Environmental Impact of Phosphate Mining in India

Phosphorus plays an important role in terrestrial environmental management. Mining of phosphate ore without observing necessary safeguards can cause enormous damage to the general ecosystem and in particular to the aquatic bodies which receive excess P influx. A careful enumeration of the actual mining situations observed in five phosphate mining centres brings out the fact that while some damage to the surrounding environment has already been caused due to mining operations in the area, more serious hazards are forthcoming, if suitable legislations are not enacted to contain them. Case studies include mines at Jhamarkotra, Matoon-Kanpur, Jhabua, Maldeota-Durmala and Purulia.