When Nandakumar W Pawar was growing up in Eastern Mumbai, he and his family would go to their back yard and catch fresh fish to serve every time guests came to visit. These days there are no fish left. The mangrove forests and water bodies that housed fish have been replaced by concrete.
Pawar now heads activist organisation Shree Ekvira Aai Pratishthan, which works on mangrove conservation and restoration. Mangroves are essential if Mumbai wants to combat issues like sea level rise and other climate change-related issues.
But in the last decade, Mumbai has lost about 10 percent of its mangrove forests, which diminishes the crucial roles these plants play in coastal ecosystems.
Mangroves tend to absorb more carbon than conventional forests because they have more biomass. When strong storms hit the coast, they act as a protective barrier and can save lives. They also act as a barrier to sea level rise. In cities like Mumbai, which is densely populated, ecosystem services like these can’t be taken for granted.
Environmentalists are working hard to make sure these mangroves aren’t wiped away by construction, because for them, development does not have to mean environmental destruction. If anything, long term development is dependent on maintaining the environment, they say.
Video Editor: Ashutosh Bhardwaj
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