The potential areas in India for luxuriant growth of seaweeds are south Tamil Nadu coast, Gujarat
coast, Lakshadweep and Andaman Nicobar Islands. The total standing crop of seaweeds from Intertidal and
shallow waters of all maritime states and Lakshadweep Islands was estimated as 91339 tons (wet WI.) The
quantity of seaweeds growing in deep waters ofTamiJ Nadu was estimated as 75372 tons (wet wt) in an area
of 1863 sq km from Dhanushkodi to Kanyakumari. Data were collected every month from 1978 to 1995
from the seaweed landing centres in Tamil Nadu on the quantity of seaweeds exploited from the natural
seaweed beds. During this period the quantity of agar yielding seaweeds Gelidiella acerosa, Graci/aria
edulis, G. crassa and G. foliifera exploited in a year varied from 248 to 1289 tons (dry wt).; algin yielding
seaweeds Sargassum spp and Turbinaria spp from 651 5537 tons (dry wt) and all the above seaweeds from
1177 to 6420 tons (dry wt). Since several years, agar yielding red algae are over exploited in Tamil Nadu.
The need for conservat ion of commercially important seaweeds of Tamil Nadu and time - table for their
commercial exploitation are given. The harvesting of under exploited and unexploited seaweeds from Tamil
Nadu and unexploited seaweeds from other parts of Indian coast are suggested
