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INDIA has a biologically rich anddiverse coastline spreading acrossmore than 6,000 km. Around 400million people live along the
coastline, many of whom rely on thenatural productivity of the ocean andits coastal zone for their livelihoods.Before the advent of commercialaquaculture, Indian shrimp culturewas limited to traditional methods ofproduction, primarily in the states ofWest Bengal and Kerala. Since 1980,however, cultivation of brackishwater shrimp has increased from3,868 metric tonnes (MT) to 114,970MT valued at US $715.4 million in
2002. India is now the world's fourthlargest producer of shrimp.
However, only 13% ofIndia's total land area suitable forshrimp aquaculture is currentlyunder cultivation. West Bengal,Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and TamilNadu account for approximately90% of total shrimp aquaculture pro-duction. Approximately 90% ofshrimp farms in India are less thantwo hectares, which is why theGovernment of India (GOI) andindustry players favour intensifica-tion of shrimp culture.
The GOI has a number of
ENVIRONMENTALMANAGEMENT
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S H A R PResultsM A R C H 2 0 0 6
✓✓ A sustainable developmentstrategy is required.Stakeholders indicate a preference for sustainable development over various development scenarios.
✓✓ Access to micro-credit foralternative income generation isan important opportunity, ratedhighly by all local stakeholders.There is need for incentives tohelp local stakeholders generateincome from alternative sources.This finding is especially impor-tant for fry collectors since theyface the highest burden if theban on fry collection is enforced.One approach might be toestablish a SundarbansDevelopment Fund to financevarious development activities,including micro-credit and mangrove conservation.
✓✓ Agricultural land conversionneeds to be better managed interms of regulations on theextent (zoning, etc.) and intensity (stocking density,chemical inputs, etc.).
✓✓ At present there are low lev-els of conflict among stakehold-ers despite shrimp farming’ssubstantial impacts on theirlivelihoods. This offers opportu-nities to initiate dialogue andimproved management beforemore serious environmentalproblems and conflicts arise.
✓✓ Planning must commence todeal with the eradication ofWhite Spot disease togetherwith encouraging a shift tohatchery-produced shrimp fry.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Assessing EnvironmentalManagement Options toAchieve Sustainability in theShrimp-Mangrove System inthe Indian Coastal Zone ofBay of Bengal
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specific objectives to increaseshrimp production, and many ofthese objectives rely on the recent(June 2005) passing of the CoastalAquaculture Authority Bill in India'sParliament. These objectives are to:❚ Increase the area under shrimp cul-tivation;❚ Increase investment in the sector;❚ Intensify production through theintroduction of commercial shrimpaquaculture techniques, and newtechnologies;❚ Minimise disease outbreaks, and ❚ Increase hatchery production ofshrimp fry for stocking shrimp ponds.
The rapid growth of theshrimp aquaculture industry has gen-erated a debate between proponentsand detractors of this industry.However, both groups recognise thatshrimp aquaculture raises a numberof important questions regarding itscontribution to economic growth,distribution of its benefits and costs,the environmental and ecologicalimpacts, and the extent of publicparticipation. This research projectexamined these issues in the contextof the Sundarbans area of easternIndia.
Tiger CountryTHE Sundarbans is the largest con-tiguous area of mangrove forest inthe world, forming an integral partof the delta region at the mouth ofGanga, Brahmaputra and Meghnarivers along the Bay of Bengal. Itcovers approximately 10,000 km offorest and water, which is sharedbetween India (40%) andBangladesh (60%). The Indian sharecomprises 4,260 sq km of reservedforest, which are managed by theSundarbans Tiger Reserve (2,600 sqkm) and the Forest Division (1,660sq km) of the South 24 Parganas dis-trict of West Bengal. An additional5,400 sq km of inhabited, non-for-est area exists on the north andnorthwestern fringe of the man-grove forest in India.
The entire Indian Sundarbanslies within West Bengal, primarily inSouth 24 Parganas. For shrimp farmsurvey, the team identified Kakdwip,Namkhana, Sagar Kultali, Basanti andPatharpratima blocks in South 24
Parganas. It also surveyed a few farmsin the Dhamara region, not far fromBhitarkanika mangrove forest inOrissa to compare the position of theSundarbans with that of other loca-tions in India. Altogether the team sur-veyed 165 aquaculture shrimp farmsin the Sundarbans and 15 aquacultureshrimp farms in Dhamara.
The project focus includeddetermining paths for sustainabledevelopment of the shrimp-mangrovesystem; ways to avoid environmentalcalamities that have occurred else-where, and ways to ensure that mar-ginal stakeholders are not further mar-ginalised. The mangrove-shrimp linkage inthe Sundarbans is different fromthat of other locations. There is lit-tle encroachment of shrimp farmsinto mangrove forests. However,
the shrimp farmers are dependenton mangrove forests for collectionof shrimp fry. This reduces theavailability of shrimp fry to replen-ish wild shrimp stocks targeted bythe capture shrimp fishery.
Farmers have traditionallypracticed low-intensity shrimp rota-tion culture with rice in bheries(shallow water bodies). This practiceprovided farmers with an alternativesource of food using environmental-ly benign techniques and shrimp wasan inexpensive product sold to localresidents. The advent of more inten-sive shrimp aquaculture in the 1980ssignificantly altered the nature of
shrimp cultivation. Increased intensi-fication, feed supplements and otherexternal inputs, and export-orientedproduction became the norm.
Findings and Implications THE study has found that the linkagesbetween shrimp farming, fry collec-tion and capture shrimp fishery arestrong. As a result, shrimp farming viathe collection of fry has a significant-ly negative impact on shrimp fishery.
The dependence of shrimpfarmers in West Bengal, unlike otherstates, on collection of shrimp fry isdue to a lack of hatcheries in thisstate. Despite the ban on fry collec-tion in the coastal zone of India, it isnot enforced in West Bengal, asthere may be as many as 50,000 frycollectors in the Sundarbans.
The government finds it diffi-
cult to introduce any drastic meas-ure like a ban on shrimp fry in thisregion as such a measure may faceopposition. The survey among rep-resentative shrimp farms, however,indicates that shrimp farmers areinefficient in using shrimp fry andchemicals (including feed) as inputs,perhaps due to a widespread lack ofinformation on efficient practices.The amount of loss, however, islowest for shrimp farmers using thepurely traditional technology.
Locally, the perception ofshrimp farming is still positive. Allstakeholder groups expressed a pref-erence for more shrimp farms,
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assuming other factors are held con-stant. Overall, shrimp farming is per-ceived as having a positive impacton the economic development of thearea, especially since shrimp farmersare predominantly local. Potentialexpansion in the number of non-local commercial shrimp farms inthe area is a concern, with negativeimplications for local shrimp farmersand other local stakeholders.
The location of shrimp farmsin the Sundarbans on agriculturalland shifts the burden of conversiononto this type of land (versus man-groves). Since this locates shrimpfarming on private land, it might beargued that the costs associated withshrimp farming are sufficiently inter-nalised. But conversion of privatefarmland is associated with pollution,land degradation, land and watersalinisation and food insecurity.Agricultural land conversion needs tobe better managed in terms of regula-tions on the extent (zoning, etc.) andintensity (stocking density, chemicalinputs, etc.) of shrimp farming.
Along with the Supreme CourtRuling on expansion of shrimp farm-ing in the coastal zone, the WhiteSpot disease has limited expansion ofthe sector. The Aquaculture Actreduces the controlling effects of theSupreme Court Ruling. But there areconcerns if the White Spot disease isbrought under control. The teamlearned that research into White Spoteradication is underway and mayprove a success. How much this willspur unplanned development remainsto be seen.
Fry collectors express con-cern about the number of fry collec-tion jobs, as they perceive it as a jobof last resort. Many fry collectors,predominantly women and children,suffer from health problems. Fry col-
lectors are a marginal group, andhence are vulnerable to further mar-ginalisation if the ban on fry collec-tion is enforced. If collectors aregoing to be persuaded to abandonfry collection, finding alternativeincome generating opportunities forthem will have to take priority.
Contextual IssuesTHERE are also larger contextualissues affecting the evolution of theshrimp-farming sector in theSundarbans. For example, waterdiversion upstream from theSundarbans is affecting the integrityof the mangrove-shrimp system sep-arately from any direct policyactions, such as those modelled inthe policy analysis of the project.
There is also the broaderissue of population growth as a driv-ing force in the regional economythat must be taken into account.Finally, the dramatic decline in inter-national shrimp prices serves todampen the incentives to entershrimp farming in the region, regard-less of other considerations.
Potential Strategies ACHIEVING the goal of sustainabledevelopment in the shrimp-man-grove system of the Sundarbansrequires a number of specificactions. At present, it appears thatthe Sundarbans Development Board,which has the primary responsibilityfor development efforts in theSundarbans region, has limitedresources for providing extensionand training for the farmers.
However, encouraging a pri-vate sector role in input supply andmarketing of output presents chal-lenges. They have the resources andinterest to support input supply,technical improvements and expan-sion but there may be social costs. Atthe minimum, feed and seed suppli-ers could be educated about bestmanagement practices for avoidingWhite Spot and other viruses, andcould play an important role inspreading these techniques amongaquaculture operators.
