Forest - Kar

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183 FOREST If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier about cutting them down -Jack Handey

Transcript of Forest - Kar

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FOREST

FOREST

If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier aboutcutting them down

-Jack Handey

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STATE OF THE ENVIRONMENT REPORT - 2003

FOREST

Current Status

Problems

Trends

Impacts

Prioritisation

Action Plan

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Classification of recorded forest area in Karnatakaon the basis of legal status.

Source: Annual Report 2002-2003, Karnataka Forest Department

CURRENT STATUS

Karnataka is endowed with some of the most magnificentforests in the country. From the majestic evergreen forestsof the Western Ghats to the scrub jungles of the plains, awide variety of habitats exist with very typical flora andfauna, some of them endemic to the region. The forestscomprise of several types ranging from fragile coastalmangroves along the coastlines to tropical wet evergreenforests all along the Western Ghats. In the high rainfallzone, there are pockets of biodiversity-rich shola forestsinterspersed with high altitude grasslands. As we moveinland, moist deciduous forests occur in lesser altitudeswhere rainfall is heavy to moderate. Dry deciduous forestsoccur in areas receiving light rainfall i.e. in the easternfringes of the Western Ghats, in south interior Karnatakaand, to a small extent, in Chincholi and Humnabad taluksof north Karnataka. Tropical thorn (scrub) forests are foundin the northeastern plains where rainfall is scanty andtemperature is high during the summer. Severaleconomically important species such as Sandalwood(Santalum album), Rosewood (Dalbergia latifolia), Teak(Tectona grandis), White Cedar (Dysoxylon malabaricum)grow naturally in the forests of Karnataka.

The State has around 20 percent of its total geographicalarea (TGA) as “recorded forest area” (see box). Accordingto the State of Forest Report 2001 published by the ForestSurvey of India, Dehradun, the total “forest cover” ofKarnataka is 36,991 sq. km representing around 19.3percent of the total geographical area of the State. Thearea under dense canopy cover (canopy density morethan 40%) is nearly 13.6 percent of the total geographicalarea of the State while 5.6 percent ofthe total geographical area fallsunder open forest category (canopydensity between 10 to 40 percent).In addition, the State has 3,245 sq.km of “scrub” (canopy density lessthan 10 percent). In terms ofpercentage of “recorded forest area”to the total geographical area,Karnataka ranks 18th in the countryas per the State of Forest Report2001. However, the State ranks 4th

Terms as defined in the State of Forest Report2001, published by the Forest Survey of India

(FSI), Dehradun

“Recorded forest area” is the area recorded as forest in thegovernment records.

“Forest Cover” consists of all lands having tree canopy densityabove 10 percent irrespective of the nature of vegetation, legalstatus, ownership or land use. (The assessment made in theState of Forest Report 2001 includes forest cover down to 1ha only; areas lesser than 1 ha have been excluded onaccount of technical limitations)

“Scrub” denotes lands having bushes and/or poor tree growthwith canopy density less than 10%.

“Tree cover” refers to the notional area covered by crown oftrees that is too small to be delineated by digital interpretationof remote sensing data used for forest cover delineation. Itincludes all the tree wealth (perennial woody vegetation)existing in the form of linear plantation along roads, canals,etc., scattered trees on farm lands, homestead, urban areaand blocks of plantations and wood lots smaller than onehectare.

Natural Grassland and Shola forest, Kuduremukh National Park

Sl. No. Legal status Area

(Sq. Km) %

1 Reserved Forests 28,689.97 74.94

2 Protected Forests 3,930.70 10.27

3 Village Forests 124.20 0.32

4 Unclassified Forests 5,230.99 13.66

5 Private Forests 308.42 0.81 Total 38,284.28 100.00

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Classification of recorded forest area in Karnatakaon the basis on forest types.

Source: Annual Report 2002-2003, Karnataka Forest Department

among all the States and Union Territories inrespect of area under “tree cover” as per theReport.

Karnataka’s forests support a wide range of biodiversity. About 25 percent of the elephantpopulation and about 10 percent of the tigerpopulation of the country are found in the forestsof Karnataka, which also account for around 4500species of flowering plants, 500 species of birds,120 species of mammals,160 species of reptiles, 70species of frogs and 800species of fish, out of which350 species are endemic.The Western Ghats, whichcovers about 60% of theforest area of Karnataka isone among the 18-biodiversity hot spots of theworld and forms animportant ecosystem.

Forests play an importantrole in the socio-economicscenario of any State. This roleis all the more pronounced ina State like Karnataka, whichhas a predominantlyagriculture-based ruraleconomy. Forests and treeshelp in maintaining a stableenvironment conducive tosustained development ofagriculture. Unless the forestecosystem is maintained in asustainable and productivestate, the future of agricultureitself is at stake. Forestsprotect and enrich the soil andwater regime by reducing soilerosion and nutrient loss andby facilitating moistureconservation, nutrientrecycling and microbiological activities. They also protect

District wise Forest cover along with geographical area

Forest Cover (Sq. Kms.)Dense Forest 26,156 Open Forest 10,835 Total 36,991 % of States geographical area 19.30

% of Country's forest cover 5.50

Forest types Area (Sq. Km) %

Evergreen 4,350 11.36 Semi-evergreen 1,450 3.79 Moist deciduous 5,780 15.10 Dry deciduous 7,270 18.99 Thorn forests (Scrub) 8,340 21.78 Unwooded 11,094 28.98 Total 38,284 100.00

