The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Pallikaranai vulnerable to devastating floods: study

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Aug 25, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Pallikaranai vulnerable to devastating floods: study

P. Oppili

Stresses sustainable planning of natural water run-off

Flood risk in and around the marshland due to man-made changes
Demand for developing areas has led to ecological destruction

CHENNAI: Pallikaranai and its surrounding areas will suffer from devastating floods in the future if there is no sustainable planning of natural water run-off, shows a study.

The study was jointly taken up by Care Earth, a non-governmental organisation, Loyola College and the Department of Physical Geography, University of Freiburg, Germany.

It said the analysis of meteorological data combined with the extended main water body clearly showed that the flood risk in and around the marshland was due to man-made changes in the area.

The marshland was an important retention area for strong precipitation during the monsoon. The anthropogenic changes in and around the marshland cut off the water run off and aggravated the frequency and intensity of floods, the study said.

The socio-economic analysis of risk perceptions and management strategies underlined the inter-related reasons for floods, which were due to economic globalisation, labour migration and rapid urbanisation. The pressure on cities and their planning authorities grew with its inhabitants.

The demand for developing areas led to the ecological destruction of the marshland, it said.

Illegal as well as legal garbage dumping was an increasing hazard. The belief that filling up the upper part of the marshland would create new land for settlements or industries was not correct.

As a result of the process of decomposition, the dump site would produce gases such as methane for at least the next 20 years, the study said.

Canals were dysfunctional, storm water drains were not cleaned regularly and the water bodies were not maintained. Residential complexes as well as encroachments were mushrooming.

Encroachments

The northern side of the marsh was encroached. Constructions of buildings were in complete violation of the norms and rules of the Government. This has resulted in the collapse of the natural drainage system in the marsh, the study pointed out.

The team that took up the study included Prof. Dr. Axel Drescher, Prof. Dr. Rudiger Glaser, Dr. Constanze Pfeiffer, Dr. Jayshree Vencatesan, Dr. Ranjit Daniels, Dr. Paul Dostal, Dr. S.Vincent , March Lechner, Elke Schliermann-Kraus and Stephanie Glacer.

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