Fishing For Livelihood

The mangrove forests in particular have disappeared from the areas where retting predominate. Mangroves are the breeding grounds for fish fauna. The decimation of mangrove has led to precipitous decline in fish stocks. The solution to this problem is to evolve a technology which dispenses with the natural retting process. A recent development is the mechanical defibering process, which needs to be popularised.

The impact of developmental projects on the environment are a matter of serious concern. Kuttanad area is a typical example of such thoughtless developmental interventions. Kuttanad is a low-lying, shallow bay formed as a result of geological uplift. It has become an extensive brackish-water lagoon extending over 1100 kms through the Vembanad lake and Cochin estuary to the Arabian Sea. Five major rivers drain into it. It supports about 1.4 million people. The major economic activity is agriculture involving 40% of the population. About 1.5% of the people are engaged in aquaculture. However, human interventions, like salinity barrier at Thaneermukhom, extensive use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides, etc., have invited ecological disasters. The declining productivity has forced farmers and fisherfolk to change their traditional professions.

There are several reasons for shrinking of backwaters. The two major ones are natural and human interventions. Kerala has 41 rivers draining water from their catchment areas. Many of them drain into these backwaters. Increased deforestation in catchment areas has resulted in extensive soil erosion and silting of river mouths. A recent study found a very high annual sedimentation rate in one of the irrigation reservoirs. Apart from the silt from mountains, ocean currents also bring up sediment and deposit them in backwaters. Silting and sedimentation are the biggest problems in Cochin estuarine region. Cochin Port Trust spends enormous amount on dredging to keep the shipping channels open.

Population explosion and increased human activities are the most serious problems facing the country's ecosystems. The backwaters are no exception to it. The rate of urbanisation is unprecedented. The building boom due to defreezing of land and large inflow of money from Keralites living abroad will further strain the area's ecology, which is already under severe stress. A careful estimation of the ecosystem's carrying capacity and scientific development planning based on carrying capacity is essential to prevent an environmental catastrophe.