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Initiatives of the State GovernmentAround 1.2 million ha of forest and non-forest lands havebeen afforested in the last twenty-five years in the Stateof Karnataka.More than 700 million seedlings have been distributedto the farmers, institutions and people for agro-forestry,farm forestry and development of homestead gardensin the last twenty years.Karnataka has adopted Joint Forest Planning andManagement (JFPM) programme to involve local peoplein protection, planning and management of forests. Morethan 3700 Village Forest Committees (VFCs) have beenestablished covering nearly 2.5 lakh ha of degradedforests. As part of the participatory approach, many entrypoint activities that are both individual and communityoriented like bio gas plants, smokeless chulas anddistribution of bamboo have been initiated.Under the National Afforestation Programme, ForestDevelopment Agencies (FDA), which are federations ofVillage Forest Committees / Eco DevelopmentCommittees have been constituted in the forest andwildlife divisions of the State to consolidate andstrengthen the on going JFPM programme throughafforestation, eco development and other relatedactivities.To encourage sandalwood cultivation, the KarnatakaForest Act, 1963 has been amended. The ownership ofsandalwood trees grown on private lands now vests withthe landowner. The rules governing felling, transport,conversion and disposal of sandalwood have beenliberalized. Provision has been made for payment ofmarket value to the owners of sandalwood treesThe forest-dependent tribal people have been providedspecial concession in collection of minor forest producefrom the forest areas. The LAMP societies in the tribaldominated areas are allotted the right to collect the minorforest produce from the forest by paying a nominal sumof Rs 100 per annum. This has benefited 21 societiescovering nearly 27,400 tribal families. The additionalincome to these societies is estimated to be around Rs60 lakhs per annum.As part of biodiversity protection and conservationinitiative, around 17 percent of the State’s forest areahas been brought under the protected area networkcomprising of five National Parks and twenty-one WildlifeSanctuaries.The forest department is implementing the Project Tigerand Project Elephant programs in the State withconsiderable success. Eco-development works havebeen undertaken as part of wildlife conservation andprotection works.A wilderness tourism policy is being formulated as aconservation tool, which will enable to harmonize thedemands of tourism and the need to conserve thewilderness.The State has constituted the Karnataka State MedicinalPlants Authority to promote medicinal plant conservationand development in the State.

Public distribution of seedlings

People’s participation in forestry programmes(VFC)

Women engaged in JFPM activity

Tiger at Bandipur National Park

Collection of NTFP (Harda fruits)

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Value of ecological benefits of one hectareof subtropical deciduous forest and the value

of environmental services provided by atree for 50 years.

Source: Mathur and Soni, (1986) ICFRE records.

hydrological systems and regulate stream flow, therebyaugmenting ater availability, which is so vital foragricultural production. Forests serve as a uniquestorehouse of plant and animal genetic resources andcontribute significantly to the biological diversity. Thisbiodiversity, in turn, serves as an insurance against foodcrises and as an assurance for health care.

Forests meet a large share of the energy needs of thepopulation, more so in the rural areas. A significant portionof the fodder needs of the vast cattle population is alsomet from these forests. Forest products, in addition tocontributing to the State’s income, also play a veryimportant role in the rural and tribal economy. Many of theforest products, including non-timber forest products(NTFP), provide sustenance to the rural and tribal people,who collect a large part of their daily necessities, includingfood and medicines, from the forests. Most of theseproducts represent a direct subsidy to the rural poor, andconstitute an integral element of the factors alleviating theirpoverty. For landless and marginal farmers living in thevicinity of forests, forest-related activities often representthe primary source of income.

In view of multifarious benefits, both tangible andintangible, accruing from the forest, it is difficult to makean assessment of their real value. Several scientists havetried to quantify the intangible values of forests. Howeverbased on a study of 1986 MOEF has standardized theenvironmental value of one hectare of fully stocked forests(density 1) at Rs. 126.74 lakhs which would accrue over50 years.

PROBLEMS

Forest degradation refers to reduction in optimumcapability or productivity of a forest. A forest with canopydensity less than 0.4 (40%) is normally considereddegraded. Around 30% of the total forest cover ofKarnataka is degraded. Many a time degraded forest isconfused with deforestation. Deforestation is often anirreversible process; but a degraded forest is capable ofrecovering to its optimum level within a reasonable time ifthe pressures responsible for the degradation arewithdrawn.

The key problems which have led to forest degradationare:• Increasing livestock grazing inside the forests.• Increasing fuel wood removal from the forests.• Encroachment of forestlands.• Diversion and fragmentation of forests and habitat

destruction.• Unsustainable landscape management practices and

absence of regulatory mechanism of common propertyresources (CPRs).

• Unsustainable forest management practices.• Smuggling and poaching in forests.• Low investments in forestry sector.

Increasing livestock grazing

Nearly 21 per cent of Karnataka’s forest area is affectedby grazing (FSI, 1995). The FSI has reported that nearly54% of the forest area of Dakshina Kannada districtexperiences grazing incidence causing severedegradation of the forests.The livestock population inKarnataka as per 1997 census is 45.4 million. It is on therise in rural areas due to various socio-economic factors:

• Farmer’s dependence on the livestock for manure.• Use of cattle for agricultural operations and transport.

Activity Value of forests (Rs. in lakhs)

Service by a tree

(Rs. in lakhs)

Production of oxygen 22.50 2.50 Conversion to animal protein 1.64 0.20

Control of soil erosion and Maintenance of soil fertility 20.50 2.50

Recycling of water and control of humidity 20.60 3.00

Sheltering of birds, animals, insects, plants 20.50 2.50

Control of air pollution 41.00 0.50 Total Benefits 126.74 11.20

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Extent of grazing in forests ofDakshina Kannada - (FSI 1998)

• Cattle as source of income generation.• Livestock farming as main occupation.• Livestock farming as insurance against crop failures and

drought.• Religious sentiments of the people.

Grazing and browsing by domestic cattle, goat, sheep,etc is a major problem in the forest areas. Uncontrolledgrazing of forests, often beyond their carrying capacity, bylivestock has adversely affected the regeneration statusand regenerative capacity of our forests. Over grazing alsoaffects soil properties adversely. The adverse effects onsoil include formation of small gullies, loss of topsoil,compaction of soil and reduction of porosity.

The cattle population has increased by 0.71 percent from1990 to 1997, whereas during the same period, thepopulation of buffaloes has increased by 2.25 percent andthat of goats by 14.45 percent. Pressure on forests hasincreased since the gomal lands, traditionally reserved forgrazing, are also being put to other use. A sizeable portionof the fodder requirement is met by free grazing in theforest and this activity is a source of livelihood for manypoor families. Nearly 14 percent of the rural populationare landless labourers who in the non-agricultural seasonearn their livelihood by grazing livestock in the forest. Thisproblem is accentuated further during the drought.

Out of 94.84 million tons of green fodder available in theState, 29.79 million tons are from forest alone accountingfor nearly 32 percent of the requirement indicating veryhigh dependence of livestock on the forest. However asper the carrying capacity of the forests in Karnataka, onlyabout 1.3 million cows can be allowed to graze, which

indicates the gravity of the situation. Moreover, to promotegrowth of grass, farmers set fire to the forest. This resultsin general degradation of forests including reduction ofpalatable grass species.

Increasing fuel wood removal

Removal of firewood from the forest is one of the mostimportant factors responsible for degradation of the forests.The dependence of the people on biomass to meet theirenergy demand is closely associated with their poverty asin many other developing countries. Population increase,inefficient chullas and lack of alternative clean energysources have also accentuated the problem further. Treesare lopped by the community for firewood and for greenmanure. The problem of firewood removal from the forestis more severe in the forested districts like Shimoga, UttaraKanara, Dakshina Kannada, etc due to low availability ofagricultural wastes.

A study regarding household consumption of fuel woodfor domestic purpose conducted by the Directorate ofEconomics and Statistics (2002) indicates that nearly 80percent of the households still depend on fuel wood-basedenergy indicating the severity of the problem. The percapita consumption of fuel wood in the State was estimatedin 1987 to be 1.5 kg/day. Based on this data the presentannual demand for fuel wood in the State may be estimatedto be around 28 million tons. Another study conducted inAugust 1993 by V.Ranganath of Indian Institute ofManagement revealed that the total demand for firewoodin the State was 19.4 million tons, out of which 18 million

Removal of firewood- headload

Grazing incidence

Area (Sq. km.) %

Heavy 302.10 11.54 Moderate 392.73 15.00 Light 714.97 27.31 No Grazing 1,208.40 46.15

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tons was the domestic demand. On reviewing theconsumption pattern it was observed that the major portionof the demand in rural area (94%) is met by gatheringtwigs, lops and tops of a tree and only 6 percent of theconsumption is in the form of logs and billets. The totalsupply from Government and Private land has beenestimated as 0.284 million tons. Thus the bulk of thedemand is met through informal collections from forestarea as well as from crop residues and some shrubs likeProsopis juliflora. It is estimated that out of 20 milliontons of fuel wood consumed in the State, the fuelwoodfrom forest is around 5 million tons per year. This figure isalso corroborated by a study conducted by Ravindranathand Hall (1995). Thus informal removal from forests putsa tremendous pressure on the forest resources leading togradual degradation.

Encroachment of forestlands

Encroachment of forestlands is a multidimensional socioeconomic problem. The origin of the problem lies in thefact that a large portion of the population is either landlessor has marginal land holdings. During the 18th and 19th

centuries and even later people were encouraged to clearthe forests for practicing agriculture. Even afterindependence large extents of forest areas wereencroached for agriculture, which were subsequentlyregularized. Such successive regularizations haveencouraged further encroachments.

Substantial increase in population has led to increasedanthropogenic pressure on forest resources including land.The magnitude of the problem of encroachment inKarnataka can be gauged from the fact that from 1978onwards, more than one lakh families have encroachednearly 98,000 ha of forestland.

About 60.2% of the State’s population is engaged inagricultural and allied activities. Moreover, the per capitaland of the State is 2.13 ha, whereas in the Western Ghats,the average holding is 0.22 ha. Since the proportion ofmarginal and small land holdings is very high in the State,pressure on forest land is immense.

Protection of forestland has been a major challenge, asconsolidation and demarcation of the forests could not beadequately addressed in the past due to inadequateresource availability.

Diversion and fragmentation of forests and habitatdestruction

Karnataka’s forests have been fragmented due todevelopment of infrastructure and other developmentalactivities like dams, canals, roads, railway lines, miningand quarrying, encroachments, expansion of cultivation,hydro-electric projects. Fragmentation of forests is a veryserious problem in the Western Ghats region of Karnataka,creating physical barriers for animal migration and otherecological processes. It has led to increase in man-animalconflicts, especially in case of elephants attempting tomove along their traditional migratory routes causing deathof elephants, human beings and crop damage.

Unsustainable landscape management practices andabsence of regulatory mechanism of common propertyresources (CPRs)

The landscape comprises various landscape elementssuch as forest eco-system, water bodies, river basins,lakes, grazing lands and other such elements. The integrityand stability of the landscape is very critical in maintainingthe structure and function of eco-system. Various causessuch as loss of vegetation in the river basins andcatchments, encroachment of common property

Herd of elephants in Kabini backwaters

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resources, sedimentation of water bodies due to miningand soil erosion, etc have degraded the landscape.

A fine balance has to be maintained between differentlandscape elements. Any degradation in one elementaffects the other elements because of inherentinterdependence. For example, the loss of grazing landsand other uncultivated lands that used to be a vitalingredient of Karnataka’s agro-ecosystems has resultedin scarcity of biomass resources for the rural populationresulting in increased pressure on forests.

Forest eco-systems play a critical role in regulatinghydrological cycle. In Karnataka major rivers like Cauvery,Sharavathi, Kali, Bhadra etc., have their origin in theforests. Any disturbance to these eco-systems will disturbthe hydrological cycle. Deforestation has resulted in floods,siltation of water bodies (rivers and streams) and loweringof water table. The inflow of water in the rivers has reducedover the years due to change in the rainfall pattern anddisturbances in the hydrological cycle.

Unsustainable forest management practices

The domination of economic objectives over ecologicalobjectives has contributed largely to forest degradation.In order to meet the growing demand of timber, clear fellingand monoculture of a few important timber yielding speciesetc. were followed in the past causing irreparable damageto the forests. Supply of bamboo for pulpwood industries,harvest of evergreen species to meet the demand ofmatchwood and plywood timber and extraction ofsandalwood for sandal oil export had been driven byeconomic objectives. In the past, the State’s policy tosupply fuel wood and pulpwood to the industries atsubsidized rates has also resulted in the over exploitationof the forests.

These factors have led to a deficit of large stems of themost valuable species and over three-quarters of theforests have low seedling or sapling regeneration status.Past regeneration efforts have been influenced byeconomic consideration resulting in the introduction ofmonoculture of Teak (Tectona grandis) and exotic speciessuch as Eucalyptus, Acacia auriculiformis, Casuarina, etc.

Plantations of some major species such as Teak (Tectonagrandis), which occupy around 1,46,366 ha, followed byEucalyptus with 1,44,511 ha and fuel wood plantations ofAcacia, Casurina and other species in 13,47,398 ha arethe result of such economic considerations.

However one positive impact of the introduction of theexotic tree species like Acacia auriculiformis, Eucalyptusand Casuarina equisetifolia in some of the degraded foresttracts of the state has been the increased availability offuel wood. Extensive plantations of these species inprivate lands in a number of districts have alsoconsiderably eased the fuel wood scarcity in the nearbytowns and villages.

The endangered Nilgiri Langur found in Brahmagiri Wild-life sanctuary in Kodagu district

White eye with chicks

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For sustainable utilization of forest resources, theunderlying principle is that the total annual harvest shouldnot exceed the annual increment. Since the productivityof forests has gone down due to degradation and theremovals from the forests are ever increasing due toanthropogenic pressures, annual withdrawal exceeds theannual increment resulting in further degradation.

Smuggling and poaching in forests

Smuggling of timber and poaching of wildlife haveemerged as the most serious threats to the forestresources of the state. Lucrative prices offered for timber,animal skins, bones and other wildlife products havesignificantly enhanced the pecuniary gains of illegal trade,which the Forest Department with its present staff andinfrastructure finds it difficult to counter.

Poaching and illegal trade in wild animals and plants andtheir parts and products have emerged as one of the mostserious threats to biodiversity. This problem if notcontrolled effectively has the potential to substantiallynullify achievements in other fields of biodiversityconservation. The larger ramification of this problem maybe reflected in extinction of some plants and animals andsubstantial decline in the wild prey populations leading tocrop raiding, increased incidences of livestock predationand sometimes loss of human life by carnivores.

Low investments in forestry sector

Investment is very low in forestry sector. The financialsupport is mainly from government initiatives, while theinvestment from the private sector is negligible. The planout lay for the Forest Department including externally aidedproject is around one percent of the State’s annual budget.Considering that about 20 percent of the geographical areaof the State is covered by forest, this level of investment isvery low.

The major investment of the Department has been to raiseplantations, to produce seedlings for public distributionunder farm forestry program and to further strengthen themeasures of protection of forest resources and biodiversity. During the last ten years, the department has

been raising about 50,000 ha of plantations annually,mostly on degraded forest and non-forest Governmentlands. However the investment in the natural forest areashas been very low. Similarly, in the areas of wild lifemanagement, working plan, research, training, etc, theinvestment has been negligible. Because of lowinvestment, it has not been possible to take up sufficientworks of conservation and development in the forestrysector. This has affected the productivity of forests.

Very long gestation period needed for getting the returnsand absence of a proper mechanism to evaluate theenvironmental benefits from forests are the main reasonsfor low investment in forestry sector in the State.

National Forest Policy, 1988Following are the main objectives that govern the NationalForest Policy, 1988:

Maintenance of environmental stability throughpreservation and where necessary, restoration of theecological balance that has been adversely disturbed byserious depletion of the forests of the country.Conserving the natural heritage of the country bypreserving the remaining natural forests with the vastvariety of flora and fauna, which represent the remarkablebiological diversity and genetic resources of the country.Checking soil erosion and denudation in the catchmentareas of rivers, lakes and reservoirs in the interest of soiland water conservation, for mitigating floods and droughtsand for the retardation of siltation of reservoirs.Checking the extension of sand-dunes in the desert areasof Rajasthan and along the coastal tracts.Increasing substantially the forest/tree cover in the countrythrough massive afforestation and social forestryprogrammes, especially on all denuded, degraded andunproductive lands.Meeting the requirements of fuel wood, fodder, minorforest produce and small timber of the rural and tribalpopulations.Increasing the productivity of forests to meet essentialnational needs.Encouraging efficient utilisation of forest produce andmaximizing substitution of wood.Creating a massive people’s movement with theinvolvement of women, for achieving these objectives andto minimize pressure on existing forests.

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TRENDS

The trend analysis of the degradation of forests indicatesreduction of degradation in the recent years due to manyinitiatives undertaken by the Forest Department. It isgratifying to note that this decline in degradation is due tolarge scale afforestation programs, change in the forestmanagement policy by involving people’s participation,stricter protection in the recent past, etc.

As may be seen from the table, the forest cover inthe State has been showing an increasing trendduring the last fifteen years. The State of ForestReport 2001 has shown substantial increase in theforest cover as compared to that of 1999. Thisincrease is not only because of the change on theground but may include difference due to technicalfactors. The 2001 assessment is based on digitaltechnique at a scale of 1:50000 instead of visualmethod at a scale of 1:2,50,000 used earlier.Besides, certain areas with tree canopy such ascoconut, orchards, coffee and tea estates, etc. which

were not taken into account during forest coverassessments earlier, have been included in the 2001assessment. However such an increase is certainly apositive trend and is largely a result of the initiatives takenby the Forest Department.

Because of a conservation-oriented approach to forestmanagement adopted by the State Government, depart-mental extraction of forest produce has come down con-siderably in the recent years. The figures in the table illus-

Important Acts and Rules for conservation and protection of forest resources of Karnataka

The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980

The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 was enacted to regulate the dereservation of forests or use of forest land for non-forestrypurposes. Forest (Conservation) Rules were formulated by Government of India during 1981 for carrying out the provisions ofthe Forest Conservation Act. In addition consolidated guidelines have been issued by the Government of India in 1992 fordiversion of forest land. The guidelines provide for raising compensatory plantations in lieu of forest land diverted, for whichfunds are to be made available by the user agency.

The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 provides for various protection and regulating measures including prohibition on hunting ofwild animals, protection of specified plants, constitution and management of National Parks and Sanctuaries, Management ofZoos, trade/commerce in wild animals and products thereto, prevention and detection of wildlife offences etc.,

The Karnataka Forest Act, 1963

The Karnataka Forest Act, 1963 provides for constitution, conservation and protection of reserved forests, village forests anddistrict forests, control of timber and other forest produce in transit, provisions relating to sandal wood, forest development tax,penalties and procedures relating to forest offence cases etc., The Karnataka Forest Rules were formulated during 1969 forcarrying out the provisions of Karnatalka Forest Act, 1963

The Karnataka Preservation of Trees Act, 1976

The Karnataka Preservation of Trees Act, 1976 provides for preservation of trees in the State by regulating the felling of trees andfor planting adequate number of trees. The Act also stipulates constitution of a Tree Authority in different areas. This authorityhas been entrusted with the duties of preserving trees within its jurisdiction. The Act imposes severe restriction on felling oftrees.

Forest Cover change from 1991 to 2001

State of Forest Report.Year of Report (Year of assessment )

Dense forest (including mangrove)

(Crown density above 40 %)

Open forest. (Crown

density 10 % to 40 %)

Total (Sq Km)

Change (Sq Km)

1991 (1987-89) 24,856 7,343 32,199 1993 (1989-91) 24,852 7,491 32,343 +144 1995 (1991-93) 24,861 7,521 32,382 +39 1997 (1993-95) 24,857 7,546 32,403 +21 1999 (1995-97) 24,835 7,632 32,467 +64 2001 (1997-99) 26,156 10,835 36,991 +4524

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trate the sharp decline in the quanti-ties of timber and firewood harvestedby the Forest Department during thelast 30 years.

The analysis of harvest by the ForestDepartment reveals that the harvestshave been within the limits of theState’s annual incremental growth,although, as bulk of the harvesting wasfrom the moist and dry deciduousforests (35% of the total forest area),certain forest areas were over exploited.

Although removal of forest produce throughauthorized means has come down,unauthorized removals are still a matter ofconcern. The high number of forest offencecases of timber smuggling and sandalwoodsmuggling booked by the Karnataka ForestDepartment testify to the increasing demandof the forest products. Howeverover the last five years therehas been a steady decrease inthe number of forest offencecases.

