Ganges Rivr Dolphin Survival Threatened by Oil Exploration

Ganges River Dolphin Survival Threatened by Oil Exploration
Dolphin protected areas must be established if the Ganges River
dolphin is to survive in the Brahmaputra river system, new research
indicates. The study was prompted by the need for accurate dolphin
population data after Oil India Ltd. proposed to start prospecting for
oil along the bed of the Brahmaputra River using air guns and
explosives.Estimates have put the total population of the Ganges River
dolphin, Platanista gangetica gangetica, at around 2,000. Between 240
to 300 of these inhabit the Brahmaputra River system in India,
according to the survey prepared for the International Union for the
Conservation of Nature's Sir Peter Scott Fund. "Our research shows
accidental killing through fisheries bycatch, followed by poaching for
oil, are the major threats to the dolphins of the Brahmaputra river
system," said project leader Abdul Wakid, Ph.D., who conducted the
research with Gill Braulik of the University of St. Andrews' Sea
Mammal Research Unit."Their habitat is also being degraded by human
activities," said Wakid. "Dam building and a proposed seismsic survey
in the Brahmaputra river are potential threats." The Ganges River
Dolphin is found mainly in the Ganges and Brahmaputra river systems in
India and Bangladesh. The study identified eight river sections as
potential protected areas and community-based dolphin conservation as
the best strategy to save the dolphins.Based on high abundance of
dolphins, potential for protection and possibilities for dolphin
ecotourism, eight sections of the river were identified as potential
protected areas and community-based conservation areas.

Copyright Environment News Service, ENS, 2009.