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Magazine
ECOWATCH
Stubborn assault
AKBER AYUB
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A seventh dam across the Chalakudy may sound the death-knell of the river.
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Photo: Akber Ayub
Reduced to a trickle: Will the river survive?
The air is filled with birdsong. Underneath, the gurgling river tries to keep pace. A gentle breeze through the bamboo adds the rustle of crisp, spiky leaves to the medley. The resulting symphony is magical.
Some 75 km northwest of Kochi is the trading town of Chalakudy. And a short 25 km along the winding inter-state road flows the river that carries its name. Another few km and you are at the Athirampilly falls where water roars over a rocky knoll in white, effervescent waves thundering down nearly 45 metres. One November morning, the river is swollen and flows at a brisk pace, about 70 meandering miles from its twin sources — the higher reaches of the Annamalai hills in Tamil Nadu and the exquisite Parambikulam plateau in Kerala.
Then you realise that this might be the last time you may see this scene: if need for ‘progress’ overrides essential humanness; if, in utter disregard to all known facts, the proposed Chalakudy hydel project is implemented — the seventh along the 145 km journey of the already heavily dammed river. The Government of Kerala is planning this dam just upstream of the enchanting Vazhachal rapids and five km upstream of the falls. The immediate likely upshot? The 23m high dam, part of the Athirampilly Hydro Electric Project with an installed capacity of a paltry 163 MW, will drown another 140 hectares of prime forest land.
The steep gradient of the Chalakudy basin makes it technically suitable for hydroelectric dams and subsequent diversion of water to other river basins. Of the six dams already constructed on its tributaries, four were built by Tamil Nadu and two by Kerala. Of the four dams built by TN, three are located in Kerala and have the sole purpose of diverting water (nearly 16tmc.ft) from the Chalakudy to the plains of Tamil Nadu for irrigation and power generation under the Parambikulam-Aliyar Project.
This complex multi-purpose, multi-river, inter-State, inter-basin water-sharing project diverts water from the upper reaches of the three major west flowing rivers of Kerala namely the Periyar, the Chalakudy and the Bharathapuzha to the eastern state of Tamil Nadu. This treaty — based on the illusion of surplus water in Kerala rivers and political pressures — has sounded the death knell of major rivers in Kerala including the iconic Bharathapuzha or Nila.
Projects on the river
Apart from the six dams, there are other major irrigation projects of weirs, diversion canals, augmentation projects, water diversion schemes and regulator dams constructed by various gram panchayats, which have combined to disrupt the river’s natural behaviour. While some tributaries have stopped flowing completely below the dams due to the complete diversion of water; others, like the Sholayar tributary, have been transformed into a chain of reservoirs.
Since minimum flow has not been ensured, and the discharge from the six dams fluctuates heavily, there is a huge variation in the river flow in the monsoon and non-monsoon periods leading to flash floods that cause incalculable damage downstream in the form of erosion and crop damages, not to mention damage to aquatic life. And now comes the proposed scheme to build one more dam.
The Kerala government and the State electricity board seem bent on going ahead, despite resistance from scientists, NGOs, environmentalists and widespread protests by people along the riparian areas.
Damage
Consider these stark realities: the project has been refused clearance twice over, first by the Ministry of Environment and Forests and then by the Kerala high court owing to violations in assessing environmental impact.
According to environmentalists the Athirampilly project will displace endangered primitive hunter-gatherer tribes; the famed Vazhachal rapids and the Athirampilly falls will lose their glory, severely denting tourism in the region; the decreased flow for almost 20-22 hours in a day (in summer) will imperil the agricultural operations in almost 20,000 hectares of land not to mention the adverse impact on a large number of drinking water schemes ...
Repercussions on the riparian flora and fauna are grimmer. The myriad cascades and rapids along the river and its tributaries are ideal habitat for diverse species of fishes.
According to the National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources (NGFGR), a total of 104 species belonging to 34 families have been recorded here, many critically endangered or vulnerable, making the Chalakudy one of the richest in terms of fish diversity. Ironically, there is a proposal pending to declare the river a fish sanctuary. The 140 hectares of forest doomed to submergence is home to diverse animal species including the Asiatic Elephant and the Great Indian Hornbill. As for flora, the 1704 sq km catchment area is the only remaining riparian forest at this altitude in the entire Western Ghats.
Isn’t there any alternative to this stubborn assault on Nature? The proposed 160 MW accounts for a paltry three per cent of the state’s current electricity production and can be met by other measures. Power available from the existing thermal and hydel power stations are vastly underutilised, often for untenable and illogical reasons. Currently, transmission losses are a whopping 25 to 30 per cent; power theft is among the highest in the state.
There are other alternatives too: the Kerala Sahitya Parishad, after a thorough power audit, reports that Kerala uses 20 million 60W incandescent bulbs for domestic use alone. If five million are replaced with CFL lamps, power saving at the peak-load period would be around 300 MW. Even if distributed free, the total expenditure would be less than Rs. 250 crores as against the Rs. 650 crores and more needed to set up the new hydel station. A differential tariff for peak and non-peak hours will encourage energy conservation measures and reduce peak-hour demand.
Instead of going to the forests with a bulldozer, say experts, exploit sustainable energy sources like solar and wind power. A sensible and environment-conscious approach will throw up many other alternatives.
E-mail the writer at akbersait@yahoo.co.uk
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