Know your sentries

The shoreline of Mumbai is dotted with areas where an inland stream or the Mithi river meets the sea And unlike the sandy stretch of the beach this tecircteagravetecircte between freshwater and seawater gives rise to a unique wetland ecosystem of which mangroves are a vital part The city has steadily lost its mangrove cover over the decades Earlier this week it became clear that Maharashtra is set to lose over 1336 hectares of the cover with a minimum of 54000 mangrove trees to be axed for the MumbaiAhmedabad bullet train projectAs a consolation it was announced that for every tree cut five more will be planted That summarises our disconnect from nature ldquoAll we need to do is leave them alonerdquo believes Stalin D conservationist and director of Vanashakti an NGO whose thrust areas include landscape conservation environmental education scientific investigation and sustainable livelihoodsWhat makes these stretches of tropical trees that act as a buffer between the sea and land critical to a coastal city like Mumbai ldquoThe wetland ecosystem is among the most efficient ones on earth Mangroves are nurseries for marine life Crabs and other invertebrates feed on their decaying leaves while the big fish use the areas where mangroves thrive to lay eggsrdquo explains StalinAnish AndheriaBut man needs more utilitarian value for something that ought to be preserved mdash and mangroves offer plenty of that To start with they act as shock absorbers ldquoBecause they stand as sentries on our shoreline they mitigate the impact of a cyclone or hurricane that hits a coastal cityrdquo says Dr Anish Andheria president of the Wildlife Conservation Trust ldquoThey act as natural filters by absorbing heavy metals Their carbon dioxide absorption capacity is five times higher than a regular treerdquo adds StalinThis however hasnrsquot proved to be good enough And mangroves have consistently been the collateral damage for the cityrsquos real estate needs ldquoWe donrsquot have many species of mangroves left in the cityrdquo laments Dr AndheriaStalin D Among the areas where you can still explore this unique ecosystem in Mumbai are Sewri either sides of the BandraSion Link Road the patch behind Lokhandwala and Versova in Andheri pockets of Bangur Nagar in Malad and the creek area around the Nagla block of Sanjay Gandhi National Park ldquoThe best mangrove patch with the highest number of species is the VikhroliBhandupAiroli stretch which is owned by the Godrej grouprdquo he addsNow nestled amidst the very city that developed around them meet your sentries in personHow you can helpKeep an eye out for encroachment form a focus group and raise your voice while itrsquos underway not after all is lost A collective voice is crucial to dissuade land grabbers Individuals canrsquot fights these battles suggests Dr Andheria Stalin says Citizens must press for the inclusion of scientists in the planning stage of projectsCall 67961097 to sign up for a walk in the mangroves around the Godrej compound in Pirojshanagar Vikhroli Log on to vanashaktiinCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get the latest updates