Gone Missing

Old growth trees felled for 'green energy' projects

I recently read about the film Well Done, Abba! made by one of India’s most respected directors, Shyam Benegal. The film is about a stolen well from a village. It highlights how corruption led to non-existent wells in a village and these ‘ghost wells’ were challenged by a father daughter duo.

Reading about this in the book Non-Stop India by Mark Tully, former Chief of Bureau, BBC New Delhi, I could not resist drawing parallels about a recent problem we worked on in the Western Ghats; the ‘green energy’ projects. The state of Karnataka is grappled with severe shortage of electricity leading to several measures from the state including encouraging power generation from renewable sources.

A case in point is a run-of-the-river power project (popularly called as mini-hydel) being built in the Kenchanakumari and Yedakumari Reserved Forests in Hassan district. The location of the project would impress anyone interested in forest and wildlife conservation. Multi layered forests, lofty trees, epiphytes, climbers, gushing streams; a perfect rainforest habitat. The landscape is home to tiger, elephant, hornbill, Travancore flying squirrel, Nilgiri marten and many other wildlife species all protected under India’s premier conservation legislation, The Wildlife Protection Act 1972. The area even hosts two frog species, Gundia Indian frog and Kottigehara bush from, that are found nowhere else in the world.

The project proponents, Maruthi Power Gen (India) Limited, have permission for two projects to be built in the same location including the same survey numbers, and of course they claim to be constructing two projects. However at the project location one would find that one of the power projects is ‘missing’. Inspired by Well Done, Abba! I am tempted to file a police complaint as it would deceive a power starved state from producing nearly 20 MW of electricity. The state has sacrificed forestland; huge subsidies have been given using tax payer’s money and even by international agencies such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC). So how can we afford to have a ‘missing’ project?

So where has this power project gone? The records in the Forest Department which is the competent authority to give permissions is straight. It clearly states Maruthi Power Gen (India) Limited is allowed to construct two power generation projects of 18.9 and 19.0 MW in survey numbers 1 and 16 of Yedakumari Village in the Kenchankumari and Kagneri Reserved Forests. The forestlands diverted to the projects are 4.18 and 4.20 hectares which has been fully utilized. However one of the projects is missing. There is only one weir, one power house (in construction phase) and all other components required for a power generation unit stands as one project.

 

Siting of some of these projects are a cause of concern as they would completely break the corridors of wildlife between south and central Western Ghats in Karnataka.

Misleading the Forest Conservation Act

On detailed scrutiny the story unfolds. If forestland to be diverted is above 5 hectares then the project proposal would be referred to the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC), a legal body setup by the Ministry of Forests and Environment under the Forest Conservation Act 1980, which scrutinizes forestland diversions. However this mini-hydel project required about nine hectares of forestland. So, conveniently the project was split into ‘two projects’ and sanctioned to bye-pass the FAC inspection.

Similarly any power generation unit that produces above 25 MW will be considered as a normal hydel project and becomes mandatory to carryout Environmental Impact Assessment and public hearing. So, the project investors again divided the project into two projects of 18.9 and 19.0 MW to avoid following the mandatory norms. Going further if the project was above 25 MW it would be ineligible for the all the financial incentives the Government provided. Even UNFCC provides cash incentives as these are power generation initiatives purportedly having no impacts on the environment unlike large hydel projects which involves submergence of vast forest areas and at times involves relocation of people.

However the truth on-ground is that these ‘green-energy’ projects have been located in some of the most critical wildlife corridors that are extremely fragile and rich in biodiversity. Throwing all natural justice norms to wind the local authorities have given a clean chit saying that no wildlife exists in this area nor it is an ecologically sensitive area. Ironically the same local forest administration authorities are now claiming that land from farmers should be acquired as they face severe conflict with elephants in this same area!

Paradoxically our stringent wildlife and forest conservation laws are violated with little understanding or respect for our natural world. In a bizarre step the Karnataka Renewable Energy Department, the Government arm to promote renewable energy sources has permitted 44 mini-hydel projects against the River Nethravathi in the Western Ghats of Karnataka. It would become impossible to call this as a river if the water is dammed and stored at 44 locations. A total of 72 such run-of-the-river power generation projects have been sanctioned in the Western Ghats of Karnataka.

Everyone encourages renewable energy generation. However in this case the siting of these projects is the cause of concern. If our central ministry be interested to open these cupboards to delve into the violations, certainly more skeletons will roll out.  Economic growth is slowly chipping away our wildlife habitats, systematically destroying our precious natural heritage using the magic word ‘development’. However this development should not be at the cost of the few swathes of natural forests left in the country. 

