Sea Level Rise Due to Greenhouse Effect Kerala

SEA LEVEL RISE DUE TO GREEN HOUSE EFFECT:

IMPLICATIONS TO KERALA

THRIVIKRAMJI, K. P. & ANIRUDHAN, S.

Dept. of Geology, Univ. of Kerala

Kariavattom 695 581.

FINAL REPORT SUBMITTED TO DEPT. OF ENVIRONMENT AND FORESTS, GOVT. OFINDIA, NEW DELHI

(Grant No. 21

-3-

89

-

RE)

June, 1992.

PREFACE

The sea level rise is due to green house effect or green house warming is considered asone the foremost environmental threats facing mankind in the 21

st

century. Although, opiniondiffers on the very question of green house warming and its cardinal consequence viz., sea levelrise, the scientific community is pretty much unanimous about the long term consequences of

deforestation and pollution or population explosion.

There exists a large degree of disagreement regarding the quanta of sea level rise.Different rates as well as extents are therefore used in scenario building tasks to analyze the

extent of less consequent on erosion of beach material, inundation and destruction of installations

and investments by the citizens, private industry and Government agencies on the coastal low

lands of the littoral nations. Further, modification of wetlands and salination of coastal aquifers arepotential dangers of sea level rise.

Despite the uncertainties clouding the question of SLR due to GHE, majority opinion is infavour of preparing ourselves to the potential dangers, risks and losses thereof of a disaster like

sea level rise. Having a knowledge of some sort or a forecast of the near distant of midterm future

is the hall mark of any intelligent, modern society run on scientific methods because such priorknowledge is helpful in reducing the degree and magnitude of risks from various natural or man

made causes.

Therefore, the Dept. of Environment and Forests ordered a first approximation study ofthe implications of SLR due to GHE to the various littoral states of the Union of the India with

Prof. V. Asthana, Jawahar Lal Nehru University as the national coordinator.

The study that we initiated in Kerala with financial support of the Dept. of

Environment,

embodies mostly a survey research and the results were presented in three six monthly reportssubmitted to the DOE&F. This last and final report deals among other things with the economic

loss, assuming that direct damage will be faced only by the land adjacent to permeable shoreline,

and while reckoning the shoreline length, the 93km of cliffed shoreline was dropped from the

total.

We have also added a section by way of recommendations on the measure to beadopted to lessen the burden imposed on the economy by the SLR. For example, we stronglyrecommend the suspension of indiscriminate construction of sea walls (with the exception of the

sites of gun batteries of the Cochin Naval Base or the groins of the fishing harbors and the like).

This corrective measure toward off cyclical erosion of the beaches is no longer cost

effective as not only the beaches rebuild after the erosional phase long the same sites, but thecus

of erosion also shifts from time to time leaving the very expensive sea walls high and dry or

drowned by the waves.

We also recommend that in future, the funds earmarked for seawall construction shouldbe used for construction of specially designed multi-storey multi-family houses (apartments) forthe settlers along the back beach, who routinely are exposed to the erosional threat andconsequent material and property loss. The state exchanger then will have to release free rationand other welfare measures to these displaced people. For example, the investment of about Rs.

0.75 million for a kilometer of seawall people who are offered protection by the stone monster, i.e.

the sea wall.

We also admit that even with our efforts over a period of 30 months, we have not beenable to cover the entire terms of reference proposed by Dept. of Environment and Forests,

Govt.

of India when the projects were approved by the latter. However, we feel confident in thatmost of the important issues in respect of sea level rise are adequately answered at a first

approximation level.

For example, though water samples were collected over a long period of 12 months, wecould not pay sufficient attention to use the data in predicting the extent of salination due to seallevel rise. Throughout the study we were handicapped by the non-availability of readily availabledata, or the ambivalence of the agencies of the Departments of the state government to the

question of SLR.

We are very sure of achieving better results covering wider and larger aspects of SLR, if

a new research program for refinement of the results of this study is approved for implementation.

We have taken great pains to make sure that the numbers and estimates used in thisreport are realistic, true and valid. There might be disagreement on the estimates of current

prices we have used for the various types of resources.

Finally, we wish to state that we are solely responsible for the lapses in this report.

University of Kerala

Thrivikramji, K. P.

Kariavattom, 695 581

Anirudhan, S.

Jun

e, 1992.