Policy Update
Lakshita Singh
About
The Coastal Aquaculture Authority (Amendment) bill, 2023 helps to regulate the environmental impact of coastal aquaculture. It allows certain aquaculture activities in the coastal regulation zones (CRZ), regulated by the Environment Protection Act of 1986. These activities lead to increase in production of marine products with high value generation exports. However, they can result in serious environmental issues and degradation of the coastal areas leading to severe socio-economic impacts. Hence, there may be a need to find a balance between promoting aquaculture activities and minimising the environmental damage from such activities.
Background
Coastal aquaculture includes the farming of marine animals such as shrimps, prawns or fish in controlled conditions. It is carried out in saline and brackish water. The Supreme Court in 1996 had highlighted several risks and adverse environmental impacts of unregulated shrimp farming and semi-intensive coastal aquaculture.
It held that: (i) shrimp farming is a prohibited activity in the coastal regulation zone (CRZ) and (ii) an authority must be established under the Environment Protection Act (EPA), 1986 to protect coastal environment from the adverse effects of shrimp farming. Responding such orders, the central government had established the Aquaculture Authority under the Environmental protection Act. However, in 2005, Parliament passed the Coastal Aquaculture Authority Act, 2005 which retrospectively amended the CRZ Notification, 1991 to exclude coastal aquaculture from the list of prohibited activities. It also constituted the Coastal Aquaculture Authority.
As of 2022, 42,975 coastal aquaculture farms are registered across 12 states/UTs. In 2021-22, India exported 13.7 lakh tonne of marine products such as shrimp and cuttlefish worth USD 7.8 billion. Frozen shrimp accounts for 53% of marine product exports in terms of quantity and 75% in terms of value. The Coastal Aquaculture Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2023 was introduced in Lok Sabha on April 5, 2023. The Bill has been referred to the Standing Committee on Agriculture.
About Coastal Aquaculture authority
The Coastal Aquaculture Authority (CAA) was established under the Coastal Aquaculture Authority Act, 2005. The main objective of the Authority is to regulate and monitor aquaculture activities in coastal areas in order to ensure socio-economic development without causing damage to the coastal environment. The Authority is empowered to make regulations and provisions for the construction and operation of aquaculture farms in coastal areas, inspection of farms, registration of aquaculture farms, fixing standards for inputs and effluents, removal or demolition of coastal aquaculture farms, which cause pollution etc. it is handled by ministry of fisheries, animal husbandry and dairying.
Major provisions of the bill
- Expanding the Scope of Coastal Aquaculture Activities:
- Broaden Definition of Coastal Aquaculture: The amendments aim to bring all coastal aquaculture activities under the purview of the Act, removing vagueness between different aspects of coastal aquaculture.
- Including sustainable Aquaculture Practices: it encourages evolution of environmentally friendly aquaculture practices like cage culture, seaweed culture, marine ornamental fish culture, and more. These practices offer more efficiency and substantial revenue and employment opportunities for coastal communities.
- Facilitating Aquaculture Units within the No Development Zone (NDZ): Establishments like hatcheries, Brood stock multiplication centres (BMC), and Nucleus Breeding Centres (NBC) are now permitted to operate within 200 meters from the High Tide Line (HTL).The amendment remove previous uncertainties arising from the interpretation of Section 13(8) of the original CAA Act of 2005, which had excluded coastal aquaculture from CRZ regulations.
- Simplifying Regulatory Processes, Modification of Registration: The amendments replace the stringent provision of imprisonment with civil penalties for unregistered coastal aquaculture activities.This shift towards civil instruments aligns with modern regulatory practices.
- Operational Flexibility: The amendments introduce provisions for modifying certificates of registration in case of changes in ownership or activity size.Additionally, they empower the Coastal Aquaculture Authority to condone delays in renewal applications with a compounded fee, enhancing administrative flexibility.
- Environmental Protection and Compliance:
- Standards for Emission and Effluents: The amendments empower the Coastal Aquaculture Authority to establish standards for emission or discharge of effluents from aquaculture units, holding owners accountable for adhering to these standards.
- Polluter Pays Principle: The amendments uphold the ‘Polluter Pays Principle,‘ mandating aquaculture unit owners to bear the cost of any environment-related damage or demolition assessed by the Authority.
