Tree census to gauge Lonavla green cover

Pimpri Chinchwad: The Lonavla Municipal Council has decided to conduct a tree census using the global positioning system (GPS) technology to find out the total number of trees within its limits and frame norms for their conservation.
Municipal council president Amit Gawli said, "It is for the first time that a tree census is being conducted by the municipal council using the GPS technology." Rainfall has declined in Lonavla in the past few years.The town, which is known as semi-hill station, had large green cover, but now it is declining in some areas due to rapid development, he added.
The civic limits can be divided into two parts, one comprising Khandala, old Khandala and Ryewood, which has dense tree cover, while the other part comprises areas on the other side of the Pune-Mumbai expressway, like Tungarli and Valvan dam, where rapid development is taking place.
"We want to know the total number of trees in the town and the density of the green cover in each of the 26 wards," he added.
At present, it is mandatory for people to plant one tree for every 500 sq ft they own. "We are planning to increase this limit to increase green cover and reduce pollution. A decision on the new norms will be taken after receiving the data from the tree census," he said.
Ganesh Shete, CEO of the civic body, said, "The census will cover the geographical location (longitude and latitude), local name and scientific name, category (fruit, flowering, show), girth, height, present condition (healthy, medium, weak) of the trees. It will also look into the ward-wise area available for plantation. Photographs will be uploaded in the database. Thus, we will get a detailed information about the green cover in a particular area, ward and entire town. The census will be conducted on private as well as public land."
Shete said Lonavla has a total area of 38 sq km. The civic body will take help of NGOs for the census, though a contractor has been appointed for the purpose. Work is expected to begin by the end of this month and the exercise has to be completed in three months.