Environment

Kodaikanal hill station established

In the Palani Hills, American missionaries from the Madurai Mission founded Kodaikanal as an escape from the summer heat.

Government Botanical Garden laid out at Ooty

William Graham McIvor of Kew laid out the Government Botanical Garden at Ootacamund.

Madras Zoo begins at the Government Museum

Edward Balfour started a zoological park in the Government Museum premises, the origin of today's Vandalur zoo.

Vedanthangal declared a bird sanctuary

Vedanthangal near Madurantakam was officially declared a wildlife sanctuary, the oldest in India.

Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary established

About 60 square km of forest in the Nilgiris district was set aside as the Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary.

Point Calimere Wildlife Sanctuary created

To shelter blackbuck and vast flocks of waterbirds, a sanctuary was established at Point Calimere on the Palk Strait.

Madras Snake Park moves to Guindy

On land leased from the Forest Department in Guindy, herpetologist Romulus Whitaker established an enlarged snake park, run by a trust he set up.

Anaimalai Wildlife Sanctuary notified

The forests of the Anaimalai hills in the Western Ghats were notified as a wildlife sanctuary, later the Anamalai Tiger Reserve.

Madras Crocodile Bank founded

The Madras Crocodile Bank was founded on the East Coast Road by Romulus Whitaker, Zai Whitaker and others to protect India's crocodile species.

Guindy declared a national park

What was left of the forest on the old Guindy estate in Chennai was made a national park, among the smallest in India and one of only a few within a city.

Tamil Nadu part of Pulicat Lake declared a bird sanctuary

The Tamil Nadu portion of the Pulicat lagoon in Tiruvallur district was declared a bird sanctuary in October 1980.

Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board established

The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board was set up as the state body to monitor and control pollution.

Madras zoo moves to Vandalur as Arignar Anna Zoological Park

The Madras Zoo, founded in 1855, moved to a large new site at Vandalur as the Arignar Anna Zoological Park.

Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park declared

Twenty-one islets lying offshore between Thoothukudi and Dhanushkodi were designated the Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park.

Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve established, India's first

India's first biosphere reserve was created from the Nilgiri hills and nearby forests, stretching across Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka.

Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve created

A tiger reserve was formed in the southern Western Ghats by joining the Kalakkad and Mundanthurai wildlife sanctuaries.

Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve created

The Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park and a 10 km buffer zone along the Ramanathapuram and Thoothukudi coast were declared a biosphere reserve.

Mukurthi National Park created to protect the Nilgiri tahr

The montane grasslands and sholas of Mukurthi in the Nilgiris, a wildlife sanctuary since 1982, were upgraded to a national park.

Koonthankulam declared a bird sanctuary

The village tank at Koonthankulam in Tirunelveli district, a major nesting site for waterbirds, was declared a bird sanctuary.

Karaivetti declared a bird sanctuary

A freshwater lake in Ariyalur district that attracts thousands of migratory birds was declared a bird sanctuary by the Tamil Nadu government.

Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve established

A biosphere reserve was created at the southern tip of the Western Ghats, spanning Tirunelveli and Kanyakumari districts and southern Kerala.

Kodaikanal mercury thermometer factory shut

Protests forced the closure of Hindustan Unilever's mercury thermometer factory at Kodaikanal over contamination.

Rainwater harvesting made mandatory for all buildings

After severe drought, a 2003 ordinance required every building in Tamil Nadu to install rainwater harvesting structures by 31 August.

Mudumalai declared a tiger reserve

Mudumalai National Park in the Nilgiris was declared a tiger reserve under Project Tiger, with a buffer zone of about 368 square km.

Pallikaranai marsh notified as a reserve forest

To stop the shrinking of Chennai's last large freshwater marsh, 317 hectares of Pallikaranai were declared a reserve forest.

Tholkappia Poonga eco-park opens on the Adyar estuary

A park restoring the ecology of the Adyar creek in Chennai opened and was named in honour of the Tamil grammarian Tholkappiar.

Western Ghats inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site

The Western Ghats mountain range, which runs through western Tamil Nadu including the Nilgiris and Anamalai hills, became a World Heritage Site.

Sathyamangalam declared a tiger reserve

The Government of India declared the Sathyamangalam wildlife sanctuary in Erode district the fourth tiger reserve in Tamil Nadu.

Gangaikondan Spotted Deer Sanctuary notified

Tamil Nadu notified a sanctuary at Gangaikondan in Tirunelveli district dedicated to the protection of spotted deer.

Green tribunal hears challenge to the Theni neutrino observatory

Acting on a petition against the environmental clearance for the India-based Neutrino Observatory in Theni district, the National Green Tribunal issued notices.

Ennore oil spill after tanker collision

Two tankers collided off Kamarajar Port in Ennore, and the resulting oil spill spread along the north Chennai coast.

Tamil Nadu bans single-use plastics

The Tamil Nadu government's ban on plastic carry bags and other single-use plastic items came into force on 1 January 2019.

Chennai water crisis

After a failed monsoon, Chennai's main reservoirs dried up, forcing heavy reliance on tankers and water brought by train from Jolarpet.

Kazhuveli Bird Sanctuary notified

The brackish Kazhuveli lake in Villupuram district, linked to the sea by the Uppukalli creek, was notified as a bird sanctuary.

Srivilliputhur-Megamalai Tiger Reserve created

The Srivilliputhur and Megamalai forests were notified as India's 51st tiger reserve and Tamil Nadu's fifth.

Tamil Nadu launches Project Nilgiri Tahr

The state launched a conservation programme for its state animal, the Nilgiri tahr, covering grassland restoration, radio-collaring and monitoring.

Several Tamil Nadu wetlands designated Ramsar sites

Pallikaranai marsh, Karikili and Vedanthangal bird sanctuaries and other Tamil Nadu wetlands were added to the list of Ramsar sites.

India's first slender loris sanctuary notified at Kadavur

Tamil Nadu notified about 118 square km of forest at Kadavur as India's first sanctuary for the slender loris.

Cauvery South Wildlife Sanctuary notified

About 686 square km of forest along the Kaveri was notified as Tamil Nadu's 17th wildlife sanctuary.

Ennore ammonia gas leak

Ammonia leaked from a subsea pipeline of a fertiliser plant at Ennore, sending dozens of residents of fishing villages to hospital.