Nashik's Devlali dump yard transformed into urban forest with 42,000 native saplings

For years a patch of land in Devlali Cantonment Board was an eyesore Random plastic bags dirty discarded clothes abandoned footwear broken glass and household waste lay strewn across the site During the monsoon rainwater mixed with this garbage waste created stagnant pools of foulsmelling leachateToday no one would believe that this is the same siteSpread across 140 hectares or roughly 35 acres the onceneglected site is on the way to being transformed to an urban forest with around 42000 saplings representing more than 40 indigenous species The project is undertaken by the Social Forestry Department Nashik following the Miyawaki method of developing dense plantations using native speciesBehind the transformation are women forest officers and frontline staff who spent months working on a piece of land that had for years effectively been written offMiyawaki whatFinding suitable land for the Miyawaki project was itself a challengeMiyawaki Model is a Japanese technique of creating dense native forests in small spaces by planting indigenous species closely together with scientifically prepared soil and multiple layers of vegetationThe Cantonment Board Social Forestry Department and Nashik district administration extended their full support to the women officers in developing the urban forestAmong them are Range Forest Officers Savita Patil Karuna Pagare and Suchita Patil along with Sunita Deshmukh another Range Forest Officer who was associated with the project before her transferldquoPeople have been dumping waste here year after year When we started thinking about implementing the Miyawaki model in Nashik we identified this land But getting an NOC was the biggest challenge because the land belonged to the Defence Department There was no such suitable land parcel available in Nashik city so we decided to develop this site in Devlalirdquo said Savita Patil Range Forest Officer Nashik speaking to Sunday middayThe Social Forestry Department received the necessary NOC in March 2026 following which work beganThe first step was perhaps the least glamorous but most crucial mdash clearing the siteSeveral dumpers and other equipment were deployed to remove years of accumulated waste Clothes plastic footwear glass pieces and other discarded material had to be cleared before the land could be prepared for plantationFrom left to right Suchita Patil Karun Pagare and Savita PatilThe logistics of it allldquoOnce we got the NOC we immediately started the work The entire dumping yard had to be cleared People had been throwing all kinds of unwanted material here for years After cleaning the plots the land was excavated and the soil was treated with cowdung manure compost and wood husk before it was filled and prepared for plantationrdquo Patil saidThe plantation work began during the monsoonUnlike a conventional plantation where trees are generally spaced out the Miyawaki method involves planting native species closely together in a scientifically planned arrangement The idea is to recreate on a smaller scale the layered structure of a natural forestAt Devlali the plantation has been laid out on a onemetrebyonemetre grid The plants have been selected to create different layers of vegetation including canopy trees large trees subtrees and shrubs added the PatilThe plantation comprises approximately 20 per cent canopy species 40 per cent large trees 27 per cent subtrees and 13 per cent shrubsThe objective is to create a dense and diverse ecosystem rather than simply increase the number of treesTo protect the young plantation from stray cattle and trespassing the site has been fenced A dripirrigation system has also been installed to provide water to the saplingsGajendra HireOver a decade in the makingFor Karuna Pagare who has been in government service for nearly 12 years the project carries particular significanceldquoThis is the first time the Miyawaki model has been implemented in Nashik district and we feel proud to be associated with it We have been stationed here and are constantly involved in looking after the saplings The work is still going onmdashwhether it is putting up supporting wooden sticks for the plants or taking care of their growthrdquo Pagare told Sunday middayItrsquos a climbFor the forest department team planting the saplings was only the beginning The real task now is ensuring that they survive and establish themselvesSuchita Patil 42 associated with the Range Forest Department said the plantation would eventually create a habitat for several forms of biodiversityldquoEven on a small piece of land like this we hope to develop a diverse ecosystem We have planted flowering and medicinal species as well The biodiversity here will gradually develop as the plantation growsrdquo she saidlsquoA nandanvan on damaged Defence landrsquoGajendra Hire IFS Conservator of Forests Nashik said the biggest hurdle had been securing permission to use the Defence land for ecological restorationldquoThe main task was getting the NOC from the Defence authorities This was Defence land in a severely deteriorated condition and we wanted to create a lsquonandanvanrsquomdash a green havenmdashon such land In the next two to three years you will see it developing into a dense urban forest and becoming home to several speciesrdquo Hire told Sunday middayOut with the legacy wasteThe transformation has also been welcomed by the Devlali Cantonment authoritiesAbhishek Tripathi CEO of Devlali Cantonment Board said the site lay unused and dirtyldquoWe received a proposal from the Social Forestry Department regarding development of an urban forest We already had a solid waste management system but legacy waste had accumulated on these land parcels over several decadesrdquo Tripathi told Sunday middayTripathi added that the Cantonment Board had granted permission to the Forest Department for the projectThe work begins after the plantingFortytwo thousand saplings may sound like the headline number but the success of the project will ultimately be measured by how many survive and how the ecosystem develops over the coming yearsFor the women forest officers who have been closely involved with the project however the achievement is more immediate and tangibleThey remember the land as a dumping groundNow the green shoots are proof that even a dump can be given a second chance