverised Coal-Fired (PF) thermal power plants, by blending such rejects with higher grade coal provided they continue to meet the applicable environmental and pollution norms stipulated for such power plants;

And whereas, based on the representations received and after careful considerations, it is noted that—

(a) The middling and rejects, generated from washeries, possess varying degree of ash and calorific values depending on the seam quality of Run of Mine (ROM), technology used in washery and the intended quality of product, etc.

(b) Broadly, quality of middling (from Coking coal washery) are similar to G10-G11 grade of coal having Gross Calorific Value (GCV) 4000-4500 kcal/kg and is good to be used for power generation, irrespective of technology in use.

(c) The rejects are generally below the quality of graded coal (Lower than G17 - GCV less than 2200 Kcal/kg). Broadly, rejects have more than 70% of ash by weight and less than 25% Carbon. Reject coal are being used in non-thermal sectors like brick kiln, briquette and silicate manufacturing industries, where heat requirement is low. The ash generated from such industries are not properly regulated and therefore, it contributes significantly to the deterioration in the ambient air quality. Blending of reject with other good quality of coal for optimization of feed stock in many boilers is also practiced and therefore, there is demand of such rejects in the Thermal Power Plants.

(d) Ash generated from coal or lignite thermal power plants, irrespective of the source or type of coal is regulated by the notification (on Fly Ash utilization) number S.O.763(E), dated the 14th September, 1999 and its amendments for effective utilization of ash.

(e) Compliance to the provisions of Emission norms and Fly ash notification is essential for all thermal power plant, irrespective of their feed -stock, and therefore, regulation on feed-stock or use of technology becomes redundant.

Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 3, section 6 and section 25 of the Environment Protection Act, 1986 (29 of 1986), read with sub-rule (4) of rule 5 of the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986, the Central Government, after having dispensed with the requirement of notice under clause (a) of sub-rule (3) of rule 5 of the said rules, in public interest, hereby makes the following rules further to amend the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986, namely:—

1. (1) These rules may be called the Environment (Protection) Second Amendment Rule, 2021.

(2) They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.

2. In the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986, in rule 3, in sub-rule (8), in clause (1), for item (ii), the following item shall be substituted, namely:—

“ (ii) In case of coal washeries, middling and rejects to be utilised in any Thermal Power Plants, subject to the said Thermal Power Plant complying with the stipulated emission and fly ash norms as specified in Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change notification number S.O. 3305 (E) dated the 7th December, 2015, read with the notification number S.O. 763 (E), dated the 14th September, 1999 and its amendments [vide numbers S.O. 979 (E), dated the 27th August, 2003, S.O. 2804 (E), dated the 3rd November, 2009 and S.O. 254(E) dated 25th January, 2016] and related subsequent notifications and amendments issued from time to time”.

[F. No. J-13014/01/2020-IA-1 (T)]

DR. SUJIT KUMAR BAJPAYEE, Jt. Secy.