This is the presentation I made at the 10th Annual Conference organised by the Paryavaran Dakshata Mandal at the Convocation Hall, University of Mumbai

1. Conserving mangroves
Lets clean up the peripheries!
Rishi Aggarwal
Mangrove Society of India – Mumbai Chapter
Co-founder and Jt. Secretary
Paryavaran Dakshata Manch
World Wetlands Day
2nd February, 2016

3. How serious are we about saving
mangroves?
• How we maintain the most visible part of the
mangrove ecosystem shows our seriousness and
determines the public support for conserving them.
• 99 percent of people relate to the mangroves by
the periphery. When the periphery looks dirty
people associate mangroves with dirt and disease
and hence to be done away with.

4. This is not what people get to see
when we say mangroves
(only the wealthy get to see this from their apartments)

5. What a majority see is this…..

7. The entire periphery marked in red is in need of attention. Rampant dumping of
garbage. A plan was put in place in 2002-03 but no follow up from government.

8. Left of the wall are the mangroves. The wall is used for urination. What is behind the wall?

9. This is what is behind the wall. The wall makes it convenient for dumping all kinds of garbage
into the mangroves. The wall need to be broken and a short kata like in Shivaji park needs to be
created so people can sit. A public toilet has been suggested at the beginning of the road.

11. Seven Bungalows

13. Case Study – Seven Bungalows

14. What the board says.
The rusted state of the board is a commentary on how serious
the authorities are interested in spirit

15. …and this is the situation below the board itself

16. Seven Bungalows

17. Seven Bungalows

18. Case Study – Eastern Expressway

19. …or this

25. Action Plan
• A continuous partnership between MCGM, the
Mangroves Cell and us. Make clean peripheries of
wetlands in MMR and integral part of Swacch Bharat
Abhiyan.
• A Zero tolerance approach. No build up of waste
allowed before clean up is carried out. Weekly clean
up if required in initial stages.
• Putting up of information boards in different
languages
• Creating seating and play and activity areas next to
the mangroves.

26. Action Plan
• Lets build beautiful promenades along all the
mangrove peripheries and make the space available
for leisure.
• People will see the mangroves in a whole new light.

27. Thank you