DEFORESTATION AND MINING
Vanishing Forest
The dimensions of deforestation in India are staggering. The forest and tree cover in the country is estimated at 79.42 million hectare, which is 24.16 percent of the total geographical area (dense forest 12.2 percent; open forest 9.14 percent; and mangrove 0.14 percent). According to the State of Forest Report (2015), the dense forest cover has increased by 3,775 sq km since 2013. However, this apparent increase in the forest cover is due to conservation measures, management interventions and plantation, etc., by different agencies.
Figure 2.1:
Asiatic Cheetah: where did they go?
These are species which are in danger of extinction. The survival of such species is difficult if the negative factors that have led to a decline in their population continue to operate. Examples of such species are blackbuck, crocodile, Indian wild ass, Indian rhino, lion-tailed macaque, sangai (brow anter deer in Manipur), etc.
What are the negative factors that cause such fearful depletion of the flora and fauna?
If you look around, you will be able to find out how we have transformed nature into a resource obtaining directly and indirectly from the forests and wildlife – wood, barks, leaves, rubber, medicines, dyes, food, fuel, fodder, manure, etc. So it is we ourselves who have depleted our forests and wildlife. The greatest damage inflicted on Indian forests was during the colonial period due to the expansion of the railways, agriculture, commercial and scientific forestry and mining activities.
Figure 2.2: A few extinct, rare and endangered species
Agricultural expansion
Even after Independence, agricultural expansion continues to be one of the major causes of the depletion of forest resources. Between 1951 and 1980, according to the Forest Survey of India, over 26,200 sq. km. of forest area was converted into agricultural land all over India. Substantial parts of the tribal belts, especially in northeastern and central India, have been deforested or degraded by shifting cultivation (jhum), a type of ‘slash and burn’ agriculture.
Large-scale development projects have also contributed significantly to the loss of forests. Since 1951, over 5,000 sq km of forest was cleared for river valley projects. Clearing of forests is still continuing with projects like the Narmada Sagar Project in Madhya Pradesh, which would inundate 40,000 hectares of forest.
Mining
Mining is another important factor behind deforestation. The Buxa Tiger Reserve in West Bengal is seriously threatened by the ongoing dolomite mining. It has disturbed the natural habitat of many species and blocked the migration route of several others, including the great Indian elephant.
Grazing and fuelwood collection
Many foresters and environmentalists hold the view that the greatest degrading factors behind the depletion of forest resources are grazing and fuel-wood collection. Though, there may be some substance in their argument, yet, the fact remains that a substantial part of the fuel-fodder demand is met by lopping rather than by felling entire trees. The forest ecosystems are repositories of some of the country’s most valuable forest products, minerals, and other resources that meet the demands of the rapidly expanding industrial-urban economy. These protected areas, thus mean different things to different people and therein lies the fertile ground for conflicts.
Habitat destruction, hunting, poaching, over-exploitation, environmental pollution, poisoning and forest fires are factors, which have led to the decline in India’s biodiversity.
Figure 2.3(a): Tribal girls using bamboo saplings in a nursery at Mukhali near Silent Valley
Figure 2.3(b): Tribal women selling minor forest produce Leaf litter collection by women folk
Are colonial forest policies to be blamed?
Some of our environmental activists say the promotion of a few favoured species, in many parts of India, has been carried through the ironically-termed “enrichment plantation”, in which a single commercially valuable species was extensively planted and other species eliminated. For instance, teak monoculture has damaged the natural forest in South India and Chir Pine (Pinus roxburghii) plantations in the Himalayas have replaced the Himalayan oak (Quercius spp.) and Rhododendron forests.
The Himalayan Yew in trouble:
The Himalayan Yew (Taxus wallachiana) is a medicinal plant found in various parts of Himachal Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh. A chemical compound called ‘taxol’ is extracted from the bark, needles, twigs and roots of this tree, and it has been successfully used to treat some cancers – the drug is now the biggest selling anti-cancer drug in the world. The species is under great threat due to over-exploitation. In the last one decade, thousands of yew trees have dried up in various parts of Himachal Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh.
Source: This topic is taken from NCERT TEXTBOOK
OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL DESTRUCTION
Other important causes of environmental destruction are unequal access, inequitable consumption of resources and differential sharing of responsibility for environmental well-being. Over-population in third-world countries is often cited as the cause of environmental degradation. However, an average American consumes 40 times more resources than an average Somalian. Similarly, the richest five percent of Indian society probably cause more ecological damage because of the amount they consume than the poorest 25 percent. The former shares minimum responsibilities for environmental well-being. The question is: who is consuming what, from where and how much?
More to know:
over half of India’s natural forests are gone, one-third of its wetlands drained out, 70 percent of its surface water bodies polluted, 40 percent of its mangroves wiped out, and with continued hunting and trade of wild animals and commercially valuable plants, thousands of plant and animal species are heading towards extinction.
Source: This topic is taken from NCERT TEXTBOOK
LOSS OF CULTURAL DIVERSITY
The destruction of forests and wildlife is not just a biological issue. The biological loss is strongly correlated with the loss of cultural diversity. Such losses have increasingly marginalised and impoverished many indigenous and other forest-dependent communities, who directly depend on various components of the forest and wildlife for food, drink, medicine, culture, spirituality, etc. Within the poor, women are affected more than men. In many societies, women bear the major responsibility of the collection of fuel, fodder, water, and other basic subsistence needs. As these resources are depleted, the drudgery of women increases and sometimes they have to walk for more than 10 km to collect these resources. This causes serious health problems for women and negligence of home and children because of the increased hours of work, which often has serious social implications. The indirect impact of degradation such as severe drought or deforestation-induced floods, etc. also hits the poor the hardest. Poverty in these cases is a direct outcome of environmental destruction. Therefore, forest and wildlife, are vital to the quality of life and environment in the subcontinent. It is imperative to adapt to sound forest and wildlife conservation strategies.
More to know:
over half of India’s natural forests are gone, one-third of its wetlands drained out, 70 percent of its surface water bodies polluted, 40 percent of its mangroves wiped out, and with continued hunting and trade of wild animals and commercially valuable plants, thousands of plant and animal species are heading towards extinction.
Source: This topic is taken from NCERT TEXTBOOK