Navi Mumbai: Climate activists sounded a ‘wetland emergency’ alarm on World Water Day, observed on March 22, after laboratory tests showed that three key flamingo habitats in Navi Mumbai have turned toxic. Environmentalists flagged the deteriorating condition of DPS Lake, NRI Lake and T S Chanakya Lake in Nerul, which serve as satellite wetlands for the Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary (TCFS), a Ramsar site. The warning was reinforced by what activists described as a visible ecological signal, with flamingos not arriving this season, NatConnect Foundation director B N Kumar said. Flamingo season in Navi Mumbai is from November to May, with January to March seen as the peak viewing time.The water sample tests commissioned by NatConnect Foundation at Thane-based SSAS Laboratory indicated a system under severe stress as four basic indicators — TDS, pH, BOD and COD — showed a consistent picture of decline, activists stated in messages sent to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. TDS (Total Dissolved Solids), which measures salinity and dissolved pollutants, was recorded at 17,000–23,000 mg/L, far above the 5,000 mg/L typical for healthy wetlands, indicating over-concentrated, stagnant water rather than natural tidal flushing, while pH levels were above 9, against a safe range of 6.5–8.5, pointed to alkaline stress. BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand) values of 14.8–23.6 mg/L, well above the safe 3–5 mg/L, signalled heavy organic pollution and oxygen depletion, while COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand) levels of 47.5–73.5 mg/L, against a norm of 20–30 mg/L, confirmed significant chemical contamination. “Put simply, all four indicators tell the same story—the water is not moving as it should in a healthy intertidal wetland,” Kumar said, pointing to blocked or restricted tidal flow.Instead of being regularly flushed, the wetlands were turning into stagnant, polluted basins. For Bittu Sahgal, founder of Sanctuary Nature Foundation, the crisis raised a moral question: “How do we forgive those who participate in the desecration of such an exquisite Mumbai heritage — especially when they know it truly belongs to our children?” Activists blamed governance failure.Activist Nandakumar Pawar alleged that the City and Industrial Development Corporation (Cidco) was “largely responsible for what has happened”, adding that regulators, such as the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority and the forest department, had “simply looked the other way”. The wetlands, he warned, were a public asset being destroyed in plain sight. Activists said the consequences were ecological. Flamingos depend on algae and microorganisms that thrive in balanced conditions. As water quality deteriorated, the food chain collapsed, turning feeding grounds into stressed habitats.While flamingos adapted to degraded sites in the past, their absence now suggested the system crossed a critical threshold. “These wetlands were our pride. Today, they are being destroyed in full view,” said Rekha Sankhala of Save Flamingos and Mangroves Forum, urging authorities to treat the situation as a public health emergency. Once lost, she cautioned, they cannot be restored within our lifetimes. Calling for accountability, Sandeep Sareen of NMEPS said the lab results exposed “toxic waters” driven by unchecked development. “Cidco’s apathy — putting concrete over conservation — is destroying these wetlands despite court orders,” Sareen said, warning that flamingos are “the canary in our ecosystem’s coal mine”.“It’s shocking that these well-known water bodies have degenerated so badly — Cidco’s deliberate neglect in a time of climate crisis has put groundwater and biodiversity at risk, and we urge immediate government intervention to save these wetlands,” said environmental activist Pamela Cheema. Cidco refused to accept these as wetlands.
