Pathrakadavu will spell disaster for Bharathapuzha:DFO report

 
The proposed 70-MW Pathrakadavu hydroelectric project will be disastrous to the already degraded Bharathapuzha,according to the Forest official in charge of Silent Valley National Park. Divisional Forest Officer for Mannarkkad and Silent Valley, K.V,Uthaman, sounds this warning in a report to his department assessing the environmental impact of proposed hydroelectric project to be located just on the fringes of the National park.

As reported in The Hindu from Palakkad on April 21, the report says, "the first and foremost impact (of the project) will be on the long-term viability of the existing Silent Valley National Park". The report goes on to say that damming the Kunthipuzha for the project will be the last nail on the coffin for the Bharathapuzha, since the Kunthipuzha is one of the few surviving perennial streams emptying into the river. The proposed hydroelectric project is to be located on the southern flank of Silent valley plateu about 400meters up the base of te steep slope and 800 meters below the crest. Thirteen streams originate from this flank. Their channel conditions and the vegetation on their banks indicate that they were perennial in nature in the past. Most of these streams dry up in summer due to the forest degradation that had taken place in recent years. The report says that the proposed dam at Pathrakadavu and seven kilometer winding road to be constructed up the steep slope to the site of the dam, involving heavy earth work, would spread damage over a very large patch of forests in this fragile region, killing the stream that feed the Bharathapuzha.

(The Hindu, 24th April 2007)