Training camp on Environment Impact Assessment for sustainable development

A three-day training programme with the objective of preparing human resources to assess the impact of developmental activities in the Himalayas on the environment concluded at the Dr.YS Parmar of the University of Horticulture and Forestry (UHF), Nauni. The camp was organized by the UHF’s Department of Environment Science and saw the participation of twenty-eight researchers and students from Uttarakhand and Himachal.
The training coordinator Dr.Satish Bhardwaj explained about the impact of development projects on the environment and gave information about assessment methods in this context. He said that the government had created an Environment Impact Assessment Procedure in 2006, which was amended from time to time to make development projects more eco-friendly.
“Developmental projects were integral to growth. If they have an adverse impact on the environment, then scientists have also devised methods of mitigation, which can be followed to preserve the environment,” said Dr. Bhardwaj.
Dr Ajay Kumar Singh apprised the trainees on the need to assess the impact of development projects on human health. He laid emphasis on the importance of the impact of projects on human health and giving more preference to its observation and mitigation.
At the closing ceremony, Dr. Pawan Mahajan, Dean of UHF’s College of Forestry gave a detailed explanation about the gathering of environmental assessment data and scientific methodsfor its interpretation. He lauded the initiative of the department in organising the training and asked for more such programmes so that human resource could be trained to work on this subject. Co-coordinator of training Dr. Mohinder Brahmi, Dr. Ghanshyam Aggarwal, Dr. Rajiv Aggrawal, Dr. Tanvi Kapoor, Dr. Aditya Rana, Dr. MS Jangra and Dr. PKBaweja also addressed participants during the training.