The need for rigorous peer-review of Environmental Impact Assessments: a case from the Western Ghats, India

Authors

  • Malaika Mathew Chawla 14/74, Sunrise, Bandra Reclamation, Bandra West, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400050, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9402-5951
  • Sinead D’Silva School of Geography, University of Leeds, Woodhouse, LS2 9JT, United Kingdom. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4498-5775
  • Madhushri Mudke Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), PO, Royal Enclave, Srirampura, Jakkur, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560064, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1978-8550
  • Anushka Rege 4, Woodland Society, Pune, Maharashtra 411005, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8383-0258
  • Nisha Bhakat Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF), 1311,”Amritha”, 12th Main, Vijayanagar 1st Stage, Mysore, Karnataka 570017, India.
  • Nandini Velho 103, General Bernard Guedes Road, Panjim, Goa 403001, India.
  • Vidyadhar Atkore Landscape Ecology Division, Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History (SACON), South India Centre of Wildlife Institute of India, Anaikatty post, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu 641108, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8404-630X
  • R. Sahanashree Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), PO, Royal Enclave, Srirampura, Jakkur, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560064, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3040-2102
  • Jerusha D'Souza Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), PO, Royal Enclave, Srirampura, Jakkur, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560064, India.
  • Aparna Kolekar 3012, Roshan Gardenia, Uttarahalli, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560061, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0944-5033
  • Anuja Date Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), PO, Royal Enclave, Srirampura, Jakkur, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560064, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9089-2414
  • Anish Paul Biodiversity and Ecosystem Ecology Research Laboratory, National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), GKVK Campus, Bellary Road, Bangalore, Karnataka 560065, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4228-473X
  • Aayush Gupta Biodiversity and Ecosystem Ecology Research Laboratory, National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), GKVK Campus, Bellary Road, Bangalore, Karnataka 560065, India.
  • Karthik Teegalapalli 447, Krishna Naik Road, Vaddy, Candolim, Goa 403515, India.
  • Giridhar Kulkarni 1540, Suchishree, Hindwadi, Belagavi, Karnataka 590011, India. https://orcid.org/0009-0003-6459-9112
  • Pronoy Baidya SF203, Rohan Heights, Holy Cross Colony, Chicalim, Goa 403711, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1337-1372
  • Ajinkya Bagal Wildlife Research and Conservation Society (WRCS), 1A Shreeyog, 127/3, Sus Road, Pashan, Pune, Maharashtra 411021, India. https://orcid.org/0009-0000-5012-1634
  • Katrina Fernandez Wild Otters Research Pvt. Ltd., Chorao Island, Goa 403102, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2712-7338
  • Omkar Dharwadkar Goa Bird Conservation Network (GBCN), Architecture R/T, 2S2, Edcon Enclave, Vasudha Colony, Lane-1, Alto-St.Cruz, Bambolim, Goa 403202, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4475-3982
  • Parag Rangnekar 5I, Aura, Susheela Seawinds, Vaddem, Vasco, Goa 403802, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5051-8033

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.10255.18.7.29159-29180

Keywords:

Biodiversity assessments, biodiversity hotspot, forest governance, linear intrusions, mitigation measures, protected areas, railway, social impact assessments, tiger reserve, wildlife conservation

Abstract

Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) are vital exercises for evaluating the effects of proposed activities on the environment and human well-being. In many countries, including India, they often suffer from incomplete biodiversity information and data manipulation. These issues are compounded by a lack of scientific rigour, independent review, and sufficient public participation—problems that are especially critical in biodiversity hotspots. This paper examines a ‘Cumulative Impact Assessment’ by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) published in 2025, for the double-tracking of an existing railway line passing through Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary and National Park in Goa, and Kali Tiger Reserve in Karnataka—both part of the Western Ghats, a global biodiversity hotspot. The WII EIA was compared with the Indian Institute of Science’s (IISc) ‘Biodiversity and Environmental Assessment’ study that was previously prepared in 2017 for the same project. It was found that while the new EIA by WII addressed some of the gaps of the previous EIA, it failed to make a comprehensive assessment of projected biodiversity loss, leaving out some important taxonomic groups such as freshwater fish, insects, arachnids, and fungi, and failing to address its own study objectives, such as identifying critical wildlife habitats. It also neglected social impacts, despite widespread public opposition in Goa. The WII EIA fundamentally functions as an incomplete species inventory with mitigation measures, implying a conditional approval for the railway project. It does not assess loss in landscape-level connectivity, fragmentation of wildlife corridors, changes in human–wildlife interactions, and impacts on human health. This comprehensive review supports the call put forth by other scientists globally for the need for rigorous, independent peer reviews of EIAs, especially for projects with severe ecological and socio-economic consequences, planned in biodiverse and irreplaceable landscapes.

Author Biography

  • Giridhar Kulkarni, 1540, Suchishree, Hindwadi, Belagavi, Karnataka 590011, India.
       

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