After independence, the mainfocus of development was onagriculture. This resulted inlarge-scale diversion of forestland for extension ofagriculture. In addition, largechunks of forest land werediverted for developmentalactivities like mining, dams,power projects and for regularization of encroachments.However due to strict implementation of the Forest(Conservation) Act, 1980, diversion of forest land hasdecreased considerably after 1980. A comparison ofdiversion of forest land in periods of approximately 25years prior to 1980 and after 1980 reveal a reduction ofdiversion by a factor of five. During the last five yearsonly 4653.57 ha has been released for variousdevelopmental activities, which is 0.12% of the forest area.As against the area of 304.52 sq.km stipulated for

Recorded removal of important forest produce in Karnataka

Note: Poles from 1995-2000 are in numbers; whereas earlier figures are in TonsSource: Annual Reports, Karnataka Forest Department

Forest areas diverted for various developmental activities

Source: Karnataka Forest Department (Forest Conservation Section)

compensatory afforestation the State Government hasalready afforested 343.02 sq.km.

The Hon’ble Supreme Court of India on 30.10.2002 hasordered (Writ Petition No.202/95 Godavaraman V/s. Unionof India) that the user agencies in addition to paying forthe compensatory afforestation shall also pay the netpresent value of forest land diverted for non-forestpurposes. The net present value is to be recovered at therate of Rs. 5.8 lakhs per hectare to Rs.9.2 lakhs per hectare

Number of forest offence cases bookedduring 1997-98 to 2001-02

Source: Annual Report 2002-2003, Karnataka Forest Department

Produce Unit 1976-80 1980-85 1985-90 1990-95 1995-2000Rose Wood Cum 10172 6533 5696 4333 2964Teak Cum 83528 33756 11012 6722 2769Sawn Wood Cum 33025 7664 1182 566 2346Other timber Cum 384852 171823 125093 54932 28620Plywood species Cum 140852 97286 25238 1173 NAPoles Ton 140796 79877 43298 40378 272881(Nos)Bamboos Ton 101507 177192 48948 25169 21882Sandal wood Ton 1711 1152 1275 783 287Fire wood Cum 1349692 769228 532788 231392 200724

Nature of Offence 1997-98 1989-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02

Sandalwood offence cases

722 724 727 668 885

Other Forest offence cases including timber smuggling.

23,775 22,355 20,912 18,467 17,819

Total 24,497 23,079 21,639 19,135 18,704

Sl. No. Purpose

Extent of area diverted from 1956 to 1980

(sq. km)

Extent of area diverted from 1981 to 2002

(sq. km)1 Irrigation Projects 350.27 9.19 2 Hydel Projects 160.92 51.75 3 Mining/quarrying Projects 426.72 43.39 4 Construction of Roads 3.16 0.17 5 Laying of transmission lines 12.05 8.81

6Other purposes (including diversion for agriculture, regularization of encroachments etc.)

962.51 228.23

Total 1,915.64 345.20

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Care and Share

There has been a paradigm shift in the State’s policy from traditional approach of protection and management to participatoryapproach in management of forests. Joint Forest Planning and Management (JFPM) Policy has been adopted by the Statefrom 1993 to involve the people through VFCs in various aspects of forest protection, development and management.

Based on the experience gained in the last ten years the JFPM rules have been modified by providing high economicincentives to local people.

The JFPM scheme provides for sharing of the proceeds derived from the sale of forest produce between the Government andVFC. For non-timber forest produce this sharing is in the ratio of 90:10 between VFC and Government while for other forestproduce like fuel wood, fodder, small timber etc. the ratio is 75:25.

Government has also started a new tree patta scheme for protection, development and management of trees on roadsides,canal banks and other similar areas including urban areas. The scheme provides for sharing of forest produce between thebeneficiaries/ members/institutions and Forest Department.

As per the tree patta scheme, beneficiaries/ members/institutions are entitled to 100% usufruct. The final harvest is to beshared in the ratio of 75:25 between the beneficiaries/ members/institutions and the Government.

Afforestation under externally aided projects

1. Large-scale afforestation activities have been taken upunder various externally aided projects with emphasis onraising plantation on non-forest lands, community lands,etc. Special thrust has also been on farm forestry throughdistribution of seedlings to the farming community.

2. In the World Bank aided Social Forestry project, whichwas in operation from 1983-1989, the thrust was onafforestation of farmlands and community lands. Becauseof these initiatives, farm forestry gained momentum indistricts like Kolar, Bangalore Urban, Bangalore Rural,Mandya and Tumkur. These districts are now supplying 6lakh tons of pulpwood per year to paper and pulp industry,thus generating income to the tune of Rs. 48 crore in therural economy. This is in addition to the lops and tops,which are provided by these plantation for localconsumption.

3. Under the JBIC assisted project, afforestation was takenup in eastern plains, which are deficient in forest cover.Though it was initially mooted for period of 5 years startingfrom 1997-98, the project has been given an extension of3 years and will come to an end in 2004-05. Under thisproject 2 lakh hectares of degraded forest land,Government waste land, institutional land and road sideshave already been planted. In addition to this under farmforestry 21 crores of seedlings have been distributedcovering an area of 3 lakh hectares.

4. The JBIC project has been successful in involving peoplein the protection and management of forest and more than3,000 VFCs have already been formed under the project.

