BMC prepares to survey tree cover ……….Sukhada Tatke
Owners And Occupiers Of Plots With Too Little Greenery Will Be Ordered To Plant More Trees
Owners And Occupiers Of Plots With Too Little Greenery Will Be Ordered To Plant More Trees
Mumbai: The new rules for tree cover in cities across the statethe Maharashtra (Urban Area) Protection of Trees Rules,2009were framed by the state late last year and given by the law and judiciary department to the BMC and other civic bodies last month.The Bombay High Court asked for the new rules following a PIL over the hacking of trees on the Mumbai-Nashik highway.
The rules,which are framed under the Maharashtra (Urban Area) Protection of Trees Act,1975,make it mandatory for roads,open spaces and even the area around buildings to have a minimum number of trees.A tree must be at least 15 feet in height,said Chandrashekhar Rokade,deputy municipal commissioner (gardens).
If a plot does not have the requisite number of trees,the BMCs Tree Authority has the power to direct the owners to plant more trees.Non-compliance can lead to prosecution under the Trees Act.
While Mumbai civic officials hailed the new rules as a tool to increase green cover,activists and experts said they were taking the changes with a pinch of salt until they see that they dont remain only on paper.
Rokade said,Until now,the rules were not clearly spelled out.With the new rules,the gardens department (which runs the Tree Authority) of the BMC has been armed with the power to take action.
Activists fighting for more green cover said they werent sure if anything positive will develop.The rules are on paper.It remains to be seen whether they will actually be implemented, said Nilesh Baxi,honorary secretary of the NGO Signature and a member of the Tree Authority.
Ashok Kothari,honorary secretary of the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS),said that strict vigilance should follow the plantation.If there is no follow-up,mere plantation wont help.But,in any case,the new rules were welcome and much needed, he said.
The Development Plan (DP) department of the BMC will soon begin reviewing all plots in the city.If we notice that a piece of land that does not have adequate tree cover,we can direct the ownerwhether a government agency or a private developerto plant trees.There will be a compliance period of 90 days, Rokade said.
The rules also make it mandatory for the planters to consider the species of tree suitable to the local soil strata,the climate and space available.For roadside planting,trees with deep roots would be preferred so that they are not felled by the elements.Borewells,in public spaces like gardens,should be used as a source of water for the trees and the wells should be recharged with rainwater.