Navi Mumbai wetlands are toxic, flamingo habitat faces decline

Climate activists have issued a “wetland emergency” as three major flamingo habitats in Navi Mumbai have become toxic, with water sample tests showing alarming results.Activists point out that the condition of DPS, NRI and TS Chanakya lakes in Nerul, which are satellite wetlands of the Tarn Flamingo Sanctuary (TCFS) of Ramsar Wetland Sanctuary, is deteriorating.The flamingo season in Navi Mumbai runs from November to May, with peak viewing period from January to March, when bird enthusiasts and enthusiasts gather at the wetlands to catch a glimpse of the pink parade.In a message to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, activists said water sample tests commissioned by the NatConnect Foundation showed severe stress on the system.NatConnect Foundation director BN Kumar said the warning was reinforced by the absence of the flamingos, which have yet to arrive this season.Four basic indicators – TDS, pH, BOD and COD – depict a consistent downward trend. The results showed that the water was too concentrated and was stagnant rather than naturally flushed by the tide.“Simply put, all four indicators tell the same story—the water is not flowing as it should in a healthy intertidal wetland,” Kumar said, noting that tidal flow is blocked or restricted.Instead of being flushed regularly, wetlands have become stagnant, polluted basins.Activists pointedly blame governance failures.Climate activist Nandakumar Pawar said the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) was “primarily responsible for what happened”, adding that regulators such as the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Authority and the forest department “just turned a blind eye”.He warned that wetlands were a public asset that was being blatantly destroyed.Flamingos rely on algae and microorganisms that thrive in balanced conditions. As water quality deteriorates, food chains collapse and feeding grounds become stressed habitats.While flamingos have adapted to degraded areas in the past, their disappearance now suggests the system may have crossed a critical threshold.“These wetlands are our pride. Today they are being destroyed in plain sight,” said Rekha Sankhala of the Save Flamingos and Mangroves Forum, urging authorities to treat the situation as a public health emergency.Calling for accountability, Sandeep Sareen of the Navi Mumbai Environmental Protection Society (NMEPS) said the laboratory results exposed “toxic water” resulting from uncontrolled development.“Despite court orders, CIDCO’s indifference – putting protection in concrete places – is destroying these wetlands,” he said, warning that flamingos were the “canary in the coal mine of our ecosystem”. Activist Pamela Cheema said: “CIDCO’s willful neglect at a time of climate crisis puts groundwater and biodiversity at risk and we urge the government to intervene immediately to save these wetlands.”