The Days After the Tsunami

Tsunami 2004
location: Phuket, Thailand

http://www.acehtsunami.com/

Nearly a month after the killer tsunami struck South and Southest Asia, the impact of the disaster is still unfolding. While the numbers of dead and injured can be counted, the damage to ecosystem cannot be measured. Salinisation has left its imprint everywhere. Vast tracts of green fields have turned brown due to the invasion of salty ocean waters. Salt water and silt have smothered rivers, lakes, reservoirs and wells, making the water undrinkable. Cross contamination from sewage has entered water supply. Human and animal corpses along with dead vegetation may have caused biological contamination along with sewage. Oil and chemical spills are adding to the water pollution. Beaches have been washed away or filled with litter.

Now, after almost 5 years, the impacts are still there.

There is growing consensus among scientist and environmentalists that mangroves can play a protective role during tsunamis. Wherever mangrove forests have been degraded for the purpose of tourism, shrimp farming, and industrial developments, the impact of tsunami has been worse. On the other hand, wherever they were preserved, as in some regions of Tamil Nadu, India, the damage was lesser. Indeed, it stands to reason that mangroves and coral reefs act like natural breakwaters that break the impact of incoming waves. In recent years, there has been uncontrolled proliferation of hotels and commercial activities along coastal areas, but nature has once again shown who is in charge.

I'm not a marine biologist. Historically, tsunamis have impacted sea life. How many fish were washed ashore on December 26th? And how many reefs were damaged? Where literally millions of fish may have died, and where the habitats of the fish nearer the coast have almost certainly been affected? Consider Coral reefs may take years to recover from tsunamis - and therefore, so may the fish. What will the poor fisherman, who has had his boat wrecked and has lost income over the last few days, catch in the next few months?

Apart from that, the effect on sea life and the associated ecosystems could well be massive. As the tsunami approaches land, it gains height even as it slows down. This would affect sea life within 1 kilometer of land, and perhaps even more depending on the depth of the tsunami in the open sea. Deeper in the ocean, in the region of the earthquake, many things could have happened. Deformation of the sea floor is almost assured with an earthquake of this strength. Because we do not know, it is time for us to start trying to find out. Maybe somewhere, there's a group of people working on this.

We've heard much about the missing tourists; the people who not only lost their lives or were otherwise victims of this mortal event. The South-East Asian coastal areas have had eco-tourism in the form of diving and resorts where people came from all over the world to visit reefs, and fish. While the impact on the eco-tourism attractions such as reefs and fishing have yet to be determined in a concrete way, it's apparent that they have been affected.

It is hoped that the tsunami will spur the world’s governments to look closely into the long-term impact of human activities on the environment. Mindless commercialization and industrializations would only take us down the path of disaster. While natural phenomena such as tsunamis cannot be prevented, we can prepare ourselves to mitigate the impact and we certainly need a proper management system in place to swiftly take charge of handling that.

Most importantly, this is a time for assessment of the impact on ocean life, and on mankind. It's also time to consider how mankind impacts the ocean and how to minimize negative impact in such a fragile environment. The tsunami, reminds us all how fragile we are but it should also remind us of the fragility of life on our planet.

I think;
His Wrath met the sinners and corrupters

I think;
His Destruction was a great trial for the believers

But I am sure;
His Miracles showed signs and wonders..

Can we make sure that this calm waves still forever?

location : East Malaysia