140 research outputs found
Country report on pollution: India
Biogeographical features, coastal ecosystems and coastal activities of the Bay of Bengal Coast of India. Overview of sources of pollution, water and sediment quality. Present status of pollution and trans-boundary issues. International instruments adopted, policy and mechanisms for pollution control and enforcement of existing policies and legislations
Tourism Carrying Capacity for Beaches of South Andaman Island, India
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI) is one of the largest tourist areas in India attracting both the international and domestic tourists each year. The Island Administration has a vision to develop the islands as an upmarket island destination for ecotourism. Among the island group, the South Andaman region is the most visited tourist destination and beaches of these islands have great potential for tourism attractions. The present work is an attempt to understand the potential of these beaches by assessing the carrying capacity in terms of number of visitors that can be allowed over a period of time, which will further help with better tourism management. The methodology used to estimate the tourism carrying capacity (TCC) is based on the physical and ecological conditions of each site and the existing infrastructure. The total effective carrying capacity (ECC) estimated for the beaches of Port Blair area (126,301 visitors/day) reveals that the current tourism activity is in lower level compared to its carrying capacity. Such carrying capacity assessments can be used as an input into the regular planning process. Preliminary estimates suggest that A&N Islands can be promoted for high value-low volume, eco-friendly, and environmentally sustainable tourism
Critically Vulnerable Coastal Areas - A Framework for Community Based Resource Management: Vembanad, Kerala 2016
The Sustainable Development Goal
(SDG) 14 emphasizes Conservation
and Sustainable use of the oceans,
seas and marine resources for
sustainable development. Further,
India's National Conservation Strategy
and Policy Statement on Environmental
and Development, 1992 and the
National Environmental Policy, 2006
recognize the importance of multi
stakeholder partnership in
implementation of conservation plans
for sustainable development of natural
resources
The Rise of Pregnancy Criminalization: A Pregnancy Justice Report
In 2013, Pregnancy Justice published the first comprehensive national documentation effort capturing pregnancy-related arrests and deprivations of liberty. The 2013 study identified 413 reported cases from 1973 through 2005, arising out of 44 states and the District of Columbia, and involving a range of pregnancy outcomes including abortions, live births, miscarriages, and stillbirths. Overwhelmingly, the cases occurred despite a lack of legal authority, in defiance of numerous and significant appellate court decisions dismissing or overturning such actions, and contrary to the extraordinary consensus across the medical community that prosecution undermines rather than improves maternal, fetal, and child health. In 86% of these cases, pregnant people faced prosecution through the use of existing criminal statutes intended for other purposes.This report begins where the first study left off, documenting cases of pregnancy criminalization from January 2006 until the Dobbs ruling in June 2022. What we found was deeply concerning. Over these 16.5 years, we identified 1,396 cases. In other words, of the 1,800 pregnancy criminalization cases that took place over the last half century, over three-quarters occurred after 2005. Through an alarming combination of carceral approaches to substance use and the spread of fetal personhood laws, state actors have increasingly penalized pregnant people. Understanding this disturbing phenomenon—including who is most affected, how, and under what pretense—will be essential to fighting for pregnant people's liberties as we enter the post-Dobbs era
Structure and regeneration status of mangrove patches along the estuarine and coastal stretches of Kerala, India
This study presents the structural characteristics
and regeneration potential of mangrove patches in the
estuarine and coastal areas of Kerala, a tropical maritime
state in India. Field surveys were carried out at 46 selected
sites during August 2015 to May 2016. In each site, the
vegetative structure and regeneration status were assessed
using the quadrat method. Altogether 219 quadrates were
laid out and a total of 13 true mangrove species, belonging
to 5 families and 8 genera, were recorded. The total tree
density and stand basal area of the study region was
1678.08/ha and 20.33 m2/ha respectively. The low basal
areas indicate the reduced structural development in mangroves.
