With mankind ruling the roost, no other creature is invariably left at peace and human activities have always resulted in conflict with fellow earthlings. Man’s footprint has touched new grounds and has brought worse results. The painful sight of an adult elephant munching on waste particles including plastic in the Nilgris District recently is a fitting example of man’s barbaric expansion.
Even as the incident happened outside the Reserve Forest – despite very close to Forested areas – such dumping have also alarmingly become a common thing even inside reserve forests, with incidents in the Madukkarai Range of the Coimbatore Forest Division being recent finds.
According to sources, lack of vigil from Forest Department and lack of sanitation facilities from the District Administration have converted a piece of Reserve Forest in Madukkarai, opposite to the Madukkarai Police Station as a dump yard to the locals.
One can find household wastes including vegetable wastes and plastic dumped inside the reserve, some 20 meters away from the Palakkad High Road close to the Quarry Office Bus bay.
Despite the fact that larger mammals like elephants do not use that particular piece of land to move, the space would be occupied by smaller mammals including Wild Bohr, Mongoose and even Jackals. This by itself raises an evident alarm of plastic being consumed by wild animals.
Though no scientific study has been carried out in the area to ascertain the consumption of plastic by wild animals, studies elsewhere have proved that wild animals are to known to consume plastic and plastic wastes have been found in their droppings.
Recently, a video, taken near Anakatti showing plastic wastes inside the dung pile of elephants, went viral in social media and shook the wildlife conservation. Such incidents are results of instances of using forested areas as dump yards.
Not long ago, reports of plastic wastes found inside Elephant Proof Trenches (EPT) surfaced leaving a huge blot on elephant mitigation measures. Such dumpings were carried out by people residing very next to the elephant proof trenches and lack of dust bins in the area are forcing people to use EPTs as dustbins.
Reacting to the issue, a senior official from Coimbatore Forest Department said that the wastes would be removed sooner. “We have already cleared the wastes in EPT and have advised people not to use them as dustbins. Clearing of plastic wastes along the Railway Tracks is also being carried out,” the official added.
Even as the incident happened outside the Reserve Forest – despite very close to Forested areas – such dumping have also alarmingly become a common thing even inside reserve forests, with incidents in the Madukkarai Range of the Coimbatore Forest Division being recent finds.
According to sources, lack of vigil from Forest Department and lack of sanitation facilities from the District Administration have converted a piece of Reserve Forest in Madukkarai, opposite to the Madukkarai Police Station as a dump yard to the locals.
One can find household wastes including vegetable wastes and plastic dumped inside the reserve, some 20 meters away from the Palakkad High Road close to the Quarry Office Bus bay.
Despite the fact that larger mammals like elephants do not use that particular piece of land to move, the space would be occupied by smaller mammals including Wild Bohr, Mongoose and even Jackals. This by itself raises an evident alarm of plastic being consumed by wild animals.
Though no scientific study has been carried out in the area to ascertain the consumption of plastic by wild animals, studies elsewhere have proved that wild animals are to known to consume plastic and plastic wastes have been found in their droppings.
Recently, a video, taken near Anakatti showing plastic wastes inside the dung pile of elephants, went viral in social media and shook the wildlife conservation. Such incidents are results of instances of using forested areas as dump yards.
Not long ago, reports of plastic wastes found inside Elephant Proof Trenches (EPT) surfaced leaving a huge blot on elephant mitigation measures. Such dumpings were carried out by people residing very next to the elephant proof trenches and lack of dust bins in the area are forcing people to use EPTs as dustbins.
Reacting to the issue, a senior official from Coimbatore Forest Department said that the wastes would be removed sooner. “We have already cleared the wastes in EPT and have advised people not to use them as dustbins. Clearing of plastic wastes along the Railway Tracks is also being carried out,” the official added.