Seaweed park to be set up in Tamil Nadu

Context

A seaweed park will be set up in Tamil Nadu once the state government allocates the necessary land for the first time in the country to improve the livelihood of fishers.

• The project would be implemented under the Prime Minister’s Matsya Sampada Yojana to increase fish stocks in Rameswaram and Mandapam areas.

What is Seaweed?

• "Seaweed" is the common name for countless species of marine plants and algae that grow in the ocean as well as in rivers, lakes, and other water bodies.

• Some seaweeds are microscopic, such as the phytoplankton that live suspended in the water column and provide the base for most marine food chains. 
• Some are enormous, like the giant kelp that grow in abundant “forests” and tower-like underwater redwoods from their roots at the bottom of the sea.
• Most are medium-sized, come in colors of red, green, brown, and black, and randomly wash up on beaches and shorelines just about everywhere.