Soil mining puts clam stocks in Ashtamudi Lake under threat
Local clam collectors are concerned about the destruction of breeding grounds due to dredging for the National Highway development project, impacting their livelihoods and the clam population.
Local clam collectors are concerned about the destruction of breeding grounds due to dredging for the National Highway development project, impacting their livelihoods and the clam population.
Local clam collectors are concerned about the destruction of breeding grounds due to dredging for the National Highway development project, impacting their livelihoods and the clam population.
Kollam: Soil mining in the Ashtamudi Lake, being carried out as part of the National Highway development project, has triggered serious concerns among local clam collectors, who fear that the activity is destroying the lake’s delicate ecosystem and threatening their livelihoods.
According to members of the local fishing community, vast quantities of soil are being dredged from areas that serve as key breeding grounds for clams. They allege that, along with the soil, large volumes of clams are also being removed from the lakebed. Instead of focusing on sand deposits, dredgers are reportedly scooping up deeper layers of the lakebed, causing irreversible damage to the clam population. Clams worth several lakhs of rupees have already been lost, leading to a sharp decline in availability.
Around 500 workers depend on clam harvesting in Ashamudi Lake across the regions of Aravila, Neendakara, Mukkad, Dalavapuram, and Thekkumbhagam. The clams found here, known locally as Manjakakka (or Kallukakka), are of superior quality and highly sought-after for their taste, fetching better market prices. Workers usually earn around ₹1,700 for 35 kilograms of clams.
The harvested clams are primarily transported to markets in Goa and Mumbai. Apart from their culinary value, the white shells of these clams are used as raw material in the production of various life-saving medicines, as well as in items like toothpaste.
However, the ongoing mining operations are believed to be destroying rocks on the lakebed, which serve as a habitat for clams. In the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami, clam stocks in the lake here had witnessed a similar decline due to disruptions in the lake’s ecosystem.
The fishing community observes an annual ban on clam harvesting from December to February. While the current season typically yields an abundant harvest, this year has seen a drastic fall in clam availability.
Earlier, clam collectors staged strong protests against soil mining in the lake's clam breeding zones. With their livelihood now hanging by a thread, they have renewed their demand for an immediate halt to all dredging activities that threaten the clam population in Ashtamudi Lake.