The lost flamingoes of Mumbai

A signature campaign is on to save Mumbai's precious wetlands by bringing them under the umbrella of international protection

A wetland in Juhu, sprawling over 60 odd acres and inhabited by migratory birds and various life forms (both flora and fauna), is one of Mumbai's biggest wetlands, but also one of the city's most endangered.


Painting by Elsie Gabriel called 'Then there was one' to show the declining population of flamingoes

Sandwiched between the rapidly expanding Nehru Nagar slums and the Pawan Hans Flying Club in Juhu, this green cover faces encroachment from all sides.
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If slum encroachment is not stopped immediately it might join the list of Mumbai's vanishing wetlands.

Signature campaign

A signature campaign has been launched by the city's nature lovers and green activists to protect its water bodies. The campaign, which was kicked off to coincide with the Wetlands Day on February 2, strives to put the water bodies on the Ramsar Convention.

The Ramsar Convention is an international agreement, which undertakes to protect endangered wetlands worldwide. It is an environmental equivalent to the heritage building protection by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

The citizens' response to the campaign, however, is far from encouraging. But the organisers say their activities are spreading across schools, colleges and offices to get more people join the campaign.
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Says Elsie Gabriel, Founder President of the Young Environmentalists Programme Trust, "180 is too small a number. We are getting more people to sign up for the campaign." Lakes, mangrove forests and beaches are classified as wetlands.

According to a report by World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF), 30 years ago Mumbai had 130 water bodies. Today, their number is down to 68, thanks largely to the onward march of urbanisation.
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"Almost 50 per cent of the lakes in Mumbai have vanished in the last 30 years," says Goldin Quadros, Interim State Director, WWF.u00a0 Residential buildings, office complexes, land reclamation and other construction activities have devoured more than half the wetlands in this space-starved city.

Fortunately, the city can still boast of fresh water bodies, such as the Powai Lake, Vihar and Tulsi Lakes and rainwater mangroves, such as the one in Gorai and Versova.
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Migratory birds fly from far off countries to make the city's wetlands their temporary abode. The signatories to the campaign are being asked to choose the water bodies they would like to be put on the Ramsar Convention.

Thresa George, a fashion designer, says she is rooting for the Powai Lake. "Planting trees and building walking areas around the lake will not help. These are all artificial measures. I want the lake to naturally looku00a0 beautiful," says George, who has been a resident of Powai for the last 27 years.
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"I will soon join the signature campaign," she adds. Apu Kuttan, an environmental campaigner from Powai, underlines the need for public awareness in order to protect the endangered water bodies. Says he, "Public support and help is needed.

There are weeds and there is eutrophication (a process where water bodies receive excess nutrients that stimulate excessive plant growth thus killing the aquatic flora and fauna already thriving) happening, which needs to be controlled. Hence the campaign."

Ramsar Convention

The Ramsar Convention is an international treaty for conservation and sustainable utilisation of wetlands all over the world. It prevents wetlands from encroachment and protects them through co-operation.

The convention was developed and adopted by participating nations at a meeting in Ramsar, a small town in Iran, on February 2, 1971. The headquarters is located in Gland, Switzerland.
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After getting a site on the Ramsar Convention, it is then called a Ramsar site. Every year, the Ramsar Convention selects a theme and raises awareness on specific types of wetlands or aspects of wetland management.
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This year, the theme they have selected is Wetlands and Forests, which was chosen consciously with a view to joining hands with the UN, which is observing 2011 as the UN International Year of Forests.

The signature campaign assumes importance in Mumbai not just because many water bodies have disappeared but also because the remaining need to be saved from vanishing. Of the 25 sites in India which are already on the Ramsar Convention, none are in Mumbai or Maharashtra.
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"There are so many water bodies in Mumbai, not one in Mumbai is listed on the Ramsar Convention. I wholeheartedly feel that the Sewri zone of wetlands and the Powai lake should be put on the list to help protect them and preserve them," opines Gabriel.
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Environmentalists believe that people's participation will actually make a difference. "Not only mangroves but also talaos and lakes are also wetlands and today we need to make a petition and unite to put at least one of our wetlands bodies on the Ramsar Convention list and safeguard our mangroves," says Quadros.

