New Delhi: The National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) has greenlit exploratory oil and gas drilling in Assam’s Hollongapar Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary, sparking concerns about balancing energy needs with conservation of the endangered Hoolock gibbon and other unique wildlife.
The decision, made during the NBWL’s 81st meeting, involves a 4.4998-hectare project, including a well pad and access road, located 13 kilometers from the sanctuary. The site is part of the AA-ONHP-2017/4 block and falls within the sanctuary’s 264.92-square-kilometer eco-sensitive zone (ESZ), East Mojo reported.
A site inspection by government officials and wildlife experts – representatives from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), Wildlife Institute of India (WII), and Assam’s Forest Department – last November found that exploratory drilling would have limited immediate environmental impact. However, they strongly opposed commercial drilling within the ESZ, citing the sanctuary’s critical role in preserving biodiversity and providing forest corridors, the report added.
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“The sanctuary is an important habitat of the Hoolock gibbon. The committee noticed that the exploratory drilling may not cause much damage to the area. However, commercial drilling may not be allowed. The user agency has given an undertaking that they would not carry out commercial drilling at the site,” the site inspection report stated, as per East Mojo.
The project proponents assured the NBWL that the drilling is solely for exploratory purposes and that any extraction, if hydrocarbons are found, would occur outside the ESZ. The NBWL has imposed strict conditions, including real-time monitoring, minimal tree felling, and pollution control measures, to ensure environmental safeguards. The NBWL has also explicitly banned oil or gas extraction within the eco-sensitive zone, regardless of whether any reserves are found.
The Hollongapar Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary serves as a crucial biodiversity haven, named after India’s sole ape species, the Hoolock gibbon. By providing vital forest corridors connecting to Nagaland’s habitats and the Dissoi Valley Reserve Forest, the sanctuary underscores its significance as an ecological hotspot.
