“Santragachi Jheel” − Ecological Studies on Sustainable Restoration

Located at a pebble-throwing distance from the Santragachi Railway Station. It’s spread over 33 acers of lake which attracts large number of migratory birds in the winter in October to March.  That area in a low land. Santragachi Jheel is man-made. The lake area is owned by South Eastern Railway, India, though the Forest Department of West Bengal also looks after the place.
Lesser Whistling Duck is the most dominant species visible here; Northern Pintail, Baikal Teal and other migratory birds are also visible. This place is favourite for Indian as well as Foreign country birds such as King fishers, Siberian ducks , wild sparrows etc. This place can be a paradise for bird watchers and nature photographers.

1. “ Santragachi Jheel ” − Ecological Studies on Sustainable Restoration Study Friend

2. INTRO TO “ SANTRAGACHI JHEEL” Located at a pebble-throwing distance from the Santragachi Railway Station. It’s spread over 33 acers of lake which attracts large number of migratory birds in the winter in October to March.  That area in a low land. Santragachi Jheel is man-made. The lake area is owned by South Eastern Railway, India, though the Forest Department of West Bengal also looks after the place. Lesser Whistling Duck is the most dominant species visible here;  Northern Pintail ,  Baikal Teal  and other migratory birds are also visible. This place is favourite for Indian as well as Foreign country birds such as King fishers, Siberian ducks , wild sparrows etc. This place can be a paradise for bird watchers and nature photographers.

3. Ecosystem An  Ecosystem  is a community of living organisms in conjunction with the nonliving components of their environment, interacting as a system. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Ecological restoration Ecological restoration is the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed, It is an intentional activity that initiates or accelerates an ecological pathway or trajectory through time-towards a reference state.

4. Famous for Various Migratory Birds

5. PRESENT CONDITION & THREATS There was totally 6 active lakes, nut now; 4 are properly active, one is active some how & last one is almost dead. Initially it was connected to “ Moukhal ” via a small canal (situated at southeast portion, near rail factory) and excess rainwater was passed through it and ultimately to Ganges; but now it is no more connected via canal as it’s filled. Every rainy season it causes overflow of water to locality due to inactive canal. Water depth is reducing time to time.

6. Why it’s essential to restore ? Santragachi lake performs as rainwater reservoir, which is very important. Aquatic fauna & flora would be lost permanently if restoration is not done . It will turn into a wetland forest step by step ( lake → marshland → swamp → bog → forest ) Migratory birds: This place is famous for the migratory birds. This helps in research and practical field works. If the restoration is not done, we will lose the chance to see those amazing migratory species which will be very unfortunate for us. So, we want it as a lake ecosystem.

7. PRESENT MAINTAINANCE Now this area is maintained by (govt. authorities and NGOs); West Bengal Biodiversity Board Howrah Vigyan Chetna Samannya Naturemate nature club Every year water hyacinth is maintained in optimal quantity on lake. It’s necessary to make free water surface especially for migratory ducks. Small floating island was made with water hyacinth from temporary habitat of migratory birds.

8. WATER HYACINTH – THREAT & CURE Water hyacinth covers most of the lake surface. So, aerial O2 can not dissolve lake water. Hyacinth covering resists the sunlight entry in lake water, which is a threat for this water ecosystem. As water hyacinth grows too much, it prevents algal bloom & then its removal would be next to impossible. Water hyacinth performs nutrient balance by absorbing excess nutrient & heavy metals. It helps to reduce water overflow as its transpiration is much more than natural evaporation.

9. Temporary Island of Water Hyacinth

10. RESTORATION PROJECT Although it’s too much risky to proceed trial and error method, a project is approved for the restoration of “ Santragachi Jheel ”. This project is being lead by The Council of Nature Watchers (“Prakriti Samsad ”). University of Calcutta and Naturemates is also with it and working parallelly for its restoration. Some steps are being taken in this research which are maintained further.

11. GOALS & ACTIONS OF RESTORATION PROJECT Revive water flow and maintain water load. Waste management in the locality Sanitation system reformation Maintain polluted water Substitute usage of water hyacinth

12. MAINTAIN WATER LOAD Each rainy season causes lake water overflow due to blockage of canal. Canal should be cleared so that “ Santragachi Jheel ” stay connected with “ moukhal ” and wataer passage is cleared. Thus water flow will be revived. Rain i.e. excess water in lake causes nutrition dilution. So, proper canal system can maintain the nutrient load as excess nutrient removes through canal.

13. WASTE MANAGEMENT

14. PROPER SANITATION SYSTEM All drains opens into lake and waste products are released into it which not only overload nutrient but also massively pollute water. All drains should orient to the high drain i.e. “ moukhal ”. This will greatly reduce the nutrient load on lake. Reduced nutrient load will naturally maintain a balanced growth of water hyacinth and form a proper ecosystem.

15. WASTEWATER RECYCLING It’s a substitute of the previous one. Instead of proper sanitation system domestic wastewater may be threw to lake after purification. Firstly all drain water will reach a reservoir and thereafter it will be purified and then let it tobe mix with lake water. Thus, nutrient load will be also removed, and hyacinth shall be maintained.

16. USAGE OF HYACINTH Each year water hyacinth is removed and kept at the side of lake due to lack of funding. These degrades and mix with lakewater which increases nutrient load in huge amount. So, usage of removed hyacinth can be beneficial. For this; Hyacinth can be used to make handcrafts. It can be taken as food especially for cattle. But it is in research level and may cause damage to animals as hyacinth can absorb heavy metals which may me deadly due to biomagnification.

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