« December 2007 | Main | February 2008 »
January 28, 2008
Irregularities in Dow plant sanction
Khushboo Narayan and Padmaparna Ghosh, livemint.com, 28th January, 2008
A review of documents obtained through the RTI Act suggest appraisal committees have accorded environmental clearances without scrutinizing documents
Mumbai/New Delhi: Environmental clearances issued to Dow Corning India Pvt. Ltd’s Ranjangaon plant in 2005 by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) were based on a site map of the company’s plant in Elizabethtown, Kentucky (US), and on incomplete emission data.
Interviews with activists, environmentalists, people responsible for policy, and a review of documents obtained through the Right to Information (RTI) Act suggest this is yet another instance where appraisal committees have accorded environmental clearances without scrutinizing documents.
The clearances issued by MPCB to Dow Corning’s plant, which makes silicone-based products at the Ranjangaon industrial estate near Pune are routine, but required for any factory to start operations.
Among the requirements for such clearances is that the companies concerned attach to their applications a topographical site plan of the local area showing surrounding villages, towns, rivers and roads.
An MPCB official said “layout of a site” was not its “concern”.
“What we really check is the distance of the plant from the river, habitation and ecology. And since this unit is in MIDC (Maharashtra Industrial Development Corp.) area, which is solely for industrial purpose, the environmental norm is further reduced. The parameters that we are concerned about are air, water and land pollution,” added Sanjay Khandare, member secretary, MPCB. He confirmed the only site plan with details submitted by Dow was for the Elizabethtown plant. This is also the document received by an activist group in response to its RTI application.
Dow Corning, which commenced operations at its Pune plant in December 2005, confirmed it had indeed submitted the map of its plant in the US.
“At the time of obtaining the consent to operate from the MPCB in 2005, we submitted a list of documents as requested by MPCB. We can confirm that a map of our plant at Elizabethtown was submitted along with the plan for Ranjangaon— this may have been because of a request from the MPCB,” said Raj Kapur, chairman and managing director, Dow Corning. Asha Albert, a spokesperson for Dow, said the company had also provided a layout of the Pune plant.
However, even Khandare’s claim that the agency only looks ar “air, water and land pollution” rings hollow because documents procured by RTI applications reveal that Dow Corning’s submission does not provide complete data on air emissions.
“The table on air emission aspects does not specify the aerial effluents of the chemical process. The air emission aspects in the list only refer to combustion products. This is incomplete information on environmental impacts of the project,” said Manju Menon of Kalpavriksh, an environmental activist group that had made the RTI application to MPCB.
Following Kalpavriksh’s petition, MPCB re-examined Dow Corning’s papers and admitted oversight.
“In the consent letter, the company has not given readings for aerial effluents emerging out of the process. We will conduct an inspection of the site and if there are issues regarding air pollution, we will take proper action against the company,” said Khandare, adding that there were also discrepancies related to the consumption of furnace oil.
“We will write to the company and get information on this matter,” he said.
According to the company, the environmental consent issued in 2005 was valid for a year, and it was extended for another five years in 2006.
Albert claims the company submitted complete data, but that MPCB had reviewed the documents again and said the data was incomplete. “We are willing to provide all the information,” she added.
Khandare was not the member secretary of MPCB when the Dow Corning clearance was given. D.B. Boralkar, who was the member secretary at that time, said: “I can’t comment on the Dow case as I don’t have the documents and I have handed over the charge.” However, Boralkar contradicted Khandare’s claim about environmental norms being relaxed for plants in industrial areas. “There is no relaxation of norms for units in industrial estates or SEZs (special economic zones),” he said.
MPCB’s clearance to Dow was given under the 1994 notification of the Union government, according to which only those projects with capital investment of more than Rs100 crore require a clearance from the Centre. The clearance for the Dow Corning plant, which had an investment of Rs43.50 crore, was given by the state government.
Indian laws allow for a clearance to be revoked if it was initially granted on false data.
