gem ppt

1. PPT-35
Green Earth Movement
An E-Newsletter for the cause of Environment, Peace, Harmony and Justice
Remember - “you and I can decide the future”

2. ABSTRACT
Sand is an important mineral for our society in
protecting the environment, where this practice of
sand and soil mining is becoming an environmental
issue as the demand for sand increases in industry
and construction. Mining and its associated activities
can be responsible for considerable environmental
damage.

3. Sand acts as buffer
against strong tidal
waves and storm,
habitat for crustacean
species and marine
organisms, used for
making concrete, filling roads, building sites,
brick making, making glass, sandpapers,
reclamations, and in our tourism industry in
beach attractions.

4. Sand mining is the process of removal of sand and
gravel. In almost every mineral bearing region, soil
mining and land degradation have been
inseparably connected. Unscientific mining has
caused degradation of land, accompanied by
subsidence and consequential mine fires and
disturbance of the water table leading to
topographic disorder,
severe ecological
imbalance and damage
to land use patterns in
and around mining
regions.

5. Mining is essentially a
destructive development
activity where ecology
suffers at the altar of
economy. Scientific
mining operations
accompanied by ecological
restoration and regeneration of mined wastelands
and judicious use of geological resources, with search
for eco-friendly substitutes and alternatives must
provide sensational revelation to the impact of mining
on human ecosystem .

6. SAND MINING AND
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
1. Bird habitat
Physical disturbance of the habitat caused by
dredging activities includes generation of noise, which
can interrupt nesting/breeding activities. Other
effects include destruction of habitat for foraging and
nesting, increased exposure to
re-suspended toxicants, human
disturbance from mining
operations and increased
predator use of recently dredged
areas.

7. 2. Riparian habitat, flora and fauna
In stream mining can have other costly effects beyond
the immediate mine sites. Many hectares of fertile
land are lost , as well as valuable timber resources
and wildlife habitats in the riparian areas. Degraded
stream habitats result in lost of fisheries productivity,
biodiversity, and recreational potential. Severely
degraded channels may lower land and aesthetic
values. All species require specific habitat conditions
to ensure long-term survival. Factors that increase or
decrease sediment supply often destabilize bed and
banks and result in dramatic channel readjustments.

8. 3. Groundwater
Apart from threatening bridges, sand mining
transforms the riverbeds into large and deep pits; as a
result, the groundwater table drops leaving the
drinking water wells on the embankments of these
rivers dry.

9. 4. Stability of structures
Sand-and-gravel mining in stream channels can
damage public and private property. Channel
incision caused by gravel mining can undermine
bridge piers and expose buried pipelines and
other infrastructure.

10. 5. Water quality
In stream sand mining
activities will have an
impact upon the river's
water quality. Impacts
include increased
short-term turbidity at
the mining site due to
resuspension of sediment, sedimentation due to
stockpiling and dumping of excess mining materials
and organic particulate matter, and oil spills or
leakage from excavation machinery and
transportation vehicles.

11. 6. Destruction of riparian vegetation
Caused by heavy equipment, processing
plants and gravel stockpiles at or near the
extraction site. Heavy equipment also
causes soil compaction, thereby increasing
erosion by reducing soil infiltration and
causing overland flow

13. 1] Selection of the best sand mining areas :
A well-known mitigating measure applied at
various locations around the world is selecting
sand mining areas, which will cause the least
environmental damage.
The best locations are the
coarse and medium sand
areas, because at a Trailing
suction Hopper Dredger the
overflow will by about 10%.

14. 2] Eco-efficient sand mining:
If mining is carried out up to the accepted depth limit
of two meters, a completely different situation
originates. Based on the sand volume required and an
average layer thickness of 2 m. By mining sand in long
stretches with a depth of 2 m, the damage to the
benthic communities can be reduced by more than
80%, without leading to significant cost increases.

