Blaming unscientific coastal structures for the worsening coastal erosion in Thiruvananthapuram district, the NGO Coastal Watch, Thiruvananthapuram, has urged the State government to abandon the Vizhinjam international seaport project and the move to construct more harbours and ‘hard structures’ such as seawalls and groynes. A Coastal Watch report, ‘Displaced coastal communities: Problems and solutions’, has blamed the breakwater being constructed for the Vizhinjam port for the severe erosion in the coastal villages north of it. Only a small portion of the breakwater has been completed, but even this has triggered unprecedented wave action in the adjacent fisheries harbour and the formation of a sandbar at its mouth, imperilling the lives of fishermen, notes the study and seeks a constructive review of the Rs. 5,300-crore package announced in the State Budget for coastal conservation.
Vizhinjam port
“The State should take steps to abandon the construction of the Vizhinjam port, which poses a major threat to the life and livelihood of the coastal community and to prevent further destruction,” according to the study. ‘Hard structures’ such as groynes and breakwaters impede natural sediment transport and have proven to be short-term solutions to coastal protection. ‘Soft structures’ such as geotubes should be experimented with for coastal conservation, instead. Seawalls are harmful in the sense that they are weakened by the scouring of sand from its base. They also cause ‘end erosion’ in the coastal stretches on either side of it, the study noted. Calling for sustainable coastal protection measures, the Coastal Watch also advises against the use of concrete tetrapods that are now widely used. Further, the organisation has urged the government to scrap plans for new harbours.
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