A green Indo-Japanese exchange for Mumbai

Last Sunday, Honourable Consul General of Japan (Mumbai) Dr Fukahori Yasukata along with Mehool N Bhuva, president of the Indo-Japanese Association, visited Colaba Woods Garden. They were particularly keen to observe the rainwater harvesting percolation pit and the urban forest. “The BMC has been using the Miyawaki method of tree planting, which was developed by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki. In fact, we have planted more than three lakh trees in the city using this technique, which involves planting two to four trees per square metre. Miyawaki forests grow in two to three years and are self-sustaining. They can help to lower temperatures in concrete heat islands and reduce air and noise pollution. Dr Yasukata was appreciative of our application of this methodology, as well as of our percolation pits. He has invited me to visit Japan to share our know-how about our low-cost rainwater harvesting system; we will also work on a Japanese documentary featuring this innovation,” shared Dr Subhajit Mukherjee, founder of Mission Green Mumbai.