Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has decided to carry out a detailed evaluation of the city’s green areas, and the parks department has invited tenders for the work. This assessment will be conducted for the first time and will also include a census of trees in Mumbai. The tree census, which is usually done every five years, will take place after a seven-year gap this time. The move aims to provide clear information about how much greenery remains in Mumbai amid rapid urban development.
The total area of Mumbai is 476.24 square kilometers, but exact data on how much of this is covered in greenery is not available. Over the years, many trees have been removed to make way for construction and infrastructure projects. Environmentalists have raised concerns that the city is losing its green cover and turning into a concrete jungle. The new assessment will help understand the current situation and guide future urban planning.
Officials from the parks department explained that information about green spaces is often requested by the central and state governments. However, since no comprehensive assessment has been done recently, this data has been missing. The new evaluation will not only measure green areas but also count the number of trees in the city. The last tree census was conducted in 2018, which reported a total of 29.75 lakh trees in Mumbai. Since then, no official count has been carried out.
While trees are often removed for development, the municipal corporation ensures new trees are planted in their place. Earlier, the rule was to plant three trees for every tree removed, but now the same number of trees of similar age are planted instead, according to report by Loksatta. Due to limited space in the city, many new trees are planted in suburban areas. Officials are hopeful that the use of the Miyawaki plantation method in urban spaces has helped increase the number of trees within the city.
Currently, Mumbai has 235 parks and 480 recreation grounds, along with 20,044 trees planted through traditional and Miyawaki methods. The upcoming green area assessment and tree census will provide much-needed clarity about the state of the city’s environment and guide efforts to preserve and expand green spaces in India’s financial capital.
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