CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government has decided to notify 17 waterbodies across the State as wetlands under the Wetland (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017. The combined area proposed to be notified will be around 2,672 hectares. Draft notifications seeking comments from the public will be issued by the end of this month.
Some of the prominent waterbodies on the list are Kadabakulam in Thoothukudi, spread across 706 hectares, Thirumeni lake (310 ha) in Tiruvarur, and Penugondapuram lake (199 ha) in Krishnagiri. Other waterbodies are in Erode, Namakkal, Tiruvannamalai and Tiruchy districts.
Once these lakes are enlisted as wetlands, the Wetland Rules will kick-in, and site-specific strategies will be chalked out for conservation and judicious use. A comprehensive list of activities to be regulated and permitted would be developed for specific wetlands. Among the prohibited activities in notified wetlands are encroachments or urbanisation, discharge of sewage or industrial effluents, and solid waste dumping.
On the occasion of World Wetlands Day on Wednesday, Tamil Nadu State Wetland Authority member secretary Deepak Srivastava told TNIE that once the draft notifications are issued, the public will be given 60 days to submit their comments. If no major objections are received, a final gazette notification will be issued.
‘Goal is to save remaining wetlands’
Though the Central government framed the Wetlands Rules in 2017, not many States made significant headway in protecting and conserving wetlands, which are crucial for sustainable water use and flood mitigation. Srivastava said the National Atlas prepared by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in 2011 indicated Tamil Nadu as a wetland-rich State with 43,916 wetlands, including 5,013 natural wetlands, spread over more than 9 lakh hectares, which is 6.92 per cent of the State’s geographical area.
However, over the years, these wetlands were abused, and many disappeared. “We are now inventorying all the wetlands in the State. Our first objective is to protect what’s remaining. Out of 5,013 natural wetlands, if 1,000 are untouched or less encroached, we will notify them as soon as possible to check further degradation,” Srivastava said.
Only recently, Chief Minister MK Stalin launched the Tamil Nadu Wetlands Mission aimed at restoring wetlands. The mission will identify and map 100 wetlands in five years and restore the ecological balance with a focus on livelihood options at a cost of Rs 150 crore.
Environment Secretary Supriya Sahu said: “Under the mission, the wetlands authority has identified 150 natural wetlands and the process of mapping and demarcating boundaries has begun. We are also exploring the possibility of utilising the services of Chennai-based National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM), which is also a national centre for wetlands.”