An edited version of the article was published in Hindustan Times on 21-12-2011

http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/ColumnsOthers/Greedy-for-growth/Article1-785081.aspx

Roads of contention

A tiger narrowly misses being hit by a speeding car. Pic: Bhojaraju

Highways can have significant impacts on wildlife behavior, survival and movement of animals by acting as physical barriers. This is especially true for wide-ranging, ecologically sensitive large mammalian species such as the tiger, wild dog to name a few. One of the worst affected taxa are tree dwelling primates and rodents that are isolated to smaller patches with breakage in tree canopy reducing their forage area and affecting genetic diversity.

Speed limits and sign boards are ignored while driving through protected areas leading to mortality of wildlife. Pic: R.Raghuram

However the most serious and obviously seen impact is wildlife mortality by speeding vehicles. Such unnatural mortalities can have deleterious effects on a population through loss of breeding individuals especially in species that have low reproductive rates such as the lion-tailed macaque. It is observed that several wildlife mortalities occur at night due to dazzling headlights and speeding vehicles that affect response rate of wildlife. Several nocturnal animals such as civet, mouse deer, black-naped hare and reptiles are regular victims of speeding vehicles. Hence it is a common practice, both in India and several other countries, to close highways in key wildlife habitats for vehicular traffic at night time.

A wild dog killed by a speeding vehicle on the Mysore-Manathavadi road in Nagarahole National Park. Pic:Prakash Matad

Vehicular traffic at night times will also facilitate increased use of the area for illegal activities such as timber smuggling, wildlife poaching. Poachers caught in Biligirirangaswamy Temple Wildlife Sanctuary confessed to have hunted on the highways of Bandipur Tiger Reserve.

Wildlife mortalities in Bandipur Tiger Reserve due to speeding vehicles are so high that it led to the High Court of Karnataka ordering closures of the highways for night time traffic. The court’s judgment was also based on the fact that there were alternatives available for these highways and would also not affect economic activities. Though the alternative journey could cost a bit more, it’s a price we have to bear for saving the habitat of our national animal.

The Wildlife Protection Act 1972 also mandates that tiger reserves need to be kept inviolate. With only 3.3 per cent of Karnataka’s geographical area under protected area category, it is well within the limits of natural justice to restrict vehicular movement within this important wildlife habitat at night times.

An edited version of this article was published in Deccan Chronicle on 15-11-2011
http://www.deccanchronicle.com/tabloid/bengaluru/several-animal-deaths-are-due-speeding-vehicles-463

Talking green, going red

Several mini-hydel power projects have been installed in the Western Ghats damaging the fragile eco-system. Pic: Naagakiran

In the state of Karnataka energy deficiency is a much debated political topic. In their attempt to gain electoral support, and more importantly avoid embarrassing legislative questions successive Governments have permitted several ‘green energy’ projects. As a result over 70 small hydropower projects (<25 MW capacity), popularly called as mini-hydel projects, have peppered several rivers and streams that dot the forests of Western Ghats. Though these projects are required to meet the growing demand of electricity, the siting of some these projects is the cause of concern.

The Western Ghats, a biological hotspot are complex mountain systems forming catchment area for river systems that drain nearly 40 percent of the country. These enchanting mountains running parallel to the west coast support the human society through a variety of eco-system services including water regulation, flood control, carbon sequestration, genetic repositories and several other factors. Importantly they harbour some of our endemic and endangered wildlife species including tiger, elephant, lion-tailed macaque, Nilgiri tahr, hornbill and many more. For several decades these forests are subjected to a variety of human disturbances and now mini-hydel projects join the list of threats.

Unlike thermal or nuclear power plants these cleaner, ‘greener’ projects have gained currency in the last decade as they do not have any direct effect on humans. Hence these politically palatable projects even drummed up support of environmentalists. Though talking green can be politically correct, but the on-ground realities can be different, infact very different.

From a wildlife conservation perspective these projects are already proving pricey. Several roads are formed in pristine forests by felling thousands of trees. Transmission lines that evacuate power to the central grid necessitates further cutting of trees leading to linear fragmentation of wildlife habitats. Canopy dwelling species such as the lion-tailed macaque, a highly endangered Western Ghats endemic, flying squirrel, slender loris, to name a few are severely impacted by linear fragmentation. Breakage in tree canopy contiguity limits their movements to smaller home ranges restricting access to food sources. These animals need to scout large areas of forests as fruit bearing trees are spread over several thousand acres and are seasonal in nature. Genetic related disorders creep in due to inbreeding, as these animals are unable to mix with other groups due to the breakage in their movement corridors.

