PIB – May 3 , 2019


ENVIRONMENT

RESTORATION OF AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS

Context

  • A conference on ‘Restoring Water, Restoring Nature-II’ was organized by Water Digest in New Delhi to raise awareness and encourage action around water and related issues.

What is Aquatic Ecosystems Restoration?

  • Due to various anthropogenic activities to cater the needs of growing population, the degradation of freshwater ecosystems by a variety of stressors has increased logarithmically. As a result, many aquatic ecosystems are in need of some drastic corrective measures/restoration.

What is Restoration?

  • Restoration is the “return of an ecosystem to a close approximation of its condition prior to disturbance” or the reestablishment of pre-disturbance aquatic functions and related physical, chemical and biological characteristics.

Restoration processes for aquatic ecosystems need

  1. Reconstruction of antecedent physical conditions,
  2. Chemical adjustment of the soil and water,
  3. Biological manipulation, including the reintroduction of absent native flora and fauna.

Restoration principles to apply are

  • Preserve and protect aquatic resources
  • Restore ecological integrity
  • Restore natural structure
  • Restore natural function
  • Work within the watershed and broader landscape context
  • Understand the natural potential of the watershed
  • Address ongoing causes of degradation
  • Develop clear, achievable, and measurable goals
  • Focus on feasibility taking into account scientific, financial, social and other considerations.
  • Anticipate future changes
  • Involve the skills and insights of a multi-disciplinary team
  • Design for self-sustainability
  • Restore native species and avoid non-native species
  • Monitor and adapt where changes are necessary

Issues to address for a sustainable water system

  • Environment: watershed protection, ecosystem balance, wastewater and bio-solids.
  • Community: sufficient and reliable water supply, participation in planning and recreational use to water.
  • Economy: Evolution and diversification, sustainable and long-term growth.

Water management system requires the following action to be taken:

  1. Strategic partnerships among national agencies, provincial agencies and local/city departments.
  2. Developing alternate water sources-reclaimed/treated water, desalination, rainwater and water reuse.
  3. Implementing new technologies for water fees/metering, leak detection and water auditing systems.
  4. Engage the community through education, local and regional planning processes and outreach to cultural and community groups.
  5. Scientific investigations involving aquifer monitoring, coastal marine environment study, supply-demand forecasting and pollution prevention.

Guidelines for repair, renovation and restoration of water bodies with external assistance and domestic support:

  • The ‘Repair, Renovation and Restoration (RRR) of Water Bodies’ scheme that has been launched by the Ministry under the state sector. The scheme aims at:
  1. Comprehensive improvement of selected tank systems including restoration.
  2. Improvement of catchment areas of the tank.
  3. Community participation and self-supporting systems for sustainable management for water bodies covered by the programme.
  4. Ground Water Recharge.
  5. Capacity Building of communities, user groups, standing committee for Panchayats and State Government/Central Government Agencies concerned with the planning, implementation and monitoring of the project.
  6. Increase in storage capacity of water bodies.
  7. Improvement in agriculture/horticulture productivity and increase in recharge of ground water in downstream areas of water bodies.
  8. Environmental benefits through improved water use efficiency, irrigation benefits through restoration of water bodies, supplementation of the groundwater use and promotion of conjunctive use of surface and ground water.
  9. Development of tourism, cultural activities
  10. Increased availability of drinking water.

Way Forward

  • Water quality and quantity are becoming increasingly critical factors of socioeconomic development in many parts of the world.
  • Aquatic Ecosystems Restoration is a holistic process not achieved through the isolated manipulation of individual elements. Its objective should be to emulate a natural, self-regulating system that is integrated ecologically with the landscape in which it occurs.

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