Chilika lake ecology faces threat from new confluence point

BERHAMPUR: The ecology of Chilika Lake -Asia's biggest brackish water lake - faces a serious threat due to a naturally formed new confluence point with the Bay of Bengal, according to marine scientists.
"If the new mouth will exist for a long period and widen further, it has the potential to change the salinity level of the lake and may put its rich flora and fauna under stress," Dr.R C Panigrahi, Professor of Marine Science Department at the Berhampur University, said.
Spread over 1200 sq km, Chilika is famous for Irrawadi dolphins, a rare species. The vast lake is also the source of livelihood for lakhs of fishermen living around the districts of Ganjam, Puri and Khurda.
The new confluence point near Gabakunda, a village on the bank of the Chilika, was seen on August one. It is less than a kilometre away from the existing confluence point at Sipakuda. The new mouth was only 50 metres wide at first, but now has expanded to about 400 metres, the chief executive of the Chilika Development Authority, Sudarshan Panda, said.
"Initially, there is no threat to Chilika with the opening of the new mouth. But we cannot say much about its effect in the long term," he said.The salinity level of Chilika water presently varies from nine to 11 PPT while the salinity of the sea water measured at 18 PPT.
"The new mouth opened during monsoon pressure and may close in coming months," the CDA chief said. Senior scientists are being engaged to study the effect on the ecology of the lake with the opening of the new mouth, Panda said.The change in the salinity of the water will depend on the longevity of the new mouth, Panda said.
The change in water quality would be known only after the summer season when the sea water enters the lake, the vice-chancellor of Berhampur University, Bijay Kumar Sahu, also a marine scientist, said.
P K Mohanty, another Professor at the Marine Science Department of Berhampur University, however, ruled out any "immediate threat" to the nearby coastal villages due to the opening of the new mouth in the lake. "We think there is no threat to the nearby villages with the opening of the new mouth," he said.
Mohanty was one of the members to study the impact on coastal villages following the formation of new confluence constituted by the Orissa State Dissaster Mitigation Authority. (PTI)