Work starts on report about coast

Dar es Salaam. The National Environment Management Council (Nemc) on Thursday set in motion the process of preparing the statutory report on the state of Mainland Tanzania’s coast to ensure inshore, onshore and offshore economic and social activities do not damage the coastal and sea environment.

Opening a planning meeting of experts in Dar es Salaam to develop the report – officially called the Tanzania State of the Coast Report (TSOCR) – the acting Nemc director general, Dr Vedast Makota, reminded the experts that the nation expects them to discharge themselves professionally and complete assignments in time because funds for the project have already been provided by the EU/IOC Biodiversity Programme.

He said Tanzania is experiencing pollution from varied sources, coastal habitat alteration, overexploitation of fisheries and other coastal and marine resources, adding that there is a pressing need for scientific knowledge to ensure sustainable management of coastal and marine ecosystems.