The Hindu : National : Integrated coastal zone management advocated

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Apr 03, 2005

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National

Integrated coastal zone management advocated

By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI, APRIL 2. The National Review Committee on the Coastal Regulation Zone has recommended that the area under the zone will depend on region-specific issues, especially vulnerability, its Chairman, M.S. Swaminathan, said today.

Advocating a multi-disciplinary approach, aimed at an integrated coastal zone management (ICZM), Dr. Swaminathan said the regulatory procedures would be adopted within the principles of ICZM. The coastal resources had to be viewed in an integrated manner and the zone would comprise significant parts of the land and sea areas. The `boundaries,' therefore, differed according to regional and local conditions, as the overall approach was to protect the fragile coastal zone while promoting a sustainable and equitable development, Dr.Swaminathan said at a meeting organised at the M.S.Swaminathan Research Foundation here, on ``Beyond Tsunami: Significance of the Dandi March'' today.

The Committee, constituted in July 2004, recently submitted its report to the Government. The terms of reference of this committee included reviewing the reports of various committees appointed by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) on coastal zone management, international practices and suggesting the scientific principles for an integrated coastal zone management best suited to the country. The Committee members, therefore, revisited the CRZ notification of 1991 and recommended the amendments.

The recommendations also suggested that priority attention be paid to resources including mangroves, coral reefs, sand dunes, marine parks, sanctuaries, coastal forests, turtle nesting sites, seaweeds, breeding grounds for migratory birds and heritage sites on and off the coast. To implement this, the Committee has called for the setting up of a coastal zone management division in the MoEF and a national board for sustainable coastal zone management, comprising 21 members, including panchayati raj institutions (PRI).

A national institute for the same should be set up to address policy and law issues, undertake conflict resolution studies and build the capacity of PRIs to undertake ecological literacy. A vulnerability mapping for the whole country should be done by the MoEF through recognised scientific institutions partnering with the State Governments within six months to a year.

This would take into account factors such as elevation, geology, geomorphology, sea level trends, horizontal shoreline displacement, tidal ranges and wave heights.

However, the Committee, has also stated that until the new framework, based on micro-level surveys, is put in place, the existing CRZ notification should be implemented strictly.

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