JOIN USIISc professor demands robust assessment of HN Valley project
Dubbing as 'unsound' the proposal to axe 6,316 trees for the Hebbal-Nagawara Valley project, Professor T V Ramachandra of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) called for a robust Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).
The professor demanded an evaluation of the project on multiple fronts. “It is a good project implemented in a wrong way,” he said here on Saturday.
“It doesn’t address the fundamental problem of quality of treated water being sent to Kolar and Chikkaballapur districts. When officials ignore experts and allow contractors to drive the work, we end up with environmental destruction,” he added.
Addressing a webinar organised by Namma Bengaluru Foundation to discuss the project, he said the Centre for Ecological Sciences at IISc has studied the water quality of 193 lakes in Bengaluru and found nutrients and heavy metals in all the samples.
“Sometimes, the secondary treatment plants don’t even work. I have been stressing the need for tertiary treatment and an open-channel supply system that allows aeration and photosynthesis. By sending secondary treated water in closed pipes, we are also sending the contaminants to the dry districts,” he said.
Dr Nandini N, professor and principal investigator at the Department of Environmental Science at Bangalore University expressed concern over lake encroachments.
“Residents in the vicinity of Singanayakanahalli say while the lake is spread across 400 acres, the official number is 262 acres. More than 100 acres of lake land has already been lost,” she noted.
Calling for a holistic approach to lake rejuvenation, Dr Nandini said stormwater drains and the lake shoreline must be protected to ensure proper conservation.