Mint had reported on 27 December how the Union environment ministry had cleared a bauxite mining project in Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, to be operated by Ashapura Minechem Ltd, a listed Indian firm, on the basis of a critical environmental impact assessment that was based on data simply copied from a similar report for a Russian bauxite mine.
An MPCB official defended the boards decision to clear Dow Corning’s project.
“The pollution control board gives thousands of consents and mistakes can happen, but there is no malicious intention behind it,” said a senior MPCB official, who did not wish to be identified.
However, information on such lapses have emerged only after applications under the RTI Act and consequent additional scrutiny of environmental applications by the pollution control board.
“To be effective, the entire process needs to be changed. Authorities who clear such proposals have to take variables such as air and water data (submitted by companies putting up the project) on face value as there is no benchmark for us to compare it to,” said a Union environment and forests ministry official, who did not wish to be named.
khushboo.n@livemint.com
Posted by tim at 02:40 PM | Comments (0)
Bhopal tragedy comes to haunt Dow R&D unit, villagers block road to site
Vinod Mathew & Nisha Nambiar, Indian Express, January 28, 2007
Pune, January 27: On January 16, they blocked the road leading to a 100-acre construction site—one that, if Dow Chemical has its way, will be their first R&D unit in India. The project was started in October.
The construction work at the Rs 400-crore ‘Global Research Centre’ came to a grinding halt as hundreds of residents of Shinde village, a quiet hamlet tucked away in the interiors of Khed taluka in Pune district, woke up to an uncomfortable reality—that Dow Chemical now owns Union Carbide Corporation. The Corporation was the parent company of Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) when the Bhopal tragedy struck in 1984. For the villagers, however, it is of no consequence that UCIL was hived off by UCC in 1994 to McLeod Russel (India) Limited. The negative light under which the 1,500-odd villagers have begun to look at Dow Chemical’s centre has led to a decision that not a single truck, carrying building material or any worker to the construction site, will be allowed to pass through the village, the sole approach to the Dow Chemical unit. They know it could soon become a ‘law-and-order’ situation and they’re bracing up to face such an eventuality, though as of now the protest is a peaceful one.
Sarpanch Gorakh Rambhau Temghire — who was called twice last week by the sub-divisional officer to be persuaded to withdraw the agitation — has told the villagers that the agitation will continue under the umbrella of Bhamchandragarh Bachao Warkari Kisan Sangharsh Samiti, after Bhamchandragarh, a place of historical importance near their village.
The villagers are working in three-hour shifts between 8 am and 7 pm, playing the role of sentry at this point and shouting slogans against the company. Interestingly, there has been no police action against them. “Let them arrest us,” shouts Shantaram Bapu Temghire, former sarpanch of the village, reflecting the mood of the villagers.
The stand of villagers has perplexed N Y Sanglikar, Director, Public Affairs, Dow Chemical International Private Limited, as he believed the villagers were all for the ‘big project’ till a few weeks ago. “These are my people and I know them. They can be easily swayed. This week they may be opposing the project, but the next week they could be supporting it. The company has decided to allow time to win back the confidence of the villagers. But there is no time frame,” he says.
According to Justice BG Kolse Patil, retired judge of Bombay High Court, Justice P B Sawant, retired judge of Supreme Court and social activist Vilas Sonawane, the villagers were swayed by the arguments of the company once, but not anymore. “An RTI has been moved for information on Dow and we are ready to file a writ petition in the High Court for the same,” says Patil.
Meanwhile, villagers have in their hand — what they hope can act as a legal spanner in the project work — the 7/12 extract of the 100 acres where it’s called a ‘gairan’ (grazing land for cattle), which is to be looked after by the village panchayat. “When it was given over by the Government to the company, we were not told about it. No change of ownership has been made in the revenue documents. As on January 10, 2008, the owner of the land where the company is putting up its facility is not MIDC or Dow Chemical,” says villager Genbhau Mengle.
According to Purshottam Jadhav, MIDC’s regional officer at Pune, since it is a Government land, the onus is on the Government to change its ownership once the District Collector passes the order and it’s not mandatory to ask the panchyat samiti’s permission. “Of the 62.74 hectares, 10 hectares were given back to the village, 40 hectares were given for Dow Chemical and 12 hectares remained with the Government,” he says. However, the same is yet to be reflected in the 7/12 extract.
