Proceedings of National Seminar on Biodiversity And
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BIODIVERSITY AND CONSERVATION OF COASTAL AND MARINE ECOSYSTEMS OF INDIA (2012) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Patrons: 1. Hindi VidyaPracharSamiti, Ghatkopar, Mumbai 2. Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) 3. Association of Teachers in Biological Sciences (ATBS) 4. International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) 5. Mangroves for the Future (MFF) Advisory Committee for the Conference 1. Dr. S. M. Karmarkar, President, ATBS and Hon. Dir., C B Patel Research Institute, Mumbai 2. Dr. Sharad Chaphekar, Prof. Emeritus, Univ. of Mumbai 3. Dr. Asad Rehmani, Director, BNHS, Mumbi 4. Dr. A. M. Bhagwat, Director, C B Patel Research Centre, Mumbai 5. Dr. Naresh Chandra, Pro-V. C., University of Mumbai 6. Dr. R. S. Hande. Director, BCUD, University of Mumbai 7. Dr. Madhuri Pejaver, Dean, Faculty of Science, University of Mumbai 8. Dr. Vinay Deshmukh, Sr. Scientist, CMFRI, Mumbai 9. Dr. Vinayak Dalvie, Chairman, BoS in Zoology, University of Mumbai 10. Dr. Sasikumar Menon, Dy. Dir., Therapeutic Drug Monitoring Centre, Mumbai 11. Dr, Sanjay Deshmukh, Head, Dept. of Life Sciences, University of Mumbai 12. Dr. S. T. Ingale, Vice-Principal, R. J. College, Ghatkopar 13. Dr. Rekha Vartak, Head, Biology Cell, HBCSE, Mumbai 14. Dr. S. S. Barve, Head, Dept. of Botany, Vaze College, Mumbai 15. Dr. Satish Bhalerao, Head, Dept. of Botany, Wilson College Organizing Committee 1. Convenor- Dr. Usha Mukundan, Principal, R. J. College 2. Co-convenor- Deepak Apte, Dy. Director, BNHS 3. Organizing Secretary- Dr. Purushottam Kale, Head, Dept. of Zoology, R. J. College 4. Treasurer- Prof. Pravin Nayak 5. Members- Dr. S. T. Ingale Dr. Himanshu Dawda Dr. Mrinalini Date Dr. P. N. Sardesai Registration Committee Convenor- Ms. Bindu Achary Members- Dr. Veena Kelkar Mrs. Sushma Singh Mrs. Satyajodha Iyer Mrs. M. P. Kale ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ISBN 978-81-925489-0-6 BIODIVERSITY AND CONSERVATION OF COASTAL AND MARINE ECOSYSTEMS OF INDIA (2012) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reception Committee Convenor- Dr. P. N. Sardesai Members- Dr. D. B. Singh Mr. Deepak Poojary Mr. Anil Chaurasia Editorial Committee Convener- Dr. Mrinalini Date Members- Dr. Janhavi Bhagwat Dr. Sucheta Golwalkar Dr. Rachana Acharya Mr. Deviprasad Shetti Hospitality Committee Convenor- Dr. Nisha Muni Members- Dr. D. B. Singh Dr. Jyotsna Nijsure Stage Committee Convener- Dr. A. K. Bhatnagar Members- Mr. Kamlakar Indulkar Mrs. Shamala Kulkarni Transport Committee Convenor- Dr. Nisha Muni Members- Dr. D. B. Singh. Mr. Amey Amberkar Mrs. Indu Maurya ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ISBN 978-81-925489-0-6 BIODIVERSITY AND CONSERVATION OF COASTAL AND MARINE ECOSYSTEMS OF INDIA (2012) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Celebrating Year of Marine Biodiversity and CBD COP 11 RamniranjanJhunjhunwala College, BNHS and ATBS announce a National Seminar on “ BIODIVERSITY AND CONSERVATION OF COASTAL AND MARINE ECOSYSTEM OF INDIA” 13th – 15th September 2012 CBD or the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is a comprehensive, binding global agreement aiming at conservation and sustainable use of the elements of biological diversity. At the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, world leaders agreed on a comprehensive strategy for "sustainable development" – meeting our needs while ensuring that we leave a healthy and viable world for future generations. One of the key agreements adopted at Rio was the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD). This pact among the vast majority of the world’s governments sets out commitments for maintaining the world’s ecological underpinnings as we go about the business of economic development. The Convention establishes three main goals: • The conservation of biological diversity • The sustainable use of its components, and • The fair and equitable sharing of the benefits from the use of genetic resources. The Convention’s success depends on the joint and cumulative efforts of the individual countries, who have committed towards conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. In order to facilitate compliance to the convention the Convention has created a global forum where governments, non-governmental organizations, academics, the