Adapting to a Changing Environment

Association of Deep Sea Going Artisanal Fishermen

Kanniyakumari, India

An Overview Of Our Solution

Who is this solution impacting?
Ekosistem
Oceans
Oceans/Coasts
Tipe Komunitas
Rural
Rural
Additional Information
  • Population Impacted:
  • Continent: Asia
General Info

Alamat

Association of Deep Sea Going Artisanal Fishermen
Kanniyakumari 629176
India

Surel

jain1.siffs@gmail.com
Problem

Populasi terkena dampak

The total marine fishermen population in India is about 40 54 802. The total population dependent on fisheries in Thoothur, Kanniyakumari District, Tamil Nadu, India is about 35-40 000. The total population dependent on deep sea fishing is about 18-20 000

Size

2.02 million squire km (The total Indian EEZ)

Pekerjaan Utama

Marine capture fishery

Sumber daya lokal tempat komunitas bergantung, dan untuk tujuan apa

small-scale post-harvest

Ancaman lokal terhadap sumber daya

Fisheries- highly migratory species like tuna and tuna like species for livelihoods and food.

Bahaya Iklim

Pollution and increasing fishing effort.

Tingkat sensitivitas

Very high since fisheries is the only livelihood option for the fisher community in Thoothoor area.

Tingkat kapasitas adaptif

The community concerned is completely dependent on fishery and has lack of skills for alternative employment. Apart from fishing for livelihood purposes, fisheries also ensure food security of the community. Therefore, changes in the fisheries will directly affect the livelihoods and food security of the fishermen. In terms of resources, to reduce the search cost in the high seas, effort may get concentrated in the near shore waters, which according to various studies is already exploited to the limits. This may lead to over-exploitation and unsustainability in the coastal fishery. This may also affect the breeding grounds of other fisheries occurring in the coastal waters.
Solution

The fishermen community in this locality is organized under the Association of Deep Sea Going Artisanal Fishermen (ADSGAF). The Association was established in 1992 and has 340 full-time members who are engaged in long lining and gill-netting using small mechanized boats (10 ? 22 meter Length Overall) along the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). There are around 2000 fish workers and their dependents associated with the organization. There are 588 deep sea going fishing vessels affiliated to this Association that fish all over the Indian EEZ, which covers an area of 2.02 million sq. km. The Association during its regular executive and general body meetings discuss the problems faced by the members and try to address them. During 2009, members raised the issue of increasing searching time coupled with rising fuel cost leading to decline in their income from the fisheries. The members also expressed concern about increasing cost of running the engine during idle time for lighting and signalling requirements. It was found that fuel cost is accounting for about 70 percent of the total operational cost and to compensate for the increasing cost, fishermen have extended the duration of their voyage from about 10 days a decade earlier to about 45 days at present. Despite this increase in fishing duration, they are still finding it difficult to make their operations viable. Faced with this challenge and also considering the carbon footprints generated by this fishery, the Association decided to experiment with the use of solar energy in fishing vessels in 2010. The Association has since then carried out several techno-economic assessments and pilot trials to measure the efficacy and viability of their venture in different categories of fishing boats. It is found that while at sea the engine is run for several hours at partial load to provide power for auxiliary activities such as lighting, communication, navigation, signalling and on-board entertainment. Therefore, if these services can be run by using alternative power sources there could be a significant saving of fuel and this will improve the viability of the operation as well as reduce the carbon footprints. From the pilot- scale trials, it is seen that switching off the engine for 3 hours can save 30 litres of fuel a day (0.38 million litre per year). The potential reduction of carbon dioxide emissions per year if the entire fleet switches off the engine for three hours a day is estimated to be 10,440,000 kg. Therefore, solar power seems to be a viable alternative to reduce fuel cost in fishing operations and the Association has fitted two multi-day boats with solar plants to generate more data on their efficacy. Besides the multi-day, the Association is also promoting the use of solar lanterns in traditional canoes who undertake day-night fishing and for use by fisherwomen in marketing fish during evening hours. In this venture, the Association has been supported by the Bay of Bengal Programme Inter-Governmental Organisation, which is a regional fisheries body with Bangladesh, India, Maldives and Sri Lanka as its members.

Results

Biaya Ekologis

The solution is expected to improve the economic condition of the fishermen and in turn enhance their resilience to face the impacts of climate change.

Manfaat Ekologis

Zero

Indikator Ekonomi yang digunakan untuk mengukur manfaat

Increased biodiversity and abundance of fish - Reduced destructive fishing practices or over-fishing. Reduction in carbon emission potentially to the tune of 10 million kg per year. Reaching break-even point earlier, thus reducing the need for longer fishing hours or effort.

