No Access

AN INTEGRATED STUDY FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF TSUNAMI IMPACTS: A CASE STUDY OF SOUTH ANDAMAN ISLAND, INDIA USING REMOTE SENSING AND GIS

K. DHARANIRAJAN

Institute for Ocean Management, College of Engineering, Anna University, Chennai 600 025, India

Search for more papers by this author

P. KASINATHA PANDIAN

Institute of Remote Sensing, College of Engineering, Anna University, Chennai 600 025, India

Search for more papers by this author

B. GURUGNANAM

Department of Geology, Annamalai University, Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, India

Search for more papers by this author

RM. NARAYANAN

Institute of Remote Sensing Anna University, Chennai 600 025, India

Search for more papers by this author

, and

S. RAMACHANDRAN

Institute for Ocean Management, College of Engineering, Anna University, Chennai 600 025, India

Search for more papers by this author

https://doi.org/10.1142/S0578563407001617Cited by:21 (Source: Crossref)

Abstract

The December 26, 2004 tsunami has caused extensive damage in the Union Territory of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, India, affecting 115.36 km of coastline. In order to identify the impacts of tsunami in South Andaman of the Andaman Islands, the study has been carried out using satellite data for pre-tsunami (Feb. 2003) and post-tsunami (March 2005). This paper provides an assessment of damages caused by tsunami and suitable resettlement places for the people using remote sensing and GIS technology. Assessment of tsunami inflicted damage to island ecosystems assumes greater importance owing to their life-sustaining and livelihood support abilities. Apart from the reparation caused to life and property, significant damage has afflicted the ecosystem, which will have long lasting effects. The tsunami-induced damage to coastal ecosystems was studied based on coastal landuse, geomorphology and coastal critical habitat for South Andaman Island using remote sensing and GIS. An area of 3,366 ha of land area was affected by tsunami. Within the coastal ecosystem, coral reef and mangrove were also severely affected. The study of landforms shows that the land is submerged. The severity of damages and their consequences suggest the need for a definite restoration ecology programme.

Keywords:

References

ADB [2005] India Post Tsunami Recovery Program Preliminary Damage and Needs Assessment, Asian Development Bank, United Nations and World Bank, New Delhi, India, http://www.undp.org/bcpr/disred/documents/tsunami/india/reports/dnassessment.pdf . Google Scholar
Bapat, E. [1883] "Wikipedia," encyclopedia, http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ . Google Scholar
Bapat, E. [1941] "Wikipedia," encyclopedia, http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ . Google Scholar
Bapat, E. [1945] "Wikipedia," encyclopedia, http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ . Google Scholar
E. N. Bernard, Tsunami Research at the End of a Critical Decade, ed. G. T. Hebenstreit (Kluwer Academic publishers, Netherlands, 2001) pp. 7–15. Crossref, Google Scholar
Bilham, E. [1881] "Wikipedia," encyclopedia, http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ . Google Scholar
K. Dharanirajanet al., J. Indian Ocean Studies II(2), 301 (2003). Google Scholar
W. C. Dudley and M. Lee, The Development of the Warning System, Tsunami, 2nd edn. (University of Hawaii Press, 1988) pp. 100–113. Google Scholar
GSI [2005] A preliminary report on investigation of effects of the Sumatra — Andaman earthquake of 26th December 2004 in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Geological Survey of India, Government of India, http://www.cires.colorado.edu/~bilham/indonesia andaman2004_files/GSIreport12%20jan.pdf . Google Scholar
Gurugnanam, B. [2003] GIS Based Integrated Approach for Groundwater Studies in Gomukhi-Manimuktha Sub-Basic, Vellar, Tamilnadu, India, PhD thesis, Department of Earth Sciences, Annamala University, Chidambaram, pp. 192–215 . Google Scholar
IOM [2006] "Integrated coastal zone management for Andaman and Nicobar islands," Institute for Ocean Management, Anna University, Chennai, pp. 20–80 . Google Scholar
Krishnakumar [2002] "The coral reef ecosystem of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, problems and prospects," The world wide fund for nature — India initiation for its conservation, New Delhi, pp. 22–55 . Google Scholar
Kulkarni, S. [2005] Tsunami Impact Assessment of Coral Reefs in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Reef Watch Marine Conservation Mumbai, India, http://www.cordio.org/news_article.asp?id=13 . Google Scholar
Lockridge, P. A. & Smith, R. H. [1983] Tsunamis in the Pacific Basin 1900–1983, National Geophysical Data Centre, NOAA, Boulder, Colorado . Google Scholar
Ministry of Environment and Forests [1994] "Status report," Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India, New Delhi, Annual report, pp. 12–45 . Google Scholar
Ministry of Home Affairs [2005] Tsunami impact as on 04/04/05, Andaman and Nicobar Administration, Port Blair, Andaman, pp. 30–31 . Google Scholar
R. R. Navalgund, J. Indian Society of Remote Sensing 33(1), 1 (2005). Crossref, Web of Science, Google Scholar
J. Pethick, An Introduction to Coastal Geomorphology (Edward Arnold, London, 1984) p. 260. Google Scholar
SAC [1991] "Manual for mapping of coastal wetlands/landforms and shoreline changes using satellite data," Space Application Centre (ISRO), Ahmedabad, India, No. IRS-UP/SAC/MCE/TN/32/91, pp. 28–38 . Google Scholar
Sudhir, K. Jain, Murty, C., Javed Malik, V. R., Rai, C., Alpa Sheth, Pratibha Gandhi, Arvind Jaiswal, Snigdha Sanyal, Sodhi & Santhosh Kumar [2005] Quick Report on the Study of the 2004 Sumatra Earthquake and Tsunami Effects, Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, http://www.nicee.org/EQ_Reports/Andaman/AndamanReport.pdf . Google Scholar
Wikipedia [2005] "2004 Indian Ocean earthquake," the free encyclopedia, http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Indian_ocean_earthquake . Google Scholar