As of December 2022, Coal India Ltd. (CIL) exceeded its annual target of planting 1510 hectares by expanding its green cover to 1600 hectares.
New Delhi: As directed by the Coal Ministry, coal and lignite Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) are taking several steps to conserve and efficiently use mine water by supplying it for community use, such as drinking and irrigation. This is benefitting approximately 18 lakh people living in about 900 villages near coal mining areas.
In the current fiscal year, coal and lignite PSUs plan to supply around 4000 LKL of mine water for community use, of which 2788 LKL has been supplied as of December 2022. Of this, 881 LKL has been used for domestic purposes including drinking. The main beneficiaries of this mine water are tribal people and those living in remote areas. This effort is in line with the government’s Jal Shakti Abhiyan, a water conservation initiative.
In addition to supplying mine water for community use, coal and lignite PSUs are also taking steps to expand green cover in the vicinity of their mines. Coal India Ltd. (CIL) has already surpassed its annual plantation target of 1510 hectares by expanding its green cover to 1600 hectares as of December 2022. CIL has planted over 31 lakh saplings in the current fiscal year as of December 2022.
Greening initiatives inside mine lease areas over the past five years have created a carbon sink potential of 2.2 LT/year. Coal and lignite PSUs have covered around 2230 hectares of land under plantation in the current fiscal year as of December 2022 and around 360 hectares under grassing. New techniques such as seed ball plantation, seed casting through drones and Miyawaki plantation are being used in various mines.
Mined-out areas, overburden dumps and other disturbed areas are being reclaimed as soon as they are no longer linked to active mining zones. These afforestation activities and green belt development works are also creating carbon sinks and help to control air pollution by arresting suspended dust particles emitted during mining operations.
(India CSR)
