RAPID ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA) STUDIES AND PREPARATION OF ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN (EMP) FOR THE PROPOSED FISHING HARBOUR AT ARTHUNGAL

Funding Agency: Harbour Engineering Department, Government of Kerala

The Arthungal village located in the Cherthala Taluk of the Alappuzha district is a coastal sandy zone region with more that 90% fishermen community. The coastline zone of Alappuzha district was once well known for rich diversity of fish fauna and the presence of mud banks formed at the time of monsoon. These mud banks not only attract large quantities of fish and help to provide an important source of income for the local and distant fishermen but also make the coastal waters calm, thereby assisting fishermen to take their boats in and out of coastal waters. Later, due to trawling and other fishing activities, formation of mud banks has been reduced, and the local fishermen were forced to relocate to the safer places like Kochi. Around Kochi, the mud bank formation is found to be more at the southern part of the mouth. This is because the heavy runoff from the six rivers flowing through the Kochi estuary will be forced to the south due to the prominent wave action. At present, about nineteen fishermen communities depend on Kochi region for making their living. They have to spend at least Rs 4,500 per day for this migration from Alappuzha to Kochi. Construction of a new harbour in the Arthungal region can reduce such monetary losses and the manpower can be utilized in a more productive way.

It is in this context that the Harbour Engineering Department of Government of Kerala decided to construct a Fishing Harbour in the Arthungal Region. Since construction of fishing harbour is included in the list of projects of Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) requiring Environmental Clearance, the Harbour Engineering Department of Government of Kerala has requested the Centre for Environment and Development, Thiruvananthapuram, to carry out a Rapid Environmental Impact Assessment in the region to identify the impacts of the proposed harbour and to suggest an Environment Management Plan. The study was carried out with a Matrix Approach in analyzing the various activities and its impacts on the various ecosystems in the region. Secondary data were collected from all possible sources. Primary data collection was done wherever necessary.