Joint Forest Management Practices (academic)

Behind agriculture, forestry represents the second largest use of land in India, covering about 22 percent of the India’s total land area, but only accounting for about 1 percent of the countries GDP.  275 million of the countries poorest citizens depended upon forest resources for their livelihood, 75 percent of the rural population depends on the forests for fuel wood, and about half of India’s 471 million livestock are fed by forest grazing or fodder collected from forests.

Recognizing the importance of ecological services provided by forests, the Indian government, in 1990, decided to shift its policies to allow for involvement of local/indigenous people that depend on the forest for sustenance, and know the forest best.  By involving the local people in the management of the forests, the Indian government was able to keep the forest protected while providing local people with a revenue source from timber profits, and protection their livelihoods.  Because of the high levels of autonomy amongst Indian states, varying styles of joint forest management (JFM) are employed.  In some states the government owns the forest and land, and oversees the management of the forests, while in other states, communities own the land and forests, and oversee the management.  Currently JFM is practiced in 27 states and cover 17.3 million hectares.

One problem that has been encountered with the joint forest management process is that as legislation has changed, historic forest resources rights have been pushed to the wayside.  Depending upon the state, there have been historic rights connected to the indigenous forest dwellers that were recognized prior to legislation and are now included in the legislation, but in some cases such as in the state of Jharkhand,  many of these rights have been ignored.

With increased productivity, increased output, and easier access to markets, forest based revenue is expected to increase by at least 200,000 rupees annually in Jharkhand.  For the country as a whole, forest based revenue is expected to increase from $222 million to $2 billion in 2020.

The appearance of the private sector in JFM has also played a helpful role with the creation of fuel wood plantations.  The implementation of fuelwood plantations has increased the abundance of fuelwood, which as help with welfare improvements, especially for women and children, who are usually tasked to gather fuel wood, and has drastically decreased the pressure put on natural forests.  These fuelwood plantations also have decreased intervillage conflicts, by making a once limited resource plentiful, at least in some areas.

For JFM land, forest boundaries are generally ambiguous, and communities can easily generate informal agreements for forest boundaries while forest resources are degraded, but once valuable resources are discovered or generated, conflict arises between communities in dispute over the new resources.  Also, historically, land boundaries differ for different uses, such as grazing, hunting, or fuel wood collecting.  In present times, this causes severe difficulty in assigning set boundaries for neighboring communities.

For the practice of JFM to more effectively address the improve the livelihoods of forest dwelling people, while ensuring the protection of the forests, it is critical that the agencies in charge understand the community and tribal institutions, livelihoods and how current policies address the needs of the communities.  Because of the vast differences in customs, and reliance on certain forest resources across the county, indigenous communities must be viewed microscopically so as to ensure the implementation of effective policies.  For example, in Jharkhand, small scale farming dominates, with forest resources serve as a backup, while in Assam, small scale farming and shifting cultivation are dominant, and in Madhya Pradesh, dependence on forest resources are low across all income groups.  So for each of these states, it is necessary that varying designs of JFM be applied if the policies are to succeed.

Although there have been many positive outcomes in both state and national forests, from the implementation of JFM in 1990, JFM is unlikely to bring poor forest dependent people out of poverty.  It is necessary that many other reforms take place alongside JFM, so as to provided forest depended peoples with a variety of employment opportunities.  These might include improving agriculture performance, strengthen community forest rights, and opening up direct and lucrative access to market channels.

Citation:

-http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INDIAEXTN/Resources/Reports-Publications/366387-1143196617295/Forestry_Report_volume_I.pdf

-lecture at world bank

Ecological Walk Around MCC (academic)

Background:

The Madras Christian College campus was not originally forested, and was actually a degraded and barren landscape when the college first moved to its present location.  The main reason for lack of tree growth on the college grounds was because there was not a fence to keep animals out, such as goats and cows, that graze areas over, and because local people would cut down any trees for fire wood.  The completion of a fence surrounding the campus in 1937 began the process of forest growth on the campus.  With the local people not able to harvest the vegetation for firewood, and the local livestock not able to graze the campus, seeds brought in by birds and bats were able to take root and grow relatively uninhibited.  Helping the birds and bats to reforest the campus was the Barns family, who are now considered to be the “green architects” of the campus.  Professor Barns was a chemist and botanist.  Wanting to bring is love of botany to the rest of campus, be began raising saplings from all over the country, never buying them, and then planting them around campus (including the banyan tree outside the International Guest House).

