Urban forest at Valasaravakkam


Saplings planted on 10,000 square feet land at Rayala Nagar, Valasaravakkam.

Chennai: With growing concerns towards climate change, several NGOs and Residents Welfare Associations (RWA) across the city have taken various measures to contribute to help save our environment.

Recently, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) joined hands with Rayala Nagar Residents Welfare Association and other RWAs to develop an urban forest in Rayala Nagar, Valasaravakkam.

According to reports, nearly 800 saplings of over 45 different varieties were planted on 10,000 square feet land. The saplings planted here were donated by Trees Foundation, an eco-conservation organisation. Several volunteers took part in this project which received positive response across the neighbourhood.

Sharing details about the work, GCC Regional Director Alby John took on to Twitter and said, ‘Photos from our second #UrbanForest in #Miyawaki method from Rayala Nagar, #Valasaravkkam Zone Chennai.

‘The photos of the urban forest in development was accepted in delight by netizens. Program Leader at Cognizant CSR, Sankara Mahalingam said on Twitter that ‘around 100 volunteers from Cognizant were part of this initiative.’ ‘Native species including couple of fruit and flowering species were planted,’ he tweeted.

Speaking to News Today, Alby said, ‘The tree plantation was done using Miyawaki method.’ It’s a technique pioneered by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki, that helps build dense native forests. This method is aimed to spurt plant growth several times faster than its general sense of plantation technique. It involves planting numerous native species in a dedicated area.

Recently, such method of plantation was developed in Kotturpuram. According to sources, around 23,000 square feet land, which was lying unused and filled with garbage near Kotturpuram Railway Station is being used for this purpose. Nearly 2,200 trees have been planted till date.