Biodiversity:
Biodiversity
encompasses the whole variety of life on Earth. It includes all species of
plants and animals, but also their genetic variation, and the complex
ecosystems of which they are part. It is not restricted to rare or threatened
species but includes the whole of the natural world from the common place to
the critically endangered. The world is
losing biodiversity at an ever-increasing rate as a result of human activity.
On a world scale the rate of loss is now recognised to be a cause for serious
concern, requiring concerted international action to prevent continued loss of
the variety and totality of life on Earth. In the UK we have lost over 100
species during the last century, with many more species and habitats in danger
of disappearing, especially at the local level.
Benefits of biodiversity:
Biodiversity
brings benefits to local communities through benefiting health, improving the
local economy, maintaining environmental quality and ecosystem services and
providing recreation and education resources for people of all ages. Therefore
biodiversity cuts across many Local Authority activities.
Biodiversity
Action Plan:
In situ conservation:
Expand
the PA network of the country including Conservation and Community Reserves, to
give fair representation to all biogeography zones of the country. In doing so, develop norms for delineation of
PAs in terms of the objectives and principles of the National Environment
Policy, in particular, participation of local communities, concerned public
agencies, and other stakeholders, who have direct and tangible stake in
protection and conservation of wildlife, to harmonize ecological and physical
features with needs of socio economic development.
Establish
self-sustaining monitoring system for overseeing the activities and
effectiveness of the PA network.
Ensure
that human activities on the fringe areas of PAs do not degrade the habitat or
otherwise significantly disturb wildlife.
Mitigate
man-animal conflicts.
Promote
site-specific eco-development programmes in fringe areas of PAs, to restore livelihoods and access to
forest produce by local communities, owing to access restrictions in PAs.
Promote
voluntary relocation of villagers from critical habitats of PAs.
Devise
effective management and conservation techniques for the forest preservation
plots to ensure conservation of representative areas of different forest types.
Strengthen
research work on PAs, Biosphere Reserves and fragile ecosystems by involving
local research institutions and universities, so as to develop baseline data on
biological and managerial parameters, and functional properties of ecosystems.
Strengthen
the protection of areas of high endemism of genetic resources (biodiversity
hotspots), while providing alternative livelihoods and access to resources to
local communities who may be affected thereby.
Continue
to promote inter-sectoral consultations and partnerships in strengthening
biodiversity conservation activities.
Strengthen
capacities and implement measures for captive breeding and release into the
wild of identified endangered species.
Reintroduction
and establishment of viable populations of threatened plant species.
Control
poaching and illegal trade in wild animals and plant species.
Periodically
revisits the norms, criteria and needs of data for placing particular species
in different Schedules of the Wildlife (Protection) Act.
Promote
ecologically and socially sensitive tourism and pilgrimage activities with
emphasis on regulated and low impact tourism.
Promote
ecologically and socially sensitive tourism and pilgrimage activities with
emphasis on regulated and low impact tourism.
Formulate
and implement partnerships for enhancement of wildlife habitat in Conservation
Reserves and Community Reserves, on the lines of multistakeholder partnerships
for afforestation, to derive both environmental and eco-tourism benefits.
Promote
conservation of biodiversity outside the PA network, on private property, on
common lands, water bodies and urban areas.
Formulate
and implement programmers for conservation of endangered species outside PAs.
Ensure
conservation of ecologically sensitive areas, which are prone to high risk of
loss of biodiversity due to natural or anthropogenic factors.
Ensure
that survey and bioprospecting of native economically important biological
resources is undertaken on a priority basis.
Integrate
conservation and wise use of wetlands and river basic management involving all
stakeholders, in particular local communities, to ensure maintenance of
hydrological regimes and conservation of biodiversity.
Consider
particular unique wetlands as entities of incomparable values, in developing
strategies for their protection and formulate conservation and prudent use
strategies for each of these, with participation of local communities, and
other stakeholders
On-farm conservation
Identify
hotspots of agro-biodiversity under different agro-ecozones and cropping
systems and promote on-farm conservation.
Provide
economically feasible and socially acceptable incentives such as value addition
and direct market access in the face of replacement by other economically
remunerative cultivars.
Develop
appropriate models for on-farm conservation of livestock herds maintained by
different institutions and local communities.
Develop
mutually supportive linkages between in situ, on-farm and exsitu conservation
programmes.
Ex
situ conservation
Promote
ex situ conservation of rare, endangered, endemic and insufficiently known
floristic and faunal components of natural habitats, through appropriate
institutionalization and human resource capacity building. For example, pay
immediate heed to conservation and multiplication of rare, endangered and
endemic tree species through revitalization of institutions such as Institute
of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding.
Focus
on conservation of genetic diversity (in situ, ex situ, in vitro) of cultivated
plants, domesticated animals and their wild relatives to support their breeding
programmes.
