deeppgening environmental crisis in lake vembanad · • laagerge nuubember of studestude tsnts...
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Agriculture to Tourism andAgriculture to Tourism and Deepening Environmental p gCrisis in Lake Vembanad
NC NarayananIIT BombayIIT [email protected]
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StructureStructure
• Rice‐Centric Development of Lake VembanadRice Centric Development of Lake Vembanad
• Environmental Externalities of Green• Environmental Externalities of Green Revolution
• Tourism and its Impacts: Focus on sewage
• Path Ahead
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Vembanad• Largest body of brackish water in South India:
covers an area of over l512 km, which is approximately 4% of Keralaapproximately 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.N ‘ i b l’ t ll d b f l l d• Now a ‘rice bowl’ controlled by powerful landowner interests with State support.
• Also fertile ground for agricultural workerAlso fertile ground for agricultural worker mobilisations and class conflicts.
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Rice fields below sea levelRice fields below sea level
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Levees (polders), pumping stations
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Vembanad’s rice‐centric “development”p
• 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 bundstemporary bunds.
• Govt constructed permanent, but submersible bunds in 1974. Roads also‐ together fragmented the wetland & disrupted the natural hydrological balance
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Lake Vembanad: the salinity barrierLake Vembanad: the salinity barrier
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ImplicationsS li i ‘ ll i ’• Salinity: as ‘pollution’.
• Engineering of the lake…. A spillway to drain off floodwaters, and a regulator (barrier) to check the incursion of salineand 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 20000 tons of Fertilizers per year and also a large amount of agrochemicals and pesticides
• Residues pollute water that is pumped into the canals and d f d il d dused for daily demands
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Pollution is not an ‘externality’Pollution is not an externality
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Impact on Fisheries
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Levee (Bund)raising?Levee (Bund)raising?
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Kuttanad PackageK d P k C l G h h f d• Kuttanad Package: Central Government scheme where funds are transferred based on ‘project proposals.
• Majorly projects are oriented to ‘water resourcesMajorly projects 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 herehave 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.
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Kuttanad Package Reduced to a Proposal for Outer Bund Constructionfor Outer Bund Construction
District No. of Polders
Area (ha) Length (km)
Cost (lacRs)
Alapuzha 829 34697 2067 187621
Kottayam 445 17458 1006 82434Kottayam 445 17458 1006 82434
Pathanamthitta
44 2303 130 11897itta
Kollam 9 777
Total 1327 54458 3202 282369
Source: KSSP, 2011: 31
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Kuttanad Package: i l d d diMaterial Needed For Bunding
Item For 1 km For 3062 km
Granite 3000 million Cube 9186000 million cubeGranite 3000 million Cube 9186000 million cube
Sand 3550 Cubic Feet 10870100 Cubic Feet
Cement 500 Bags 1531000 Bags
Source: KSSP, 2011: 33
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Tourism Development and E i l I li iEnvironmental Implications
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ResortsResorts
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Encroachments into LakeEncroachments into Lake
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From “Wet” to “Dry” LandFrom Wet to Dry Land
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House Boat Tourism
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Benefits from HBsBenefits from HBs
• 1000 HBs in Alapuzha alone‐ 50% unlicensed
• 3000 permanent workers with Rs. 6850/ and daily allowance of Rs. 170/170/
• Over 8000 indirect jobs• Rs. 70 lakhs/day of business around Alapuzha town
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Crowded CanalsCrowded Canals
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Pollution
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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
i NOT dconstruction NOT yet started• Mostly direct disposal • Some ‘honey sucking’ trucks‐But where does the waste go?
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Legal / Regulatory Aspects• Environment Protection Act (1986) • Pollution Control Board : Water Quality Testing and R l i f i l iRegulation of environmental issues
• Unrealistic work load by PCB: Sanction of plan, compliance checking after construction & monitoringcompliance checking after construction & monitoring of norms of over 200 units in Alapuzha alone.
• Legal actions of hundreds of complaintsg p• Along with this: issue/renew license of 1000 HBs in every two years and monitoring of compliance.
Clear that “policing” alone will NOT p gwork
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Larger Picture of Sewage/Industries• Nearlv 1.6 million people live on the banks of the lake in 38 panchayathsp p p y
spread across three districts• Cochin (Kochi) Corporation and 3 municipal towns are on the banks of
the lake with major part of Alappuzha townh ld f b h h• 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 observed in pre monsoon and post‐monsoon seasons atBOD values observed in pre, monsoon and post monsoon 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 f K hi lof 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 Vembanad Lake is M/Sunit discharging effluent to the Vembanad Lake is M/S
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Preliminary Thoughts on ‘Solutions’i i i f d i di l di h h ’• Limitations 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 number of students doing analysis of local a ge u be o stude ts do g a a ys s o oca
environmental/resource use as part of curriculum• Thus instilling transparency, accountability by participation
of these ‘student citizens’ in local level issuesof these student citizens in local level issues• Continuity through committed teachers of local academic
institutions• This can strengthen NGOs / people’s movements who are• This can strengthen NGOs / people s movements who are
lone voices now • Possibility of more regulatory powers to panchayats to
ensure proximity and facilitate localensure proximity and facilitate local transparency/accountability in environmental governance