- Prohibition in Ecologically Sensitive Areas: The amendments prohibit coastal aquaculture activities in ecologically sensitive areas or areas with significant geo-morphological features, enhancing protection for vulnerable ecosystems.
- Advancing Disease Prevention and Sustainable Practices: Antibiotic-Free Aquaculture: By explicitly prohibiting the use of antibiotics and pharmacologically active substances, the amendments prioritize the health of aquatic ecosystems and promote environmentally conscious practices.
Implementation issues
Although the authority has provisions for the development of aquaculture , there have been many implementation issues. In 2020, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) noted that since 2016, the Authority has not carried out most of its functions adequately. It could not carry out these functions due to a lack of manpower and efficient infrastructure. This raises the question whether the Authority has the capacity to carry out the additional functions. Key findings of the CAG include:
Inspection: Only four technical posts have been sanctioned to inspect all farms across the Indian coastline. The Authority has no regional/branch offices for this purpose. Between April 2013 and March 2018, the Authority inspected 246 of the 35,395 registered farms, and 213 of the 298 registered hatcheries. The Rules also do not provide for a periodic inspection plan, nor set any annual inspection targets.
Waste water testing: Waste water from shrimp farms contains solid and dissolved materials, which must be treated. In 2011, the Authority established its own laboratory to test wastewater samples collected from farms. CAG noted that as of 2019, the Authority had not drawn plans for collecting and testing the number of samples.
Input standards: As of July 2018, no input standards were fixed. In 2008, the Authority formed a sub-committee to fix standards, however it has not published its report yet.
Norms for water spread area: WSA of a farm should not exceed 60 per cent of the total area of the farmland. The Authority had, however, decided (February 2007) not to insist on the above mandatory condition in respect of farms with less than two hectares (ha), but in case of larger farms, the stipulated percentage was to be strictly complied with. Audit noticed that, out of 35,670 farms registered by the Authority, the WSA of 24,417 farms was more than 60 per cent of the total farm area as detailed in Table No. 1. It is pertinent to mention here that the Authority failed to maintain the ratio even in case of larger farms (more than two ha)
Way Forward
The expansion of aquaculture across the country over the last few decades demonstrates its viability as a source of income. Fish production accounts for about 1% of India’s GDP and more than 5% of agricultural GDP. Quality requirements cannot be overlooked as the share of fish exports is expected to expand from 10% to approximately 13% by 2030. To gain a larger share of the global export market, India must improve its processing and value-addition capabilities. Since the wild or catch fishery is under constant and permanent threat of extinction, a move from hunting to farmed fish is the only way to provide food and nutritional security in some of the world’s poorest regions.
The comparative advantage is held by Asia and the Indian subcontinent. leverage of state-of-the-art technology in marine aquaculture development like geospatial technology. FOR EG- Based on above experience and expertise a Geo-ICT based application web portal called Coastal Aquaculture Information System (COAST)has been undertaken by Odisha Space Applications Centre (ORSAC), Bhubaneswar with the help of Fisheries Department, Government of Odisha, India.
References
- Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying. (n.d.). Retrieved 22 June 2024, from https://dahd.nic.in/
- Coastal Aquaculture authority. (n.d.). Retrieved 22 June 2024, from https://caa.gov.in/
- Coastal Aquaculture Information System. (n.d.). Retrieved 22 June 2024, from https://www.odishacoastalaquaculture.in/
- (N.d.). Retrieved 22 June 2024, from https://cag.gov.in/uploads/download_audit_report/2020/05_Chapter-2_Agriculture-05f911d7a652701.99834861.pdf
- (N.d.). Retrieved 22 June 2024, from https://rsdebate.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/740930/1/PD_260_09082023_p80_p98_193.pdf
- The coastal aquaculture authority (amendment) bill, 2023. (n.d.). Retrieved 22 June 2024, from PRS Legislative Research website: https://prsindia.org/billtrack/the-coastal-aquaculture-authority-amendment-bill-2023
- (N.d.). Retrieved 22 June 2024, from https://caa.gov.in/uploaded/doc/annualreport/Annual
About the Contributor- Lakshita Singh is a research intern at IMPRI pursuing her bachelors in BA hons history from Delhi university.
Acknowledgement – The author would like to thank Dr Arjun Kumar, Ms Vaishali and Ms Sana who helped me throughout this article and reviewing the same.
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