Mangrove Nurseries Proposed to Construct Natural Shield

The first of the numerous potential local area mangrove nurseries along the 14 coastal areas in Ernakulam region for building a shield of mangroves to safeguard the coast has been set up at Malippuram in Elamkunnapuzha town.

The mangrove establishing program has been considered a supporting venture for the fisheries-based expertise and occupation upgrade project in coastal towns under the HDFC Bank Parivartan, a provincial advancement project, being executed by the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation. The task is essentially about recognizing the fundamental regular assets in the concerned area and working with enterprises in light of their preservation.

To manage the pilot community mangrove nursery project, environmentalist Mr. Murukesan Thekkinezhathu was selected. He had a nursery with the capacity to grow up to 30,000 mangrove plants at a time.
According to Mr. Thekkinezhathu , earlier, the plants were grown in plastic bags, but then their disposal became a problem in itself. Now, he plants mangrove seeds in two hollowed-out bamboo pieces tied together and filled with mud and placed on an elevated bed of water. They are planted in the chosen locations once they grow in excess of around two feet in two to three months.

To begin with, 500 mangrove plants under the project will be planted alongside a canal near Aniyil beach at Elamkunnapuzha. The primary focus will be on filling the gap in the natural population of mangroves. The proposed study combined with interviews with the panchayats will assist with recognizing the spots where mangroves should be planted, and local area nurseries should be set up across the 14 towns.

Despite having faced the rage of natural calamities time and again, people seem to be unaware of the significance of preserving mangroves, which serve as a formidable shield against calamities. There have been instances where thousands of mangroves were uprooted shortly after they were planted.