Lakes, Ponds and Wetlands

This link on the CAG website provides the details of an international conference that was held on 15-16 March 2010, in the backdrop of the environmental audit proposed by the the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India, for management and conservation of the environment .

The purpose of this conference was to deliberate on the causes of pollution, action taken by governments and civil society to address this and environmental, management and legal interventions needed to put lakes, rivers and ground water on the path of sustainability.

More than 20 experts on water and water pollution issues were invited to share their views as panelists during the conference. Apart from these distinguished panelists, the heads of supreme audit institutions from countries like Austria, Maldives, Bangladesh and Bhutan were also present to share their experiences regarding audit of water pollution in their countries.

Sridhar Gangolli, an artist with the concern about the life and the living, is once again on the pitch of art. In each of his works of art, he tries to be fresh and spontaneous. He bats with the objects and bowls some thoughts, thus he makes his art.

Organizer: Indian National Trust For Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH)

Venue:  Kudlu village

Description:

INTACH Bangalore is pleased to announce our next Parichay, which will be about the tank systems of Bangalore. Our walk leader, Rohan DSouza, a researcher at NIAS, will talk to us about the series of reservoirs that were created to harvest rainwater in Bangalore, using the example of the 1100-year-old settlement and tank at Kudlu village.

The paper by the Institute for Social and Economic Change documents the case of Ward No. 39 situated at the outskirts of the Bangalore city to understand the emerging groundwater crisis due to overdraft in urban areas. Bangalore has no perennial river, which resulted in the growth of many lakes, acting as a source of groundwater recharge earlier.

This multi-location study by

Organizer: North East Centre for Environmental Education and Research, Imphal

Venue: Jaaga, Rhenius Street, Office Richmond Road, Opposite the Hockey Association Stadium main gate, Shanthinagar, Bangalore

Description:

The campaign is two year long awareness programme initiated by NECEER, Imphal for the conservation of Loktak Lake. More than 600 volunteers, 32 city Coordinators, Publicity Coordinator and 1 Worldwide Coordinator are involved in organizing this campaign. The campaign is to create awareness about the conservation of Loktak Lake, the largest fr...esh water lake in Northeast India. The lake was recognised as Ramsar site in 1990. Keibul Lamjao, the only floating national park in the world is situated at the south west part of the lake. It is home to the endangered Manipur brow antlered deer ‘Sangai’ - Cervus eldi eldi and many endangered species.

This document by the Department of Environment, Government of Tamil Nadu highlights the importance of the Kodaikanal lake as an important tourist destination and warns that this freshwater lake is under the threat of getting polluted and its biodiversity endangered.

The document presents the findings of the study that aimed at assessing the physico-chemical and biological quality of the Kodaikanal lake.

Evidence indicates that unrestricted tourism activities have led to high use of plastic bottles, glass bottles, plastic bags, causing high levels of pollution and silting of the lake. Damaged fibreglass boats left inside the lakes also pose a serious threat to the lake ecosystem.

The study determines rates of sedimentation and estimates the useful life of Dal-Nagin lake situated in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir using radiometric techniques. In spite of various ecological problems the lake is the largest freshwater lake in India. It has four major sub-basins viz., Hazratbal, Bod Dal, Garibal and Nagin. The lake is fraught with the problem of growth of underwater weeds and increasing rate of sedimentation.

Organizer: Wageningen UR Centre for Development Innovation

Topics:

• Concepts in wetland and river basin management
• Facilitation of multi-stakeholder processes
• Fieldwork wetland management
• Adult education and social learning
• Curriculum development

The report presents waterlogged area mapping and hydrological data analysis of Mokama tal area of Bihar. The drainage problems of the agriculture land use are basically associated with the stagnation of runoff and the rise of the water table. Generally, the runoff stagnation is a result of intense rain, which produces excessive runoff for which the existing drainage capacity is not adequate or outlet conditions are not favorable. The rise of water table beyond a critical limit or surface ponding results in waterlogging conditions.