Coasts under pressure: marine and coastal environmental security in the Indian Ocean Context

The tsunami of December 26, 2004, that struck coastal areas of Indian Ocean littoral states with such devastation and loss of life provided a graphic example of the forces of nature, and the effects of such forces on coastal communities. The tsunami and its aftermath were felt around the Indian Ocean Region, with coastal communities and environments destroyed in the area near the epicenter of the undersea earthquake off Aceh in Indonesia, in the southern parts of Thailand, the Maldives, and the Andaman Islands (Kay 2005). The tsunami also affected the east African coastline and was recorded at Australian stations in the Antarctic (Brolsma 2005, 13). The impacts of the tsunami-in destroying coastal areas and communities-provided clear evidence of the Significance of the coastal zone to the economic and social fabric to the region.