Rajarshi DasGupta

Cumulative Impacts of Human Interventions and Climate Change on Mangrove Ecosystems of South and Southeast Asia: An Overview

The paper provides an insight into the chronological extinction of the Indo-Malayan mangroves along the South and Southeast Asian coast and categorizes several area-specific anthropogenic and climatic factors that triggered the annihilation of 1.9 million ha of diverse mangroves. On a regional scale, coastal agricultural land development and shrimp farming were identified as major factors accounting for 90% of the reported loss. The paper also focuses on the existing mangrove management framework of nine developing countries of this region and conducts a comparative analysis of the prevailing legislative arrangement for mangrove management. In general, weak enforcements of legal measures and improper monitoring have been identified as major drawbacks in conservation and restoration initiatives. On the other hand, this paper strongly encourages the prospects of community-based mangrove management (CBMM) and provides good examples from the ecoregion through comparative case studies. Finally, it concludes with recommendations that outline a suitable mangrove management strategy involving more community empowerment, legalization and mainstreaming of comanagement initiatives, inclusive benefit sharing, and regional cooperation for transboundary ecosystem management.

An indicator based approach to assess coastal communities’ resilience against climate related disasters in Indian Sundarbans

The article attempts to develop a five dimensional community resilience assessment framework and a composite resilience index against climate related disasters with special applications to the coastal rural communities’ in the developing world. Consequently, it narrates the case study of Indian Sundarbans, which serves as a typical example of a complex & dynamic ‘socio-ecological’ system characterized by dense mangrove forests, high population density and recurrent climate related disasters. In the present study, ‘community resilience’ of 19 coastal administrative blocks of Indian Sundarbans were assessed through a systematic questionnaire survey of administrative officials and the composite resilience scores were found to vary between 2.51 and 3.63 in a five point scale. Out of the 19 coastal blocks only one could be classified as high resilient block and the rest were found to be in low to moderate resilience categories. In general, the extreme coastal blocks were found to be less resilient due to their high exposure & developmental deficit, however, at the same time, the study finds strong correlation of institutional interventions & effective coastal zone management in enhancing the overall resilience scores. The study concludes with broad recommendation of integrated planning for disaster & climate resilience in this eco-fragile region where low impact economic development remains at the central.

Role of NGOs and CBOs in a Decentralized Mangrove Management Regime and Its Implications in Building Coastal Resilience in India

Mangrove forests are the critical coastal ecosystems that are increasing seen as an effective mean of climate change adaptation viz-a-viz. disaster risk reduction in coastal areas. Yet, the very own existence of mangroves in India are vastly challenged due to heavy biotic pressure, unsustainable practices of forest exploitation and environmental degradation despite of significant legislative protection. Following nearly four decades of a state owned conservative management of mangroves, India has emerged with the concepts of community based co-management of mangrove resources (also known as ‘Joint Mangrove Management’) since the last decade. One of the key components of Joint Mangrove Management (JMM) is the involvement of Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and Community Based Organizations (CBOs) in development, conservation and restoration of mangrove resources which has been largely described as an ameliorative management of these exclusive coastal resources. Under this backdrop, this chapter critically examines the participation of NGOs and CBOs in JMM over the last decade and attempts to identify their strength, weakness, opportunities and threats in the existing co-management system of mangrove resources. The analysis leads to the conclusion that despite CBOs and NGOs being the two major stakeholders in JMM; their role is largely restricted mostly due to lacking of legal and tenurial rights. The chapter concludes with some key recommendations to enhance their involvement in JMM where sharing of statutory rights and integration of disaster risk reduction with mangrove conservation remains extremely important in the future course of action.

Sustainable Development and Coastal Disasters: Linking Policies to Practices

Coastal areas are the driver of economic development, yet, over the last decade, more than 60 % of disaster losses have been confined to the coastal area. While on the one hand, the world has witnessed some deadly geo-hydro hazards in the past decade, rapid onset of climate change is also likely to intensify a range of hydrometeorological disasters impairing the world’s coast. Undoubtedly, this has severe developmental consequences. Furthermore, continual coastward migration, land development, urbanization, and loss of vital ecosystem services trigger a new set of worries in order to sustainably develop and manage coastal areas. Against this backdrop, this chapter highlights the key linkages between sustainable development and disaster risk reduction in coastal areas and addresses the emerging challenges in coastal zone management. The chapter provides an integrated framework and rationale for sustainable development of coastal areas with effective incorporation of disaster risk reduction. In conclusion, the chapter identifies some of the existing hindrances and provides an advocacy of ecosystem-based risk reduction in coastal areas.

