Survey by students reveals threat to mangroves

Survey of some mangrove areas in the city by students of St. Xavier's College reveals they are plagued by problems such as garbage dumping and encroachment.

As part of a college project, five students of the second year Bachelor of Science (BSc) course visited the mangroves in Bandra, Versova and Dahisar to assess threats to this ecosystem. "We visited the mangroves at Ganpat Patil Nagar in Dahisar and found many shanties at the edge of the mangroves. This gives strong indication that these were most probably built by reclaiming mangrove land," said 18-year-old Zinia D'Souza, one of the students who conducted the survey.

In March, almost 100 such structures at Ganpat Patil Nagar were demolished by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation as they were deemed a systematic reclamation of mangrove land. Students also found materials such as mud, stone and other debris dumped at the edge of the mangroves.

At Carter Road in Bandra, students found garbage such as plastic dumped in the mangroves. "Such dumping of garbage near the roots of mangroves can affect the trees," said Rutwij Kulkarni, another student. "These areas need to be monitored carefully so that such activities do not impact mangroves," he said.

At Versova though, students found that the mangrove area was well-barricaded by the authorities and separated from the residential area. "This should discourage people from entering the area and harming it," said D'Souza.

ALSO READ

Campus placements: IIT Bombay targets 100 companies in phase-II

‘Babasaheb Ambedkar a prisoner of caste politics, his relevance will grow’: Bharip Bahujan Mahasangh president Prakash Ambedkar

From anger to anguish

We deal with birth and death daily, but some deaths leave a void, say doctors