CHENNAI: The prolonged wait to get approval for “Comprehensive Shoreline Protection Management Plan” from Union Environment Ministry is proving too costly for Tamil Nadu.  It has been over two years since Tamil Nadu has submitted the management plan to the ministry and still the important document is caught in red tape. Under the proposed plan, the State had identified 100 vulnerable sites along its 1,076-km coastline, which is facing tremendous stress due to man-made intrusions and natural calamities. 

Several protection measures were intended to be carried out like building groyne fields, rubble mound sea walls or combination of both, training walls on river mouths and plantations with a total outlay of `886.82 crore. The document termed loss of land due to sea erosion as the biggest challenge faced by coastal areas of the State. It says many vital stretches have undergone heavy erosion. 

This apart, siltation, chocking of inlets/estuary mouths and tsunami inundation effect due to cyclones that frequent the east coast are other acting forces, which are eating on to the Tamil Nadu shoreline and affecting fishing community.

When contacted, Director of Department of Environment Jayanthi Murali acknowledged that there has been substantial delay, which had stopped the government to initiate many projects. “We are now putting pressure on the ministry to give approval.” She said the management plan was prepared following directions from the National Green Tribunal.

“We had entrusted the job to IIT Madras, which had submitted the final report.  Union Environment Ministry has constituted an Expert Committee to examine and make recommendations. Accordingly, the committee had asked Centre to circulate the report among the neighbouring States - Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Pondicherry- to get their comments. Kerala has given its response, but others are yet to submit,” Jayanthi said.