Vaan Island

Vaan Island Latest News

A decade-long artificial reef restoration of Vaan Island generated socio-ecological benefits worth ₹61.67 crore—over twice its inflation-adjusted cost, according to a technical assessment by the Tamil Nadu Coastal Restoration Mission and its partners.

About Vaan Island

• Vaan is one of the 21 islands in the Gulf of Mannar, which was declared a marine biodiversity park in 1986.
• It is part of the Tuticorin group of islands.
• It had suffered severe erosion, shrinking by 92% between 1969 and 2015. 
• Its area was reduced from about 20 hectares to 1.53 hectares largely due to coral mining, sea-level rise, and reef degradation. 
• To arrest the decline, scientists deployed 10,600 specially designed artificial reef modules around the island beginning in 2015. 
• Geomorphic monitoring indicates the island area has expanded to over 2.3 hectares since then. 
• The reef modules also facilitated rapid biological colonisation, supporting an average of 81 coral colonies per module.

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Key Facts about Gulf of Mannar

• It is an inlet of the Indian Ocean, between southeastern India and western Sri Lanka. 
• It is bounded to the northeast by Rameswaram (island), Adam’s (Rama’s) Bridge (a chain of shoals), and Mannar Island. 
• The gulf is 130–275 km wide and 160 km long. 
• It receives several rivers, including the Tambraparni (India) and the Aruvi (Sri Lanka). 
• The port of Tuticorin is on the Indian coast. 
• The gulf is noted for its pearl banks and sacred chank (a gastropod mollusk).

Source: NIE