"Mumbai is still so rich in wetlands. Baramati in Maharashtra, the Thane creek in Thane district, and Uran are a few places we would like to include in the list that we would submit to the state government. The list will then have to be approved by the central government before it is sent to the Ramsar committee," he adds.

The Uran and Sewri wetlands, the Powai Lake, Mahim, Gorai Manori, Malad and Lokhandwala wetlands, need to be protected, emphasises Gabriel. Bittu Sahgal, editor of Sanctuary Asia Magazine, says that appeals by various organisations to save the Thane Creek have fallen on deaf ears.

"The WWF should be wholeheartedly supported in this attempt. In the era of climate change, getting a site on the Ramsar Convention, is not just a formality.

It will prove to be a life saving asset for the citizens of Mumbai who should not forget the trauma of the Mithi floods," explains Sahgal. Agrees Gabriel, "In Mumbai, if the areas near the mangroves in Mahim were well kept and clean, we would have safely let out the water during the 2005 floods.

The areas were choked with garbage and plastic bags. We must urge the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to keep all wetlands clean to prevent this from happening again."

But are the authorities listening? Debi Goenka, executive trustee of the NGO Conservation Action Trust, says, "Not really." He says that the plan to clean the Thane Creek has been abandoned. "The clean-up drive was to detect the reason behind the pollution and to eliminate it systematically. But it has hit a roadblock," says Goenka, without elaborating.

Initiative

The Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) has identified 135 wetland sites in India that have the potential to qualify for the Ramsar criteria. Mahul-Sewri mudflats and the Thane creek are potential Ramsar sites from Mumbai.u00a0

"We have also published a book called, 'Potential and Existing Ramsar Sites in India' and a copy of which is available with the state government," says Atul Sathe, Public Relations Officer (PRO), BNHS.
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"Water pollution, dumping of waste and debris, reclamation and poaching are some of the major threats to wetlands and birds in India," says Dr Asad Rahmani, Director, BNHS.


Garbage dumped at the Powai Lake

Government view

While various organisations have identified potential Ramsar sites, the forest department says that it wants the Mangrove Wetland Centre at Bhandup to be declared as a Ramsar site. "Officials from the government of India have already visited the wetland centre.

Once it is declared as a Ramsar site, it will be easier for us to get financial help from organisations based abroad," says Satyajit Gujar, Divisional Forest Office Planning, Thane. "The funding will help to protect the mangroves as well as the migratory birds," he ends.

1980: 130 lakes
2009: 68 lakes

What are Wetlands?
A wetland is an area of land where the soil is saturated with moisture either permanently or seasonally. Such areas may also be covered partially or completely by shallow pools of water. Mangroves are considered as salt water wetlands whereas lakes are fresh water wetlands. Environmentalists have suggested that wetlands are not only rich in biodiversity; they also provide protection against erosion and floods. They also help in ground water replenishment. "There are around 14-15 wetlands in the city which should be looked after," says Sathe. Wetlands play a crucial role in balancing the ecological system and act as catchments for rainwater, which Mumbai gets aplenty during the monsoon. They also replenish the underground water table and prevent soil erosion and deforestation. Wetlands are also home to various species of flora and fauna.u00a0

Past
Uran Wetland in Navi Mumbai and the one in Charkop, Kandivali are some of the recent cases of wetlands' disappearances, which are fresh in the residents' memories. All protestations by locals and the green brigade proved too weak to prevent powerful builders and developers from destroying the wetlands.

Potential Ramsar Sites IN Maharashtra and Gujarat identified by the BNHS
Vengurla Rocks (Sindhudurg district)
Jaikwadi Sanctuary (Aurangabad)
Mahul-Sewri mudflats (Mumbai)
Nandur Madhmeshwar Sanctuary (Nashik)
Thane creek, Ujani Dam (Pune)
Flamingo City (Kutch district)
Kaj lake (Junagadh)
Khijadiya Sanctuary (Jamnagar)
Nal Sarovar (Ahmedabad) }Bhavnagar salt pans, Thol Lake (Mehsana) and Kheda wetlands. Caramboli Lake in Goa is also a potential site.

Identifying Ramsar Sites
Should have Globally Threatened bird species
Should be a Congregatory area for birds
Should have Assemblages of Restricted-Range bird species
Should have Assemblage of Biome-Restricted bird species.