Energy Bangla

UNESCO’s reactive monitoring mission will visit Sundarbans from March 23 to March 25, 2016, to assess possible impact of the proposed 1320MW Rampal Power Project on the world heritage site.
The mission set the schedule of the visit at a time when the Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company (BIFPCL) is taking preparation to sign Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract with Indian firm BHEL this month.
A three-member team of UNESCO will visit the site and officials of forest and environment department, power division and shipping ministry will accompany the team. One members of the team Monday arrived Dhaka and another two member will land here Tuesday.
Earlier, the team was scheduled to visit Bangladesh on February 6-12, 2016 but the programme was deferred to the current month.
During the 39th session of the world heritage committee meeting regarding the state of conservation of the world heritage property in Bangladesh, the mission observed that the environmental impact assessment (EIA) for dredging the Pashur River, adjacent to the Sundarbans, did not include a specific assessment of the potential impacts on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value (OUV), and requested Bangladesh to submit an assessment of potential impacts on OUV to the World Heritage Centre.
In response, the government said, the Mongla port authority is responsible to maintain the navigability in the river.
The mission also requested Bangladesh for conducting a comprehensive strategic environmental assessment (SEA) in order to assess the indirect and cumulative impacts from the power plants and other developments in the vicinity of the property, including a specific assessment of the potential impacts on its OUV.
The Bangladesh Power Development Board in 2013 conducted EIA through CEGIS for implementing the project.
During the mission programme, they will visit biodiversity and wildlife of Karamjal areas of Sundarbans and the site of 1320MW Rampal power project.
The mission will discuss with officials of the BIFPCL and local officials about the Rampal power project on March 23, 2016. On March 24, 2016, the mission will visit coal accident site in the Sundarbans, that took place in October 2015.
In the same day, the team will visit Harbaria where cargo is transferred from big ships to smaller vessels as well as the oil tanker accident site in the Shella River in the mangrove forest.
On March 25, 2016, the team will visit the site at Bhola of the Sundarbans where a ship capsized. They will also discuss with Mongla port chairman, researchers, teacher of Khulna varsity in the same day. During their visit, the team will meet top officials of the ministry of environment and forests today.
Earlier, BIFPCL Managing Director Ujjal Kumar Bhattacharya told that they are ready to meet UNESCO team on Rampal issue.