Athirappally , an invasion into my childrens' future

(Key data points from articles written by Shri SP Ravi, Dr Latha Anantha , Shri.NA Naseer in March 2015 edition of Koodu magazine )

I carry vivid memories of the beautiful backdrop of the magnificent waterfalls when I visited the place way back in 1990.As a child, I used to dream of visiting Niagara falls . Athirappally gave a sense of pride of a Niagara of Kerala. In my small state, dotted by the majestic Western Ghats and the Arabian sea, a place of abundant beauty surrounded by the tropical wet evergreen forests and the magnificent falls. My young mind was carried into a world of the wild when I sighted lion tailed macaques and hornbills. There was something magical about the river, the waterfalls and the surrounding forests. I had been there once as a young child and something pulled me to drive down that landscape last year. Growing up, I understand the importance of these tropical forests that are unique to the western slopes of Western Ghats, growing denser as you go southwards on the ghats and beyond the Palghat gap. I was fascinated by the river Chalakkudy, its' origins somewhere on the hill slopes of Nelliyampathy as Karapara river and on Anamudi peak and flowing westwards meandering into the Arabian sea. Rivers originate in the womb of these magnificent forests. 

 I remember studying about the various invasions to this country to plunder the wealth of this nation and to establish control. When I first heard about the hydro electric power project on Athirappally, a sense of invasion into my spiritual and natural space struck. This time, the invasion was by our own leaders in power. I felt pained by the thought of the vast stretches of these evergreen forests being inundated , never to be surfaced again for me nor my children to enjoy. Some places have the power to touch your inner being and Athirappally was one.May be these landscapes talk to you, I don't know.

The sense of invasion into my space of this Nigara of Kerala felt so deep and I could never understand the reasons to inundate this landscape and reduce the waterfalls to a trickle . Many progressive thinkers in my family questioned the need for power vs need to protect nature. Eye brows were raised and few questioned if environmentalists were trying to send them back to caves by stopping the power project ! 

I was puzzled . Somewhere deep, the hunger for energy didn't sound right. All the while, the primary question I had was on the energy consumed by the various malls that were sprouting in every small town. Who is regulating their energy use ? and what percentage of energy do they use vs domestic average ? What is the industry that is in dire need of energy in Kerala and how is it contributing to my well-being ?  Many of these malls operate their ACs with the doors open and there is no regulation to make them dependent on self reliant renewable energy. When the malls guzzle power, I see the subsidy for energy removed for the already deprived agri sector.  I feel invaded once again, my right to energy, is taken away by irresponsible businesses.

These forests are habitats of critically endangered species of hornbills and lion tailed macaques. Elephants have been using these landscapes for their migration paths for centuries. Their roles are way beyond their own existence and they sustain the forests by efficient seed dispersal. Landscapes that are divided and disintegrated face the wrath of man animal conflicts .

I chanced upon the articles in Koodu magazine by prominent personalities who have spent their life understanding the intricacies of energy and conservation. Translating few of the key points :

1. The proposed project is for 163 MW capacity

2. There are 6 upstream dams on river Chalakkudy apart from proposed Athirappally power project.Four dams are meant for water diversion to Tamil Nadu. Two projects owned by the state of Kerala are hydropower projects

3. The upstream Peringalkuthu powerstation is working for 60% of the time

4. Athirappally  (147m) has a lower head than Peringalkuthu (170m). You can imagine that this would further bring down the possibility of power generating capacity of Athirappally. However, the installed capacity of the generators would be 3 times that of Peringalkuthu ! This means, the generators at Athirappally would be inactive for 5 times longer than when it is active.

5. The actual PLF would be 12% only. That means the power generation would be equal to about 12 percent of 163 MW only.The claim is that this low capacity power would be supplied for the peak duration in the evenings.

6. The Thumboormuzhi irrigation project supplies water to approximately 35,000 acre of land in Thrissur and Ernakulam districts. Once Athirappalli project comes alive, the water from Thumboormuzhi would be roughly 7650 litres per second for 20 hours during the day. The minimum water requirement is 15,000-20,000 litres per second to continue the Thumboormuzhi irrigation project and the water availability for these districts would be drastically impacted by the much hyped power project.