Curtailing river flow impacts fresh water flora and fauna. Fresh water fish endemism is particularly high in the Ghats. Control of water flow by these projects will affect fish migration and spawning, nesting of amphibians and a host of other problems.

In the evergreen forests of Hassan district, Gundia Indian frog a critically endangered species is independently evolving in India since the last 50 million years. Recognised as an EDGE (Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered) species it is found in a small area of 100 sq km. The Kemphole mini-hydel project, where this frog has its last stronghold, has ensured the further depletion of this rare amphibian.

Several old growth trees have been cut to form roads and other infrastructure. Pic: Bhuvnesh

In the past 36 months biologists have discovered 14 frog species, five species of insects and one fish species that are new to science in the Western Ghats forests of Karnataka alone. It would be ludicrous if we lose species even before they are revealed.

Some of these projects fall in the forests that have no legal protection but have all the characteristics of natural forests. Though the Supreme Court has ordered protection of unprotected forests (deemed forests) little attention is paid to this. Relaxations made in the rules for power projects generating less than 25 MW are grossly misused. By splitting projects into multiple ventures, promoters hoodwink the mandatory environmental clearance required for projects above 25MW. This ploy also helps claim subsidies for multiple projects. Some allege that their production capacities are higher than they are permitted.

Sardonically some of these projects have even claimed incentives from United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) for being ‘green’. The state and central Governments have offered several subsidies making these projects almost free of cost for the investors. Even project permits are traded for high returns.

This ‘small is beautiful’ concept has the same effect as large hydropower projects, cumulatively possibly even higher. The scale of impact for every megawatt generated is comparable to the large hydro power projects. The negative effects seem to evidently outweigh the benefits and clearly there is no scientific basis for the ‘green’ claim of these businesses.

Energy Department of Karnataka estimates that the potential of small hydro power generation is 3,000 MW. The 72 projects in the Western Ghats of Karnataka even operating at their optimum levels would produce less than ten percent of the state’s energy needs. However their impacts on forests and wildlife are larger both in economic and environmental terms. If detailed studies with the help of true experts rather than through self-appointed environmental impact assesses are made, more feasible project locations could be drawn out.

Breakage of habitat contiguity has severe impacts on canopy dwelling wildlife species such as the lion-tailed macaque. Pic:Naagkiran

Wildlife habitats seem to be the softest targets for policy makers and business proponents. Our governance approach is to wake up to the impacts after the effects are too conspicuous and irreversible. As the old saying goes prevention is better than cure. It’s perhaps time to rethink our environmental governance approaches and make some space for nature.

An edited version of this article was published in the 16-30th June, 2011 edition of Governance Now.

Not out of the woods, yet

Landscpae species such as the elephant needs vast spaces. Pic:Sanjay Gubbi

Another year has passed since the last World Environment Day. The media and public had a burst of information about climate change and are perplexed by it as this hazard would directly affect Homo sapiens. On a global scale the society wakes up to such daunting environmental issues as it happened in the past with nuclear energy, greenhouse gases and others. Nonetheless there are equally serious concerns with saving species that co-inhabit this planet and has failed to generate similar levels of attention or commitment from the society.

Species conservation

The nation faces an uphill task in saving its national animal, the tiger. Loss of habitat and prey continue to threaten the tiger. However one question that draws the attention and curiosity of most people from laymen to policy makers, how many tigers do we have? Countrywide estimates of tiger densities that were recently put out by the Government drew flak from certain sections of the wildlife community. Nevertheless India is still the best prospect for saving this amber-eyed cat beyond our generations is a matter of solace.

Taking cue from the committee set up to devise policies to save tigers, the Government instituted the Elephant Task Force for drawing up plans to ensure the long-term future of this species. However due to lack of public and media pressure the recommendations of the task force did not go beyond the symbolic declaration of elephant as the national heritage animal. Wish the recommendations were taken seriously about the species which is largely responsible for creating tension amongst its human neighbours due to its ability to damage crops and inflict human fatalities.

The other species that draws attention due its biological and elastic nature of living close to humans and also responsible for high levels of conflict is the spotted cat; the leopard. The species continues to be hacked, stoned and burnt with little pragmatic approaches to reduce the problem. Very importantly the behaviour of people in situations when large-bodied wildlife enters human habitations is appalling. Large-scale public education and crowd management by the police are very essential.

Recent information reveals that tigers move vast distances in search of new territories. This brings into limelight the issue of creating corridors and holding on to viable forest cover between protected areas. In this direction the concept of critical wildlife habitats needs a relook. We need to identify and declare areas that are ecologically vital and provide linkages between source wildlife populations especially for wide-ranging species such as the tiger.

The future of large mammal conservation depends upon political will and integrated conservation planning. Pic:Sanjay Gubbi

The decision maker

After decades the country has a Minister for Environment and Forests who has made his presence felt. There is little doubt that a few issues could have been dealt in a more realistic manner. At present the ministry is more transparent and trying to move away from the tight totalitarian regime. Opportunities are provided to civil societies, eminent scientists to participate in the decision making processes which were almost non-existent during the previous administrations. The minister faced wrath of the business community for going by the rule book. A leading journal from the Wall Street touted him as someone with an ‘activist agenda’ and sacrificing economic growth for environmentalism.

Despite all the criticism I would say the minister got some respect to Paryavaran Bhavan which earlier acted only as a project clearing machinery. It is true that rearranging a system built over half a century is not as easy as rearranging nuts and bolts of machinery. There surely have been a few steps in the right direction that needs to be appreciated.

Infrastructure development should be kept out of critical wildlife habitats. Pic:Basavanna.H.S

Finally

Currently the world is filling up; filling up with more people. India announced its population to be about 1.21 billion, with it has also grown the economy. The mantra of perpetual development is now the secular religion. Development projects uninterruptedly continue to assault natural habitats. Today there is little doubt to believe that our world is crafted and guided by a few corporate houses and individuals. Development lobbyists from across the globe are the political actors deciding the way our wildlife habitats are sliced, cut, divided and distributed among several interest groups that want a piece of our wildlife turf.

It is not development versus wildlife conservation. A middle path where wildlife is kept at the core of development planning when it involves ecologically sensitive areas is the need of the hour. If highways, dams and mines do not slice the country’s four percent land area that harbours our national parks and wildlife sanctuaries, it makes little or no dent in the overall growth objectives of the country. In this world of limitless demands and with limited land area for wildlife, urgent steps are to be taken if we are serious about securing the homes of tigers, elephants, rhinos and other habitat-specialist species.

An edited version of this article has been published in The Hindu on 05-06-2011

http://www.hindu.com/mag/2011/06/05/stories/2011060550040100.htm

Making Way for the Jumbo Challenge

Prior to the software buzz, a bejewelled Maharaja on an elephant was an important brand icon for India. This acted as an important symbol for promoting the tourism industry. But in recent times ‘brand elephant’ has suffered a loss of reputation, at least in some parts of rural India where farmers suffer crop loss or injury/death of near and dear ones. Though some of us strongly advocate the preservation of elephants, certain sections of society, especially those who live in close proximity to this megaherbivore, do not share our sentiments about these difficult neighbours.

At the other end of the spectrum infrastructure project proponents (though crucial for the country’s economic growth) have knowingly or unknowingly ensured fragmentation and degradation of elephant habitats at a scale and pace that is monstrous. Hence, today, saving a large wildlife species such as the elephant has become the ultimate test of society’s willingness to conserve wildlife.

India hosts the largest Asian elephant population and with an estimated 26,000 elephants it is home to half the world’s population. These pachyderms are spread over a geographical area of about 110,000 sq km, sixty percent of which is declared as 32 Elephant Reserves (ER).

A different concept than the conventional Protected Areas (PAs), ERs consist of a mixture of land categories. PAs (30%), Reserved Forests (40%) and private lands (30%) form the land tenure of ERs. Securing this landscape in pursuit of saving a flagship species is a challenging and daunting task, particularly as degrees of protection and land ownership vary within ERs. Combined with it is the ever expanding economy and crushing human numbers competing for space, sometimes with elephants. This is perhaps true for all large vertebrates that demand specialised food habits and/or range over wide areas. However, due its ability to inflict human fatalities, the conservation of elephants is a mammoth task compared to the conservation of any of the other species.

The increased tension due to human-elephant conflict and rampant retaliatory killing of elephants prompted the central Government to set up the Elephant Task Force (ETF) along the lines of the Tiger Task Force that was set up earlier in the wake of the tiger crisis looming over the nation. The important assignment of ETF was to bring in long-term, pragmatic solutions for elephant conservation.

Brining down human-elephant conflict to tolerable limits will be key to long-term elephant conservation success. Pic: Sanjay Gubbi

Interestingly, the task force was headed by a wildlife historian and political analyst, which is an indication of the issues related to elephant conservation that encompasses the broader social milieu. Other members of the task force comprised elephant biologists, conservation and animal welfare activists, and a veterinarian. The report was developed based on country-wide consultations with a wide array of people including people affected by elephants, elected representatives, officials of forest departments, wildlife biologists, conservation and welfare activists, mahouts, veterinarians, temple committees, and elephant owners, attempting a democratic process.

‘Gajah: Securing the future for elephants in India’, was recently submitted to the Government sans the intense media glare that the Tiger Task Force attracted. The report advocates transparency in all aspects of elephant conservation, and it is admirable that the report itself was immediately made accessible to the public on the Ministry of Environment and Forests’ website.

The ETF has focussed on a wide range of issues such as the elephant’s spread in the country, governance, habitat loss, protection and habitat management, captive elephants, human-elephant conflict, elephant research, and outreach.

Elephants and governance
Few Government-appointed committees have been critical about the way the public institution functions. Calling for an administrative overhaul both at the union and state level, ETF notes that there is lack of focus and attention at the highest level of the Government. ETF comments that though Project Elephant was set up in 1992 it has been “unable to take up leadership in elephant conservation”. A statutory body similar to the National Tiger Conservation Authority is proposed. This new body, National Elephant Conservation Authority (NECA) would require amendments in the Wild Life Protection Act 1972 (WLPA), to give it teeth under the law. A budget of Rs 600 crore (US $129 million) has been proposed under the 12th five-year plan for NECA.

In a progressive idea, ETF recommends lateral recruitment of non-governmental personnel with requisite skills to be appointed in the NECA at the regional levels. To improve governance in management, Operational Reserve Level Management Advisory Committees comprising of elected representatives (MLAs, Zilla Panchayat, Gram Panchayat and Gram Sabha members), local conservationists, officers of railways, veterinary, and other departments, which would hold public hearings, are to be setup.

An important feature that’s missing in our PA management is objective, ecological, and administrative assessment of performance. Independent evaluation of the ERs with performance indicators to measure progress is recommended to bring in transparency.

Defragmenting elephant habitats
Recently there have been increased debates about the role of PAs in wildlife conservation. However, with crisis looming over some habitat specialist species it is becoming clearer that PAs act as core sites for source populations. Re-emphasising this, ETF calls PAs indispensable for elephant survival and has suggested that PAs be expanded to include critical habitats and corridors or else be declared as Community or Conservation Reserves as found fit.

Expanding or declaring new PAs, however small they are, is a herculean task in the current socio-political situation. Opposing interests, whether legitimate or not, are too many. Hence declaring elephant corridors, as part of the PAs that as suggested by the ETF would be a challenging job to accomplish.

The world over and in India elephants have experienced massive contractions of their geographical range due to modifications of their habitats and landscapes. This collapse of range needs to be halted if wide-ranging species have to be saved, and saved with minimum conflict with humans. Larger external pressures have pushed elephants into fragmented habitats and this needs larger habitat management processes.

To reduce further fragmentation of elephant habitats it is recommended that entire ERs are declared as Ecologically Sensitive Areas under the Environment Protection Act. The EFT suggests that infrastructure development like mining within ERs be checked or permitted under strict ecological safety standards, and urges continuance of local livelihood activities subject to existing norms. To check diverting wildlife habitats without species specific criteria, a new approach termed as Elephant-Specific EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment) is suggested for permitting developmental projects within ERs. The ETF has also recognised the long pending issue of quality and rigor of EIAs and licensing consultants conducting EIAs.


Civil society has identified 88 critical elephant corridors across the country based on various ecological and social parameters. ETF has ranked the importance of these corridors and a Rs 200 crore (US$ 43 million) budget for corridor securement is proposed under NECA. Apart from this it is also suggested to use Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) for habitat consolidation and in particular for purchasing corridors. The corridors have been divided into two categories based on ecological priority and feasibility.

The report calls for rationalisation of ER boundaries based on ecological principles rather than the current ad-hoc boundaries. With this background the ETF has identified 10 elephant landscapes for prioritising suggested activities.

There are few cases where forest land encroachment, especially for developmental activities or commercial plantations, has been dealt with seriously in the country. This soft approach on a serious issue has bolstered forest encroachers. On a positive note ETF has suggested amendment of WLPA so that a minimum fine of Rs 10 lakh and imprisonment of not less than two years be imposed on encroachers in ERs.

On the issue of linear fragmentations such as railway tracks, roads, and high tension power lines, several suggestions including regulating night traffic passing through elephant corridors and bringing railway projects under the purview of EIA have been advised.

