The Hindu : Front Page : Study to conserve Gulf of Mannar’s eco system

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Thursday, Jul 19, 2007
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Study to conserve Gulf of Mannar’s eco system

R. Vimal Kumar

The project will be carried out at a cost of Rs. 16 lakh
Sites chosen from Mandapam group of Islands

TUTICORIN: Suganthi Devadason Marine Research Institute (SDMRI) here and Annamalai University will conduct a joint study of the inter-relationship and mutual dependency of mangrove, coral and sea grass eco systems in the Gulf of Mannar.

The aim of the study is to develop holistic strategies to conserve the three eco systems, which will be helpful for different stake holders involved in the management of marine resources in the region.

The study will be carried out at a cost of Rs. 16 lakh allocated under a GEF-UNDP (Global Environment Facility-United Nations Development Programme) project, which is being implemented by the Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve Trust.

J.K. Patterson Edward, Director, SDMRI, said that the research would be performed adopting micro and macro-level interventions.

While the micro-level studies would be carried out by an Annamalai University team under K. Kathiresan, Professor of Marine Biology, the SDMRI team under himself would concentrate on macro-level parameters.

The institutions had chosen areas in and around Poomarichan, Hare and Manoli islands for the study, all of which are part of the Mandapam group of islands.

Ideal characteristics

Characteristics of the areas surrounding these islands are ideal for comparison to delineate the inter-relationship among the eco systems.

“While Poomarichan is rich in mangroves and sea grass beds, but less in corals, Hare islands have a ‘disturbed’ mangrove cover, but healthy in coral and sea grass eco systems.

All the three eco systems remain healthy in Manoli,” he said.

Dr. Kathiresan said that micro level studies would concentrate on assessment of biomarkers such as fatty acids and stable isotopes in the eco systems, to understand how much one system was dependent on the other.

Likewise, physical, biological and chemical data, including productivity, coral growth, coral recruits, mangrove growth and its health, sea grass shoots and its growth and fishery production, would be collected.

The final report would feature a set of codes for the improvement of health of eco system.

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