The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Environmentalists seek wider debate on Sethu project

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Sep 22, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Environmentalists seek wider debate on Sethu project

By Our Staff Reporter

CHENNAI, SEPT. 21. Environmental activists in the State today urged the Government to carry on a wider debate with the community and civil society organisations before the commencement of the Sethusamudram Canal project.

Putting forth arguments that the proposed project was likely to disturb biodiversity in the region, besides being economically unviable, speakers at a two-day consultation on the status of coastal environment of Tamil Nadu in 1995-2004 organised by the Tamil Nadu Environment Council (TNEC), called for a balanced and cautious approach.

Bolstering their side of the story with information from the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute's (NEERI) study, environmentalists said the total biosphere of the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay would undergo a massive change, the ramifications of which could not be predicted. The mass of earth excavated for the ship canal route would have to be deposited in deep sea and this would definitely affect the marine micro organisms of the region. While the NEERI summary report mentioned that the loss would not be significant, as it would occur in a minimal area, members of TNEC contested the point, on grounds that the marine environment could not be compartmentalised.

L. Antony Samy of the TNEC-CEDA Trust said opposition to the project was on the basis that it violated the basic principles of ecology. "The oceanic current of the Bay of Bengal should be taken into consideration as a whole and the sediment deposited should be taken into account. The impact of marine species alien to the region and loss of endemic species is not evaluated, or perhaps, cannot be evaluated. What will fishermen do if they are denied their livelihood? The aspect of compensation to fisherfolk has also not been discussed," he said.

`Social cost too high'

The social cost of the project was too high in terms of the suffering that human and other living beings would have to undergo in case work on the canal was started. Again, approving the project before getting the views of the public was inappropriate. "Before we have public hearings, we hear that the project has been approved. It is painful that this happens in a democratic country."

He also said it was only a request to stop the present scheme until satisfactory answers were provided for various aspects of the project and the ecological impact it would have on the region. N. Markandan, former Vice-Chancellor, Gandhigram Rural University, who inaugurated the meet, highlighted the need to exercise caution and consider all options before entering into a project of such a magnitude. While undertaking development works, welfare of the fisherfolk who would be most affected by the changes should be considered, he said.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu