A group of experts who visited the Kottooli wetlands in Kozhikode city has identified widespread destruction of the body subject to encroachment and pollution. The visit was part of a day-long study tour under the aegis of the Sarovaram Prakrithi Samrakshana Samithi and the Green Movement. There is a dumping yard where old electronic equipment and vehicle parts are stored, as a result of which, dangerous chemicals and solid waste, besides petroleum waste, are washed into the wetlands. The team visited the spots where parts of the wetland have been encroached by filling it with construction waste. The increase in the concentration of invasive plant species has also become a threat to the wetland, the team pointed out.