Bharath slams EMA for granting CEC to HDC

Former trade and industry minister Vasant Bharath has lambasted the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) for granting a Certificate of Clearance (CEC) to the Housing Development Agency (HDC) to establish a “504 unit multi-family residential development’ on the St Augustine Nurseries.

In a media release yesterday, Bharath, who also served as agriculture minister under the previous PP administration, said the CEC had been granted despite widespread flooding several weeks ago at HDC developments built on former agricultural lands.

“Shockingly," he said, the EMA has granted the CEC without the need for an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and despite the recent experience of destruction of homes built on agricultural lands in Greenvale and Oropune Gardens.”

He said an EIA is the process of assessing the likely environmental impacts of a proposal and identifying options to minimise damage.

“The main purpose of the EIA is to inform decision-makers of the likely impacts of the proposal before a decision is made and with a project of this magnitude should be a precondition prior to implementation.

He said the EMA had apparently not considered the "already horrendous" traffic situation on Farm Road and the Southern Main Road, nor the fact that there are several WASA wells on the farm that currently supplies water to large parts of St. Joseph.

"What about the aquifers that act as reservoirs for ground water and consequently militate against flooding?" he asked. "What about a drainage assessment and additional sewerage?

"Which schools, primary and secondary, health centres in Curepe/St Augustine will accommodate the new influx of residents?”