Even though tree lovers have welcomed Bombay High Court's rap to the BMC over the increasing number of trees dying in the city, activists who have been demanding that all tree bases be de-concretised are questioning the civic body's lackadaisical approach to saving the green cover.
NGO Vanashakti had filed a petition in the National Green Tribunal (NGT), seeking removal of all concrete bases in the critical root zone of trees in Mumbai. The tribunal had directed the BMC to clear all concrete, paver blocks and rubble around avenue trees (trees lining roads) and construct tree basins of 1m x 1m x 1m and fill them with nutrient-rich soil.
Stalin D, director (projects) for Vanashakti, said it was his team that studied and geo-tagged 1,956 rain trees between Dahisar and Colaba and found that around 1,404 had been infested with mealybugs. "We presented a 14-month study in collaboration with Jhunjhunwala College's botany department, showing that one of the main causes behind the deteriorating condition of trees was extensive concretisation of their critical root zone, due to which the tree is pushed into stress for water and falls prey to pests and fungus," he said, adding that in spite being pulled up by the NGT, the BMC is continuing to drag its feet on this critical issue.
Committee member of another NGO, Friends of Trees, Dr Parvish Pandya pointed to another major issue — illegal felling and hacking of trees. "While clearing the concretisation is essential, it's extremely important to protect the healthy trees. The BMC also needs to make it easy for any citizen who wants to complain against illegal tree hacking, the current process is so lengthy that by the time a person finishes the formalities by going to the police or calling the BMC ward office, the tree is hacked and taken away," he said.
Paresh Pimpale, the founder of Ecofolks, an NGO working to spread awareness on environment issues, said, "The dead rain trees are hacked, but no saplings are planted in that space. Hence, city's green cover is reducing. The BMC should ideally find strong species that are not easily attacked by mealybugs and plant them across the city."
A BMC official from the gardens department claimed that they are doing everything to save the trees. He said most rain trees were eaten away by mealybugs. "We are using all kinds of treatment — right from using ladybugs that can destroy mealybugs to using neem paste and other remedies, apart from unclogging the base," he added.
How mealybugs kill trees
They suck the cell sap from the leaves and inject poisonous saliva, thereby killing the tree tissues. Over time, leaves and branches start falling off, resulting in the infested trees being defoliated.
Vanashakti's proposals
De-paving the tree bases
Replacing the top soil using hand-held tools to avoid damage to the roots
Mounting paver blocks on un-compacted soil on walkways
Setting up tree committees in every ward
Planting trees in channels/trenches of soil as against restricting concrete blocks
