Oysters, a seafood delicacy in Goa, could hold the key to controlling coastal pollution, research has suggested.
According to a research paper published recently by the Goa-based National Institute of Oceanography’s geological oceanography division, restoration of oyster reefs of the country’s western and eastern coastlines could help rein in oxygen depletion and control heavy metal flux all along India’s 7000 kms plus long coastline.
The research paper authored by Dr. P Chakraborty, a senior scientist at the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research centre, has also advocated more feasibility studies and extensive research to understand the impact of oyster reef restoration on ecology of different bays and estuaries for sustainable development along the coast of India.
“Oyster reef restoration in estuaries and bays can be an important step to control coastal pollution around India. Suitable oyster reef restoration in different bays, estuaries of east and west coast of India may reduce nutrient, metal fluxes to the water column and improve overall coastal marine health,” Chakraborty states.
“It is expected that suitable oyster reefs restoration in bays and estuarine system may control nutrients and heavy metals fluxes and improve coastal environment of Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal around India. Extensive research is also required to understand the impact of oyster reefrestoration on ecology of different bays and estuaries for sustainable development along the coast of India,” the study further claims.
According to the senior scientist, conservation of bays, estuaries and coastal zones “is a must for sustainable development” and oyster reefscan aid in the effort, thanks to their ability in removing and controlling the concentrations of nutrients, pollutants, suspended particulate matters.
“Coastal waters receive large amounts of nutrients and pollutants from different point and nonpoint sources. Excess supply of nutrients in coastal water may have detrimental effects, leading to hypoxia (deficiency of oxygen reaching tissues), and anoxia (a severe form of hypoxia) from eutrophication (excessive nutrition),” Chakraborty states.
Depleted volume of dissolved oxygen in water causes a decrease in fish population in coastal water, the study states.
“Excellent ability of oyster in removing and controlling the concentrations of nutrients, pollutants, suspended particulate matters from bays and estuaries stimulated me to provide a viewpoint on oyster reef restoration in controlling nutrient and heavy metals fluxes and marine coastal pollution around India,” the study says.
With coastal zones of India experiencing rapid development, conservation of bays, estuaries and coastal zones are a must for sustainable development and anthropogenic (environmental pollution caused by human activity) processes, industrialisation and urbanisation on heavy metals and nutrients fluxes in marine coastal environment around India are not well known and can be a big concern, the senior scientists states in his research paper.
Estuaries and bays, according to Chakraborty, receive more nutrients, trace metals, heavy metals, polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) inputs per unit surface area than any other type of ecosystem, but excess supply of nutrients can also be highly damaging, leading to effects such as hypoxia and anoxia from eutrophication, harmful algal blooms, dieback of sea-grasses, corals and reduced populations of fish and shellfish in coastal waters.
“Thus, it is necessary to control nutrients, trace metals, heavy metals fluxes in coastal waters… Excellent ability of oyster in removing and controlling the concentrations of nutrients, pollutants, suspended particulate matters from bays and estuaries stimulated me to provide a viewpoint on oyster reef restoration in controlling marine coastal pollution around India,” Chakraborty claims.