Recent research by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research’s Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (ICAR-CMFRI) reveals that India’s marine fisheries sector has a significantly lower carbon footprint compared to the global average. ICAR-CMFRI director, Dr A Gopalakrishnan, highlighted that the country’s carbon emissions from the mechanized fisheries sector are approximately 16.3% below the global level.
The study estimates India’s carbon footprint at 1.32 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of fish, a figure notably lower than the global average of over 2 tonnes of carbon emissions per tonne of fish. This assessment encompasses greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions throughout the entire sector, from pre-harvesting to marketing, converted into CO2 equivalent, as per the CMFRI statement.
Presented at a review meeting of the fisheries component of the National Innovations in Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA) network research project of ICAR in Kochi, the study examined fishing activities across maritime states, dividing them into pre-harvesting, harvesting, and post-harvesting phases.
The research found that the harvest phase, representing active fishing, accounted for over 90% of the fuel consumption in the sector, resulting in annual CO2 emissions of 4,934 million kg.
NICRA, aimed at studying climate change impacts on agriculture, including fisheries, seeks to develop and promote climate-resilient technologies to address vulnerabilities. Dr Grinson George, Principal Scientist at CMFRI, emphasized the impact of climate change on marine ecosystems, including cyclones, sea-level rise, and warming of the Indian Ocean, leading to changes in fish populations.
To assess climate change risks in coastal regions, CMFRI identified hazards such as cyclones, floods, shoreline changes, heatwaves, and sea-level rise. Ongoing efforts include the development of a Coastal Climate Risk Atlas, marking areas of risk in all coastal districts of India.
