CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) has issued Consent to Establish (CTE) for the twin fishing harbours proposed inside the ecologically-sensitive Kaliveli estuary. This despite there being a litigation pending before the southern bench of National Green Tribunal (NGT), which in March ordered status quo considering the project sites are on Olive Ridley turtle nesting grounds.
As per official documents available with TNIE, the TNPCB's technical sub-committee that met on August 24 had approved CTE for Alamparaikuppam fishing harbour proposed near Alambarai village in Chengalpattu district and Azhagankuppam fishing harbour proposed near Marakanam north village in Villupuram district.
The State fisheries department had begun constructing the harbours without statutory clearances. TNIE has published a series of articles on how the project will be detrimental to the Kaliveli wetland ecosystem. The Kaliveli or Edaiyanthittu estuary, where the harbours are proposed, is a declared wetland under the wetlands inventory prepared by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and an Important Bird Area (IBA) declared by Birdlife International.
It has been given IBA status because the entire ecologically-contiguous wetland system hosts 30,000 ducks in winter; 20,000-40,000 shorebirds; and 20,000-50,000 terns during the migration period. The estuary area with its shallow salt marshes and mudflats are crucial foraging grounds for tens of thousands of shorebirds every year.
M Yuvan, ecologist and the petitioner who challenged the project before NGT, said the green bench has posted the case for final hearing on September 26. "We have submitted our objections questioning the TNPCB's consent."
So far, the fisheries department and the forest department have not submitted their counter affidavits with the information on turtle nesting activity on the beaches of Alamparai and adjacent areas as sought by the tribunal. Both departments repeatedly sought more time.
Environmentalists say construction of the proposed fishing harbours would destroy fragile saltmarshes, sand bars and mudflats. The area is a potential Ramsar site, but once trawlers begin operation, it will lose its reputation of being a bird hotspot.
Randhir Sahgal, president of Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), who visited Kaliveli last month, called for a holistic long-term study for at least three to five years to find the impact of the development on biodiversity and on the entire wetland ecosystem. "In the past 11 years, an average of 3,200 turtle eggs have been laid in Alambarai alone. Kaliveli is a dynamic coastal wetland. Destruction and disturbance to this wetland and its zone of influence may cause higher financial burden to the State government and the local socio-economic status of other communities depending on the system which cannot be reversed," Sahgal warned.
Dipani Sutaria, member of IUCN Cetacean Specialist Group and Marine Mammal Research and Conservation Network of India, said, as per her team's research, the coastal and offshore waters in the wetland and estuarine areas off Marakkanam, Kaliveli, Alamparai and Odiyur are socially and ecologically important and sensitive.
"Cetacean sightings are recorded, which is indirect evidence of the presence of productive ecosystems and prey. Different species of dolphins and whales are sighted. This stretch of wetlands and estuaries entering the Bay of Bengal needs to be sensitively managed, in terms of infrastructure development and at-sea activities," Sutaria said.
However, an executive engineer with the Department of Fisheries claims the construction of fishing harbours will have no adverse impact on the Kaliveli ecosystem. "The navigation channel inside the estuary will be just 40 metres wide, while the width of the lake is about 500 metres. There will be a dedicated committee of officials and experts who will monitor disposal of waste. Chances of oil spills are minimal. Besides, we are receiving a lot of applications from fishermen in the area for tuna long liners and conversion of boats into deep-sea vessels for which the government offers 50% subsidy. There is a demand for the fishing harbours."
A senior TNPCB official said there was no bar on the pollution board to process the consent applications, however the work on the project can commence only after the dispute is settled in the NGT.
Box:
Sea turtle nesting information of Alambarai from 2010-11 to 2020-21
Year No. of Eggs
2010-11 477
2011-12 1,046
2012-13 4,115
2013-14 3,060
2014-15 2,587
2015-16 2,394
2016-17 3,942
2017-18 7,697
2018-19 4,648
2019-20 2,862
2020-21 2,490
Why Kaliveli wetlands need to be protected:
1. They support hundreds of species of flora and fauna
2. Kaliveli, along with Yedayanthittu Estuary, has been identified as an Important Bird Area
3. It is also identified as one of the wetlands of national importance by the Union environment ministry
4. It is a critical and crucial wetland complex for migratory waterbird species of the Central Asian Flyway. The ministry makes a special mention in India’s national action plan for the conservation of the migratory birds in the Central Asian Flyway (2018-2023).
5. Environment ministry recently unveiled the Marine Turtle Action Plan (2021) and Alambarai alone witnesses turtle nesting of 3,200 on an average per year.