Degraded forest land

Rejenuvated forest land afterafforestation

Farm forestry

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Moving towards sustainable forest management

The basic concept of sustainable forest managementinvolves regeneration and sustainable harvest of timberand other forest produce to meet the local needs.However, in view of the State Government’s policiesbanning clear felling and green felling, introduced since1983 and 1990 respectively, logging activities, with theexception of obligatory fell ings necessitated bydevelopment projects with approval for diversions underthe Forest Conservation Act, have been by and largeconservative and restricted to salvaging of dead and fallenmaterial from the natural forest areas excluding theprotected areas. Felling of green trees was done only infuel wood plantations. All these operations were carriedout as per prescriptions of the approved Working Plans.

Working plan is a comprehensive document aimed atachieving continuity in management and development offorests. The working plan of a forest division provides foroverall working and management of the forests of thedivision. While preparing working plan, assessment ofboth the forest resources available and the needs of thepeople are taken into account and prescriptions formanagement are made to strike a balance between thetwo. These prescriptions also need to be consistent withthe principles of sustainable forest management to meetthe needs of the people.

The working plans were earlier written for periods rangingfrom 10 to 30 years and the State Government was thecompetent authority to approve these plans. However theHon’ble Supreme Court of India, in Order dated 12-12-1996 in W.P. No.202/95. Sri. T.N. GodavarmanThirumulakpad Vs. Union of India, directed that workingplans for all forest divisions shall be prepared by the StateGovernments and got approved from the Government ofIndia and that forest working shall be carried out strictlyin accordance with the approved prescriptions of theworking plans.

In view of the Supreme Court direction, revised workingplans have been prepared for all the thirty-seven forestdivisions of the State and approval for the same has beenobtained from Government of India. For the sake ofuniformity, all these working plans have been written fora period of ten years. Similarly management plans for allNational Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries have beenprepared and approved.

of forest land depending upon the density of the land inquestion converted for non-forest use. This will furtherhelp in preventing the diversion of forest land.

IMPACTS

Degradation of forests adversely affects the quality of air,the availability of water and soil fertility. The forests act asa source of life sustaining oxygen and as a sink for CO2

emissions through the process of carbon sequestration.Loss of forests has harmed the process, affecting thequality of air we breathe. Forest degradation has alsoresulted in the loss of productivity/fertility of the soil as theorganic content has been depleted.

Due to depletion of forest wealth the hydrological cycle ofthe landmass in the State is disturbed manifesting in theform of soil erosion, sedimentation, ground waterdepletion, accelerated water runoff, low infiltration, lowwater yield in the reservoirs and occasional floods.

Forest degradation has affected the bio-diversity of plantand animal species. Poor regeneration of species has ledto disturbances in the species composition and populationstructure. About 54 endemic species are now in the RET(Rare, Endangered and Threatened) category.

Encroachment of forestland and diversion of forestlandfor non forestry purposes has caused fragmentation offorest eco-system, loss of habitat, disturbance to wildanimals, loss of endemic species, etc.

The fragmentation of habitats has resulted in loss ofcorridors and traditional migratory routes of wild animalsand birds. One significant example is that of herds ofelephants straying on to agricultural fields causing cropdamage. The extension of cultivation towards forestboundaries is also a reason for the increase in man-animalconflict in recent years. Due to conservation activities thepopulation of wild animals has increased in the protectedareas but the extension of crop cultivation closer to theforest boundaries has aggravated the problem.

Landscape fragmentation has resulted in disturbances inthe ecological processes. Fragmentation leading to less

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effective regeneration capacity of lands has resulted inthe reduction in the population size and composition ofboth plant and animal species. This in turn has resulted inthe loss of genetic diversity due to inbreeding.

Loss of forest area, forest degradation, indiscriminateharvesting and unsustainable management practices arethe main causes of loss of non timber forest produce(NTFP) productivity.

Over grazing has suppressed growth of palatable foddergrass and other species leading to lands mostly coveredwith unpalatable species and weeds. Lantana camara andParthenium are such damaging alien weeds which haveinvaded large forest areas of the State resulting insuppression of natural regeneration of forests.

PRIORITISATION

Livestock grazing has become the highest priority factorcausing the degradation of forest land followed byincreasing fuel wood removal from forest and non-forestlands. Encroachement of forest areas is a problemprevalent throughout Karnataka. Habitat destruction and

absence of regulatory mechanism for common propertyresources recieve equal significance in the prioritisationexcersise and occupy the third and fourth placesrespectively.

ACTION PLAN

Sustainable Management of forests by adoptingscientifically accepted forest management practices

Removal of silviculturally mature trees from well-stockedforest as per Working Plan prescriptions is a scientificallyaccepted forest management practice. However theWorking Plans presently in operation have not prescribedfelling of mature green trees in natural forest because ofa policy ban on felling of green trees and not because ofsilvicultural considerations. The State Governmentreviewed the policy on green tree felling during 2002 andpermitted extraction of silviculturally mature trees fromadequately stocked deciduous forests provided WorkingPlans prescribe such extraction.

