KOCHI: If the issues pertaining to environment pollution do not receive timely attention, Kochiites will be gasping for oxygen within a few years. An unforeseen yet inevitable disaster that is facing Kochi today is anoxia, a situation wherein the amount of oxygen in the air depletes rapidly. To maintain stable oxygen level in the air, the city needs good cross ventilation. This has been made impossible by the skyscrapers on the shores of backwaters as they block the sea breeze to a large extent. Moreover, the huge amounts of waste being dumped in water bodies is threatening the aquatic plant life. Though we do not realise it, aquatic plants play a vital role in maintaining the required oxygen levels. A special committee comprising environmentalists and policy makers should be formed to look into the matter.Tree protection is another important yet neglected issue in Kochi. Timely conservation of trees is the duty of the corporation. Cutting of trees in the name of preventing electricity loss from overhead wires should be stopped. Instead, the particular parts of the wire which comes into contact with the tree should be insulated. Provision should be made to punish those who cut roadside trees. An Environment Development Committee, including scientists and experts from various areas like water conservation, river protection and tree protection, must be formed to look into these issues. The committee should meet every week to asses the situation, propose suitable remedies and make sure that they are implemented.
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