10 thousand trees to be cut for Sharavathi project in Shivamogga, Uttara Kannada districts

SHIVAMOGGA: The proposed 2,000-megawatt Sharavathi Pumped Storage Project in Shivamogga and Uttara Kannada districts is expected to result in the felling of around 10,000 trees. But this is less than the original estimate of 16,041 trees.

Replying to an unstarred question from MLC Dr Dhananjaya Sarji in the Council recently, Energy Minister KJ George said the project will be executed at an estimated cost of Rs 10,240 crore. The project will store an average of 12 million units of energy per day. He acknowledged that there would be a temporary disturbance to the forest, but maintained that the overall environmental impact would be limited. The system will allow the state to store surplus power during off-peak seasons and release it when the demand is high, he added.

The project will use the existing Talakalale dam as the upper reservoir and Gerusoppa dam in the Sharavathi Valley as the lower reservoir. The Central Electricity Authority approved the detailed project report last year, and the project is scheduled to be completed in five years. After the project, 54.15 hectares of revenue land will be handed over to the Forest Department for afforestation. Creating a green canopy and animal corridors, as suggested by the Forest Department, will be taken up during the implementation to protect endangered wildlife, he added.

The project requires 100.64 hectares of land, including 54.15 hectares of forest land and 46.49 hectares of non-forest land. George said the project will not alter the flow of the river and or disturb existing infrastructure, like transmission corridors, colony offices and roads. George said the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board has scheduled public hearings, which will be held on September 16 in Shivamogga and September 18 in Uttara Kannada.