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Straits Times, 8 Jan 05 'Destroyed mangroves could have saved lives' Areas without the coastal protective shield had high tsunami death tolls By Nirmal Ghosh THAILAND CORRESPONDENT BANGKOK AFTER the killer wave and high waters hit the coast of Khao Lak, north of Phuket, the only things left standing almost in original condition were coconut palms. In other parts of the world, mangroves remained rooted to the ground after the Dec 26 tsunami came and went. Coastal features like palms and mangroves and even coral reefs, act like shock absorbers and offer natural protection from tsunamis and storm surges. Mangroves grow along tropical coastlines and their complicated root systems help to bind the shore together, providing a shield against destructive waves. They are vital for coastal protection from the sea, the United Nations Environment Programme says. Coastal areas where the mangroves had disappeared were the worst hit in last week's tsunami. Many of these areas had been built up for tourism, making thousands more vulnerable. Mangroves are among the world's most threatened habitats. About half of them have been destroyed. Experts around the globe, who have long been calling for the preservation of mangroves and coral reefs, renewed their appeals after the recent disaster. Mr Simon Cripps, director of WWF International's Global Marine Programme, told Agence France-Presse: 'Places that had healthy coral reefs and intact mangroves were far less badly hit than places where the reefs had been damaged and the mangroves ripped out and replaced by beachfront hotels and prawn farms. 'Coral reefs act as a natural breakwater and mangroves are a natural shock absorber, and this applies to floods and cyclones as well as tsunamis.' Myanmar, where much of the mangrove remains intact, was notably spared the scale of devastation which struck the Thai coast, according to WWF's deputy director for the Asia-Pacific, Dermot O'Gorman. And in Bangladesh, where thick mangroves fringe much of the coast, only two people were killed. The British-based science website SciDev.Net reported that in India's southern state of Tamil Nadu, areas such as 'Pichavaram and Muthupet with dense mangroves suffered fewer human casualties and less damage to property compared to areas without mangroves'. Even a well managed coastal buffer offered no guarantee of a shield against a major tsunami, according to Mr Doug Masson, a senior researcher at Southampton University's Oceanography Centre in southern England. However, it certainly helped to save lives. 'There is a big dampening effect if you have a coral reef. My feeling is that coral is what probably saved the majority of people in the Maldives. 'The reef broke up the tsunami and it travelled forward as a broken wave and so was far less deadly,' he said. Elsewhere too, there were signs of reefs acting as buffer. According to a Wall Street Journal report: 'The ring of coral in crystal waters around the Surin Island chain off Thailand's west coast forms a sturdy defence against the sea. 'So when the tsunami struck on Sunday it punched a few holes in the reef, but the structure mostly held firm. The report quoted Thai marine environmentalist Thon Thamrongnavasawadi as saying: 'The reef may have saved many lives. 'Only a handful of people on the islands are known to have perished - most scrambled to safety as the first wave exploded against the coral. 'As for mangroves, the effect would be different. It would act as a dampener but the wave would not be broken up before it hits.' In many parts of South and South-east Asia, mangroves continue to make way for tourism or growing seafood. Chief scientist Jeff McNeely of the Swiss-based World Conservation Union said: 'The mangroves were all along the coasts where there are shallow waters. 'They offered protection against things like tsunamis. 'Over the last 20-30 years, they were cleared by people who didn't have the long-term knowledge of why these mangroves should have been saved. 'People have started to occupy part of the landscape that they shouldn't have occupied.' links Related articles on Tsunami and the environment |
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