Forest department to conserve heronries in North Kerala

The Forest Department will soon launch a programme to conserve heronries, communal nesting places of large water birds, in four districts in North Kerala.

It plans to enlist public support to protect 15 “resident and breeding” water bird species, which are vulnerable to poaching and loss of habitat, in Kannur, Malappuram, Palakkad and Wayanad districts.

Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Raja Raja Varma, is finalising the scheme in consultation with ornithologist C. Sashikumar, who is the principal investigator of the department’s ongoing Malabar Ornithological Survey 2010-11.

The investigators had surveyed 102 sites and counted 8,677 nests of 12 species of water birds in August. They recorded their habits, documented the nesting trees (34 different species including bamboo clumps, mangroves and some exotic varieties planted as avenue trees) and mapped nearby wetlands. They also assessed the threats to the sites and problems such habitats posed to local populations.

The surveyors found that Kannur had the highest number of heronries (28) and nests (3917). In Wayanad, 766 water birds of nine different species nested in three heronries. More than 93 per cent of the heronries were on Government land, mostly on trees near roadsides, markets, bus stops, police stations, hospitals and riverbanks.

The Indian Pond Heron and the Little Cormorant were the most common species and shared 71 per cent of the heronries in the region.

Oriental White Ibis, classified as “near threatened” by the International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN), was perhaps among the rarest of the resident water birds and nested “only” at Panmaram in Wayanad. In the South, the Ibis nested at Kumarakam in Kottayam district.

The surveyors, arguably for the first time, found that the Darter (Snake Bird), another “near” threatened species, nested in North Kerala in a heronry near Nanniyoor on the banks of Valapattanam River.

Local people often viewed such habitats as a nuisance owing to the excess of bird droppings, dead chicks and half eaten frogs and fish that litter the ground beneath nesting sites. The birds were most vulnerable during their breeding season, which coincided with the south west monsoon.

The Forest department will rope in students, bird watchers and ornithologists to sensitize the public on the importance of water birds to the vast wetland and agricultural eco-systems in North Kerala.

Source: The Hindu 21-09-2011

Project to make Pathanamthitta plastic-free

The district administration has chalked a novel scheme to make Pathanamthitta plastic-free from November 14, according to District Collector, P.Venugopal.

An official meeting convened by the Collector here the other day has resolved to make necessary arrangements to supply eco-friendly carry bags made of cloth, priced at Rs 1 and Rs 2, to all shops and other commercial establishments in the district during October 2 to November 14.

Mr Venugopal said Kudumbasree units in the district have been producing cloth bags for supplying it to various commercial establishments. He said the district administration would purchase eco-friendly carry bags from various other agencies too, if needed, to meet its growing requirement during the annual Sabarimala pilgrimage season.

Plastic menace at Sabarimala

Mr Venugopal said the Divisional Forest Officer at Ranni, R.Kamalahar, has prepared a project named `Harita-poonkavanom' with a view to reduce the plastic menace at Sabarimala and surrounding forest areas, especially during the annual pilgrimage season.

Littering of plastic waste has been a major source of environment pollution at Sabarimala situated in the Periyar Tiger Reserve during the Mandalam-Makaravilakku festival when as many as double the population of the State congregate in a short span of two months.

Mr Kamalahar has prepared a project to make Pampa and surrounding reserve forests pollution-free with the help of school-college students, local population and Vana Samrakshana Samiti (VSS) workers. The project stresses the need to make people well aware of the need to make their surroundings clean and litter-free, upholding the slogan of environment conservation.

Adequate publicity would be given through television channels and newspapers in Kerala and neighbouring States on the alarming pollution menace posed by the plastic waste at Sabarimala.

Special check-posts

The collector said special check-posts would be set up at Kanamala, Laha, Plappally, Elavumkal and Angamozhy on the main trunk roads leading to Sabarimala to collect plastic carry bags brought by devotees and replace it with eco-friendly cloth bags on the spot itself.

Mr Venugopal said arrangements would also be made to remove empty pet bottles from Sabarimala, Pampa and surrounding forest areas.

He said six workers would be posted at Pampa Manalpuram round the clock to remove the waste accumulated along the iron fence erected across river Pampa during the annual pilgrimage season. Solid waste would be segregated and degradable waste would be disposed in earthen pits in the forest area itself and the non-degradable waste would be taken outside the forests for recycling, Mr Venugopal said.

Vana Samrakshana Samiti members would deployed at the proposed Pilgrim Service Centres at Vadasserikkara, Laha, Plappally, Angamoozhy, Nilackal and Pampa. This is besides a 24-hour mobile rescue force headed by Forest officials.

The Collector has also sought active support and participation of the general public, traders and all other sections of the society in the administration's efforts to make the district plastic-free and ensure effective environment conservation.

Source: The Hindu October 3, 2011

Solution to man-animal conflict in Wayanad Sanctuary awaits government initiative

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Man-animal conflict is difficult to resolve in conditions existing in Kerala. However, the government is sitting on a proposal which offers a clean solution to the problem in Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary.

About 10000 people living in pockets inside the Sanctuary are willing to relocate from the conflict zone, leaving the land to the animals. The Central government has already sanctioned Rs. 80 crore for resettlement of nearly one third of the population. However, only 4.5 crore had been released so far.

As per a report of Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI), there are 110 settlements having 2613 families in the Sanctuary. Besides, there are 264 families without proper land records. Frequent attacks by wild animals occur in these settlements and settlers and the farmers often retaliate. More than 100 persons have died in attacks by wild animals over the years. Much crop had also been damaged. The elephant deaths in the region are more than the normal because of retaliatory attacks by the people.

The Forest and Wildlife Department spends sizeable sums in building elephant proof trenches, boundary walls and solar power fencing and paying compensation to the victims. The High Court had directed the government to devise a scheme for resettlement of the trapped people in the sanctuary as back as in 1986.

However, action from the part of the government was wanting despite the willingness of the people to relocate. The Central government’s scheme provides for cash compensation of Rs. 10 lakh to each of the families willing to relocate, irrespective of their land holdings. The amount actually does not reflect the conditions in Kerala where the value of land outside the sanctuary going up higher and higher. Yet, the families have expressed willingness to move out.

The KFRI study had deemed 2485 families in 1385 houses suitable for relocation. This would make about 1700 acres available for reversion to forests. The regeneration of forests could be of major gain for the sanctuary and Cauvery basin.

Source: The Hindu, 16-07-2011