6,500 km away from environment summit, a whole lake at Belapur is being slowly devoured by concrete
6,500 km away from environment summit, a whole lake at Belapur is being slowly devoured by concrete
As delegates from 200 countries debate, squabble, and try to notch up green points discussing climate change at the 12-day Copenhagen Climate Summit, in another corner of the world in Belapur, a green lung is quietly disappearing.
At 30 acres, the Seawoods Lake is bigger than the Oval Maidan (22 acres) and is partly encircled by mangroves and is home to migratory birds like pelicans and flamingos. And when the lake is full, fishing takes place.
Yet, CIDCO refuses to call it a lake.
"It's nothing more than a depression where rain water and sewage from the surrounding areas accumulates.
The plot belongs to CIDCO and we will carry development work there, " said G S Gill, vice chairman and MD, CIDCO.
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Depressing: Belapur's Seawoods Lake, which authorities claim is not even a lake, but just a 'depression'. |
Even as CIDCO refuses to acknowledge it, residents say, the lake's death has begun debris is being systematically dumped on the shores and then, after a considerable build-up, it's pushed unceremoniously into the lake.
Said Rajee Sood, who lives at the Seawoods NRI Complex opposite the lake (from where the lake takes its name), "The lake is so beautiful, but if authorities keep dumping the debris in the lake, it will soon be gone.
A significant portion of the lake has already disappeared."
Added Vinod Punshi, another resident of the NRI Complex, "The lake needs to be beautified, instead they are destroying it. Our regular correspondence with the authorities has had no results.
They can't seem to understand that Seawoods is a lake, not a depression."
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Dumping Yard: Residents say debris is being systematically dumped on the shores and then pushed unceremoniously into the lake. Join 'Save Seawoods Lake' on Facebook. |
He added, "This area has been safe during the rains only because of the lake as rainwater drains into it. If this lake disappears, which is slowly happening, we will face serious problems."
However, Gill is adamant that there's no lake. "There is no notification in the geological documents," he said.
Environmentalist we spoke to were unhappy.
Said Rishi Aggarwal, "Why should we even bother to take part in a Copenhagen summit? If this lake disappears it would be suicidal for the area and will lead to a 26/7 like situation. The lake needs to be saved."
Vinuta Gopal of Green Peace, said, "It's commendable that citizens are fighting to save the lake. There's no point in climate change discussions if we cannot even save a small lake."
46,200 tonnesAmount of carbon dioxide u00a0generated at Copenhagen Summit from flights taken by delegates
37.5 sq kmArea covered by mangroves in Mumbai 10 years ago
40%Loss of mangrove cover in 10 years
15Number of species of mangroves in Mumbai
| So, What is a Lake? |
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The Encyclopedia Britannica defines a lake as a 'Relatively large body of slow-moving or standing water that occupies an inland basin'. Said Dinesh Gondalia, deputy municipal commissioner and former hydraulic chief engineer, BMC, "In layman's terms, this is a lake. It's a reservoir with water, that's not too deep or too shallow." |
