Coastal erosion: Homes disappear, walls crumble as climate change ravages India's already battered coastline

In the next three decades, coastal erosion will occur 1.5 times faster than the past three decades. India’s coasts are under attack both from man-made activities — such as growing construction, damming of rivers, sand mining and destruction of mangroves — as well as natural causes linked to climate change such as rising sea levels. “At times the waves would completely wash over our home and leave behind plastic bottles that were discarded in the sea by people,” Karvi said, pointing to the waste bottles on the land. India’s coasts are under attack both from man-made activities — such as growing construction, damming of rivers, sand mining and destruction of mangroves — as well as natural causes linked to climate change such as rising sea levels, according to the report. “A heavily managed coastline, for example a beach with a seawall, cannot adapt very well to climate change impacts and requires constant attention, whereas a natural coastline, or one that is managed using more sustainable methods on management such as nourishment, can naturally adapt to climate change impacts.” Any sand taken away from the coast needs to be replaced, added Murthy.