“The 100-acre plot has been allocated to us by the Maharashtra Government on a long lease basis. We have the appropriate documents and approvals in place needed to start and continue the construction of the research centre,” points out Sanglikar.
Meanwhile, no efforts are being spared by the company to convince the villagers of their bonafide intent. On January 22, Dow Chemical got a letter of support from National Chemical Laboratory (NCL). On Thursday, NCL Deputy Director B D Kulkarni said he was requested by the company to give a covering letter and he did it immediately as NCL had worked on some research projects with Dow. When asked whether he had seen the project report, he said that they had assured him that it would be send to him later.
The coming days may see lot of developments as Dow Chemical is planning to woo back those villagers who were supportive of their centre mid-December when they got ‘swayed by outsiders’ — only two months after Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao signed on the dotted line to pave way for the facility.
editor@expressindia.com
Posted by tim at 02:04 PM | Comments (0)
January 19, 2008
Protesters halt work at Dow Chemical centre
India Pr Wire, 19 January, 2007
New Delhi -- Protestors, demanding justice for survivors of the 1984 Bhopal gas leak disaster, Saturday claimed to have brought to a halt construction work at Dow Chemical's upcoming research and development centre in Maharashtra.
'All construction work at Dow Chemical's Rs.4 billion research centre in Chakhan, near Pune, was brought to a halt by local residents and farmers who have made it clear to the company that it will not be allowed to set up the centre until it addresses the issues facing the survivors of the 1984 Union Carbide disaster,' said Shalini Sharma, an activist.
'More than 500 women associated with the local 15-village Bhamchandragarh Bachao Warkari Farmer Sangharsh Samiti protested at the Chakhan facility,' Sharma added.
Rachna Dhingra, another activist, said the chemical giant is now facing protests from every quarter.
'A few days ago students of the Indian Institutes of Technology successfully petitioned their institutes to bar Dow from recruiting engineers on campus, while in 2005 public pressure led to the cancellation of a technology tie-up between Dow and Indian Oil,' claimed Dhingra.
Dow Chemical has taken over Union Carbide. Activists from across the country have been opposing its every single move in India alleging the global chemical giant is yet to provide adequate compensation to the victims of 1984 gas leak disaster.
Protesters criticise the government for failing to pursue Dow Chemical to clean up the contaminated soil and groundwater around the factory in Bhopal.
Posted by tim at 09:39 AM | Comments (0)
January 08, 2008
US Chemical Giant Faces Hurdles in India Due to Bhopal Gas Leak Legacy
Steve Herman, Voice of America, 08 January, 2008
Herman report - Download MP3 (1.38M) - Download (MP3)
Herman report - Download MP3 (1.38M) - Listen (MP3)
Dow Chemical, the world's second-largest chemical manufacturer, is facing difficulties trying to expand in India. The company is haunted by the 1984 leak of methyl isocyanate, one of the most lethal chemical compounds invented by man, from a Union Carbide pesticide factory in the Indian city of Bhopal. Dow bought Union Carbide in 2001 and many Indians want Dow to take responsibility for the 1984 disaster before it is allowed to increase its operations in India. VOA correspondent Steve Herman reports from Bhopal.
A lingering stench hovers over Dow Chemical's attempts to become a major player in the booming Indian market. Many Indians hold Dow responsible for the 40 tons of methyl isocyanate that leaked in Bhopal on December 3, 1984, and for not paying adequate compensation for the thousands killed and disabled.
Despite repeated requests, Dow declined to provide a company official for an interview. The company's Web site states that because it did not own or operate the Union Carbide plant at the time of the disaster, Dow bears no responsibility for it.
That argument does not wash with many people here.
Yawar Rashid is an aristocrat and businessman of the Muslim royal dynasty that ruled Bhopal for two centuries.
"People know the association of Union Carbide and Dow, so people would definitely be upset because people are very emotional about this subject in Bhopal," Rashid said.
