The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation’s (NMMC) plan to establish a Mangrove Park has been met with enthusiasm by environmental activists.
The next major initiative which activists want NMMC to take up is related to rainwater harvesting.
During the budget speech delivered by the Municipal Commissioner on February 25, it was stated that, given the city’s extensive mangrove cover, the civic administration intends to collaborate with the forest department for the development of a Mangrove Park.
“It was in the year 2019 that the suggestion for having a mangrove park cropped up. This was specifically when mangroves under NMSEZ and JNPA were destroyed in the Uran area,” said BN Kumar, Director of NatConnect.
The idea of a Mangrove Park is stated to be considered by the High Court-mandated Mangrove Protection and Conservation Committee. “It was agreed by the committee that a mangrove park in the city could play a major role in educating the public on the importance of tidal plants. It’s great that NMMC has now included this project in the budget,” said Kumar.
The corporation’s green initiatives have further been appreciated with the proposal to plant 45,000 saplings in and around Navi Mumbai. “Instead of creating more concrete jungles under the guise of redevelopment projects, we need to create urban forests,” said Vashi based social activist Madhu Shankar. “The forests created at Kopar Khairane and Nerul are good examples,” she said, further pointing out, “We need to have more such projects on Parsik Hills and other areas such as Vashi, Nerul, Sanpada, Airoli, and in the MIDC industrial belt.”
Another significant environmental measure suggested for NMMC is the formulation of a comprehensive environment policy incorporating rainwater harvesting. “The kind of population expansion that will be happening across Navi Mumbai with major developments, especially the airport, means that every source of water conservation has to be explored by the authorities. Rainwater harvesting is one such aspect that needs to be studied by NMMC,” said Pravin Mohite, a resident of Seawoods.