Other serious concerns
Another critical issue addressed is the way elephant habitats are managed in the name of ‘habitat improvement’. The report has set guidelines on management of surface water, forest road construction, and soil and moisture conservation activities in elephant habitats. This is an effort to inculcate scientific management of habitats and also prevent ‘leakage’ of conservation funds.

Applying the precautionary principle on the important international issue, opening of ivory trade finds no support in the report as it states that “no rationale, whether ecological, economic and ethical can justify international ivory trade.”

Expressing unstinted support for wildlife conservation, the report states “in India species do not always have to pay to survive.” This should answer questions of culling, trophy hunting, and other similar conservation paradigms. Issues that are perhaps ubiquitous to most tropical countries such as improving enforcement effectiveness and staff recruitment at lower levels also find place in the report.

Education and outreach
Broaching the domain of conservation education, which is focussed more on urbanites, the report has emphasised enormously on conservation education and outreach for communities living in and around elephant habitats. In a bid to take elephants to people, based on ETF’s suggestion elephant has been declared as a national heritage animal.

Hosting the first International Elephant Congress, Elephant Range Exchange Programme, United Nations Day of the Elephants and setting up of the Asian Elephant Forum are other suggestions.

On the flip side
Certain recommendations made by ETF need some rethinking. It has gone with the old model of recommending MPs to represent in national level committees. Representation of MLAs from high conflict areas in the national level committees is important. The political dynamics of MLAs and MPs are different. Rural communities have an influential political voice but have better access to MLAs rather than MPs. MPs do not rely directly on individual voters to regain political constituencies like MLAs, but operate through other elected representatives and local leaders.

It should be mandatory that there is no financial link between the agency applying for permits and EIA consultants. This issue has been the crux in the bias shown in most EIA reports. It would have been ideal if this gap was identified in the report. Another serious concern in the report’s recommendations is about independent evaluation of reserve management. Though the suggestion of independent evaluation is highly valid, it missed the point that evaluators cannot be people retired from the forest services. As ex-officials evaluating their own colleagues and juniors, the outcomes might be biased.

Bringing paramilitary forces to improve protection might not be an ideal solution. As the report itself has highlighted, elephant conservation is as much a social, economic and political issue as it is biological. Protection forces need considerable understanding of local issues, familiarity with terrain, people (for information gathering), language, and so on. Alien paramilitary forces might only work in terrorist, insurgency infested areas but not under normal circumstances.

Finally
Overall the ETF has shown a strong will to democratise the way elephant conservation needs to go ahead and also how Government appointed committees can perform. Lastly, the task force projects a positive picture that “India can secure the future of elephants and their forest home”. This is unlike several other reports which project a gloomy picture. Hope the recommendations of the task force are implemented by the Government in true spirit.

This article was published in a recent edition of Current Conservation (Vol 4, Issue 2)

Splintering the elephant habitat

The female elephant guards carcasses of two calves in Vatepura, Hassan district. Pic: DH File

The heart rendering images of a mother elephant guarding carcasses of two calves in Vatepura, Hassan district caught the attention of the country a few days ago. The unfortunate calves had died due to electrocution as the farmer connected live wires to the fence trying to halt elephants entering his crop fields. Another calf died of similar reasons three days later. The issue of human-elephant conflict is now again in the forefront.

It ought to take centre stage. This is the season when the crops are ripe, harvested, stored and elephants see it as the best opportunity to find high nutrition food outside their forested domain. Atypical of the general viewpoint that elephants come out of forests during summer due to lack of forage and water availability, elephant crop raids are high during post monsoon and ends before the onset of summer. There will only be stray incidences during summer. Whatever the season, the issue needs to be ironed out to reduce human deaths and crop losses.

Solutions are at one of the end of the concern, but dissecting the problem is perhaps the most important of the priorities as it can possibly avoid future altercations between farmers and elephants.

Splintering the Ghats

The geography of Hassan and Kodagu districts, where the human-elephant conflict has reached alarming rates, changed at unprecedented rates during 1960-80. The immediate victims of this changed landscape were its non-human inhabitants. Several wildlife species may have gone locally extinct and some like the elephants, a hardier species, have held on. But now they face a bleak or no future.

The construction of Harangi, Hemavathi and Chiklihole reservoirs, the flumes that carry water for cultivation and other related disturbances in the form of large-scale human settlements due to these construction activities have all led to one serious problem; loss and fragmentation of elephant habitats. These developmental activities ensured that the northern forests of Kattepura, Yadavanad-Aanekaad were disconnected from the southern forests of Dubare, Mavukal, Devamachi, Anechowkoor which further connected them to Nagarahole National Park. As a result the northern elephant populations are now disjointed from their southern habitats.

