She guards Mumbai’s defence against climate change
A mangrove cover of 66 square km cushions the coastline of Mumbai and acts as a natural barrier against sea-level rise and coastal flooding. The mangroves are under continuous threat from rapid urbanisation and population surge.
Seema Adgaonkar, who until recently was one of the four Range Forest Officers at the Mumbai Mangrove Conservation Unit, has been guarding the city’s vital coastal ecosystem. I met Seema during one of her visits to inspect a mangrove site. The story was produced as part of the Climate Tracker-One Earth Fellowship, 2019.
Seema Adgaonkar, a Range Forest Officer until mid-2019 with the Mumbai Mangrove Conservation Unit, poses for a photo. She is surrounded by mangroves and associated species on a trail to a nursery set by the MMCU.
A stream blackened by pollution flows through mangroves in Navi-Mumbai. Mangroves form natural barriers against sea-level rise and coastal flooding.
Early morning scene along the mangroves in Vikhroli, Mumbai. Mangroves act as nurseries for fish and support livelihoods.
Seema Adgaonkar instructs the helpers regarding the mangrove sapling plantation.
Seema Adgaonkar amidst mangrove aerial roots on a trail to a mangrove nursery.
Buildings in Navi-Mumbai are visible from a patch of coastal mangroves. The total cover of mangroves in Mumbai is 66 square km, according to the Forest Survey of India’s 2017 report. These vital coastal ecosystems are squeezed between a rising sea level and coastal development projects.