Widespread awareness of the importance of sand and the drastic effects of dredging is the first step to saving sand. Over the last decade, the Government of India has passed several regulations to curb sand mining, which could serve as a starting point.
First, it was water, and now sand too is getting depleted at a fast rate, thanks to sand dredging. A 2023 finding by the United Nations (UN) warns that marine dredging is responsible for excavation of six billion tonnes of sand and sediment, every year, which is equivalent to one million dump trucks every day. This endangers marine life, well-being of coastal communities, and depletion of sand which is the second most used natural resource in the planet, after water. Going by the staggering statistics and if the indiscriminate practice of sand extraction persists, we might soon run out of sand.
Sand Watch
Sand dredging is a process of excavation of sand, silt and other sediment from the bottom of water bodies using large machinery like the dredger which acts as a vacuum to remove the sediment. Dredging is done for various purposes such as beach reclamation, maintaining waterways for smooth navigation of boats and ships, and commercial purposes like construction. But, sand dredging could do more harm than good, if not planned adequately.
This story is from the January 2024 edition of TerraGreen.
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This story is from the January 2024 edition of TerraGreen.
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