Goa pollution board to inspect jetties stacking iron ore

Panaji: With the arrival of monsoon in Goa, the State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) will inspect all 28 jetties stacking iron ore, located along Mandovi and Zuari rivers, to ensure that it does not flow into water body.  GSPCB chairman Jose Manuel Noronha told PTI that the ore flowing into water can be hazardous. According to the state government figures, three million metric tones of ore has been stacked on these jetties. Moreover, one million metric tonne of ore, which has already been sold through e-auctioning, is awaiting its transport. The GSPCB is concerned as the monsoon which hit yesterday has covered almost entire state including the talukas where these jetties are located. “The inspection would be carried (out) this week and if ore is found in the hazardous situation then the exporters would be asked to take adequate measures. The inspection would ensure that adequate precaution is taken to stop the river from getting polluted,” Noronha said. He said that while 0.3 mg of ore is permissible in the water body, but with the stacks washing into river, the concentration of ore can touch upto one mg. The ore which was on its way to export was suddenly stopped at various jetties, stacking yards and mining leases in September 2012, when the state government suspended mining activities following the Supreme Court order. The SC in its recent judgement lifted ban on mining but capped the annual output in the state at 20 million tonne. PTI