MMRDA to develop 5-hectare Mangrove Park on Mumbai's outskirts
07 May 2010
Mumbai: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) today said that it would develop Mangrove Park on a 5-hectare plot at Gorai-Manori as a pilot project.
This pilot project is part of the 137-hectare Mangrove Park project to be developed in the future as a tourist spot.
MMRDA said it is planning to carry out massive mangrove plantation in bald patches admeasuring five hectares along the periphery of the 137 hectares of land which is earmarked for the Mangrove Park.
A select variety of mangrove species such as rhizophora mucronata, avicennia marina, salvadora, suaeda, sesuvium and ceriops will be planted and conserved in the area.
MMRDA has established a core committee of experts in the field of conservation and regeneration of Mangroves to develop this state-of-the-art Mangrove Park, headed by S V R Srinivas, MMRDA's additional metropolitan commissioner and included Dr.D BChaphekar, Dr.Sanjay Deshmukh, Avinash Kubal among others.
''We believe in total development; the environment and its protection and conservation is as crucial as the development of infrastructure," MMRDA metropolitan commissioner Ratnakar Gaikwad said in a statement.
"Mangrove forest is an important ecosystem. It helps remove air pollution, limit coastal erosion and also protects the coastal areas from saline water intrusion and storms. The mangrove forest also helps development of aquaculture,'' he said.
MMRDA said that this Rs100-crore project is being launched to provide vital shelter belts to protect inland homesteads, livestock and other properties located in near-shore environments.
"It will also ensure improved fish catch to coastal communities and thus will have great socio-economic value. The mangrove park is a habitat for spawning and nursery ground for various marine species like fish, shellfish, crustaceans and other invertebrates," it added.
