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Identification of Drivers of Deforestation in Meghalaya

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Identification of Drivers of Deforestation in Meghalaya Report on Identification of Drivers of Deforestation in Meghalaya 2018-19 FUNDED BY: MEGHALAYA BASIN MANAGEMENT AGENCY Rain Forest Research Institute Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education Jorhat- 785010, Assam Identification of Drivers of Deforestation in Meghalaya Prepared by: R. S. C. Jayaraj Dhruba Jyoti Das Ajay Kumar Ankur Jyoti Saikia Dinesh Kumar Meena Girish Gogoi Project Team Team Leader Dr. R.S.C Jayaraj, IFS Director Deputy Team Leader Dr. Dhruba J. Das Scientist E and Head Forest Ecology and Climate Change Division Subject Matter Specialist Mr. Ajay Kumar, Scientist C Mr. Dinesh K. Meena, Scientist C Forest Ecology and Climate Change Division Subject Matter Specialist Dr. Abhinandan Saikia, Assistant Professor (Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Guwahati) Supporting Staff Mr. Ankur Jyoti Saikia, Senior Technician Mr. Girish Gogoi, Senior Technical Officer Mr. Abhijit Medhi, Senior Technician Mr. P. C. Saikia, Senior Technical Officer Mr. Apurba Kumar Sarmah, Assistant Chief Technical Officer Junior Project Fellows Mr. Heiphormi Sungoh Ms. Colleen Ch. Marak Mr. Balajied Jyrwa Ms. Ladeiphi Kharsati Mr. Rilangbor Dkhar Mr. Ejaful Ahmed Field Assistants Mr. Steve O. Kurbah Mr. Balajied Mawkhiew Ms. Chakame T. Sangma Mr. Phermi Lamin Mr. Shaphrang B. Rumut Preface Tropical Forests, covering about 7% of the earth’s land surface, are amongst the most vulnerable land covers reported to be disappearing rapidly worldwide. Deforestation, though was necessary at some point of time, for human settlement and agriculture, has attained proportions that have had devastating consequences, such as, extinction of plants and animals, social conflicts, climate change and so on. Drivers of deforestation and degradation though follow a general framework and pattern, in many cases, they are region specific. Identification of drivers of deforestation, therefore, is a prerequisite for combating deforestation and forest degradation in a region. As per the recent estimates by Forest Survey of India, more than three fourth (76.5%) area of Meghalaya is under forest cover. However, various drivers of deforestation, some of them typical to the state, have been operating since time immemorial in the region. While some of them are age old practices that are a part of the culture, such as, shifting cultivation, others are of recent origin, to take mining, for example. Identification of these drivers through a scientific empirical study following appropriate ecological/sociological methodology and arranging them in the right perspective following a perception based ranking is necessary for a proper understanding of deforestation going on in the state. A five pronged approach constituting consultation of existing literature, application of remote sensing and GIS as a tool to understand the spatial distribution and extent of the drivers, ecological studies along the disturbance gradient, consultation with local communities, and seeking expert opinion were followed for the present study. Though the overall state-wide results are on expected lines, the ranking of the drivers at local level revealed some uniqueness. Wood collection, Shifting cultivation, Permanent farming, and mining are some of the direct drivers of deforestation found predominantly operating in the state. The present study re-emphasises the importance of awareness creation among the communities regarding the ill effects of deforestation, strict monitoring of law enforcement, review of some of the existing laws, generation of sustainable and viable alternative income generation activities for communities, besides many recommendations addressing the issues related to deforestation and degradation. The present report is the result of research and review work for a period of about one year and hopefully would help in better understanding of the issues pertaining to deforestation and forest degradation in the state of Meghalaya and help in execution of appropriate strategies for the state in general and for the community in particular. Dr. R. S. C. Jayaraj, IFS Director, RFRI i Acknowledgement Successful completion of this project would not have been possible without the funding, encouragement, guidance, support and active participation of the following organisation/ individuals. Rain Forest Research Institute duly thanks all of them: . Meghalaya Basin Management Agency (MBMA), Meghalaya Basin Development Authority (MBDA), and World Bank for funding the project . Director General, ICFRE - Dehradun for his continuous support and allowing to take up the consultancy . PCCF and HoFF, Department of Forest and Environment, Govt. of Meghalaya for all logistic and moral support . Autonomous District Councils, Meghhalaya for their support during the project period . All the Forest Officials from Department of Forest and Environment, Govt. of Meghalaya . All the State and Central Govt. Departments/ Universities/ NGOs for providing data/information, expert opinion and support during the project tenure. And most importantly, all the Community Heads and community as a whole for their support during the project period. (Dr. R. S. C. Jayaraj, IFS) Director, RFRI ii Identification of Drivers of Deforestation in Meghalaya Contents 1. Introduction 1-8 1.1 Background 1 1.2 Objectives 2 1.3 Deforestation and Forest Degradation-Cause and effect 2 1.4 Drivers of Deforestation 6 2. Meghalaya - at a glance 9-21 2.1 General 9 2.2 Soil 10 2.3 Demography 12 2.4 Livestock 13 2.5 Climatic Conditions 13 2.6 Forests and wildlife 14 2.7 Shifting Cultivation 16 2.8 Land use and Land Tenure System 16 2.9 Forest Administration 17 3. Methods 22-30 3.1 Consultation of existing Literature 23 3.2 GIS mapping (Generation of spatial information) 24 3.3 Stakeholder consultation (Household surveys) 25 3.4 Ecological Survey and sampling 28 3.5 Expert consultation 29 4.State of Forests in Meghalaya 31-52 4.1 Forest types: present scenario 31 4.24.2 Forest Cover and land use Change 31 4.3 Practice of Community Forest Conservation 48 4.4 Sacred groves: from a Traditional Knowledge 49 concept to a Conservation practice 4.5 Protected areas 52 5. Drivers of Deforestation 53-92 5.1 Proximate Causes 53 5.2 Underlying causes 73 5.3 Other Factors 86 Spatial Analysis 91 6. Relative importance of Drivers of deforestation 98-115 6.1 Socio-economic profile 99 6.2 Local community’s perception towards deforestation 103 6.3 Ranking of the Drivers 103 6.4 Case studies in selected villages: Ecological studies 113 iii 7. Region specific strategy to address Deforestation 116-142 7.1 Challenges to check deforestation and forest degradation 116 7.2 Strategies to reduce deforestation 118 7.3 Alternate livelihood generation through forestry and other activities 135 7.4 Role of Research organization in livelihood generation 141 References 143-154 Annexures 155-232 1.1 Proximate and Underlying causes of Deforestation in tropical 155 countries (after Geist & Lambin, 2001) 2.1 Variation in Density of Population in Meghalaya (1951- 2011) – 157 persons per km2 2.2 Livestock Population 2012 Census and Growth Rate as 158 compared to 2007 Census 2.3 Wildlife of Meghalaya - At a glance 159 2.4 Tabular representation of the eight forest classes observed in 161 Meghalaya 3.1 List of villages Surveyed in each zone of Meghalaya 162 3.2 Questionnaire: Household Level Information 166 3.3 Questionnaire:Village Level Information 170 3.4 List of villages selected for Ecological Survey in each zone of 172 Meghalaya 4.1 Forest types of Meghalaya (Chauhan and Singh, 1992) 173 4.2 Notified Community Reserves in Meghalaya (WII, 2017) 174 4.3 List of Sacred Groves in Meghalaya (BSAP, 2004) 175 4.4 Reserved Forests and Protected Forests in Meghalaya (BSAP, 178 2004) 5.1 Land Use Pattern in Meghalaya 180 5.2 Shifting cultivation scenario in Meghalaya (2005-08 and 2008- 180 09) 5.3 Change in shifting cultivation patterns in Meghalaya during 181 1980–1995 5.4 Area under shifting cultivation in East Garo Hills District, 181 Meghalaya (1980-2016) 5.5 Annual extraction of timber in Meghalaya, from State owned 182 forests 5.6 Net State Domestic Product at current prices (in Rs. lakhs) 183 5.7 Contribution of Forestry and Logging to Net District Domestic 184 Product and NSDP in Meghalaya during 1993-94 to 1999-2000 (all data in Percentage) 5.8 District-wise Variation in Net Output of Forestry and Logging in 184 Meghalaya during 1993-94 to 1999-2000 (Rs in Lakhs at 1993- 94 Prices) 5.9 Firewood consumption by different sectors in Meghalaya (MT) 185 5.10 Commercial production of firewood in Meghalaya (MT) 185 iv 5.11 Commercial production of firewood in Meghalaya (2006-2017) 186 5.12 Quantity of charcoal sold in Meghalaya 186 5.13 Charcoal production in Meghalaya (2014 to 2017) 187 5.14 List of Alloy industries operating in Meghalaya (as on 187 31/08/2014) 5.15 Status of roads during last four years in different districts of 188 Meghalaya 5.16 Number Of Census Houses And Households During 1981 To 188 2011 5.17 Decadal Growth Rate and Decadal Variation of Population in 188 Meghalaya 5.18 Total Houses and Houses Allotted To Women under Indira 189 Awaas Yojana, 1999-00 to 2008-09 5.19 Installed Capacity of Power Projects (MW) 189 5.20 Location of important minerals in Meghalaya 190 5.21 Production and estimation of value of minerals since 2001 to 191 2015 5.22 Illegal mining and transportation of coal reported by district 191 administration during NGT ban period 5.23 Rural Poverty in Meghalaya (2002) 192 5.24 Employment in public and private sector (Nos) 193 5.25 Employment Exchange
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