Discover How Kochi’s Historic Canals are Paving the Way for Climate Resilience in India

Chedambath highlights a step-by-step plan for restoring the TP Canal. He suggests starting with popular measures, like cutting down pollution and dredging, based on careful hydrological studies. After that, the focus can shift to the canals themselves. Many are now just 15 meters wide, which is a quarter of their original size, mostly due to construction along the banks for homes and infrastructure.

He feels hopeful that this is the right moment for the canal’s revival. "A few years ago, people didn’t see the canals’ value. But now, with ongoing flooding and other problems, everyone from residents to leaders is taking action. The state of the canals impacts daily life in the city, and maybe even its future,” he explains.

In Sirajganj, Bangladesh, UNEP is assisting with the restoration of the Katkhali Canal. The goal is to create a "green corridor" that serves as a recreational area for people and a habitat for wildlife. This effort could also help cool the city, combating urban heat.

Meanwhile, in Kisumu, Kenya, there’s a project focused on reviving the Auji River. This UNEP-supported initiative aims to address issues like pollution and invasive species while also teaching local communities about ecosystem management.

Kochi has hopes of restoring the TP Canal along with other water bodies in the area. “The lesson from Kochi should be that it’s better to prevent issues rather than fix them later. And you can always restore urban waterways," says UNEP’s Atallah. "When we do this, we significantly improve city life.”

The UNEP’s Generation Restoration project, funded by Germany’s BMZ, runs from 2023 to 2025. It aims to enhance urban ecosystem restoration in 24 cities. The project focuses on advocating for investments in ecosystem restoration, creating jobs through nature-based solutions, and empowering city stakeholders to implement similar initiatives.

The UN has declared 2021–2030 as the Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. This global movement, led by the UN Environment Programme, strives to reverse ecosystem degradation and restore billions of hectares worldwide. It calls for enhanced political support, scientific collaboration, and funding to scale up restoration efforts.

Currently, we face a crisis in nature. One million species are at risk of extinction, soil quality is deteriorating, and essential water sources are vanishing. The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework aims to tackle these challenges, with a goal to halt and reverse the decline of ecosystems by 2030. This was set in motion by world leaders in December 2022, and UNEP, along with various partners, is working to implement its goals through significant action in landscapes and economies.

For more information, you can read further about the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

Source link