Urban News

Chennai, July 29: While the first phase of the multi-crore project of converting the dumping ground into a tropical dry evergreen forest has been completed successfully, the second phase of maintaining it suffers from a serious shortage of staff.

Only nine men work in the Otteri Eco Park. Of the, four are watchmen who take turns to guard the only entrance to the park. “Five gardeners are currently working on the project. Their main job is to water the trees and shrubs besides clearing the foreign species that take roots here. Though the species that were planted were carefully chosen to be self-reliant over time, it takes a few years for the forest to sustain itself,” say biologists involved with the project.

They are also concerned that the park has not been utilised properly. The vision was to use it as a live study centre for school students of the area. “Keeping that in mind, we set up little huts that could be used as classrooms and erected a lot of slabs in which useful information on nature and useful details of plants that are native to the area have been imprinted. But, no guided tours have taken place for the last two years,” says Mr Rex Vaz of the Pitchandikulam Forest Consultants working with the corporation to initiate the study tours.

Speaking to this newspaper, corporation commissioner Rajesh Lakhoni said, “We definitely have plans to start guided tours”. A limited portion could also be open to the public, he said.

When contacted, mayor M. Subramanian said the corporation would open the park soon. “Access to the park is through a slum which could be a hindrance. Once we take care of that, the eco park will become functional,” he said.

Covered on one side by the Otteri Nulla, the concrete walls of a polytechnic institute on the other, and a cemetery on the third lies Chennai corporation’s best-kept secret, the Otteri Eco Park or the Tropical Dry Evergreen Forests of Otteri (formerly known as the garbage dumping yard of the city).

For decades, this patch of land was filled with waste from posh hotels and hospitals and construction debris and other forms of toxic waste. “So much of waste had been dumped that it became a mound measuring about 30 foot,” says site manager Arul, who has been associated with the project from 2005 when the then corporation commissioner started it.

Biologists who worked on the project adopted the bio-remedation process (the process of decontaminating the soil using natural plants and microbes) to transform the dumping ground into a forest. “We put a layer of soil over the garbage dump and started planting trees, shrubs and grass by carefully choosing the natural species of the region. The roots of these plants will absorb the toxic waste, break down its complexity, and, over a period of time, free the soil from all toxicants,” says botanist, Dr Ilangovan, who worked on the project.

Barring a few dry patches, the process seems to have worked its magic. The dumping yard is gradually turning into a little haven for avian and reptile residents. “But, it is just beginning to take shape and needs assistance for a few more years until the root systems reach the groundwater table. After that, the vegetation does not need our support,” says botanist, Dr Karthigeyan of the Pitchandikulam Forest Consultants that is currently maintaining the eco-park.

The park contains 15,000 plants of 105 indigenous species including vennandai, irumbuli, pungan and vembu besides several shrub and grass varieties.