Perceptive insight into incentive design and sustainability of participatory mangrove management: a case study from the Indian Sundarbans

Incentive design is among the decisive factors behind active community participation and long-term sustainability of participatory forest management. Especially in case of mangroves, where multiple interests apply, it requires a careful integration of several ecological, economic and institutional factors. The primary objective of this paper is to understand the basis of incentive design and make a comprehensive inquiry into the existing incentive mechanism of participatory mangrove management in Indian Sundarbans. The qualitative and in-depth assessment was derived against a conceptual framework that contains three main determinants: (1) resources availability, (2) control mechanism, and (3) perception of end-users. The study deploys the results of various participatory exercises such as structured interviews with forest officials, focus group discussions with 10 Joint Forest Management Committees and semi-structured interviews with 119 mangrove users. In general, we observed an over-cautious, hierarchical and safety-margin-based incentive design with distinct bifurcation of communities over the adequacy and effectiveness of derived benefits. Although, the incentives are diverse and align well with the overall conservation of mangroves, they are considered to be insufficient by nearly half of the mangrove users. The main issues that were observed to hinder effective community participation can be summarized as (1) serious restrictions on access to economically exploitable mangrove products, (2) passive involvement of vulnerable occupational groups, and (3) lack of trust and conflicting interests between the officials and the communities. Although the existing preventive management of mangroves can be justified considering the magnanimity of the Indian Sundarbans, it can severely impair community participation and emerge as a clear threat to future sustainability. To secure greater participation of the communities, we propose small scale, innovative developmental incentives to supplement traditional forest-resource-based incentives.

Social and Institutional Provisions for Arsenic Risk Mitigation in West Bengal: Achievements and Challenges

Abstract Arsenic contamination in shallow groundwater aquifers in the lower Gangetic basin constitutes a major health hazard in the Bengal basin extended over Bangladesh and India. It has been estimated that at least 35 million people in Bangladesh and 6 million people in India are severely affected by arsenic-contaminated water. More so, about 57 and 9 million people in Bangladesh and West Bengal, respectively, are exposed to arsenic-contamination risk. The use of hazardous, arsenic-bearing groundwater for drinking, cooking, and irrigation in West Bengal and Bangladesh has led to what has been described by the WHO as the worst case of mass poisoning in human history. In case of West Bengal, the problem of arsenic contamination was discovered in the 1980s; since then several mitigation measures were adopted by the provincial and federal governments, community organizations, and NGOs. Yet, poor infrastructural arrangements, dire poverty, lack of awareness, and education increased the risk of arsenic exposure over the decades. In this chapter, an effort has been made to critically analyze the extent of mitigation measures adopted so far in the state of West Bengal. It discusses in detail the chronological responses of the provincial government in arsenic risk mitigation, implementation of adopted mitigation measures, and the consequent response and actions of arsenic-affected communities in West Bengal. The chapter also highlights the emerging challenges of arsenic risk mitigation in West Bengal and proposes a “system-based” framework for risk mitigation.

Participatory Mangrove Management in a Changing Climate

The Asia-Pacific region is among the world’s most sensitive regions to climate change because of its topography and relatively high density of underprivileged population in low-lying coastal areas. It is estimated that 1-m sea-level rise by the end of this century would displace approximately 24 million people in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Cambodia, Vietnam, and the Philippines. The scenario is further escalated by the loss of vital ecosystem services in coastal areas. Most important of all are, perhaps, the mangroves. Despite of hosting nearly half of the global mangroves, the region continues to loose mangrove forests faster than any other places in the world. While at present the loss is mostly aggregated by unsustainable human practices, climate change is also expected to play an adverse role in the near future. The potential consequences may lead to faster erosion, submergence under the rising sea, and discontinuation of a plethora of ecosystem services that are fundamental to coastal communities. This introductory chapter reviews the exiting conditions of Asia-Pacific mangroves with country-level analysis of threats and institutional response mechanism. The chapter also briefly narrates the scope and expectations from this book.

Sustainable Development and Disaster Risk Reduction in Post-2015

Disaster risk reduction needs to be mainstreamed with development, and it has been increasingly identified at the global level. This chapter explores the direction of inclusion of disaster risk reduction (DRR) and resilience in sustainable development goals post-2015. The Rio+20 Conference also stressed the same principle in its outcome document. However, investment for DRR, enhancement of disaster knowledge and access to such information and building conducive international environment still pose challenges in post-2015 scenario.

Environmental Recovery and Mangrove Conservation: Post Indian Ocean Tsunami Policy Responses in South and Southeast Asia

The Indian Ocean Tsunami in 2004 was a mega-disaster that triggered massive disruption of ecological services across the South & Southeast Asian Coast. Particularly, loss of precious mangroves was some of the most discussed environmental consequence of the event. In many South & Southeast Asian countries, mangrove bio-shielded the coastal communities and saved human lives and properties, however in doing so, it also suffered irreversible damage. Importantly, the Indian Ocean Tsunami was also important event in the context of rejuvenation of an already degraded mangrove ecosystems surrounding the Indian Ocean as many countries reemphasized the protective role of mangroves and other coastal forests and developed integrated coastal zone management policies. This chapter examines the role of mangrove forests in disaster risk reduction in four most affected countries (Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India & Thailand) and analyzes the policy amendments in the respective countries pertaining to mangrove conservation & restoration in the post Tsunami recovery period. The analysis was conducted based on six policy principles of mangrove conservation & restoration. It was observed that Indonesia & India responded the Tsunami event with significant amendments of its existing policies; whereas the policy responses of Sri Lanka & Thailand were not adequate to the purpose.

Cooperative management of mangrove ecosystems in India

Mangrove has the potential to adapt climate change threats like sea level rise, extreme high water events, and coastal erosions. The large stretched root systems of the mangrove acts as a natural barrier to catch hold of the run off soil, leading to accretion of coastal areas. Due to human and other natural activities, mangroves in different parts of the world are being degraded. Citing examples from India, this chapter provides ways of unique mangrove comanagement system with the involvement of local communities, NGOs, and local governments.