STUDY OF SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC DEPENDENCIES OF THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES ON PROTECTED AREAS - A CASE OF PEECHI-VAZHANI AND CHIMMONI WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES Final Report of Project KFRI / 352 / 2000 V Anitha P.K.Muraleedharan Division of Forest Economics A project sponsored by KERALA FOREST DEPARTMENT (WBP) Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi, Thrissur - 680 653, Kerala July 2002 ABSTRACT OF PROJECT PROPOSAL 1. Project number : KFRI 352/2000 2. Title of the project : Study of Social and economic dependencies of local communities on Protected Areas : A case of Peechi- Vazhani and Chimmoni Wildlife Sanctuaries. 3. Objective : 1. Survey on the economic and social status of local communities in the Protected Areas and classification of the local communities based on their dependencies on the Protected Areas. 2. Quantification and classification of NTFP collected from the Protected Areas by the local communities (both legal and illegal). 3. Assessment of grazing pressure on the Protected Areas. 4. Enumerations of other human-related problems affecting conservation and management of the study areas and evolve suitable management strategies through a workshop with the participation of local community representatives and forest officials. 5. Assessing the level of conservation awareness among the local people and their attitude towards conservation activities by the Department 6. Suggest scientific methods for the collection of various important NTFPs and methods for their value-addition (based on literature). 7. Develop a training programme for the local people for scientific collection of NTFP for its sustainability and value-addition. 1. Quantify the level of socio-economic 4. Expected outcome : dependencies of the local communities on the sanctuary 2. Highlight human problems relating to resource management in the study area and suggest measures to solve it 3. Project indigenous knowledge of the local communities about conservation 5. Date of commencement : April 2000 6. Scheduled date of completion : March 2002 7. Funding agency : Kerala Forestry Project (World Bank) Kerala Forest Department 8. Project team Principal Investigator : V. Anitha Co-investigator : P.K. Muraleedharan Project Fellow : A.S. Binilkumar CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS LIST OF TABLES LIST OF FIGURES LIST OF BOXES LIST OF MAPS LIST OF PLATES ABSTRACT 1. INTRODUCTION 1 – 15 2. SOCIO-ECONOMIC ASSESSMENT AND DEPENDENCY 16 – 40 3. NON-TIMBER FOREST PRODUCTS 41 – 63 4. HUMAN RELATED CONSTRAINTS IN PA MANAGEMENT 64 - 91 5. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 92 - 94 REFERENCES i - vi APPENDICES ii - xi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This project was funded by the World Bank sponsored Kerala Forestry Project of the Kerala Forest Department. We wish to place on record our sincere thanks to Dr. J.K. Sharma, Director, KFRI for his constant support and encouragement. We also wish to thank Dr.R. Gnanaharan, Research Coordinator, KFRI, for his valuable suggestions and comments. Acknowledgements are due to Professor P.A. Panickar, Dr. Sheela Karalam and Dr. N. Sasidharan, Scientist, Division of NWFP, KFRI, for associating with the training programmes and supplying useful information on sustainable harvesting, semi- processing and availability of NTFPs respectively. Thanks are also due to Dr. Mammen Chundamannil, Scientist, Division of Forest Economics, KFRI, for providing useful suggestions during the project and Smt. P. Rugmini, Scientist, Division of Statistics, KFRI, for statistical input. We are also thankful to Dr. Mammen Chundamannil, Dr. K.V. Bhat, Scientist, Division of Wood Science, KFRI, and Dr. C. Renuka, Scientist, Division of Botany, KFRI, for editorial scrutiny. Our thanks are also due to Shri Ganga Singh (DFO, Thrissur), Shri M.I. Varghese (former Wildlife Warden), his successor Shri George, Shri Sunny (RO Chimmoni), Shri Mohandas (RO Peechi) and Shri Harikrishnan Nair (RO Machad), and other officials of the Kerala Forest Department for their help in the field in various ways. Thanks are also due to Shri Radhakrishnan, Secreatry, Palappilly Grijan Service Co-Operative Society, Shri John Tribal Development Officer, Shri Ravindran Nair, Tribal Extension Officer for helping and making available secondary data. The useful and timely help rendered by Shri Srinivasan, Smt. Sunanda, Shri P.C. Anil, Kum. Sreelakshmi Kannan and Shri Sibichan Varghese is also duly acknowledged. We are also thankful to Shri Mathen for driving us through the difficult terrain during the field work. LIST OF TABLES 2.1: Population dynamics 18 2.2: Literacy level of the local communities (5 years and above age group) 18 2.3: Occupational pattern of the sample population (15 years and above age group) 19 2.4: Mean and standard deviation of land holding (local communities) 22 2.5: Mean and standard deviation of annual income (local communities) 23 2.6: Results of association between poverty