Environment, is a term that encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. Environment plays an important role in the healthy living of human beings. Humanity’s entire life support system depends on the well-being of all the environmental factors. But, there is drastic environmental change due to industrialization and excessive pollution. So, we must ensure sustainable development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Keeping this in mind, Ministry of Environment and Forest of Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh made few rules which is known as Environment Conservation rules which classifies industries in four categories in consideration of their site and impact on the environment. All of existing industrial units and projects and proposed units and projects must get Environment clearance certificate to continue business in Bangladesh.
There are so many advantages of having that certificate like,
- It meets the legal obligation
- Stack holders get confidence to invest
- Nearby people get relief from pollution
- Company gets recognition as Environment Friendly entity
- Ensure and promote sustainable development
Industries are classified in four categories in Bangladesh. They are-
- Green
- Orange-A
- Orange-B
- Red
For issuance of Environmental Clearance Certificate, industrial units and projects shall be considered in the basis of their location and impact on the environment.
Environmental Clearance Certificate 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 and Red categories, firstly a Location Clearance Certificate and thereafter an Environmental Clearance Certificate shall be issued. Provided that the Director General may, without issuing a Location Clearance Certificate at the first instance, directly issue Environmental Clearance Certificate if he, on the application of an industrial unit or project, considers it appropriate to issue such certificate to the industrial unit or project. To find the application form, please click here
The entrepreneur of the concerned industrial unit or project shall apply to the concerned Divisional Officer of the Department in a certain Form along with appropriate fees as specified in Schedule given. Find the schedule here.
The following documents shall be attached with an application made by the entrepreneur:
(I) For Green Category-
- General information about the industrial unit or project,
- Exact description of the raw materials and themanufactured product and,
- No objection certificate from the local authority.
(II) For Orange – A Category-
- General information about the industrial unit or project,
- Exact description of the raw materials and the manufactured product,
- No objection certificate from the local authority,
- Process flow diagram,
- Layout Plan (showing location of Effluent Treatment Plant),
- Effluent discharge arrangement,
- Outlines of the plan for relocation, rehabilitation (if applicable),
- Other necessary information (if applicable).
(III) For Orange – B Category-
- Report on the feasibility of the industrial unit orproject (applicable only for proposed industrial unit or project),
- Report on the Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) of the industrial unit or project, and also the processflow diagram, Layout Plan (showing location ofEffluent Treatment Plant), design of the EffluentTreatment Plant (ETP) of the unit or project (theseare applicable only for a proposed industrial unit orproject),
- Report on the Environmental Management Plan(EMP) for the industrial unit or project, and alsothe Process Flow Diagram, Layout Plan (showinglocation of Effluent Treatment Plant), design of theEffluent Treatment Plant and information about theeffectiveness of the ETP of the unit or project,(these are applicable only for an existing industrial unit or project),
- No objection certificate from the local authority,
- Emergency plan relating adverse environmentalimpact and plan for mitigation of the effect of pollution,
- Outline of the relocation, rehabilitation plan (where applicable),
- Other necessary information (where applicable).
(IV) For Red Category-
- Report on the feasibility of the industrial unit orproject (applicable only for proposed industrial unit or project),
- Report on the Initial Environmental Examination(IEE) relating to the industrial unit or project, andalso the terms of reference for the Environmental E.C.R. ’97 Impact Assessment of the unit or the project and itsProcess Flow Diagram;
Or,
Environmental Impact Assessment 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),
- Report on the Environmental Management Plan(EMP) for the industrial unit or project, and alsothe Process Flow Diagram, Layout Plan (showinglocation of Effluent Treatment Plant), design andinformation about the effectiveness of the EffluentTreatment Plan of the unit or project (these areapplicable only for an existing industrial unit or project),
- No objection certificate of the local authority,
- Emergency plan relating adverse environmentalimpact and plan for mitigation of the effect of pollution,
- Outline of relocation, rehabilitation plan (where applicable),
- Other necessary information (where applicable).
IEE and EIA is needed to get Environmental Clearance for a planned project. It is very important to obtain Environmental Clearance Certificate from Department of Environment (DOE) for doing a long term successful business.
Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) is an initial environmental examination, and it is a preliminary small study to see if a project harms the environment while the Environmental Impact Analysis (EIA) is a full assessment of the effects of the project on the environment.
Environmental impact assessment (EIA) can be defined as the systematic identification and evaluation of the potential impacts (effects) of proposed projects, plans, programs, or legislative actions, relative to the physical–chemical, biological, cultural, and socioeconomic components of the environment.
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is the process by which the anticipated effects on the environment of a proposed development or project are measured. If the likely effects are unacceptable, design measures or other relevant mitigation measures can be taken to reduce or avoid those effects.
Time frame:
- If an application for an Environmental Clearance Certificate for an industrial unit or project of Green Category is made under according to the rules along with the relevant documents specified in rules, 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.
- If an application is made under according to the rules along with the relevant documents specified in rules, then in the case of an Orange- A Categoryindustrial unit or project, within thirty days of the receipt of the application, and inthe case of an Orange-B or Red Category industrial unit or project, within sixty daysof the receipt of the application, a Location Clearance Certificate shall be issued orthe application shall be rejected mentioning appropriate reasons for such rejection.
Upon receiving Location Clearance Certificate under rules, the entrepreneur–
(a) May undertake activities for land development and infrastructure development,
(b) May install machinery including ETP (applicable for industrial units or projects of Orange-A and Orange-B Category only),
(c) Shall apply for Environmental Clearance Certificate upon completion of the activities specified, and, without the Environmental Clearance Certificate, shall not have gas line connection, and shall not start trial production in the industrial unit, and in other cases shall not operate the project (applicable for Orange-A and Orange-B Category industrial units or projects only),
(d) Shall submit for approval of the Department the EIA report prepared on the basis of program outlined in IEE Report along with time schedule and ETP design (applicable only for Red Category industrial units or projects).
After EIA is approved, the entrepreneur –
(a) May open L/C for importing machineries which shallinclude machineries relating to ETP; and
(b) Shall, after installation of ETP, apply for Environmental Clearance Certificate without which he shall not have gas line connection and shall not start trial production in case of an industrial unit, and in other cases shall not start operation of the project.
Fee Schedule:
Fees payable under these Rules shall be deposited with the Bangladesh Bank or a Government Treasury by a Treasury Chalan in favour of the Director General under the Head 1 – 4541 – 0000 – 2681. Please, click here to see the list of fees.
Renewal Process:
The period of validity of an Environmental Clearance Certificate shall be, in case of Green Category, three years from the date of its issuance and in all other cases one year. Each Environmental Clearance Certificate has to be renewed at least thirty (30) days before expiry.
Information of special incident:
If, at any place, discharge or emission of environment pollutants occur in excess of the prescribed standards or if any place is under threat of facing such discharge or emission as a result of any accident or unforeseen incident, then the person or persons in charge of that place shall immediately inform the Director General of the occurrence or the threat.
For more information visit this website here
Benchmark Solutions has multidisciplinary composition of experts with expertise in environmental field. They are well capable of identifying environmental issues, assessing their impacts, and recommend mitigation measures. If you want to get Environmental Clearance Certificate easily and run a successful business, please contact us today.