Bio-Medical Waste Treatment Facility cannot be closed down only for want of prior environmental clearance: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Thursday held that operation of a bio-medical waste treatment facility is in the interest of prevention of environmental pollution and that closure of such a facility only on the ground of want of prior environmental clearance (EC) would be against public interest [D Swamy vs KSPCB]..A bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and JK Maheshwari, therefore, upheld a 2017 decision of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) which had dismissed a plea seeking closure of a common bio-medical waste treatment facility at Mysore in Karnataka."The closure of the facility only on the ground of want of prior Environmental Clearance would be against public interest," the Court held..By way of background, the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KPSCB) had in November 2012, granted consent to M/s GIPS Biotech to establish the common bio-medical waste treatment facility under the provisions of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 and the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 for collection, reception, transportation, treatment and disposal of bio-medical waste.After going through a maze of litigation, the NGT by way of an order dated May 10, 2017 eventually upheld the consent granted to operate the plant.Pertinently, on March 14, 2017, the Central government had issued a notification providing for grant of ex post facto EC for project proponents who had commenced, continued or completed a project without obtaining EC under the EP Act/EP Rules or the Environmental Impact Notification .The appellant challenged the consent granted to the plant for violating provisions of the Environmental Impact Assessment Notification 2006 and, thus, not obtaining an EC. .The Supreme Court noted that ex-post facto EC should ordinarily not be granted routinely, but it can be granted in exceptional circumstances taking into account all relevant environmental factors."Where the adverse consequences of denial of ex-post facto approval outweigh the consequences of regularization of operations by grant of ex post facto approval, and the establishment concerned otherwise conforms to the requisite pollution norms, ex post facto approval should be given in accordance with law, in strict conformity with the applicable Rules," the top court said..The Court held that the EP Act does not prohibit ex post facto EC and grant of the same in accordance with law and in strict compliance with rules and regulations is not impermissible."At the same time ex post facto clearances and/or approvals and/or removal of technical irregularities in terms of a Notification under the EP Act cannot be declined with pedantic rigidity," the Court said placing reliance on Electrosteel Steels Limited judgment..The Court cannot be oblivious to the economy or the need to protect the livelihood of hundreds of employees and others employed in the project and others dependent on the project, if such projects comply with environmental norms, the bench made it clear. .It, therefore, upheld the NGT order and stated that the tribunal had rightly found that the treatment facility was being operated with the requisite consent to operate and it could not be closed on the ground of want of prior EC.The bench also noted that there was a 62 days delay in filing the appeal and on account of delay itself, the appeal would be liable to be dismissed. .[Read Judgment]