Mangrove Destruction Mars Kerala Sewage Plant Project

Opposition is intensifying against the sewage treatment plant (STP) construction near Sarovaram Bio Park, with activists from the Pouravakasha Samrakshana Samithi alleging significant environmental damage. They claim the project is leading to the destruction of mangroves and the degradation of wetlands, citing the uprooting of mangrove species like Avicennia officinalis and the filling of brackish water areas. This destruction allegedly violates CRZ-I regulations, which prohibit construction in such ecologically sensitive zones.

The committee has lodged formal complaints with multiple government agencies, including the Kerala Coastal Zone Management Authority, Forest Department, and the State Wetland Authority. They assert that these activities contravene the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2008, and the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. Allegations also point to a Kerala Water Authority official's certification that the site was not a wetland, which reportedly facilitated the construction.

Demands include an immediate joint site inspection by the KCZMA and Forest Department, with prior notice to the committee for participation. The activists are seeking a temporary stop to construction until the CRZ status is clarified and legal action against those responsible. They also call for the restoration of the damaged ecosystem at the expense of the Kerala Water Authority. Photographs and videos have been submitted as evidence, stemming from a directive in May 2026 to expedite the STP project.