Today, on April 29th, with the support of the Global Greengrants Fund, we were guests at the Environmental Museum of Dighomi Meadows.
The tour was attended by pupils from Akhali Samgori Public School, who won the third stage of the plastic competition.
The tour was led by the guardian of the meadows, Ana Trapaidze, who has been fighting for over 4 years to save the Dighomi Meadows and is trying to convince people and the state that the floodplain forest has unique importance, both in terms of biodiversity conservation and ecological or educational aspects.
Dighomi Meadows is the only place in Tbilisi where flora and fauna characteristic of floodplains have been preserved. The area covers 70 hectares of floodplain forest, and a large part of it is damaged. Dighomi Meadows has been the victim of numerous environmental crimes. As Ana told us, open-pit mining for gravel was carried out here, resulting in the loss of a large part of the forest and burial in this material; we saw this quarry on site. Also, a huge problem here is pollution by construction, household, specific, or other types of waste.
It’s worth noting that Ana and her fellow fighters’ struggle has had productive results, and the demolition of illegally constructed buildings in Dighomi Meadows has begun.
We want to thank Ana for her fight and for hosting us today.