The connection to Pushpagiri, Talakaveri sanctuaries has long been broken due to widespread agriculture. Finally the forests on the western slopes of the Ghats have been sliced due to linear intrusions such as highways, power lines, pipelines, railway line and recently by mini-hydel projects. In this area the elephants get to the end of their habitats even if they stretch their trunks.

These small numbers of elephants now isolated amidst human habitations and crop fields are the cause of conflict in the region. Unfortunately the people in this area are bearing the burnt for the mistakes of planners during the 60s and 70s.

Developmental projects have to be realigned outside elephant habitats. Pic:DH File

Mitigation measures

So are the Government agencies serious about solving the problem? Of course, they are. It is difficult to bear the wrath of farmers and families those have lost lives to elephants. Recently when I suggested to Hanumanthappa, park warden of Bandipur National Park about new conservation initiatives that could be implemented in his jurisdiction his affirmative answer was “if we can handle this conflict issue I will dedicate myself to any conservation issue”. So conflict reduction is on top of the list.

There has been spurt in Government investment on installing more physical barriers to control elephants entering crop fields or human habitations. It’s not difficult to invest. However the crux remains in maintaining these assets. Past experiences clearly show that problem reduces only if there is efficient upkeep.

Similarly farmers invest on electric fencing for crop protection. But a few of them connect the fence with live wires directly to 220 volt lines and sometime even to high voltage distribution lines. These are the death knell to elephants killing them instantly when the animals come in contact with the fence.

Co-operation of local farmers to monitor these mitigation measures is extremely important. An experiment of shared farm fencing initiated up by M.D.Madhusudhan of Nature Conservation Foundation has seen excellent results on the boundaries of Bandipur.

Maintenance of physical barriers and co-operation of farmers is very much essential for it's success. Pic:Sanjay Gubbi

Degradation of habitat quality

A late afternoon drive on the fringes of our protected areas will give you a perspective of the livestock that graze inside these forests. Thousands of livestock would be returning after daylong forage inside the forests. This is a widespread conservation problem in most of our elephant habitats. Livestock grazing deprives elephants of their palatable forage forcing the pachyderms to raid crops. Perhaps people do not even realise that the livestock they herd into the jungles every dawn are indirectly responsible for their crop loss. But once strict enforcement is carried out herders vent their anger by lighting forests on fire further lowering the quality of forage for elephants.

Alternatives for farmers

Preliminary results of a study conducted by us shows that five crop types suffered 86% of the conflict around Nagarahole National Park. There are no prizes for guessing the top five; finger millet (raagi), maize, cotton, paddy and sugarcane. Can farmers think of alternative high economic return crops? Perhaps crops such as turmeric, ginger, chillies that are unpalatable for elephants are better suited to farm in these areas. Finally it’s the economic returns that matters. Improved post-harvest storage of crops making them inaccessible to elephants can reduce conflict to a degree.

Elephants are attracted to crops like banana. Pic:Nishant.S.

Finally

The cultural and religious bond people held for wildlife and tolerated their losses is fast eroding. Can we complain when losses are so high? It’s not easy to see efforts of several months been trampled within few minutes. Similarly elephants next to a home built with fragile mud walls are not comforting either.

Eventually the Government will decide to remove these elephants, and the elephant ‘menace’ in Hassan district may come to an end. The elephants that once roamed these forests will be locally extinct. Does it matter? In Karnataka local extinction of elephants is not a new phenomenon. Sharavathi valley, Shettihalli, Saagara, Soraba and its adjoining areas and Uttara Kannada (though a very small population of about 20 survive here) have all lost elephants. They now survive as a strong population only in the southern Western Ghats of Karnataka. However if serious efforts are not made the story of Hassan will be repeated in other areas in the coming years.

All of us need roads, railway lines and other developmental projects. But the story line needs to change. It’s a matter of realigning these projects to bye-pass elephant habitats. This is not going to cost heavily when compared to the ecological, aesthetical and economic benefits elephants bring to our society. The elephant’s habitats are at the mercy of a few decision makers who will decide where next will the excavators and other large earth moving machinery will rip the nation’s heritage animals’ domain.

An edited version of this article was published in Deccan Herald on 25-01-2011

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/131751/anatomy-conflict.html

The Trunk Call

Protected areas are importat for survival of wildlife species such as the elephants. Photo: Sanjay Gubbi

India has the distinction of harbouring the largest Asian elephant population anywhere in the world. With an estimated population of 26,000 elephants, it amounts to 50 percent of the world’s population. These mega herbivores survive over a geographical area of about 110,000 sq km in the country. Of this about 65,000 sq km is declared as 32 Elephant Reserves (ER) spread across several Protected Areas (PAs), Reserved Forests and private lands. Securing this landscape in pursuit of saving this flagship species is a challenging and daunting task. This is particularly taxing in a country which is seeing an ever expanding economy and over a billion people competing for space, some of it with elephants.

