The norms
How much green belt does your project need?
Devendra K Jha · Reviewed 12 August 2026 · 8 minBetween 10% and 25% of your plot for most projects, and 40% in a critically or severely polluted area. The exact figure turns on your pollution category, whether you sit inside an industrial estate, and whether your sector is predominantly air-polluting. The single 33% rule ended on 29 October 2025 — though your state board may not have noticed.
Three questions decide it
Work through these in order. Each one changes the answer.
- 1
What is your pollution category?
Red, Orange, Green or White, as classified by the Central Pollution Control Board. This is already on your consent documents — you do not need to work it out.
- 2
Are you inside an industrial estate?
A member unit inside an estate owes less, because the estate itself separately develops 10% of its area as common green area. A standalone unit carries the whole obligation on its own plot.
- 3
Is your sector predominantly air-polluting?
This is not a judgement call. The memorandum defines it by air pollution score: Red at 80 or above, Orange at 55 or above, Green at 25 or above. Above that threshold you sit in the higher column.
If you are a standalone unit
These are the criteria for individual industrial units outside industrial estates.
| Category | Predominantly air-polluting | Other sectors |
|---|---|---|
| Red | 25%air pollution score ≥80 | 20% |
| Orange | 20%air pollution score ≥55 | 15% |
| Green | 10%air pollution score ≥25 | Optional |
| White | Optional | Optional |
Green category is not automatically exempt. A Green unit in a predominantly air-polluting sector, with an air pollution score of 25 or above, owes 10%. This is the single most commonly repeated error about the 2025 norms.
If you are inside an industrial estate
Your own premises carry a smaller obligation, because the estate owner separately develops 10% of the estate area as common green area at 2,500 trees per hectare.
| Category | Within your own premises |
|---|---|
| Red | 15% |
| Orange | 10% |
| Green | Optional, no mandatory requirement |
| White | Optional, no mandatory requirement |
Section A of the memorandum states these norms for new greenfield industrial estates.
The override that survived
The 2025 relaxation is not universal. Red and orange category units in Critically Polluted Areas (CPA) and Severely Polluted Areas (SPA) still require a minimum of 40% green belt, in compliance with NGT order dated 23.08.2019 in O.A. No. 1038/2018, and the OM dated 31 October 2019. If your site is in a notified polluted area, this is your figure — the tables above do not apply to you.
Why your state board may still say 33%
This is where projects come unstuck. The memorandum governs the environmental clearance process. Your Consent to Operate is issued separately, by your State Pollution Control Board, under the Water and Air Acts — and several boards have not amended their standing conditions. Two numbers can bind the same plot at the same time.
| State | Standing consent condition | Against the memorandum |
|---|---|---|
| MaharashtraMPCB | 33% of open available landSchedule-IV general conditions, Consent to Operate | ConflictBoard condition is stricter than the OM and still stands |
| Tamil NaduTNPCB | 25% of land areaBoard directive; photographs and coordinates required as evidence | AlignedMatches the OM figure for a standalone Red unit |
| HaryanaHSPCB | 40% where feasibleConsent to Establish; off-site avenue plantation accepted in lieu | StricterOff-site route available, which the OM also now permits |
| GujaratGPCB | 33% via consent conditionsFive-year aftercare; forest department consultation | ConflictVerify with your regional officer before relying on the OM |
| TelanganaGHMC | Sapling count by plot size6 saplings up to 1,000 m², plus 2 for every additional 100 m² | Different basisCounts saplings rather than area — not comparable to a % |
In practice the stricter figure governs, because consent renewal is the point at which non-compliance actually bites. See all states.
The percentage is not the whole obligation
Aftercare for at least 5 years
Watering and protection of saplings for at least 5 years, and their subsequent sustenance.
Half-yearly reporting
Reports go to your SPCB/PCC and the MoEF&CC Integrated Regional Office, covering area developed, species, survival rate and maintenance. Industrial estates must include drone imagery; individual units report as part of their environmental statements.
Off-site plantation is permitted
Ex-situ plantation is permitted subject to land availability, in collaboration with State Forest Departments, Urban Local Bodies or other government agencies, under schemes such as Nagar Van and Compensatory Afforestation.
Brownfield projects are decided case-by-case
For modernization, expansion or change in product mix, the Expert Appraisal Committee sets the requirement case-by-case on on-site conditions.
Source
Every figure on this page comes from Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Office Memorandum F.No. IA3-22/14/2025-IA.III (E-275538), dated 29 October 2025, which supersedes the OM dated 27 October 2020. The government copy is a scanned image, so we transcribed it. Read the memorandum in full.
Common questions
How much green belt does your project need?
It depends on three things: your pollution category, whether you sit inside an industrial estate, and whether your sector is predominantly air-polluting. A standalone Red category unit in an air-polluting sector needs 25% of its plot. The same unit inside an industrial estate needs 15%. An Orange unit needs 20% standalone and air-polluting, 15% standalone otherwise, or 10% inside an estate. Red and Orange units in critically or severely polluted areas need 40%.
Is the green belt requirement in India still 33%?
Not under the environmental clearance regime. MoEF&CC Office Memorandum F.No. IA3-22/14/2025-IA.III dated 29 October 2025 superseded the memorandum of 27 October 2020 and replaced the uniform 33% with tiers keyed to pollution potential. But several State Pollution Control Boards have not amended their consent conditions, and Maharashtra's board still requires 33% of open available land. Where the two differ, the consent condition is what your renewal is judged against.
Is green belt measured on plot area or on open available land?
The memorandum applies its percentages to the area of the project or industrial estate. Several state consent conditions instead specify a percentage of open available land, which excludes built-up area. The same site can therefore produce two very different figures depending on which basis applies, so the wording of your own consent condition matters more than the headline percentage.
Can green belt be planted outside the project site?
Yes, in addition to the minimum on-site criteria. The memorandum permits ex-situ plantation subject to land availability, in collaboration with State Forest Departments, Urban Local Bodies or other government agencies, under schemes such as Nagar Van and Compensatory Afforestation programmes. Some state boards, such as Haryana's, have accepted off-site avenue plantation in lieu where on-site area is constrained.
How long must a green belt be maintained?
The memorandum requires adequate provision for watering and protection of saplings for at least five years, and for their subsequent sustenance. Compliance is reported half-yearly to the State Pollution Control Board and the MoEF&CC Integrated Regional Office, covering area developed, species, survival rate and maintenance.
Want the number that applies to your site, in writing?
Send us your consent letter and clearance conditions. We will reconcile the memorandum, your board’s conditions and any polluted-area override into one defensible figure — and tell you what it costs to close the gap.
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