Forest Minister Govind Singh Thakur represented Himachal Pradesh in the conference of the Environment Ministers organised in New Delhi on Monday under the Chairmanship of Union Environment Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan.He raised various issues related to the environment and also apprised about the steps being taken by the Himachal Government for environment protection. He said that the State government had taken effective steps for disposal and management of plastic besides setting up plants for producing power from the plastic waste.The Minister emphasised on the need for cumulative environment impact assessment study and said this study should be conducted on all river basins of the State. He also demanded to enhance power of the State government for environmental clearances of hydro power projects from 50 megawatt to 75 to 100 megawatt. The Union Minister agreed in principle to enhance the powers of State government and assured to issue the notification in this regard at the earliest. He appreciated the efforts of Himachal government for management of plastic waste.