Fishermen’s federation opposes reef project Date:23/12/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/12/23/stories/2009122358070300.htm Special Correspondent
Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala Swathantra Matsya Thozhilali Federation has protested against the construction of an artificial reef at Kovalam. A press note quoting president of the federation T. Peter said the State government had gone back on its commitment to hold detailed discussions with the fisherfolk before starting work on the project. “They have chosen to go ahead, ignoring the objections and apprehensions raised by us. We fear that the project being executed by a company based in New Zealand will affect our livelihood,” it said. “We had expressed our reservations at a meeting convened by the District Collector earlier this month,” Mr. Peter said. “Officials from the departments of Tourism and Harbour Engineering and representatives of the New Zealand- based company maintained that the construction of the reef, though primarily meant to benefit tourism, will not harm fishing activities along the coast. But we are not convinced. At the meeting, we asked the government to shift the project at least two km away from the beach.” Tsunami funds Mr. Peter said the funds earmarked for tsunami rehabilitation were being diverted for tourism development. The fishermen feared that the geo-textile bags used for the construction of the artificial reef would affect the traditional method of shoreseine fishing popular in the Kovalam area. They pointed out that many of the beaches in and around Kovalam were out of bounds for fishermen because they were demarcated for tourism. “The construction of the reef will open up more areas for tourism, restricting fishermen further and displacing them,” Mr. Peter said. Mr. Peter said the success of artificial reefs constructed elsewhere was still a contentious issue. “Why is it not being tried out in Alapad which faced the worst tsunami effect in Kerala and still has major sea-erosion problems?” he asked. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth?hl=en-GB.