and social groups 25 2.7: Degree of homogeneity (Odds Ratio) 25 2.8: Commonly used medicinal plants by Malayans and their uses 28 2.9: Forest Dependence Matrix (Peechi-Vazhani and Chimmoni WLSs) 37 2.10: Forest Dependence Index of the local communities (Peechi-Vazhani and Chimmoni WLSs) 38 3.1: Commercially important NTFPs extracted from Peechi-Vazhani and Chimmony WLSs 43 3.2: Quantity of major NTFPs collected from Peechi-Vazhani and Chimmoni WLSs (authorised and unauthorised) 46 3.3: Collection Charge of major NTFPs ( Society and Private Traders ) 47 3.4: Distribution of forager households based on total income 49 3.5: Results of multiple regression analysis 50 3.6: Classification of commercially important NTFPs based on their useful parts 52 3.7: Proportion of NTFPs collected in different foraging distances 53 3.8: Existing and proposed extraction of selected NTFPs from Peechi-Vazhani and Chimmoni WLSs 58 4.1: Chronological progression of important human-related conflicts in Peechi-Vazhani WLS since 1980's 72 4.2: Some effect of grazing by domestic stock on five ecological processes 76 4.3: Number of quarries and quarry workers 79 4.4: Conservation awareness level of the local communities based on environmental quality attributes 86 LIST OF FIGURES 2.1: Level of education among the local communities (5 years and above age group) 19 2.2: Employment status of the local communities (15 years and above age group) 20 2.3: Size of land holdings (local communities) 21 2.4: Income level of the local communities 22 2.5: Classification of local communities on the basis of cattle possession 24 2.6: Dependence of the local communities on the PAs for food 30 2.7: Dependence of the local communities on the PAs for poles 31 2.8: Fuelwood dependency on PA 31 2.9: Dependence of local communities on the PAs for fodder 32 2.10: Dependence of the local communities on the PAs for green manure 33 2.11: Dependence of the local communities on the PAs for NTFPs 33 2.12: Fishing details of Peechi Reservoir 35 2.13: Fishing details of Vazhani Reservoir 36 3.1: Classification of NTFPs based on source 42 3.2: Quantity, Collection charge and Sale value of NTFPs (Palappilly TCS 1983-2000) 45 3.3: Classification of family income of an average forager family 48 3.4: Dependency level of forager households on NTFPs for income 49 3.5: Destructive and non-destructive harvesting percentages 52 4.1: Causative factors of human-related constraints in conservation. 80 4.2: Nature of Forest Cases (Peechi-Vazhani WLS) 83 4.3: Nature of Forest Cases (Chimmoni WLS) 83 4.4: Number of forest cases (Peechi-Vazhani WLS 1992-2001) 84 4.5: Number of forest cases (Chimmoni WLS 1992-2001) 84 4.6: Number of excise cases (Peechi-Vazhani WLS 1993-2001) 84 4.7: Willingness of the local communities to work jointly with FD for the conservation of the PAs 87 4.8: Attitude of local communities towards participatory management 87 4.9: A landscape-livelihood approach to PA management 90 LIST OF BOXES. 3.1: Simple semi-processing / value addition methods for different NTFPs 61 4.1: Types of conflicts arising in Natural Resources Management 65 4.2: Conflicts identified as human-related constraints in effective and sustainable PA management (Peechi-Vazhani and Chimmoni WLSs) 67 4.3: Actual commercial threats to the PAs 75 4.4: Effects of land use on hydrological characteristics of water catchment - some findings 77 4.5: Human-related constraints in the PA management- manifestations 83 LIST OF MAPS. 1.1: Study area location 5 1.2: Peechi-Vazhani WLS – Location 6 1.3: Chimmoni WLS – Location 10 LIST OF PLATES. 1.1: Grazing in Chimmoni WLS 32 1.2: Rice cultivation in Peechi catchment area 34 1.3: Brick making units in Peechi catchment area 34 APPENDICES 1.1: List of Tribal settlements in the study area vii 3.1: Important NTFPs available in Peechi-Vazhani WLS viii 4.1: Type of forest cases during 1992-2001 (Peechi Vazhani WLS) xi 4.2: Type of forest cases during 1992-2001 (Chimmoni WLS) xi Abstract The establishment of Protected Areas (PAs) to conserve and to reduce human interactions has resulted in a series of repercussions, which generate new kinds of management issues. Conservation efforts create conflicts among local communities and between the local communities and the enforcing authorities. Local communities see these efforts as government-imposed restrictions on their socioeconomic systems, which affect their livelihood. In this context, this study made an attempt to assess the socioeconomic conditions of the forest-dependent local communities (including tribals) in Peechi- Vazhani and Chimmoni Wildlife Sanctuaries (WLSs), which were found to be the major determinant of their dependency level. This was done by analysing the key socio- economic indicators of development. In comparison, socioeconomic dependence was found much more in Peechi-Vazhani than in Chimmoni where there are no habitations within. These attributes of the local communities are very much similar to any other area in the State with heterogeneous community features and an agrarian economy.