private sector, and other interested groups or individuals share ideas and compare strategies. The Convention’s ultimate authority is the Conference of the Parties (COP), consisting of all governments (and regional economic integration organizations) that have ratified the treaty. The COP reviews progress under the Convention, identifies new priorities, and sets work plans for members. CBD COP 11 is being organized against the backdrop of India’s decision to host the Eleventh Conference of the Parties (COP11) of the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD) in Hyderabad, in October 2012. Significantly, the CBD has identified that the theme for the International Day for Biological Diversity in 2012 will be “marine and coastal biodiversity”. Various decisions of CBD’s Conference of Parties (COP) have recognized that marine and coastal protected areas (MCPAs), implemented as part of a wider marine and coastal area management framework, are one of the important tools for the conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal biodiversity. They have also recognized the importance of addressing issues related to ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ISBN 978-81-925489-0-6 BIODIVERSITY AND CONSERVATION OF COASTAL AND MARINE ECOSYSTEMS OF INDIA (2012) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- governance, participation, equity and benefit-sharing, and of securing the full and effective participation of indigenous and local communities in the management of existing, and the establishment and management of new, protected areas. The proposed national conference is arranged by RamniranjanJhunjhunwala College in collaboration with BNHS and the Association of Teachers in Biological Sciences in a view to spread awareness among and to engage youth in marine biodiversity conservation. The involved organizations envisage playing the role of catalyzing and facilitating Civil Society Organization (CSO), youth groups and other relevant stakeholder inputs to the COP11 process, starting from mid-2011 so that there is adequate time to make preparations, and involve a large number of relevant groups. Background The sea around India is part of the great Indian Ocean and the Indian subcontinent forms a major physical division between the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal of the Indian Ocean. India is also one of 17 mega bio-diverse countries in the world, with 7.8% of the recorded species of the world including 45,500 recorded species of plants and 91,000 recorded species of animals. India has a vast coastline of 8000 km, of which, 5, 423 km belong to Peninsular India and 2, 094 km to the Andaman, Nicobar, and Lakshadweep Islands, and with an EEZ of 2.02 million sq. km. There are about 13,000 recorded species belong to marine environment in India. The figure is grossly underestimated and that more number of species might be living in coastal and marine environment of India that needs to be explored. Indian coastal zones have a variety of habitats like mangrove, estuarine, coral reefs, sea grass beds, lagoons, sand dunes, rocky shore, cliffs, intertidal mud flats, etc. Coastline of India has also supports nearly 250 million people within the swath of 50 km from the coastline; therefore, the ecological services of marine and coastal ecosystems of India play a vital role in India’s economy growth. Coastal and Marine Biodiversity of India Coral reefs are diverse and most vulnerable ecosystem in India. The reef bio-composition is quite significant and includes about 180 species of benthic algae, 14 species of seaweeds, 12 species of sea grasses, 108 species of sponges, 4 species of lobsters, 103 species of echinoderms, 800 species of fin fishes and also a good number of species of crabs, bivalves, gastropods and cephalopods. About 844 species of marine algae are recorded from India. Of these, several species are exploited commercially on a large scale in the region. Marine invertebrate diversity is also high in India, and many are harvested and are of economic importance; there is evidence that some molluscs and crustaceans have been overexploited, and species such as the coconut crab, horseshoe crabs, and certain molluscs are of conservation concern. Commercial and subsistence fisheries are important in India. In India the bulk of the catch is subsistence or artisanal. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------