15. 3) Exclusion of specific zones :
Sometimes it is desirable to exclude
specific zones for sand mining, shallow
coastal areas and areas near important or
sensitive marine ecosystems. The shallow
coastal zone is of great importance to the
marine ecology in view of the presence of
nursery areas for many young organisms. In addition the coastal
zones are important for the stability of the coastline, coastal
fisheries and tourism industry. Coral reefs, seagrasses and
mangrove forests, which can also be found in shallow coastal
areas. These are important with respect to biodiversity, but also
as natural barriers against coastal erosion. In view of the very
strong decrease in these ecosystems, applying so-called no-
dredging buffer zones around these areas can be seen as a
suitable mitigating measure.

16. 4) No dredging in specific periods:
Not carrying out sand mining during
specific seasons, months or weeks, or
tidal periods can by a way to limit
detrimental effects on marine life.
From an ecological point of view, it is
often recommended to carry out
Sand Mining works during winter
periods. The main reason for this is
that the population densities are
relatively low in wintertime, resulting in less damage. In
addition the reproducing period of many species takes
place in springtime, which will not be affected if dredging
is done in wintertime.

17. 5) Mathematical model simulations:
During the study phase of the project mathematical
simulation studies can be applied to investigate the
dispersion and settlement of the resuspended
sediments during the sand mining process. These
simulation models can be used to test various
execution methods and strategies
in order to minimize ecological
effects. As this can be a rather
costly exercise this measure is
usually only applied in case of large
scale sand mining projects or in
case of sand mining projects in or
near very sensitive areas.

18. 6) Limiting the overflow losses:
Selecting a modern trailing suction hopper dredger, which
has a central overflow system and releases the overflow
mixture underneath the bottom of the dredger, can
minimize overflow losses. A more technical mitigating
measure, which is to be carried out by the dredging
contractor, is to adjust the
loading process. By reducing
the pumping flow during the
final stages of the loading
process or by reducing the
total loading time (stopping
earlier) the overflow losses can be reduced significantly.
This will result in reduced suspended sediment levels.

19. 7) Application of production limits and water quality
criteria:
During sand mining the increase
in concentrations of suspended
sediments determine to a large
extent the effects on sensitive
ecosystems like corals and
seagrasses. One of the mitigating measures, which
can be used, is to put limits on the daily production
levels of the dredging process. Another method is to
put limits on specific water quality criteria, like a
maximum level of suspended sediment in front of
sensitive areas, which need protection.

20. 8) Usage of silt screens :
A method to limit the dispersion of suspended sediments is
the placement of silt screens. Silt screens are made of flexible
geotextiles and form vertical barriers in the water column. Silt
screens can form excellent barriers for many kilometers, but
cannot always be applied. Today, the strongest silt screens can
only be applied when the maximum wave height does not
exceed 1,5 m and water currents are less than 0,5 m/s. In
open sea areas these conditions are often exceeded.

21. 9) Monitoring relevant ecosystems:
Field monitoring of sensitive habitats before and during the
dredging works can be done by means of temporary or
permanent measuring systems and sensors, sampling, visual
observations and surveys. It will provide information with
respect to the results of the applied mitigating measures and
whether or not the level of the mitigating measures is too
high or too low. In case the level is too high, certain mitigating
measures can be eliminated (cost-savings), whereas in case
the applied mitigating measures
are not sufficient for the
planned protection, additional
measures can quickly be
incorporated into the project.

22. 10) Restoration of soft seabed, seagrass areas and coral reefs:
As a consequence of sand mining local benthic communities
and ecosystems will be slowed down in their development or
will be partly or completely destroyed. Usually the ecological
situation of soft seabeds, corals and seagrass areas will
improve again in time, due to natural recovery and re-
colonization. A sound mitigating measure after completion of
the dredging works is to speed up the recovery process by
human interventions like filling the deep pits with other
sediments, like shellfish eggs and species known as quick
colonizers, can be collected at other locations and placed in
the bare mined areas, damaged seagrass areas can be
replanted, recovery of coral formations can be improved by
placing young coral polyps or by transplanting healthy coral
formation from other areas.