8. Cost of the project will be that of 163 MW. However, the power output would be equal to about 20 MW only. There would be an annual loss of more than  Rs. 100 crores for the next 15 years. Only if the power is sold at Rs.15 per unit will there be any profit incurred on the project. ( This at a time when private companies in other states are promising Rs.7 per unit for  solar power ! ) 

9. If implemented , Athirappilly waterfalls visited by 8-10 lakh tourists a year both domestic and foreign would lose its magnificent fall, sheen and glory forever since 80 percent of the water presently flowing would be diverted for power generation

I decided to focus on two key data points  :" 100 crore annual loss for the next 15 years, and 20 MW power output ". A simple calculation .

a) Assuming 10 units of power consumption by every household ( this is without sending anyone back to caves by including tube lights , few reading lamps, garden lights, TV , ceiling fans, microwave, mixer, refrigerator, washing machine, laptops) is equivalent to roughly 2.3 Kw .

b) 20 MW power generated @ the rate of 2.3 Kw power consumed per household would supply to 8700 households. (without considering transmission losses and power thefts) 

c) If we assume Rs.5 Lakh per household for installing solar power , the money needed from State exchequer is just Rs.43 crores one time. Let us assume the battery change required by households would be borne by individual owners after 7 years. (This would come down if  solar systems are created for clusters)

My ordinary brain fails to understand the economic viability behind Rs.100 crore annual loss for 15 years and Rs.43 crore one time expenditure on solar power without sending anyone in Kerala to caves.

Athirappally Facts

1. The 80.5 hectare riparian ecosystem along the river Chalakkudy is the last remaining of its' kind in below 800 m MSL elevation riverine areas in Kerala.

2. With the previous 6 power projects, 50% of the riparian ecosystem has collapsed . The KSEB claims only 138.6 hectare forests would be impacted . The remaining riparian ecosystem  is one of its' kind with unique niche specific  tropical wet evergreen forests in the Western Ghats and is irreplaceable for maintaining the ecological connectivity between the upstream and the downstream

3. The project area includes  elephant movement connecting the  Parambikkulam tiger reserve and the Pooyamkutty forests. 

4. 108 species of fish have been found in Chalakkudy river and out of these many are in the critically endangered category

5. Habitat of critically endangered birds and mammals like Hornbills, Lion tailed macaques.

6. 85 families of PTG ( primitive  tribal group) , Kadar based in Vazhachal and Pokalapara settlements whose only home are these forests face the danger of evacuation once the forests are inundated by the new dam.

The farce called "EIAs"

1. TGBRI should have done the Rapid Environmental Impact Assessment ( REIA ) during summer - impacts should have been studied when water levels are low in the river. Instead they submitted a report in favour of the project by conducting REIA in peak monsoon.

2. WAPCOS conducted another impact assessment in 2002. They didn't find any PTG (Primitive Tribal Group) families in the area, neither could they find more than 30 fish species when Cochin University study has found more than 68 species in the area ! 

3. Haryana based WAPCOS has ensured all projects for which it has done EIA clears the project of environmental impact ! 

4. The Kasturirangan Committee never interacted with the local people, panchayat while doing an impact analysis of the project, even though they visited Athirappally to give a verdict that the project is essential. 

None of the reports mention about the 1500 people who participated in the Public Hearing in year 2006 and gave their misgivings on the project. This includes tribals, locals, experts on power and many interested citizens. Their statements were not reflected in the final decision to grant clearance to the project.

Guidelines for approving hydro electric project along the western ghats in Kasturirangan report hasn't been applied in the report for Athirappally ! 

What is USA doing to their dams ?

River beds have remained cradles of many ancient civilizations. Water being the basic life form shapes the landscape, a river evolves the topography and the species associated with it. Human settlements along the river is thus a part of this natural love affair of life and water. 

In the past few decades, there has been lot of research on the intrinsic value a river brings to the topography .It is evident that this value is something that humans cannot perceive in trillions of dollars. Various models like the TEEB (The economics of ecosystems and Biodiversity) have come into existence. 

One of the noted outcome of all these new trends is the mega dam detonations that USA has been performing to ensure there is an uninterrupted flow of the river on that topography that brings in the associated benefits that are intangible to human monetary system. Sharing a few :

http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/2015-2-march-april/green-life/3-dam-detonation-videos-prove-going-green-blowing

Invasion into my Childrens' future :

TGBRI, WAPCOS, Kasturirangan Committee and the various ministries who are considering approving this project have constantly tried to invade my childrens' space. I need energy to function because in the past 50 years I was never taught how to function reducing the need for it. I am convinced that my basic energy requirement can be met with Solar power and grid as backup for my power guzzlers like microwave , refrigerator and ACs. I can safely tell my educated family members they don't have to go back to caves ! 

When will my leaders in power ask the businesses to generate their renewable power ? Will they ever understand the importance of Kaadar community who are dependent on the river for many centuries before discovery of electricity in the 1600s ? Will the river ever flow ? or will the waterfalls flow from those heights displaying its' might bringing along the fishes needed for thousands along the rivers ? 

Will my children ever see the Athirappally I saw as a Child ? Will my Niagara of Kerala survive the 'power' hungry leaders of our State ? 

The sounds of lion tailed macaques and  hornbills would reverberate in me till my grave. Landscape does magic to one's inner being and that is beyond energy and power.