Deepening Environmental Crisis in Lake Vembanad. NC Narayanan IIT Bombay IIT Bombay

Transcription

1 Agriculture to Tourism and Deepening Environmental Crisis in Lake Vembanad NC Narayanan IIT Bombay IIT Bombay

2 Structure Rice Centric Development of Lake Vembanad Environmental Externalities of Green Revolution Tourism and its Impacts: Focus on sewage Path Ahead

3 Vembanad Largest body of brackish water in South India: covers an area of over l512 km, which is approximately 4% of Kerala Water and rich silt via four rivers from the east. Tidal influence from the Arabian Sea. Rice cultivation and flood control initially by private farmers. Now a rice bowl controlled dby powerful llandowner interests with State support. Also fertile ground for agricultural worker mobilisations and class conflicts.

4

5

6 Rice fields below sea level

7 Levees (polders), pumping stations

8 Vembanad s rice centric development Post war constriction of rice supplies Wasteland reclamation and enclosure of commons Green Revolution : HYV, fertilisers, pesticides Rice farms 1 2 metres below sea level: a major problem for second crop is flooding of fields due to breaches in the temporary bunds. Govt constructed permanent, but submersible bunds in Roads also together fragmented the wetland & disrupted the natural hydrological balance

9 Lake Vembanad: the salinity barrier

10 Implications Slii Salinity: as pollution. Engineering of the lake. A spillway to drain off floodwaters, and a regulator (barrier) to check the incursion of saline water. Conflict with fisherfolk Vembanad is an extensive nursery for marine prawns, with centuries old fishing traditions. consumes about tons of Fertilizers per year and also a large amount of agrochemicals and pesticides Residues pollute water that is pumped into the canals and used for daily dil demands d

11 Pollutionisnot is not an externality

12 Impact on Fisheries

13

14 Levee (Bund)raising?

15 Kuttanad Package Kuttanad dpackage: Central lgovernment scheme where funds are transferred based on project proposals. Majorlyprojects are oriented to water resources development from the Ministry of Water Resources Reduced to Outer Bund Building Legitimised by integrating this with farm roads ( 3m wide) Interests of bund builders, farmers and real estate developers have coalesced here. Does not match with the earlier wisdom about Kuttanad ecosystem All earlier studies had warned against fargmenting the wet land ecosystem by bund building.

16 Kuttanad Package Reduced to a Proposal District for Outer Bund Construction No. of Polders Area (ha) Length (km) Cost (lac Rs) Alapuzha Kottayam Pathanamth itta Kollam Total Source: KSSP, 2011: 31

17 Kuttanad Package: Material ilneeded ddfor Bunding Item For 1 km For 3062 km Granite 3000 million Cube million cube Sand 3550 Cubic Feet Cubic Feet Cement 500 Bags Bags Source: KSSP, 2011: 33

18 Tourism Development and Environmental limplications i

19 Resorts

20 Encroachments into Lake

21 From Wet to Dry Land

22

23

24

25

26 House Boat Tourism

27

28 Benefits from HBs 1000 HBs in Alapuzha alone 50% unlicensed 3000 permanent workers with Rs. 6850/ and daily allowance of Rs. 170/ Over 8000 indirect jobs Rs. 70 lakhs/day of business around Alapuzha town

29 Crowded Canals

30 Pollution

31

32

33

34

35 Pollution from House Boats (HBs) 507 licensed and almost equal number of unlicensed HBs Liquid wastes per HB is 250 litres/room/day Bio toilets are compulsory, but not operated right STP faraway: sparsely used New STP: 1 yr after construction NOT yet started Mostly direct disposal Some honey sucking trucks But where does the waste go?

36 Legal / Regulatory Aspects Environment Protection Act (1986) Pollution Control Board : Water Quality Testing and Regulation of environmental lissues Unrealistic work load by PCB: Sanction of plan, compliance checking after construction & monitoring of norms of over 200 units in Alapuzha alone. Legal actions of hundreds of complaints Along with this: issue/renew license of 1000 HBs in every two years and monitoring of compliance. Clear that policing alone will NOT p g work

37 Larger Picture of Sewage/Industries Nearlv 1.6 million people p live on the banks of the lake in 38 panchayaths spread across three districts Cochin (Kochi) Corporation and 3 municipal towns are on the banks of the lake with major part of Alappuzha town Kochi city generates 2550mld of urban sewage that enters the Vembanad directly: Slaughter, domestic, Hospital and market wastes reach the system through the extensive network of canals and rivers. BOD values observedin pre, monsoon andpost monsoonseasons seasons at Alleppey town are 15mg/l, 20mg/l and 19mg/l showing increased level of organic pollution (should be less than 2 mg/l) High coli form levels in the lake, especially during Sabarimala season through the Pampa river 260 mld of industrial effluents rcach the estuary from the industrial belt of Kochi alone. Cochin shipyard and port are releasing sizable quantities of waste oil, paints, and metal and paint scmpings In Alappuzha, The major industrial unit discharging effluent to the VembanadLake is M/S

38 Preliminary Thoughts on Solutions Limitations i i of academic studies leading to change or thru regulatory institutions Need more outreach activities Trans disciplinary understanding by engaging students to the local context Large agenumber of students ts doing analysis ayssof local environmental/resource use as part of curriculum Thus instilling transparency, accountability by participation ofthese student citizens inlocal level issues Continuity through committed teachers of local academic institutions This can strengthen NGOs / people s movements who are lone voices now Possibility of more regulatory powers to panchayats to ensure proximity andfacilitate local transparency/accountability in environmental governance