Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board

The Andhra Pradesh pollution control board is a statutory body formed to implement Laws and rules pertaining to pollution and environment enacted both by the central government and the state government within the state of Andhra Pradesh. The board was formed after the enactment of the Water Pollution act in the year 1976. The board has 13 regional offices and 3 zonal offices. The headquarters of the board is situated in Vijayawada. The board has 3 laboratories situated in the 3 zonal offices and 5 laboratories situated in regional offices which continuously monitor the air and water quality level in the surrounding area. The board is entrusted with framing policies and rules with regard to the environment and also manages and checks waste both liquid and gaseous produced by industries. The foremost objective of the board is to improve the air and water quality so that there is an overall improvement in the quality of life of the people of the state.

The board is entrusted with the implementation of the following acts but is not restricted to only them. The major acts implemented by the board are –

• The water prevention and control of pollution act.
• The air prevention and control of pollution act.
• The environment protection act.
• The water cess act.
• The hazardous and biomedical waste rules.
• The coastal regulation zone rules.

Functions of the board

• The board’s foremost objective is to improve the overall quality of the environment in the state, to increase the green cover and to clean and improve the quality of water and soil in the coastal areas.
• The board controls pollution at the source that is by forming policies and rules for polluting industries so that they treat pollution at source by setting up pollution control machinery in the industry itself.
• The board advises both the state government and the entrepreneurs with the location of industries with the viewpoint of pollution.
• It implements hazardous waste rules and makes guidelines for industries in handling, transportation, storage and disposal of the same.
• It promotes and conducts research for re-use and recycle of solid and liquid waste. The board has been keenly promoting the concept of using treated liquid waste for irrigation in agricultural fields.
• The board coordinates with the government, state departments, trade unions and industry associations to implement laws and to create an atmosphere where both industry and government can work together to improve both environment quality and ease of business.
• The board facilitates faster clearance for industries of necessary permission.

Categories of industries and activities

The board as per the water and air pollution act have divided the industries into 4 categories, according to the pollution they produce, the state board has categorised the industries according to the range of pollution index they produce, the range is from 1 to 60 and. The categories are as follows –

• Red - Includes highly polluting industries, there are in total of 60 types of industries in this category. The range index pollution score of above 60 falls in the red category.
• Orange – Medium polluting industries, it includes 83 types of industries.  The range index is from 41 to 59.
• Green – Less polluting industries, it includes 63 industries. The range index is from 21 to 40.
• White – Very less polluting industries, it includes 36 types of industries. The range index of pollution is less than 20.

There is no necessity for industries falling in white categories to take the permission of Consent to establish and operate. But white category industries still have to intimate the board if it starts its operations. If an industry does not fall in any category or there is some ambiguity, then an application can be made to the board, and the decision will solely depend on the board.

What are the guidelines for obtaining Consent to establish?

Under the water and air pollution act, no person will establish or commence operation of any industrial unit or allied activities if prior approval of the state pollution board has not been taken. Therefore the board has prescribed some guidelines and rules for obtaining permission to establish.

• The project has to be established at some distance from the highways, roads, human habitation, village and its roads. The exact distance is mentioned in the application form. The project site has to be chosen, keeping in mind the distance of the site from the residential area so that people living in surrounding areas are not affected by pollution coming from that industry.
• After the site has been selected by the proponent, the application form has to uploaded along with the fee and other necessary documents.
• The application can be submitted online on the web portal of the board that is www. apindustries.gov.in
• Once the application is received by the board, an official from the nearest regional office is assigned who then inspects the proposed site and makes a report on the project covering all the pollution aspects.
• The inspection process is completed within 72 hours of receipt of the application online on the web portal of the board.
• The application is usually processed at the regional office level, but in certain cases, the inspection report is sent to the zonal office or the head office.
• The board can seek further details from the project developer after or before the application is submitted.
• Once the inspection is complete and report is made, then that report and the application is sent to the committee of CFE.
• The decision that is approval and rejection of the application is uploaded on the web portal of the board. If the application is rejected, then reasons for rejection are also mentioned.
• The approval granted to the industries is only site-specific, not industry specific.

What are the timeline for application to be processed and the validity of the consent to establish permission?

The stipulated timeline to process the application of consent to establish by the pollution board are –

• Green – 7 days
• Orange – 15 days
• Red – 21 days.

The validity of the consent to establish (CFE) is 7 years from the date of issue for construction of the project.

What are the documents to be submitted along with the application form?

The following documents have to be submitted along with the application

• A detailed map indicating the site of the project and topo map marking roads, highways, water tank, sensitive area, forest are, school and government buildings, villages and other residential areas, temples and etc. An image taken from the Google map can also be submitted.
• The site layout plan is clearly marking the green belt in the site.
• A detailed report of the pollution control measures to be adopted. The sewage/effluent treatment plant to be used and the method to be used to treat liquid and gaseous waste emission.
• The detailed report of the handling, transportation, storage and treatment of hazardous waste.
• For brick kiln, no objection certificate issued by local bodies such as gram panchayats and municipalities.
• For projects notified under the EIA notification of 2006, an environment clearance certificate from the Ministry of environment.
• For projects falling in the coastal zones a no objection certificate from the Coastal regulatory zone.

Renewal of consent to establish permission

The validity of CFE is usually 7 years, but if the project is not completed within the stipulated time, then the project management can submit a letter to the issuing authoring clearly describing the progress of the project and reasons for the extension. Along with the letter, a copy of consent is also to be attached and photographs of the site.

The board after it receives the letter will auto-renew the permission without inspecting the site. The renewal will be for a period of 7 years.

What are the guidelines to obtain consent to operate?

• The official of the board inspects the site after the application is submitted on the web portal, and the report is submitted within 72 hours to the committee.
• The stipulated time for grant of approval or rejection is as follows,  Green – 7 days, Orange – 15 days, Red – 21 days.
• The validity for consent to operate is 5/10/15 years for red/orange/ green categories, respectively.
• The only document to be submitted along with the application is the compliance report of Consent to establish.
• All green category projects are given approval at the regional offices, projects less than one crore of any categories at the regional office, cases requiring EC clearance from the headquarters, all red categories at the zonal office, all bulk drugs and chemical industries from the headquarters.

Procedure for obtaining a Pollution Control Consent, NOC or License with LawyerINC

• Connect with our team
• Submit necessary documents
• Assignment of experts to your case
• Consultation by experts
• Completion of procedure
• Drafting and Filing of Application
• Delivery of the Consent Certificate/CTE/CTO