India, Nov. 4 -- Mumbai's proposed desalination plant is facing growing opposition from environmental groups and coastal fishing communities, with objections being raised against the proposed felling of 971 trees as well as the project's potential impact on marine ecology and traditional fishing livelihoods.

Advocate Godfrey Pimenta, Nicholas Almeida and Advocate Vivian D'Souza from the Watchdog Foundation recently submitted a strong objection to the BMC's Tree Authority, urging it to reject or defer permission to fell the trees until all statutory planning and environmental requirements were fulfilled.

In its representation, the Foundation said that while augmenting Mumbai's water supply was important, it should not come at the cost of...