A considerable area of the backwaters in Kerala has been lost due to reclamation for agriculture, mining, urban area development and other activities, a study on the faunal biodiversity of selected wetland ecosystems of Kerala carried out by S.Bijoy Nandan, Reader, Department of Marine Biology, School of Marine Sciences, the Cochin University of Science and Technology, has revealed. The findings of the study, presented at the ongoing Kerala Environment Congress 2007 organized by the Centre for Environment and Development (CED) here, calls for strict regulations on encroachment and reclamation of wetlands in the State. The study report states that man made and natural calamities such as the tsunami had considerably eroded the biodiversity in the 'kayal' and riverine wetlands. Several stretches of the backwaters are polluted by organic and industrial effluents.
(The Hindu, 10th May 2007)
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