State readying sand erosion management plan: Sawant

Panaji: Chief minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday said state govt has started a study to prepare a comprehensive sand erosion management plan to save Goa’s coastline. He said if beaches are not saved, tourists will no longer visit Goa.

Sawant urged the people to strictly implement the single-use plastic ban in the state from World Environment Day (June 5). He said Goa is the number one state for working towards preserving biodiversity.

He said state govt continues with sustainable development while maintaining 66% green cover and protecting eco-sensitive areas. He went on to urge the business community to work towards preserving the environment while pursuing entrepreneurial success.

“Sand erosion and soil erosion are big issues in the state. In the future, we have to save beaches, and people have to come to Goa,” Sawant said at the World Environment Day function held at Raj Bhavan. He added, “We have to stop sand erosion, and to do that, we have started to conduct a study to prepare a soil erosion management plan.”

Sawant said the single-use plastic ban is on paper, but govt will start implementing it now on the ground.

“We will strictly implement the ban on single-use plastic from Thursday,” he said. “We have to say no to single-use plastic. We should use cloth bags while visiting markets.”

Sawant said that mangroves and khazan management plans have been approved to save those natural assets. He said the Goa State Pollution Control Board works to bring solutions and not to harass any people.

“If we want to keep Goa clean and green, the pollution control board has to act. Goa is a small state, and it will not take time to destroy it,” Sawant said. “We have to work to protect the state.”

The chief minister said Goa is one of the cleanest states and has two solid waste management plants under the public-private partnership model. Sawant urged industries to run effluent treatment plants at their units and reuse water. He said state govt started setting up sewerage treatment plants across the state, including on the coastal belt.

The chief minister said that nobody should give plants in cement pots at any function to guests, as the plants never survive, and the pot does not decompose for 1,000 years. Instead, he suggested gifting coir pots so that the plants can survive.