Kochi first Kerala city to find place in biodiversity index

KOCHI: Kochi became the first city in the state to be included in the biodiversity index. The index is part of the ‘INTERACT-Bio’ project implemented with the help of the Centre for Heritage, Environment and Development through ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability. It aims at developing the city’s biodiversity index and estimating the green cover in urban areas. The results will help the Kochi Corporation to plan and better conserve urban biodiversity.

The project was executed with the help of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety and Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. Mayor Soumini Jain unveiled the index on Friday in an event held in adherence to the Covid protocol. 

An ‘Illustrative Natural Asset Map’ was also unveiled. “As the first year of project review, our backwaters, Mangalavanam, mangroves and variety of plants helped us in obtaining a relatively higher biodiversity index (45/72). Still, the study pointed out the need to preserve green pastures inside city limits,” Soumini said.

Natural Asset Map
The index was prepared on the basis of natural asset map based on variety of land uses.

room to improveLand    Area    Tree  cover
Coconut cultivation    38    38
Mangrove  119    119
Mixed cultivation    234    234
50% open green spaces    34    17
50% open ground    11    5.5
50% sparse vegetation    106    53
Tree patch    199    199