PANAJI
In a wakeup call for the State, a research report produced by ISRO’s Space Applications Centre, Ahmedabad has revealed that Goa lost around 15.2 hectares of land due to coastal erosion in the course of 10 years.
Data available between 2004-06 and 2014-16 reveals that around 28.8 hectare land was lost due to coastal erosion in Goa while 13.6 hectare land was gained through accretion.
The effective land loss for Goa stands at 15.2 hectares.
Accretion is the process of coastal sediment returning to the visible portion of a beach or foreshore after a submersion event.
The research to be published soon in the peer-reviewed journal Current Science states that India lost over 3,680 hectares of land due to coastal erosion in the course of 10 years with West Bengal and Gujarat bearing the maximum brunt
The world’s shorelines are constantly changing due to natural processes such as coastal erosion and accretion, as well as human activities that affect sediment transport.
Coastal erosion means acres of land are disappearing. This can lead to a habitat reduction for local fauna and flora, and make people living in coastal areas vulnerable -- their land disappears, and they are closer to the sea.
Accretion is the process of coastal sediment returning to the visible portion of a beach or foreshore after a submersion event. A sustainable beach or foreshore often goes through a cycle of submersion during rough weather and accretion during calmer periods.
Accretion can be beneficial in some cases, as there is an increase in the land area. But it can harm marine life ” like sea creatures suddenly finding their waters getting shallower, or turtle habitats moving away from the shoreline.
According to the research team’s estimates, India gained 4,042 hectares of coastal area between 2004-06 and 2014-16. Although there is a net gain in the total coastal area (due to settlement of sediment/sand), the stretch under erosion is greater than the accreting shoreline.
According to a 2020 European study, the world is set to lose half of its sandy beaches by the end of the century due to coastal erosion driven by rising sea levels.
The team found that the Andaman and Nicobar Islands have the longest eroding coastline (231 km) and the longest accreting shoreline (256 km). Erosion is lowest in Lakshadweep Islands (12 km), and the lowest length of the accreting shoreline is in Goa (7 km).
The percentage of stable shoreline is highest for Gujarat (87 per cent), followed by Lakshadweep (82 per cent). The figure is 80 per cent for Maharashtra and Goa.
Shoreline change is higher along the eastern coast of the Indian peninsula than the western coast.
West Bengal, Gujarat, Odisha, and Goa have suffered a net loss of coastal area due to erosion in the course of 10 years. The loss is the largest for West Bengal (252 hectares).
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, and Lakshadweep have gained coastal land. The gain is the largest for Andaman and Nicobar Islands (524 hectares).
“As coastal erosion is a serious threat to both the ecology and economy of the country, the shoreline change inventory is the primary information required for planning coastal development activities,” the researchers say in the report.
