Deccan Herald News Service July 20, 2000
Slurry leak puts KIOCL in spot
The Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited (KIOCL) seems to be heading from one controversy to another. While there has
been lot of opposition of late to extending the mining lease on environmental grounds, the case of slurry leak at Kanyalu near
Karkala has caused much embarassment to the company.
The adverse impact of the leak is yet to be assessed but already, the slurry has polluted the agricultural fields and the Ennehole
stream which flows nearby. The KIOCL has stopped production and pumping of slurry but it has not been able to repair the
damaged pipe so far.
The KIOCL has a 100-km pipeline to transport iron slurry from the Kudremukh mines to Mangalore where it gets converted
into iron pellets for export. A couple of days back, the pipeline developed a crack at Kanyalu and the slurry started flowing to
the surrounding areas.
KIOCL sources told Deccan Herald that the leakage had been detected at a place which had to be reached on foot. ''It is not
possible for any vehicle to enter that area. This is bound to delay the repair work. While production has been declared closed
for 10 days, the lease licence period of the KIOCL will also expire within four days (July 24),`` they said.
Residents in the nearby areas said that minor leaks had been noticed from the pipe ever since the rainy season started this year.
Had the company acted immediately, the problem could have been solved to a great extent. Now, there are large deposits of
slurry on the fields and the Ennehole stream has been blackened,they said.
The Pollution Control Board has now sent its officials to assess the damage. Environment Officer Jayaprakash told Deccan
Herald that he would get the correct picture only tomorrow.