Access to micro-credit foralternative income generating oppor-tunities is an important opportunity,one that was rated highly by all localstakeholders. This finding reinforcesthe need for incentives to help localstakeholders generate income fromalternative sources. This finding isespecially important for fry collectorssince they face the highest burden ifthe ban on fry collection is enforced.One approach might be to establish aSundarbans Development Fund tofinance various development activi-ties, including micro-credit and man-grove conservation.
Hatchery-produced fry couldreplace collected fry if physical con-straints for fry hatchery productioncan be overcome. Aquaculture oper-ators prefer hatchery fry since theycan be certified as disease free, are
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R E S E A R C H T E A M
School Of Resource AndEnvironmental Management,Simon Fraser University, Burnaby,British Columbia, Canada DUNCAN KNOWLER(Principal Investigator)WOLFGANG HAIDERWILLIAM K DE LA MARESARAH ALICE NATHANNEIL BERNARD PHILCOX
Global Change Programme,Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India JOYASHREE ROY (Co-Investigator)KAUSIK GUPTAANITA CHATTOPADHYAY GUPTAJOY CHOWDHURYRAMAN KHADDARIA
The Shastri AppliedResearch Project seeks toaddress urgent issues insocial development andhealth, economic reform
and environmental management. Canadian
and Indian researchers arecollaborating on 19
studies on various topics.SHARP is implemented bythe Shastri Indo-Canadian
Institute and funded bythe Canadian International
Development Agency.
more homogenous and ready for har-vest at the same time, making produc-tion easier. However, the shift of sup-ply from wild shrimp fry collected byfry collectors to hatchery-producedfry is likely to result in social and eco-nomic costs to fry collectors.Appropriate policies will have to beintroduced to mitigate this.
One shrimp farmingapproach being promoted in somecircles is organic shrimp farming.This technique is similar in conceptto organic agriculture and has themerit of few environmental impactsand high potential financial returns.With the advent of eco-labelling andcertification mechanisms in fisheries,the prospects for obtaining premiumprices for organic shrimp productsmay exist in specific locales such asthe Sundarbans.
Fees and taxes on shrimpfarming and fry collection would bepossible solutions to internalise theexternal problems cited earlier. Buthow realistic are these approaches?One advantage is that funds collect-ed could be used to retrain and sup-port alternative opportunities for frycollectors. A permit or licensing sys-tem for shrimp farming is being sug-gested in countries like Thailand butcircumstances may differ in theSundarbans. Perhaps a simpler zon-ing system based on land use capa-bility or a similar criterion could bedeveloped for this purpose. After all,the Supreme Court moratoriumamounted to a zoning policy of sortsso there is a precedent, but perhapsan approach that is less draconianwould work better.
Shrimp farming in theSundarbans does not seem to gener-ate the animosities and conflict seenelsewhere. Even relatively poor andmarginalized local stakeholdersexpressed interest in shrimp farmingon a small scale. However, theiraccess to the capital and land need-ed to farm on their own is severelylimited. In addition, the risks ofundertaking such a high investmentlivelihood would seem prohibitivefor all but the better off. Oneapproach to overcoming this con-straint is to pool resources and riskby undertaking group shrimp farm-
ing. A precedent for such activityexists with the leasing of villagetanks to co-operatives or informalgroups of fishermen wishing to gen-erate income on a group basis.Group shrimp farming has beenattempted elsewhere in India andhas potential in the Sundarbans.
The importance of man-groves should be promoted througheconomic valuation of mangroves,leading to increased levels of refor-estation. Conservation of mangrovescan be instituted more directlythrough the adoption of joint man-grove management schemes, such asthose initiated by the M SSwaminathan Foundation.
There is a good case for edu-cation of the participants in the cap-ture fishery, as few fishers were
aware of the linkages between frycollection, shrimp farming and theirown fishery. The capture fishery is alegitimate stakeholder in the shrimp-mangrove system of the Sundarbansbut has no stake in management rightnow. The capture fishery could be amore powerful voice in raising theconcerns and pushing for changeand improvement in management. Afirst place to start would be improvedmanagement of the capture fisheryitself. There will be few long-termbenefits gained from reducing fry col-lection for the marine sector if itremains dominated by open accessand foreign vessels.
Finally, evidence shows thatthe farmers are looking for a bal-anced, sustainable and diversifieddevelopment approach, and thatthey are willing to contributetowards achieving this goal. Bysharing information about theagreement among various stake-holders with decision-makers,future decisions about policies, reg-ulations and land use managementcan be less controversial. ❚❚
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