TYPOLOGICAL INVENTORIZATION AND RAPID ECOLOGICAL HEALTH ASSESSMENT OF THE WETLANDS OF MEDINIPUR COASTAL PLAIN, INDIA

Coastal wetlands provide a multitude of ecosystem services and diversified livelihood opportunities for millions in India. Due to unsustainable human activities and recent climatic anomalies, many of these wetlands are losing their ecological vitality and even extirpating in extreme cases; as evident in the Medinipur Coastal Plain of Eastern India. However, no comprehensive management plan has been framed till date, towards sustainable utilization of these wetlands. In this context, development of an appropriate regional wetland inventory, based on relevant ecological parameters, was conceived to be the pre-requisite for implementing such management strategies. Accordingly, an attempt had been made here to develop a typological inventory based on the ecological health status of major wetlands (>2.25 ha) of this region. Cumulatively, four varied ecological health scenarios were identified for these wetlands using multi-source geospatial datasets, on-field measurements, focus group discussions, and secondary sources. Specifically, wetlands with lesser human footprints, synergetic agroecosystem practices, and better intertidal connectivity displayed superior ecological health compared to the ones associated with tourism and aquafarming. It was also realized that this study could greatly enhance the decision making capability of the stakeholders, researchers, and policy makers involved in sustainable management of these resources.