The Environment Department will soon begin mapping trees to understand the carbon sequestration in each locality, helping citizens identify carbon-neutral areas and the ones with poor air quality.
As per the plan 71, 159 hectares under the BBMP limits will be divided into grids of 250 sq mts and each tree along with crucial details like the species of the crown and trunk will be mentioned. At the backend, a standardized model will be developed to understand the oxygen- generation capacity of different species of trees.
Officials said till date there were no indices of oxygen generation and carbon sequestration capacity of each tree. The department will develop a database that goes beyond the surface area of a leaf and take into consideration changes like winter shedding to understand oxygen production.
Principal Secretary, Environment and Ecology Department, Vijay Mohan Raj said grid-level data will help people in the locality to relate to their trees. “The mapping will encourage public to participate in tree conservation while bringing accountability and transparency in the plantation activities taken up every year.
Each plant or tree that is mapped will be monitored through a physical tag with a barcode. The monitoring will help achieve accountability while involvement of local people in the exercise will bring greater harmony to the process.
The officer said that the Forest and Environment Department will support the initiative while the BBMP will implement the plan. “The department has trained 1000 volunteers through the Eco Tourism Board and more people will be ready in the coming days. The trained personnel will act as grid wardens to ensure accurate entry of mapping and monitoring data in the smart phone-based application.
