{"id":43252,"date":"2025-05-13T18:57:03","date_gmt":"2025-05-13T13:27:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=43252"},"modified":"2025-05-13T18:57:18","modified_gmt":"2025-05-13T13:27:18","slug":"geotubing-breakthrough-in-coastal-erosion-control","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/13-05-2025\/geotubing-breakthrough-in-coastal-erosion-control","title":{"rendered":"Geotubing: A Breakthrough in Coastal Erosion Control"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS3\/Environment; Climate Change<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A recent study has found that <strong>geotubing technology deployed at Poonthura, Kerala,<\/strong> has been highly effective in controlling coastal erosion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Geo-Tubing Technology for Coastal Erosion<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Geotubes are large fabric <strong>containers filled with sand or slurry,<\/strong> placed strategically along the coast.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They act as <strong>wave barriers, <\/strong>diminishing the force of incoming waves and preventing shoreline erosion.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The <strong>multi-layered geotube<\/strong> system ensures long-term stability, even under intense sea motion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Coastal Erosion in India<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>India\u2019s coastline is facing severe erosion, with 33.6% of its shoreline classified as vulnerable.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#fff2cc\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>Do You Know?<\/strong><br>&#8211; India&#8217;s coastline length has been<strong> revised to 11,098.81 km<\/strong> following a new methodology for measurement.<br>1. Previously, the official coastline length was 7,516.60 kms.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Indian mainland coast includes <strong>9 coastal states and 2 Union Territories (UTs) <\/strong>having 66 coastal districts.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img data-dominant-color=\"d4ceca\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"865\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/05\/east-coast-of-india.png\" alt=\"east coast of india\" class=\"not-transparent wp-image-43255\" style=\"--dominant-color: #d4ceca; width:514px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/05\/east-coast-of-india.png 865w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/05\/east-coast-of-india-300x97.png 300w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/05\/east-coast-of-india-768x249.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 865px) 100vw, 865px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img data-dominant-color=\"dedce0\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"865\" height=\"249\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/05\/west-coast-of-india.png\" alt=\"west coast of india\" class=\"not-transparent wp-image-43257\" style=\"--dominant-color: #dedce0; width:522px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/05\/west-coast-of-india.png 865w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/05\/west-coast-of-india-300x86.png 300w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/05\/west-coast-of-india-768x221.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 865px) 100vw, 865px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Morphology of the Coast:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It consists of 43% sandy beach, 11% rocky coast, 36% of muddy flats, 10% of marshy coast, 97 major estuaries and 34 lagoons.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The <strong>National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR)<\/strong><em>(an attached office of the Ministry of Earth Sciences)<\/em> has been monitoring shoreline changes since 1990, using remote sensing and GIS mapping techniques. According to the <strong>NCCR:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>33.6% of India\u2019s coastline is eroding<\/strong>, impacting coastal communities and infrastructure.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>26.9% of the coastline<\/strong> is experiencing <strong>accretion<\/strong>, meaning <strong>land is expanding due to sediment deposition.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>39.6% of the coastline remains stable<\/strong>, showing minimal changes in shoreline position.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>West Bengal (<\/strong>60.5%<strong>), Kerala <\/strong>\u00a0(46.4%)<strong>, and Tamil Nadu<\/strong> (42.7%) are among the most affected Indian states<strong>.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Causes of Coastal Erosion<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Climate Change and Rising Sea Levels:<\/strong> Melting glaciers and thermal expansion contribute to higher sea levels, intensifying coastal erosion.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Extreme Weather Events:<\/strong> Cyclones, storm surges, and monsoonal variations accelerate shoreline retreat.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Human Activities:<\/strong> Unregulated coastal development, sand mining, and port construction disrupt natural sediment flow.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Loss of Natural Barriers:<\/strong> Mangrove deforestation and coral reef degradation reduce coastal resilience against erosion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Government Initiatives and Mitigation Measures<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project (ICZMP):<\/strong> It is a <strong>World Bank-assisted project<\/strong> aimed to protect and conserve coastal and marine environments through sustainable practices, implemented in <strong>Gujarat, Odisha, and West Bengal.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification (2019): <\/strong>It aims to conserve and protect coastal stretches, ensuring livelihood security for fisher and local communities while permitting erosion control measures.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It provides for <strong>No Development Zones (NDZ)<\/strong> along various categories of coastal areas to protect India\u2019s coastline from encroachment and erosion.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It includes the <strong>Shoreline Management Plan and Coastal Zone Management Plan.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Coastal Vulnerability Index (CVI):<\/strong> The<strong> Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS)<\/strong> has developed the CVI to assess and map the vulnerability of different coastal regions based on various parameters.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Shoreline Protection Measures:<\/strong> The <strong>National Assessment of Shoreline Changes<\/strong> provides erosion control guidelines.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>15th Finance Commission Allocation:<\/strong> \u20b92,500 crore earmarked for resettlement of displaced communities and erosion mitigation measures.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Innovative Engineering Solutions<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Geo-Tube Installation: <\/strong>In areas like<strong> Pentha Village in Odisha<\/strong>, and recently in <strong>Poonthura, Kerala,<\/strong> geo-tubes have been installed to create artificial barriers that protect the coast from erosion.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Artificial Reefs: <\/strong>Constructing artificial reefs can dissipate wave energy and protect the shoreline.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Eco-friendly Breakwaters:<\/strong> Using materials that blend with the natural environment can provide effective protection without harming marine ecosystems.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Mangrove and Shelterbelt Plantations:<\/strong> Planting mangroves and other vegetation along the coast helps stabilize the shoreline and reduce the impact of waves and storm surges.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/kerala\/study-finds-geotubing-at-poonthura-effective-in-controlling-coastal-erosion\/article69564389.ece\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Source: TH<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<h3><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">A recent study has found that geotubing technology deployed at Poonthura, Kerala, has been highly effective in controlling coastal erosion.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Geo-Tubing Technology for Coastal Erosion<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Geotubes are large fabric containers filled with sand or slurry, placed strategically along the coast.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">They act as wave barriers, diminishing the force of incoming waves and preventing shoreline erosion.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The multi-layered geotube system ensures long-term stability, even under intense sea motion.<\/li>\n<p><a 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More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43252","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43252","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43252"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43252\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43275,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43252\/revisions\/43275"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43252"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43252"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43252"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}