23. ILLEGAL SAND MINING IN INDIA
Some of the key features:
1] Sand was being
dredged illegally and
operations were
claimed to be carried
out non-stop 24 hours
a day all the year round
including during monsoons.
2] Round-the-clock operations were facilitated by
mechanical dredgers and suction pumps which were
deemed to be illegal.

24. 3] Several mangrove forests had been destroyed
by illegal construction of storage docks, roads
and other infrastructure to facilitate easy
removal, storage and transfer of sand from the
river. This made Mumbai and the neighbouring
regions more vulnerable to floods.

25. 4] Local people were denied a voice in the matter. Despite
opposition from several Panchayats (local governments),
dredging operations were still carried out with impunity
because a mafia controlled the trade and many involved were
either close relatives or
friends of local politicians.
5] The livelihoods of local
fishermen were being
threatened by the sand
barges which often destroyed
their nets. Yet the fishermen
claimed that no one was
willing to register an official complaint. They were instead
threatened and intimidated against making a fuss about such
incidents.

26. 6. Many institutional processes to promote
consultation with various stakeholders were short
circuited when consultations were sometimes
deliberately scheduled at times that were
inconvenient to the villagers. For e.g. in a village, that
was predominantly Muslim, consultation meetings
were scheduled on Friday
afternoons. Since
religious commitments
took precedence, most
villagers could not attend
the consultations. This
was then construed to be a lack of participation and
decisions were made on their behalf.

27. Some examples of steps taken by Kerala
government to control illegal sand mining
1] A round-the-clock
complaint cell has been
set up at the Collectorate Control
Room for the public to register
complaints regarding illegal
sand-mining in the district. The cell will function
for registering complaints. Appropriate
directions will be given by the Additional District
Magistrate (ADM) to revenue squads formed to
check the illegal practice.

28. 2] Tahsildars have been asked to conduct
raids, seize vehicles that engage in the
illegal activity and bring them to the notice
of District Collector. The Circle
Inspector/Sub Inspector have been asked
to take necessary steps to
control the illegal activity
by conducting raids as per
the information received
from the control cell.

29. 3] It has been asked to take the custody of the
sand seized and sell it as per government rates.
The Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and
Order) Thiruvananthapuram City and the
Superintendent of Police (Rural) have been
requested to provide armed police protection
for providing protection to revenue squads.

30. TO CONCLUDE WITH A POPE FRANICS
QUOTE ON ENVIRONMENT

31. This educational PowerPoint Presentation (editable) is
prepared by GEM Team (courtesy: internet).
For other similar GEM PowerPoint Presentations on
various environmental issues see next slide.
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housing society members and so on.

32. 1. Twenty Simple Tips
2. Solar Energy
3. Junk Food
4. Plastic – a boon or bane?
5. Green Passion
6. Zero Garbage
7. Soft drink – A Health Hazard
8. Waste to energy
9. Rain Water Harvesting
10. Eco-friendly Religions
11. Happy Green Diwali
12. Climate Change
13. The future of Biodiversity
14. Genetically Modified Foods
15. Waste Water Treatment
16. Body, Organ, Tissue Donation
17. Organic Farming
18. Waste to cooking gas
19. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
20. Protect Mangroves
21. Say NO to Bottled water
22. Save Lakes and Ponds
23. Forests are green lungs
24. Coal Mining and Ecology
25. Sin of Food Waste
26. Climate change and Poverty
27. Stop Water Pollution
28. Carbon Footprints
29. Parks and Open Spaces
30. Rising Sea Levels
31. Laudato Si – Pope’s Encyclical
32. Air Pollution
33. Life Style Changes
34. Water Pollution
35. Sand Mining
36. Bees and Environment

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