A project to develop a biosphere management programme for the Gulf of Mannar biosphere reserve has been planned by the M S Swaminathan Research Foundation (mssrf). Estimated to cost us $6-8 million, the project will be aided by the Global Environment Facility and the United Nations Development Programme.

A World Resources Report for 1996 had warned that the Gulf of Mannar reserve, along with five others stood a high risk of degradation. Trawler fishing and other activities in the Gulf have caused extensive damage to the reserve. The mssrf project document identifies six specific threats to the reserve