On World Environment Day, Environmentalists from Mumbai Metropolitan Region launch climate action plan

Navi Mumbai: On World Environment Day, celebrated June 5, citizens’ groups from across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) joined hands and launched Climate Action Now (CAN), an environmental mobilisation plan, focusing on issues ranging from redevelopment issues and rapid loss of green cover to the destruction of wetlands and mangroves, and the long-ignored threat of rising sea levels. NatConnect Foundation hosted the event on Thursday.

Environmentalists from the MMR backed the creation of a “Flamingo Blue Carbon Urban Complex” by transforming mangroves, wetlands and mudflats into a long-term ecological revenue system. They said the state govt could cash in on the MMR’s blue-carbon ecosystems by establishing a dedicated carbon-credit exchange or “Blue Carbon Credit Bank”.

Under the proposed mechanism, polluting sectors such as cement, aviation, construction, shipping and heavy industries, which generate large carbon emissions, could purchase certified blue-carbon credits linked to protected ecosystems in the MMR. The revenue generated through these credits could potentially finance mangrove protection, wetland restoration, biodiversity conservation, flood mitigation systems and long-term climate-resilience infrastructure across the region.

The CAN roundtable brought together environmental groups including Sagar Shakti, Swarnsrishti Habitat Restorer Foundation, Parsik Greens, Sajag Nagrik Manch, Powai ALM, Save Flamingos/Mangroves, Save Belapur Hills and Human Chain Online. A CAN declaration issued at the end of the roundtable decried mounting attacks on mangroves, wetlands and mudflats and urged the govt to explore innovative ways to monetise ecological assets instead of making quick gains by burying them for real estate development. The declaration described wetlands, mangroves, rivers, forests, floodplains and biodiversity zones as “critical ecological infrastructure” essential for climate resilience, flood protection, public health and urban survival. It warned that climate change, ecological degradation and unsustainable urbanisation posed direct threats to biodiversity, water security, environmental stability and quality of life across the MMR. “Mangroves are among the world’s most effective natural carbon sinks, absorbing an estimated six to 10 tonnes of carbon dioxide per hectare annually while storing massive quantities of carbon underground in coastal mud and sediment systems for decades and even centuries,” the CAN declaration said. The declaration called for notification and protection of wetlands across Maharashtra, restoration of degraded tidal ecosystems, protection of flamingo habitats, creation of biodiversity corridors and recognition of blue-carbon ecosystems as strategic climate assets. The CAN platform also demanded that redevelopment across the MMR should become an opportunity to reclaim green cover, restore open spaces and integrate climate-sensitive infrastructure such as rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge, rooftop solar systems, recycled water use and low-carbon urban planning.

Participants called for stronger environmental governance, independent monitoring systems, transparent compliance reporting, annual sustainability reviews and public accountability mechanisms to ensure ecological protection. The declaration said climate resilience could not succeed through symbolic events or fragmented policies, but required collective participation involving citizens, fishing communities, scientists, institutions, corporates and policymakers. “We seek to build a future where development and ecology coexist responsibly, where environmental protection becomes central to governance, and where climate resilience becomes the foundation of urban planning and public policy,” the declaration stated.

“Protecting nature is cheaper than rebuilding cities after climate disasters,” the participants said, urging govts, industries and citizens to act before ecological damage becomes irreversible.