List of Important Coastal and Marine Biodiversity Areas (ICMBAs) in India

List of Important Coastal and Marine Biodiversity Areas (ICMBAs) in India. Total number of Important Coastal and Marine Biodiversity Areas (ICMBAs) in India is 107 in India.

India has taken several steps to achieve the National Biodiversity Target no 6 and Aichi Biodiversity Target no 11 which aim to conserve a substantial portion of the coastal and marine areas in the country and world respectively. 

India is one among 17 mega-biodiversity countries and 25 biodiversity hotspots of the richest and highly endangered eco-regions of the world. In terms of the marine environment, India has a coastline of about 8000 km. The exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the country has an area of 2.02 million km², comprising 0.86 million km² on the west coast, 0.56 million km² on the east coast and 0.6 million km² around the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Adjoining the continental regions and the offshore islands are a wide range of coastal ecosystems such as estuaries, lagoons, mangroves, backwaters, salt marshes, rocky coasts, sandy stretches and coral …………..

Among the Asian countries, India is perhaps the only one that has a long record of inventorying coastal and marine biodiversity, going back at least two centuries. Name of Site, Location, total area and category is given below……

Important Coastal and Marine Biodiversity Areas (ICMBAs) in India

India has taken several steps to achieve the National Biodiversity Target no 6 and Aichi Biodiversity Target no 11 which aim to conserve a substantial portion of the coastal and marine areas in the country and world respectively. Towards achieving these two targets, 106 coastal and marine sites have been identified and prioritized as Important Coastal and Marine Areas (ICMBAs) by the Wildlife Institute of India. Sixty-two ICMBAs have been identified along the west coast of India, and 44 have been identified along the east coast. Of these, 22 ICMBAs have been prioritized for immediate conservation actions and proposed to be upgraded as Protected Areas under categories such as Conservation or Communities Reserve to increase participation of the local communities in governance.

Oceans and major seas cover 70.8% or 362 million km of the Earth, with a global coastline of 1.6 million km. Coastal and marine ecosystems are found in 123 countries around the world. Marine ecosystems are strongly connected through a network of surface and deep-water currents, and they are among the most productive ecosystems in the world. Coastal and marine ecosystems include sand dune areas, where freshwater and seawater mix, near-shore coastal areas and open-ocean marine areas. Marine systems extend from the low-water mark, i.e. 50 m depth, to the high seas, and coastal systems stretch from the coastline to depths less than 50 m. The Indian Ocean accounts for 29% of the global ocean area, 13% of the marine organic carbon synthesis, 10% of the capture fisheries, 90% of the culture fisheries, 30% of the coral reefs and 10% of the mangroves and has 246 estuaries draining a hinterland greater than 2000 km² , besides coastal lagoons and backwaters. Being limited by land in the north, and with the largest portion of it lying in the tropics, the Indian Ocean is a region of high biodiversity, with one of the countries in the region, India, rated as being one of the mega-biodiversity centers of the world. In the current context of international trade and intellectual property regimes, it is important for all of the Indian Ocean countries to understand their marine biodiversity. India is one among 17 mega-biodiversity countries and 25 biodiversity hotspots of the richest and highly endangered eco-regions of the world. In terms of the marine environment, India has a coastline of about 8000 km. The exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the country has an area of 2.02 million km², comprising 0.86 million km² on the west coast, 0.56 million km² on the east coast and 0.6 million km² around the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Adjoining the continental regions and the offshore islands are a wide range of coastal ecosystems such as estuaries, lagoons, mangroves, backwaters, salt marshes, rocky coasts, sandy stretches and coral reefs, which are characterized by unique biotic and abiotic properties and processes.

The dissimilarities between the west and east coasts of India are remarkable. The west coast is generally exposed, with heavy surf and rocky shores and headlands, whereas the east coast is generally shelving, with beaches, lagoons, deltas and marshes. The west coast is a region of intense upwelling, associated with the southwest monsoon (May– September), whereas the east coast experiences only a weak upwelling, associated with the northeast monsoon (October–January), resulting in marked differences in hydrographic regimes, productivity patterns and qualitative and quantitative composition of fisheries. All the islands on the east coast are continental islands, whereas the major island formations in the west coast are oceanic atolls.

Among the Asian countries, India is perhaps the only one that has a long record of inventorying coastal and marine biodiversity, going back at least two centuries. However, there is so much diversity in space, time and taxonomical diversity that it is almost impossible to review all the records and reports. The synthesis of what is known about the coastal and marine biodiversity of India that is attempted in this overview relies mainly on systematic accounts, records and reports of two major institutions concerned with surveying and inventorying fauna and flora—the Zoological Survey of India and the Botanical Survey of India—as well as other research organizations such as the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute and the National Institute of Oceanography.

Other Protected areas in India (Click for the details)

List of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India

List of Biosphere reserves in India

List of Tiger Reserves in India

List of Elephant Reserves in India

List of Ramsar Wetland Sites in India

List of Marine Protected areas in India

State wise list of Indian National Parks – updated

State wise list of Community Reserves of Indian – updated

State wise list of Conservation Reserves of India – updated

State wise list of Wildlife Sanctuaries of India – updated 

Name of Site, Location, total area and category is as follows……

Source – Wildlife Institute of India