Now, you too can do your bit to conserve the ecologically sensitive western ghats. Just log on to www.westernghatsindia.org and mail any information you possess on the region.
Launched by the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF), these inputs will be incorporated in the policy agenda for the biodiversity rich region. The interactive website is among the first activities proposed by the ministry when it constituted a 14-member panel to suggest measures to save the region in March.
"We would like people to upload documents and photographs. In fact, they can even put up comments on any aspect on the western ghats ecology that will be taken into account," said Madhav Gadgil, chairperson, Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel.
Declared among the 25 global hotspots by UNESCO, the Western ghats covering states of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu has over the years witnessed extensive forest degradation with increasing number of resorts being constructed.
It is estimated that the Western Ghats neutralise four million tonnes of carbon - equivalent to 14 million tonne of carbon dioxide - annually. This about 10 per cent of the total greenhouse gas emissions neutralised by India's forests.
The panel will soon hold public consultation meetings and also conduct site visits across various states. Individual scientists alongside will also prepare papers on various aspects of the region's ecology and biodiversity.
"We already have chalked out a plan for the visits. As soon as financial sanctions come through from the ministry, we will get going," said Gadgil.
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