After 70 years of growth, the campus of Madras Christian College is considered a dry evergreen forest.  Currently, much of the vegetation on campus is not very tall, thorny, and poisonous, resulting from the introduction of deer in the 1980’s.  The deer snuck onto the campus from Gandhi National Park, and have since kept the undergrowth a bay.  Prior to their introduction, it was nearly impossible to see through the forest between buildings, but because of grazing, one can now easily see through the forest.  It is predicted that in the future, only vegetation that is inedible to the deer will be present on MCC campus.  Although the deer pose a serious threat to the diversity of flora on the campus, it is illegal to kill them.  The only legal option is very costly, and involves capturing them and moving them to another location. 

Plant species:

1. The plant Memeceyon in ancient Tamil literature dating over 2000 years old.  During monsoon season the plant flowers and has dark and cloudy petals.  The fruit are small but can help identify the plant because the berries are similar size the bark pieces.
2. The plant Zizi Fufs have small berries and has sweet smelling flowers which are rich in vitamin C.
3. The plant Todalia Asiotica has a strong pungent aroma along with a strong bitter taste.
4. The plant Gliricedia Sepium was introduced by the British because when it is mulched, it adds nitrogen to the soil.  Also, it has been used for rat poison.
5. The plant Scivia Murtinu has edible berries.  When ripe, the berries are a deep blue color, but are extremely bitter!
6. The plant Cycas Carcinalis evolved during the Jurassic period and has since persisted in mild tropic climates.  It produces hundreds of golf ball sized fruit, but they must be processed before eating.
7. The plant Muraya Cauricalata is a distant relative of Jasmine, but smells nearly identical.  It is recognizable by its scent, small white flowers, and waxy leaves.
8. The Pipul tree is sacred to Buddhists because it is the tree where Buddha got his knowledge, and is recognizable by its heart shaped leaves.  The Pipul tree is a part of the fig family, and serves as a keystone species, supporting birds, rodents, and inscets.
9. The Tamarindus tree has brown edible pods and is thought to be derived from dates.  Consequently give the plant the name tamar-indus.  The Tamarindus family originated in Africa, but unlike Indian food that incorporates the tamarind fruit into many dishes, Africans do not use it in food.
10. The plant Scalpania Ferria, also known as Ironwood, is not native to the area, and is identifiable by its unique characteristic of grafting its branches together when they come in contact with one another.
11. The plant known as the Mother-in-law tree has white flowers, and symbolizes victory in Tamil Culture.  The common name originated because the tree is very noisy when strong winds shake its branches.
12. The state flower of Tamil Nadu is the Glorioga Superba.  The tubers of the plant are used in medicinal purposes for treating arthritis, but if not properly processed, it can be deadly.
13. The Sapoti Fruit, which comes from the family Matuka Lowifolia, has oily seeds that have been used for lamp oil, cooking, and distilling of liquor.
14. The Aloni tree produces a key ingredient in a Hawaiian miracle drug.
15. The wild yam has traditional medicinal purposes that include birth control
16. The plant Ralina Seppertina has been used to treat snake bites, and is effective because it calms the victim which keeps the venom from flowing through the blood stream as fast.
17. The Calabash Tree has produces large fruit that grow from the trunk.  It was introduced from Africa as an ornamental plant, and is pollinated by bats.

In total, there are over 600 know plant species on campus.  However, with the continued grazing of deer, many species could be overgrazed and taken over by other species inedible to deer.

Blog post 2

    A lot has happened since the last post, so ill start from where I left of.  The day after we had a tour of the market, we went to the bank to exchange our dollars for rupees.  To get to the bank we divided into two groups and each group took a single rickshaw (see photo below).  Meaning that 12 people were crammed into this tiny tricycle.  Instead of taking a rickshaw back to campus, we decided to walk, and on the way back got our first real experience of walking with cows in on the side of a busy street.