The memory of what happened early that morning in 1984 remains fresh in the mind of Dr. H.H. Trivedi. Rushing to a hospital emergency room to treat countless patients suffering acute respiratory syndrome, the internist himself was exposed to the toxic gas, and he still suffers from shortness of breath.
"As a physician still I feel it - what is the meaning of being a doctor when I am not able to do justice to the patient? I'm helpless - helpless and depressed. Sometimes it makes me really feel sad," Dr. Trivedi said.
Jawaharlal Nehru University Professor Kamal Mitra Chenoy has long criticized the lack of accountability for the tragedy. He says Dow is the only entity the Bhophal victims can look to for compensation.
"Union Carbide sold out, and therefore they ran away from their liability," Prof. Chenoy noted. "The government of India has put the entire onus on Union Carbide, which no longer exists. So the only entity that can take any responsible is Dow Chemical. That is why there is this anger with Dow Chemical. There is no one else."
Activists have urged engineering graduates and students from the country's elite institutes of technology to refuse job interviews with Dow on moral grounds.
Chenoy says at some of the universities Dow, which has annual sales of nearly $50 billion and employs 43,000 people worldwide, is finding doors closed to its recruiters.
"Bhopal has become a symbol of dangerous foreign technology and carelessness towards the victims of a tragedy," Prof. Chenoy said. "So it has enraged a lot of people in India, and that is why these young people are moved by the dimensions of the tragedy."
Dow has said it wants to triple its investment in India over the next couple of years, to the $1 billion level. The company plans to open a regional research and development hub this year in Pune, which is eventually to handle half of the company's global R & D.
Dow also wants to open new manufacturing plants in India. Last year, it discussed a multi-billion-dollar joint venture with a major Indian conglomerate, Reliance Industries.
Here at the site of the 1984 disaster, there has yet to be a full cleanup. Union Carbide's old pesticide manufacturing units are slowly rusting. Cattle and goats graze on the contaminated property, which is now under state control.
Activist groups say the groundwater, which is used for cooking and bathing by residents of a nearby slum, is toxic.
A half billion-dollar settlement, approved by India's Supreme Court in 1989 and which the chemical company and its Indian subsidiary paid promptly, absolved Union Carbide of further civil liability. The company also agreed to pay for a hospital and fund it for eight years.
But critics say by the time the award trickled down to those permanently disabled by the gas, the average claimant received only a few hundred dollars.
Union Carbide, some of its directors - including former chairman Warren Anderson - and the company's Indian subsidiary still face criminal charges of causing death through negligence. But the case has languished in the Bhopal District Court since 1992.
Union Carbide and Dow have refused to acknowledge court summonses. Critics say India's government appears reluctant to pursue the case.
Being blocked from a major developing market like India could adversely affect Dow's business. Business consultants say it is essential for multi-national corporations to move much of their operations to lower-cost centers in the developing world. If Dow is not able to expand in India, one of the world's largest and fastest-growing markets, it could be at a disadvantage vis-a-vis its competitors.
International activists such as Tim Edwards, a trustee of the Bhopal Medical Appeal, say Dow will face stiff resistance to its expansion until it takes responsibility for the gas released over the central Indian city.
"It's difficult to see how Dow is going to be able to expand into India if it's unable to hire technical and engineering staff locally," Edwards said. "If Dow can't expand into India then its plans to save its business in relation to rising energy prices are going to be in severe jeopardy."
Dow itself is under fresh scrutiny here. India's Central Bureau of Investigation raided offices of a Dow subsidiary five months ago. The raids followed allegations of bribes being paid to Indian regulatory officials to facilitate licenses for Dow pesticide products. Dow last year paid a $325,000 penalty to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to settle an S.E.C. investigation into those same payments.
Dow has also garnered some strong allies here, including corporate titans of the Tata and Reliance conglomerates, and some top government officials including Commerce Minister Kamal Nath.
They are urging an out-of-court compromise for the Bhopal claims, in order to pave the way for new investment by Dow in India.
Posted by tim at 12:20 AM | Comments (0)