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Ahead of G20 meet: TN, UK ink pact for project to conserve native plant species
In technical partnership with Kew Gardens of London, Tamil Nadu has planned to set up a botanical garden in Chengalpattu district near Chennai
Ahead of the G20 environment and climate ministerial meeting in Chennai, the United Kingdom government on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding with Tamil Nadu to set up projects to conserve native plants.
The G20 Ministerial Meeting on Environment and Climate Sustainability will be held in Chennai on Friday (July 28).
The project looks to conserve mangroves, forests and wetlands and release a green rating framework for industrial decarbonisation, a statement from the Tamil Nadu government said.
UK’s secretary of state for environment Therese Coffey and minister of state for climate Graham Stuart launched key projects with the Tamil Nadu government “setting new milestones in the strategic climate partnership” between the two, the statement said, .
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In technical partnership with Kew Gardens of London, Tamil Nadu has planned to set up a botanical garden in Chengalpattu district near Chennai. “The garden will conserve and propagate native plant species of Tamil Nadu, including rare, threatened and endangered species,” the statement said. “The MoU commits to Kew providing advice and expertise around landscape planning, plant collection development, botanic garden management and other related matters to the government of Tamil Nadu.”
A strategic initiative on industrial decarbonisation titled, ‘Roadmap for Green Indexing of Industries - low carbon industrial development in Tamil Nadu’, was also launched. The UK leaders along with Tamil Nadu’s minister for environment Siva V Meyyanathan ministers jointly released the green rating framework for industries to motivate businesses to take up low-carbon commitments and action to advance the state government’s climate change ambitions of achieving net zero before 2070.
Coffey also launched the UK Partnering for Accelerated Climate Transitions (UK PACT’s) mangrove project which demonstrates how community MRV (Measuring, Reporting, Verification) can be codesigned, co-produced, and implemented through inclusive community- based mechanisms. Keystone Foundation in Tamil Nadu’s Nilgiris bagged this project after a competitive process.
The project will work in 3 climate- smart villages, focusing on three ecosystems – forests, mangroves and wetlands – selected in consultation with the Tamil Nadu government. The project will specifically build capacities of forest communities – tribals of Nilgiris district; fisherfolk of Pichavaram mangrove ecosystem in Cuddalore district; and small-holder subsistence farmers and agricultural labourers, living in inland areas of the wetland of Coimbatore district.