Of the 13 tree species, Avicennia constitutes 56%
of the total Important Value Index (IVI) and Avicennia
officinalis represents 41% of the IVI in Kerala, followed by
Avicennia marina (15%), Rhizophora mucronata (15%),
Sonneratia alba (8%) Rhizophora apiculata (7%) and Excoecaria
agallocha (7%). The diameter at breast height
(DBH) in the study area revealed that 47% of the tree
species came under the 1–10 cm DBH class. Total sapling
and seedling density in Kerala was 2238.35 and 3232.42
individuals/ha respectively. Density of young plants (seedlings
? saplings) was only 31% greater of tree density
and varied from 3–63%, which indicates poor regeneration
potential. The Maturity index value (MIV) and complexity
index (Ic) value of mangroves were 18.30 and 109.81
respectively. However, the low Ic value (\10) observed in
seven out of ten coastal districts indicated poor structural
development of mangroves in Kerala. Therefore, locationspecific
conservation and management measures, guided
by the knowledge on spatial distribution and habitat
requirements of mangrove varieties should be taken to
preserve the mangrove diversity of Kerala
Symbiotic brachyuran crab Eumedonus zebra Alcock, 1895 (Crustacea: Decapoda: Pilumnidae) – A first record from South east coast of India
1779-1781The article report the occurrence of the symbiotic brachyuran crab Eumedonus zebra Alcock, 1895 from Chennai, Tamil Nadu, south-eastern coast of India based on the morphometric characteristics of the species. This is the first record of genus Eumedonus from the region and is known to be an obligate symbionts of sea urchins
Menstruation, Myopia, and Marginalization: Advancing Menstrual Policies to “Keep Girls in School” at the Risk of Exacerbating Inequalities
As countries across the world adopt policies addressing menstruation, it is imperative to identify who benefits from such policies and to understand the dynamics of inclusion and exclusion. We examine such policies through the lens of human rights, as a framework that demands addressing marginalization, ensuring substantive equality, and guaranteeing inclusive participation to ensure that the menstrual needs of everyone, everywhere are met. Our review is focused on four countries (India, Kenya, Senegal, and the United States) and is based on data from 34 policy documents and interviews with 85 participants. We show that girls, particularly school-going girls, are the main target group of policies. Due to this myopic view of menstrual needs, policies risk leaving the needs of adult menstruators, including those experiencing (peri)menopause, unaddressed. Moreover, the intersection between menstrual status and markers of identity such as disability and gender identity produces further policy gaps. These gaps can be attributed to the exclusion of marginalized menstruators from decision-making processes by creating barriers and failing to ensure meaningful inclusive participation. To address inequalities, policy makers need to make a concerted effort to understand and accommodate the needs of menstruators in all their diversity
Land–ocean interactions in the coastal zone: past, present & future
The Land–ocean Interactions in the Coastal Zone (LOICZ) project was established in 1993 as a core project of the International Geosphere–Biosphere Programme (IGBP) to provide the science knowledge to answer "How will changes in land use, sea level and climate alter coastal systems, and what are the wider consequences?" In its first phase of operation (1993–2003) LOICZ began a fundamental investigation focused on biophysical dimensions, including seminal assessments of coastal seas as net sources or sinks of atmospheric CO2, river discharge to the oceans, and biogeochemical modelling. In the second generation of LOICZ (2004–2014), increased attention was paid to the human dimensions of the coast, involving the inclusion of cross-cutting themes such as coastal governance, social-ecological systems, ecological economics and activities around capacity building and the promotion of early career scientists. This paper provides a synthesis of this work and looks forward to the future challenges for the project. With the transition to Future Earth, there is a paradigm shift emerging. The new vision is to support transformation to a sustainable and resilient future for society and nature on the coast, by facilitating innovative, integrated and solutions-oriented science. Realising this vision takes LOICZ into a third generation: to be at the forefront of co-designing, co-producing and co-implementing knowledge for coastal resilience and sustainability. LOICZ as Future Earth Coasts will continue to address 'hotspots' of coastal vulnerability, focusing on themes of dynamic coasts, human development and the coast, and pathways to global coastal sustainability and constraints thereof
Nearshore sediment dynamics of Kavaratti Island, Lakshadweep archipelago using integrated modelling system
845-857The Kavaratti Island of Lakshadweep archipelago exhibits high coastal erosion and shoreline changes due to the anthropogenic stresses on the island morphology. This study focuses on the shoreline analysis using Digital Shoreline Analysis System model and nearshore sediment dynamics using an integrated modeling system with high resolution bathymetry of ~15 m. The sediment load and bed level change were estimated using the sediment transport model through the feedback mechanism of flow and wave forces. The model simulations were performed during winter, pre-monsoon, monsoon and post-monsoon seasons for the year 2015 and calibrated using the field observation datasets. Shoreline change studies indicate the coastal erosion of about 83.43 % and accretion of about 16.55 % along the island coast. The study signifies the erosion around the fishing jetty and accretion at the western (Katchery) jetty due to wave induced currents and tidal influx. The scouring effect due to the presence of tetrapods along the island coast is observed between 0.02 and 0.18 m
Reactive Nitrogen in Coastal and Marine Waters of India and Its Relationship With Marine Aquaculture
India is bordered in the soutii, south-west, and south-east with Indian Ocean, Arabian
Sea (AS), and the Bay of Bengal (BOB), respectively. Indian coast is 7517 km long
comprising 5423 km in the peninsular India and 2094 km in Andaman and Nicobar, and
Lakshadweep Islands. The Indian exclusive economic zone (EEZ) is spread in
2.02 million sq km (0.86 million sq km in west coast, 0.56 m illion sq km in east coast and
0.6 million sq km in Andaman and Nicobar Islands). The Indian marine environmentconsisting of adjoining coastal areas and EEZ directly sustains useful habitats and
suppons the livelihood of 3.9 million fishers. Nearly 25% of the country’s population
resides in these areas and about 340 communities are primarily occupied in marine and
coastal fisheries (MoEF, 2009; SACEP, 2014).
Nitrogen (N) exists in various chemical forms, produced by marine biota through
several chemical transformations during their growth and metabolism in the marine
environment. Nitrogen as N2 is generally unavailable in marine conditions and thereby,
the equilibrium of the processes of N2 fixation (conversion of atmospheric N2 to organic
nitrogen) and denitrification (conversion of nitrate to N2) decides the bioavailable nitrogen
supply and productivity (Gruber, 2008)
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