Action should therefore be taken to extract silviculturallymature trees from well-stocked deciduous forest (areas

Prioritisation matrix

Scale: 1= low, 3 = medium, 5= high

Impact on Public

health

Loss of biodiversity

Impact on Vulnerable

groups

Productivity loss

Impact on Critical

ecosystems

Irreversibility/ Reversibility

Urgency of the

problem Total

Increasing livestock grazing

3 5 4 4 5 4 4 29

Increasing fuelwood removal

4 4 4 4 4 4 4 28

Encroachment 2 5 4 5 5 4 3 28

Fragmentation of land and habitat destruction

3 4 4 4 4 4 4 27

Absence of regulatory mechanism of CPRs/river basins, gomal, mangrove etc

3 4 5 4 4 4 3 27

TOTAL 15 22 21 21 22 20 18 139

Problems

Socio- Economic /Ecological Impacts

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other than the protected areas) after revising the WorkingPlans and getting these approved.Protection and Consolidation of forest lands

Forest lands must be protected through boundaryconsolidation, survey, updating records, databasepreparation and development of GIS systems.

Protection of Common Property Resources (CPR)

a) Development of a comprehensive policy andinstitutional mechanism to manage the CPRs.

b) Development of good database and GIS maps tomonitor the land use and land cover.

c) Development of the CPRs on the sustainable basisthrough participatory approach involving the localcommunity.

d) Prevention of encroachment of the common propertyresources.

Protection of forest resources

The protection mechanism of the Forest Department needsto be further strengthened for which a number of steps,including filling up of the large number of frontlinevacancies, creation of more anti-poaching and anti-smuggling camps, mobile squads at vulnerable places,etc. need to be taken up.

Linking the farming system to forest developmentprogrammes

The proportion of marginal and small land holdings is veryhigh in the State, which is indicative of the State’s smallfarm based economy. Thus there is a need to link thefarming system to the forest development programmesso as to supplement the low incomes derived from thefarms with other income generating sources.

Encouragement to devices that help in reducingpressure on forests

Popularization of energy saving devices like Astraole,smokeless improved chulas and alternate energy sourceslike gobar gas, LPG, solar energy, etc. need to be done to

not only to reduce the pressure on forest but also to reduceindoor air pollution.Reducing the grazing pressure on forest

Stall-feeding should be encouraged in areas where grazingpressure is high. Number of non-productive cattle needsto be reduced through improved animal husbandrypractices. Fodder resources are to be developed inwastelands, gomals and kavals of animal husbandrydepartment. Mixed plantation of fodder trees and foddergrass can be raised in degraded forestlands near villages.

Development of forest resources

The existing forest resources of the State should bedeveloped in terms of area, productivity and quality throughvarious means such as eco-restoration of degraded foreststhrough natural regeneration, enrichment planting in thegaps to restore the tree cover and bio-diversity andintensive planting in open, degraded forest lands.Adequate provision should be made for regeneration ofareas after harvest of older plantations. The resourcedevelopment measures should also include operations likethinning of teak plantations, decongestion of bamboo,climber cutting, tending and soil and water conservation.

Enhancing the forest and tree cover

a) Agro-forestry and farm forestry should be taken up inthe private lands by supporting tree planting on privatelands through distribution of seedlings. This will notonly help in meeting the fuel wood and fodderrequirements but also help in achieving the target ofcovering 33% of the geographical area of the Statewith forest and tree cover.

b) The social forestry program should remain a coreforestry program to bring in additional area, speciallythe non forest government land, under tree coverthrough integration of all employment oriented ruraldevelopment programs and land-based activities suchas watershed, agriculture and animal husbandryprogrammes.

c) The tree felling permission of plantation trees and thefast growing species needs to be reviewed periodicallyto rationalize the rules and to promote tree cultivation

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in the State. Exemptions from transit passes to somemore species which are not generally found in naturalforests would create interest to grow more trees inprivate lands.

Conserving biodiversity in and outside Protected Areas

a) Protected Areas (PAs) need to be developed assacrosanct areas reserved only for wild lifeconservation by carrying out where necessaryeffective relocation and rehabilitation of people.

b) Identification, conservation and development ofdegraded areas outside the present national park andsanctuary where endemic or localized threatenedspecies are found needs to be done immediately.

Management of forests through people’s participation

a) Issues like enlarging the scope of JFPM to cover highdensity forests, JFPM in protected areas through ecodevelopment committees, involvement of people’srepresentatives etc. need to be addressed.

b) All villages, which have some or other dependenceon forests, need to be covered under JFPM.

c) More focus has to be given on participatory microplanning by following bottom up planning approach.Besides, the existing VFCs are to be strengthenedand made sustainable.

Sustainable management of Non Timber ForestProduce (NTFP) species

a) Development of management strategies to regenerateand sustainably harvest Non Timber Forest produce(NTFP) species needs to be done.

b) The Herbal value of NTFP needs to be sustainablyexploited. There is also need to create awareness inall the stake holders regarding value addition of theseNTFP which will help forest dwellers in getting betterremuneration, leading them to harvest their resourcesustainably.

Conservation and Management of Medicinal Plantresources

Medicinal plants resources are to be conserved in thenatural forests and the cultivation on the private holdingsare to be encouraged.a) Medicinal plant conservation program need to be

based on the principle of “conservation-with-community-participation”.

Strengthening forestry research

a) Development of a research agenda that is adaptiveand responsive to the needs of various end userswhile developing a better understanding of the uniqueecological and socio-economic processes in theWestern Ghats and other forests of the State.

b) Promotion of participatory mode of addressingresearch needs and designing cost-effective ways ofaddressing them whose main emphasis will be onestablishing linkages with research users and toeffectively disseminate the research results.

c) The focus of the research wing of forest departmentneeds to be on supply of quality planting material tofarmers through identification of candidate plus tree,seeds stand, etc., and development of appropriatepropagation techniques.