Develop
cost effective and situation specific technologies for medium and long term
storage of seed samples collected by different institutions and organizations.
Undertake
DNA profiling for assessment of genetic diversity in rare, endangered and
endemic species to assist in developing their conservation programmes.
Develop
a unified national database covering all ex situ conservation sites.
Consolidate,
augment and strengthen the network of ex situ centers of zoos, aquaria etc.
Develop
networking of botanical gardens and consider establishing a Central Authority
for botanic gardens to secure their better management,on the lines of Central
Zoo Authority.
Provide for training of personnel
and mobilize financial resources to strengthen captive breeding projects for
endangered species of wild animals.
Strengthen basic research on
reproduction biology of rare, endangered and endemic species to support
reintroduction programmes.
Encourage cultivation of plants
of economic value presently gathered from their natural populations, causing
their decline.
Promote inter-sectoral linkages
and synergies to develop and realize full economic potential of ex situ
conserved materials in crop and livestock improvement programmes.
Economically effective and socially viable incentives for
conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity are being
encouraged. These include use of wood
substitutes, alternative energy sources (biogas, wind mills, solar cookers,
wave energy, fuel efficient stoves, etc.), establishment of nurseries, tree planting;
stall feeding, water harvesting and pollution abatement measures.
The forestry sector in India is being re-defined with a growing
emphasis on poverty alleviation and livelihood opportunities, while at the same
time ensuring sustainable management and use of forest resources. The current trend in forest management is
towards greater participation and involvement of all stakeholders dependent on
the forests.
In forest:
Production of wood and non-timber forest products, first for
meeting subsistence needs and then the surplus for commercial purposes.
Protection and setting aside of areas to be managed as wild life
reserves or plantations for recreational and environmental purposes.
Regulating the conversion of forest lands for non-forestry uses.
Regeneration of wastelands and degraded forests.
Functional and land capability classification of forests and land
use planning to ensure healthy and sustainable land use systems with
acceptable, safe minimum standards.
Protection of adequate extent of natural forests for their
long-term contributions, including conservation of biodiversity.
Management and utilization of forest resources for maximizing
their sustainable contribution and value addition towards improved welfare of
society.
Promotion of efforts for producing forest goods and services
outside forest areas (e.g. agroforestry plantations, home gardens) and
development of potential substitutes for wood from non-forest sources (e.g.
rubber wood,coconut wood)
Waste reduction and waste recycling programme.
Feasible medium for encouraging participation of people and the
private sector.
A proper and realistic system for cost, values and benefits
attributable to forestry to ensure a strong ecology – economy interface.
Honey Bee
Network is an important example to illustrate the measures taken to protect and
encourage customary use of biological resources in India.
Action
Points:
Secure integration of biodiversity concerns into inter-sectoral
policies and programmes to identify elements having adverse impact on
biodiversity and design policy guidelines to address such issues. Make
valuation of biodiversity an integral part of pre-appraisal of projects and
programmes to minimize adverse impacts on biodiversity.
Promote decentralized management of biological resources with
emphasis on community participation.
Promote sustainable use of biodiversity in sectors such as
agriculture, animal husbandry, dairy development, fisheries, apiculture,
sericulture, forestry and industry.
Promote conservation, management and sustainable utilization of
bamboos and canes, and establish their living collections in the form of
bambusetum and canetum for maintaining species diversity and elite germplasm
lines.
Promote best practices based on traditional sustainable uses of
biodiversity and devise mechanisms for providing benefits to local communities.
Build and regularly update a database on NTFPs, monitor and
rationalize use of NTFPs ensuring their
sustainable availability to local communities.
Promote sustainable use of biological resources by supporting
studies on traditional utilization of natural resources in selected areas to
identify incentives and disincentives and promote best practices.
Encourage cultivation of medicinal plants and culture of marine
organisms exploited for drugs to prevent their unsustainable extraction from
the wild.
Promote capacity building at grassroot level for participatory
decision making to ensure eco-friendly and sustainable use of natural resources.
Develop sui generis system for protection of traditional
knowledge, and related rights including Intellectual Property Rights.
Encourage adoption of science-based, and traditional sustainable
land use practices, through research and development, extension of knowledge,
pilot scale demonstrations, and large scale dissemination, including farmer's training, and where necessary,
access to institutional finance.
Promote reclamation of wasteland and degraded forest land,
through formulation and adoption of
multistakeholder partnerships, involving the land owning agency, local
communities, and investors.
Promote sustainable alternatives to shifting cultivation where it
is no longer ecologically viable, ensuring that the culture and social organisation
of the local people are not disrupted.
Encourage agro-forestry, organic farming, environmentally
sustainable cropping patterns, and adoption of efficient irrigation techniques.
