Environmental Law in Pakistan - IUCN

the activity of mining itself, are not mentioned in either list, although the Concurrent Legislative Listincludes the regulation of labour and safety in mines and oilfields (item 30). Exploitation of mineralsother than oil, natural gas and raw materials for the nuclear industry, is therefore a provincialsubject. Laws that pre-date the 1973 Constitution also provide that oil, gas and radioactive materialsare regulated by the federal government, while all other mines are under the authority of provincialgovernments.Three federal laws on the subject pre-date Independence. One of these laws is more than 100 yearsold. But even in the case of more recent legislation, there are no provisions to mitigate the substantialenvironmental impacts of mineral exploration and production. Nor has the government passed anyframework legislation to implement federal policy on the subject or to establish guidelines forexploring, exploiting and closing sites where minerals and petroleum products are extracted.6.1.3.1 Natural GasRegulatory AuthorityOrdinance 1997This ordinance establishes the Natural Gas Regulatory Authority,which is responsible for overseeing activities in the natural gassector. The Authority issues and renews licenses for thetransmission, distribution, sale and purification of natural gas;determines tariffs; protects consumer interests; and administersinvestment programmes (Section 4). The Authority also has thepower to certify that a licensee requires land for “public purposes”(Section 26). Such land may subsequently be compulsorilyacquired under the Land Acquisition Act 1894.The Authority may delegate its powers to its officers (Section 6).The power to issue policy guidelines under the ordinance lies withthe federal government (Section 5), while rule-making powers aredelegated to the Authority, subject to prior approval from thefederal government (Section 31).This ordinance governs both Sui companies and potential privatesectorgas providers. It does not regulate gas exploration and salefrom the field. Offences under this ordinance are punishable with amaximum penalty of imprisonment for three years and/or anunspecified fine (Section 29).6.1.3.2 PakistanEnvironmental ProtectionAct 1997PEPA 1997 requires parties desiring to commence a project tosubmit an EIA or IEE to the Federal Agency (Section 12). A projectis defined under Section 2(xxxv)(d) to include mining, prospectingand quarrying. At the same time, the Federal Agency may itselfissue an environmental protection order in cases where extractionprocesses are causing or likely to cause an adverse environmentaleffect (Section 16).06Processes andInstitutions50EnvironmentalLaw in PakistanFederalThe penalty for non-compliance with the provisions governingdischarges and emissions (Section 11), and environmentalprotection orders (Section 16) is a fine that may extend to 1 millionrupees for a first offence (Section 17(1)). For non-compliance withprovisions governing the handling of hazardous substances(Section 14), fines may extend to 100,000 rupees (Section 17(2)).Penalties for repeat offenders may include closure or confiscationof the factory, machinery, equipment or substance involved in theoffence; an order to restore the environment at the violator’s own