 |  | _________ |  Dynamite fishing, coral mining, and farm runoff take a toll
| ||
 | |||||
...
| | 
| |||
 To help save the reefs of India, get active with these groups: Bhagwati Environment Development Institute Foundation for Fisheries Welfare and Management International Collective in Support of Fisherworkers National Institute of Oceanography Society for Andaman & Nicobar Ecology Swiss National Science Foundation Project
| | _________ |  Threats to Indian reefs run the gamut; overfishing, tourism, tourist-driven collection, coral mining, industrial development, and population pressure are the biggest. Coastal development is another major threat; since 1963, half the nation's mangroves have been destroyed. India has set aside reef areas for protection, but hasn't done much to actually protect them. In April 1998, Australian coastal management expert Graeme Kelleher urged further protection for India's Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve. Kelleher, a consultant studying the reserve in order to strengthen its management, found that the reserve's 21 islands and the surrounding seas faced threats from population increases, dynamite fishing, bottom trawling, and river-borne siltÑtopped off by the additional blight of fly ash from the Tuticorin thermal power plant. Kelleher recommended a variety of measures to aid the reefs, including restricting near-shore trawler fishing and encouraging only small-scale tourist developments. | ||
MOTHER JONES BY E-MAIL
