VOA常速英语2008年-Mining Resumes in Goa Despite Opposition From E

By Steve Herman
Goa, India
07 February 2008

Mining, along with tourism, forms the economic backbone¹ of India's seaside state of Goa. Environmental concerns recently halted much of the iron ore extraction, but the way has been now cleared for resumption of mining, in a way that is supposed to be environmentally friendly. VOA's Steve Herman reports from Goa.

A meeting of tribal² communities is taking place on the grounds of a church in the ramshackle Goan fishing village of Betul.

Catholic priests have raised the alarm about a huge bauxite³ mine and other development projects planned for the area.

Rajendra Kerkar, a local fisherman, needs no convincing.

Kerkar says he fears the worst if authorities allow a million tons of bauxite to be mined annually⁴ near his house. The jobs will go to outsiders, he says, and illegal mining has already contaminated the groundwater, causing kidney failure among villagers. Dust is blanketing the area and blasting is shaking their homes.

This type of conflict between residents and mining companies is common in Goa.

India's Supreme⁵ Court in January allowed extraction of iron ore to resume at 16 locations, on the condition the operators pay a combined $25 million in compensation to the state forest department for environmental damage.

Goa exports 35 million tons of ore annually - mainly to China, Japan, South Korea and Europe - and the court ruling brought relief to the mining industry. It disappointed environmentalists, who say that for every ton of ore extracted, up to three tons of waste are produced.

Mining here dates to the 1950's, when Goa was still a Portuguese⁶ colony. Goa Foundation director Claude Alvares says no one envisioned large-scale, open-cast extraction, which scars the environment and threatens the vitality⁷ of a major tourist destination.

"The leases were granted at that time on the assumption that they would be largely manually operated, small-scale," he explained. "And nobody ever thought that Japan would one day come here with all their huge excavating⁸ machines and enable a rapid increase in the way in which ore would be extracted."

P.K. Mukherjee is managing director of Sesa Goa, one of the state's largest mining companies. He explains that large-scale extraction is more economical than what is called "pocket" mining.

"In that case, what happens is that everybody focuses on a particular pocket where the good ore is available," said Mukherjee. "So you just disturb the good ore and take the cream out of it. In the process, there are some low-grade ores, which we could have blended and used it. That becomes uneconomic. So in the process the huge amount of reserves gets wasted."

Sesa Goa says it does not conduct operations without environmental safeguards, and some environmentalists agree it is one of the most responsible major operators. Mukherjee says most mining companies in Goa are environmentally responsible.

"Generally, in Goa the mining companies are quite focused on their environmental liabilities. They are always trying to do the best what they can give back and restore the environment," added Mukherjee.

Environmentalists say it is just not a matter of restoring stripped land, however. Pravin Sabnis of the Save Goa Movement says the very presence of the mines upsets the ecological⁹ balance.

"We have a lot of cases of elephants and tigers and leopards¹⁰ coming into villages. All this is happening because their homes are being just destroyed by mining," he said.

That is why activists¹¹ have gone to court, and in many cases, in Goa and elsewhere in India, judges eventually agree that the environmentalists have a good case. But Sabnis says it can take too long.

"The legal process is so tedious and complicated that by the time you win the battle, the land might have gone," continued Sabnis.

Official statistics show mining surpassing tourism as Goa's biggest producer of foreign exchange. But architect Dean D'Cruz, an adviser¹² to the state government on land use, says Goa does not benefit.

"Mining is completely destructive of large tracts¹³ of land. And what it actually provides as economic development is a pittance¹⁴. It doesn't even go to the state. It goes to the center [as] some royalty," he said.

Sesa Goa's managing director Mukherjee asserts that Goa does benefit, in terms of jobs, duties and taxes.

"Sustaining this employment itself is a direct contribution. Sales tax, excise¹⁵ duty, export duty nowadays, corporation tax and income tax," he said. "The biggest sales tax provider in Goa is the oil. It is basically getting consumed in the mining industry."

Regardless of whether mine operators or environmentalists ultimately prevail, the clock is ticking for the industry. Mine owners say that with present extraction and production technologies, Goa will be out of iron ore in about 20 years.

1 backbone   

n.脊骨，脊柱，骨干；刚毅，骨气

参考例句：

• The Chinese people have backbone.中国人民有骨气。
• The backbone is an articulate structure.脊椎骨是一种关节相连的结构。

2 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

3 bauxite   

n.铝土矿

参考例句：

• Aluminum is made from bauxite.铝是从铝土矿中提炼出的。
• The United States was vulnerable to shortages of chrome,bauxite,and platinum.美国的弱点是缺少铬、矾土和铂。

4 annually   

adv.一年一次，每年

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。

5 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

6 Portuguese   

n.葡萄牙人；葡萄牙语

参考例句：

• They styled their house in the Portuguese manner.他们仿照葡萄牙的风格设计自己的房子。
• Her family is Portuguese in origin.她的家族是葡萄牙血统。

7 vitality   

n.活力，生命力，效力

参考例句：

• He came back from his holiday bursting with vitality and good health.他度假归来之后，身强体壮，充满活力。
• He is an ambitious young man full of enthusiasm and vitality.他是个充满热情与活力的有远大抱负的青年。

8 excavating   

v.挖掘( excavate的现在分词 )；开凿；挖出；发掘

参考例句：

• A bulldozer was employed for excavating the foundations of the building. 推土机用来给楼房挖地基。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A new Danish expedition is again excavating the site in annual summer digs. 一支新的丹麦探险队又在那个遗址上进行一年一度的夏季挖掘。 来自辞典例句

9 ecological   

adj.生态的，生态学的

参考例句：

• The region has been declared an ecological disaster zone.这个地区已经宣布为生态灾难区。
• Each animal has its ecological niche.每种动物都有自己的生态位.

10 leopards   

n.豹( leopard的名词复数 )；本性难移

参考例句：

• Lions, tigers and leopards are all cats. 狮、虎和豹都是猫科动物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• For example, airlines never ship leopards and canaries on the same flight. 例如，飞机上从来不会同时运送豹和金丝雀。 来自英语晨读30分（初三）

11 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

13 tracts   

大片土地( tract的名词复数 )； 地带； （体内的）道； （尤指宣扬宗教、伦理或政治的）短文

参考例句：

• vast tracts of forest 大片大片的森林
• There are tracts of desert in Australia. 澳大利亚有大片沙漠。

14 pittance   

n.微薄的薪水，少量

参考例句：

• Her secretaries work tirelessly for a pittance.她的秘书们为一点微薄的工资不知疲倦地工作。
• The widow must live on her slender pittance.那寡妇只能靠自己微薄的收入过活。

15 excise   

n.(国产)货物税；vt.切除，删去

参考例句：

• I'll excise the patient's burnt areas.我去切除病人烧坏的部分。
• Jordan's free trade zone free of import duty,excise tax and all other taxes.约旦的自由贸易区免收进口税、国内货物税及其它一切税收。