Biaya Komunitas/Sosial

Amount of carbon emission Hours of fishing per year Landing per year by a fishing vessel

Manfaat Komunitas/Sosial

About 10 person-days per month. The project is being implemented since 2010 and two national level stakeholder consultations/result-sharing workshops have been arranged apart from regular meetings of the Association. The total time spent for these activities including those of the partner organizations is about 500 days during 2010-13. This is without including the time spent by the service providers.

Indikator Komunitas/Sosial yang digunakan untuk mengukur manfaat

Increased awareness and support for sustainable fisheries management - Increased organization of community groups. The community has accepted the scope of using solar energy in fishing vessels and the need to make the fishery green. Many fisher-women, inspired by the trials, have started using solar lanterns while selling fish instead of kerosene lamps and candle lights in villages where there is no regular source of power.

Biaya Ekonomi

Number of inquiries on use of solar energy and request for demonstration. Number of community members attending awareness meetings.

Manfaat Ekonomi

Cost of solar solution INR 0.38 million (US $ 6 440). Apart from this, the community has conducted several stakeholder meetings and also two National-level consultations to discuss the use of solar energy in fisheries sector. The community is also engaged in networking with different service providers, R&D Institutions and other relevant agencies. So far the cumulative cost for these activities is estimated to be around INR 0.6 million (US $ 10 000).

Indikator Ekologis yang digunakan untuk mengukur manfaat

It is expected that there will be a saving of 30 litres per day amounting to INR 1650 (30*55) per day (US $ 28). For about 250 fishing days this will create a savings of INR 32 500 (US $ 551) during the first year after adjusting the cost of solar solution (INR 0.38 million; US $ 6 440). From the following year, it will create a savings of INR 4 12 500 (US $ 6 991) till there is a need for replacement of the battery or other maintenance cost. Change in battery and maintenance will add a marginal cost and there will be a net positive return from the investment.

What were/are the challenges your community faced in implementing this solution?

Reduced fuel bill for fishing operations during a single trip.

Action

Jelaskan proses berbasis komunitas yang digunakan untuk mengembangkan solusi termasuk alat dan proses yang digunakan

The community has made changes in the fishing gear used and also in area of fishing to cope with the changing scenario. However, since these changes are costly, relatively poor fishermen are finding it difficult to implement them. To overcome some of the problems, the community is also extending the fishing durations. However, such actions may have negative impact on the sustainability of the operation.

Bahaya iklim yang menjadi perhatian

The solution was installation of a 1 kilowatt (KW) solar plant (includes solar panels, inverter, batteries, wiring, etc), which is the maximum capacity given the space available for photovoltaic (PV) panels on the top of the wheel house. It is estimated t

Bagaimana solusi Anda mengurangi keterpaparan dan menyangga/melindungi ekosistem yang terkena dampak?

Other

How has your solution increased the capacity of the ecosystem to adapt to potential climate changes?

The solution has the potential to reduce carbon emission from fisheries as well as reducing the time spent in sea (effort) by improving the profitability of fishing operations.

Bagaimana solusi Anda mengurangi keterpaparan dan menyangga/melindungi masyarakat yang terkena dampak?

Increasing profitability from fisheries will contribute to improved food security, better education, health and improved housing conditions (including sanitation) for the community. It will also lead to reduction in the use of fossil fuel.

Bagaimana solusi Anda mengurangi sensitivitas masyarakat yang terkena dampak?

The solution will not directly reduce the exposure of the community. However, as mentioned earlier it will improve their adaptive capacity. The level of exposure is expected to decline in the long run due to community empowerment.

Bagaimana solusi Anda meningkatkan kapasitas masyarakat lokal untuk beradaptasi dengan potensi perubahan iklim?

Improved returns from fisheries are expected to be invested in the young fishermen population for their education and health purposes. In the longer run this will create alternative avenues of employment. In the short run, improved returns will induce diversification of portfolio reducing their dependence on fisheries.

Scale

Bisakah solusi ini direplikasi di tempat lain?

Considerable investment is needed for installing the solar panels and associate equipment. While there are Government programmes to assist use of solar energy for general applications, there is no particular scheme to support its application in fishing boats.Presently, pilot-scale implementation on the use of solar energy in fishing boats is in progress. The Association is also discussing the outcomes of the pilots with the concerned Ministries (Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and the Ministry of Agriculture) in the Government of India to assist in carrying out more pilots in multi-locations to create awareness amongst the end users and also bring in more Solar Companies to team with the fishermen in installing solar plants on-board fishing vessels. While government assistance is being sought to increase the pilot-scale trials, even if this assistance is not forthcoming, the reduction in the cost of solar panels and other equipment is creating a favourable situation to up-scale the demonstration to a larger geographical area. Further, standardization of design, use of solar panels in a maritime environment where corrosion of equipment could be an issue are the other areas of concern where the partnering R&D Institutions are assisting the Association in assessing and overcoming these problems.

Overview
Solution
Scale