The increased human-elephant conflict that has taken casualties on both sides along with loss of thousands of hectares of cropland has brought the issue to limelight. Hence an Elephant Task Force (ETF) was set up by the central Government to suggest long-term conservation priorities for elephant conservation.

Interestingly the task force was headed by a wildlife historian and political analyst which is an indication of the issue with elephant conservation that encompasses the broader social milieu. The report developed based on country wide consultations with a wide array of people including people affected by elephants, elected representatives, officials of forest departments, wildlife biologists, conservation and welfare activists, mahouts, veterinarians, temple committees and elephant owners striving for a democratic process. It is commendable that the report was made accessible to public by uploading it on the ministry's website (http://moef.nic.in/downloads/public-information/ETF_REPORT_FINAL.pdf).

The ETF has given important, practically implementable recommendations addressing the most burning issues of elephant conservation. Atypical of any Government appointed committees, the report is critical about the lack of focus and attention at the highest level of the Government and calls for an administrative overhaul. ETF comments that though Project Elephant was set up in 1992 it has been “unable to take up leadership on elephant conservation”. To bring teeth to Project Elephant ETF suggests setting up of the National Elephant Conservation Authority (NECA), a statutory body, with a proposed budget of 600 crore under the 12th five year plan. In a progressive idea, ETF recommends recruitment of non-governmental personnel with requisite skills to be appointed in the NECA.

To improve governance in management, Reserve Level Management Advisory Committees comprising of elected representatives, conservationists and others which should hold public hearings are to be setup. Independent evaluation of the ERs with performance indicators are recommended to bring in transparency.

Revamping research methods

Elephants need standardised peer-reviewed protocols for population estimations. Hence the report calls for a critical evaluation of the current population estimation methods on scientific grounds. Due to vastness of elephant habitat in the country, ETF suggests a combination of methods for non-PAs and more intensive surveys for select sites to get robust density estimations. Other scientific measures suggested include development of national elephant mortality database, elephant reserve research stations and fellowships to students to encourage research on multiple dimensions of elephant conservation.

Defragmenting elephant habitats

In the country elephant habitats are being fragmented at a monstrous scale. Hence the report has suggested PAs to be expanded to include critical habitats and corridors or else be declared as Community or Conservation Reserves. Taking note of flawed Environmental Impact Assessments used for diverting elephant habitats for developmental projects, a new approach termed as Elephant Specific Environmental Impact Assessment is suggested for permitting projects in ERs.

Conservation organisations have already identified critical elephant corridors in the country. Ranking these corridors, a 200 crore budget for habitat securement is proposed under NECA. The report also calls for rationalisation of ER boundaries based on ecological principles rather than the current ad-hoc boundaries.

Human-Elephant Conflict

In India annually over 400 people lose their lives to elephants and at least 500,000 farmers are affected through crop depredation. Apart from humanitarian reasons this needs to be addressed as it affects elephants through vengeance killing, loss of elephant habitats due to retaliatory forest fires set by people and other threats to elephant conservation. Importantly it increases hostility of local people against wildlife conservation in general. Hence the task force has called for an integrated approach to defuse tension and more accountability in the way mitigation measures such as electric fences and elephant proof trenches are managed.

The committee has suggested setting up of local Conflict Management Task Forces involving local elected representatives, media and farmers which would hold a minimum of two taluka level hearings annually to address conflict issues.

Reducing human-elephant conflict is key for enhancing public support for elephant conservation. Photo: P.M.Muthanna

Captive elephants

India has a long cultural history of captive elephants. Currently with about 3,500 elephants under ownership of various individuals and organisations ETF has recommended for moratorium on sale of elephant to temples and phasing out of captive elephants in the future apart from other welfare measures.

Finally

Overall the ETF has shown a strong will to democratise the way elephant conservation needs to go ahead and also how Government appointed committees can perform. Lastly, the task force projects a positive picture that “India can secure the future of elephants and its forest home”. This is unlike several other reports which projects only gloomy picture. Hope the recommendations of ETF are implemented by the Government in true spirit.

The elephant task force has projected a positive future for the elephants in the country. Photo:Sanjay Gubbi

An edited version of this article appeared in the Deccan Herald on 21-09-2010