The Government of Bangladesh provides importance to protect environment and natural resources. The Government has included an article for environmental protection and pursuit of sustainable development.
Environment Conservation Act 1995 is currently the main act governing environmental protection in Bangladesh, which replaced the earlier environment pollution control ordinance of 1992 and provides the legal basis for Environment Conservation Rules, 1997 (ECR’97). Environmental Conservation Rules, 1997 consists of a set of the relevant rules to implement the Environment Conservation Act, 1995 which specify: Categorized list (Green, Orange-A, Orange-B and Red) of the projects; Procedure to take environmental clearance; Ambient standards in relation to water pollution, air pollution and noise, as well as permitted discharge/emission levels of water and air pollutants and noise by projects Environmental Categories. Procedure for issuing Environmental Clearance Certificate has been stated in the Rule-7 of the Environmental Conservation Rules, 1997.
Environmental Clearance Procedure:
It is mandatory to obtain Environmental Clearance for each and every type of industry and project as per Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act, 1995 (Amended 2010). For the purpose of issuance of Environmental Clearance Certificate, the industrial units and projects shall, in consideration of their site and impact on the environment, be classified into the following four categories –
Green
Orange-A
Orange-B
Red
Industries and projects included in the various categories as specified in rule 7(2) of ECR 1997 have been described in Schedule-1 (Environment Conservation Rules, 1997). Environmental Clearance for Green category industries and projects is provided through comparatively simple procedure. In case of Orange-A, Orange-B and Red Category industries and projects, Site Clearance is mandatory at the beginning, then EIA approval and finally Environmental Clearance is issued. The Environment Clearance is to be renewed after three (03) years for Green category and one (01) year for Orange-A, Orange-B and Red category industries respectively.
Environmental Clearance Certificate’s shall be issued to all existing industrial units and projects and to all proposed industrial units and projects falling in the Green Category.
For industrial units and projects falling in the Orange-A, Orange-B, first a Site Clearance Certificate and thereafter an Environmental Clearance Certificate shall be issued. In case of Red category industries, firstly a Location Clearance Certificate, then Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) approval and thereafter an Environmental Clearance Certificate shall be issued.
Documents Required for Different Categories of Industrial Units or Projects:
Green
1. Application through prescribed form-3 under Environment Conservation Rules 1997
2. Prescribed fees under schedule-13 under Environment Conservation Rules 1997 (Amended 2002) 3. General information about the industrial unit or project;
4. Exact description of the raw materials and the manufactured product; and
5. No objection certificate (Prescribed Form) from the local authority;
If an application for an Environmental Clearance Certificate for an industrial unit or project of Green Category is made under article 7(5) along with the relevant documents specified in Article 7(6), then, within 15 days of the receipt of the application, the certificate shall be issued or the application shall be rejected mentioning appropriate reason for such rejection.
Orange-A
1. Application through prescribed form-3 under Environment Conservation Rules 1997
2. Prescribed fees under schedule-13 under Environment Conservation Rules 1997 (Amended 2002) 3. General information about the industrial unit or project;
4. Exact description of the raw materials and the manufactured product;
5. No objection certificate (Prescribed Form) from the local authority;
6. Process flow diagram;
7. Layout Plan (showing location of Effluent Treatment Plant);
8. Effluent discharge arrangement;
9. Outlines of the plan for relocation, rehabilitation (if applicable); 10. Other necessary information (if applicable);
If an application is made under Article 7(5) along with the relevant documents specified in Article 7(6), then in the case of an Orange- A Category industrial unit or project, within 30 days of the receipt of the application.
Orange-B
1. Application through prescribed form-3 under Environment Conservation Rules 1997
2. Prescribed fees under schedule-13 under Environment Conservation Rules 1997 (Amended 2002)
3. Report on the feasibility of the industrial unit or project (applicable only for proposed industrial unit or project);
4. Report on the Initial Environmental Examination of the industrial unit or project, and also the process flow diagram, Layout Plan (showing location of Effluent Treatment Plant), design of the Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) of the unit or project (these are applicable only for a proposed industrial unit or project);
5. Report on the Environmental Management Plan (EMP) for the industrial unit or project, and also the Process Flow Diagram, Layout Plan (showing location of Effluent Treatment Plant), design of the Effluent Treatment Plant and information about the effectiveness of the ETP of the unit or project, (these are applicable only for an existing industrial unit or project);
6. No objection certificate (Prescribed Form) from the local authority;
7. Emergency plan relating adverse environmental impact and plan for mitigation of the effect of pollution;
8. Outline of the relocation, rehabilitation plan (where applicable);
9. Other necessary information (where applicable).
If an application is made under Article 7(5) along with the relevant documents specified in Article 7(6), then Orange-B Category industrial unit or project, within 60 days of the receipt of the application, a Location Clearance Certificate shall be issued or the application shall be rejected mentioning appropriate reasons for such rejection.
Red
1. Application through prescribed form-3 under Environment Conservation Rules 1997
2. Prescribed fees under schedule-13 under Environment Conservation Rules 1997 (Amended 2002)
3. Report on the feasibility of the industrial unit or project (applicable only for proposed industrial unit or project);
4. Report on the Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) relating to the industrial unit or project, and also the terms of reference (ToR) for the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the unit or the project and its Process Flow Diagram; or Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report prepared on the basis of terms of reference previously approved by the Department of Environment, along with the Layout Plan (showing location of Effluent Treatment Plant), Process Flow Diagram, design and time schedule of the Effluent Treatment Plant of the unit or project, (these are applicable only for a proposed industrial unit or project);
5. Report on the Environmental Management Plan (EMP) for the industrial unit or project, and also the Process Flow Diagram, Layout Plan (showing location of Effluent Treatment Plant), design and information about the effectiveness of the Effluent Treatment Plan of the unit or project (these are applicable only for an existing industrial unit or project);
6. No objection certificate (Prescribed Form) of the local authority:
7. Emergency plan relating adverse environmental impact and plan for mitigation of the effect of pollution;
8. Outline of relocation, rehabilitation plan (where applicable);
9. Other necessary information (where applicable); If an application is made under Article 7(5) along with the relevant documents specified in Article 7(6), then Red Category industrial unit or project, within 60 days of the receipt of the application, a -4- Location Clearance Certificate shall be issued or the application shall be rejected mentioning appropriate reasons for such rejection.
General Process Steps for Environmental Clearance: Step 1 : Submit application with supporting documents.
Step 2 : Verification of application and supporting documents by DOE
Step 3 : Inspection by the authorized officer after verification of all report and documents. [Then make decision about the clearance (Only Green and Orange-A)]
Step 4 : Meeting of Environmental Clearance Committee (for Orange-B and Red Category) Step 5 : Decision
Renewal Process:
The period of validity of an Environmental Clearance Certificate shall be, in case of Green Category, 3 years from the date of its issuance and in all other cases 1 year. Each Environmental Clearance Certificate has to be applied for renewal at least thirty (30) days before expiry.