    The next day we went and had a tour of an orphanage, and watched some of the kids play a game of cricket.  After class the next day small groups went back to the market to explore.  The group of guys I was with discovered the meat section, which was not quite as pleasant as a butcher shop in the states.  There were pools of blood in the gutter, rats running around, a goat head, along with its feet, covered in flies, and a cage stuffed with at least 20 chickens.  Later in the afternoon we came across temple and were greeted by a few kids that insisted on having the pictures taken dozens of times.

   On Thursday october 13th we left for a four night trip down the east coast to Pondicherry.  The first night we stayed a resort on the beach, not far from Chennai.  Before arriving at the resort we stopped at a museum type place that had exhibited building styles from all over India.  Also, there were vendors selling handmade stone carvings, paintings, jewelry, and palm mats.  Later in the day we went to an alligator/crocodile/caiman farm, and were also able to see a snake show.  The next day went to a set of temples that were carved out of a single stone.

                        I have fallen so far behind on my this blog that i have lost all motivation to try and catch back up.  So instead of giving a written description of everything going on, ill just post pictures with a brief description.

One of my favorite photos so far

13 years old and riding a motorcycle

That's rice he's walking on

the rickshaw we fit 12 people in

10 story tall gold spheroid used for meditation in Auroville

rice field

row of rice

The Beginning

     After the USPS lost my passport and visa, I finally recieved it the day before we were supposed to leave for India, and was able to travel with the rest of the group.  We left furman at 8 am thursday morning, and left the greenville/spartanburg airport (GSP) at about 11 am.  From there we flew to Washington D.C. and split into two groups to fly to Frankfort, Germany.  I was in the first group that flew out at 3:30 pm, and the second group left D.C. at 5:30 pm, and met us in Frankfort.  I was able to get a few hours of sleep as we crossed the Atlantic.  After arriving in Germany, we found our gate, and got some breakfast.  For four sausage, egg, and cheese biscuits, and two orange juices, it was $17, quite a bit more expensive than in the US.  Ryan and I decided to get some more sleep on the terminal benches.  After sleeping for who knows how long, a german police officer woke me from my slumber and demanded to see my passport, but didn't even glance at Ryan, who was sleeping right next to me.  After being woken up, I walked over to see the rest of the group, and got my belongings together to board the flight to Chennai.  The flight to Chennai was pretty similar to the flight to frankfort, except that as we were decending into Chennai, a plane that had just landed blew its tire out on the runway, so we had to accened back up into the air and circle Chennai.  When it became apparent that our plane would run out of fuel before the plane on the runway would be moved, the pilot and crew decided to fly the plane to Bangalore so we could refuel and wait till it was safe to return to Chennai.  After a two to three hour detour, we landed in Chennai and were met by the drivers form Madras Christian College (MCC).  The drive to MCC gave us our first taste of India, and even after six weeks of intense preperation, it was nothing like I had expected.  What I was shocked most by, was the piles of trash lining the streets, the run down buildings, and the amount of people out and about at four in the morning.  The drive was only about 30 minutes, and it was just getting light when we arrived at MCC, ending out 36 hour, 36 minute, and 36 second trip to the other side of the world. 

       In an attempt to acclimate myselft to the new time zone, I decided to stay up until it was night time again.  After breakfast, groups of us took walks around the campus.  We saw a tree covered in giant fruit bats, a family of deer, one of which had huge antlers, and we saw a group of Indians playing cricket.  After the walk, the guys hung out in my room, listented to music and juggled the soccer ball for a few hours.  Later in the afternoon, five of us decided to leave the campus and see what was outside the walls.  Right outside of the gate is a very busy street, there are no lines on the street, and it is pretty much just chaos.  After observing the locals for a few minutes, we found that the technique to cross the street is to just walk leisurely, and assume that all of the traffic will either stop, or swerve around you.  And it worked for us!  We walked around a little bit, and being the only white people for miles, we were greeted with stares, honks, and waves.  Returing to campus, I was overcome by my tiredness, and fell asleep for about five hours.  Dr. Suresh woke me up for dinner, and just as all the meals have been, it was delicious.  After dinner, I showered and went to sleep.  In the morning (today) we woke up, had breakfast, and walked to the market.  As we walked through the market, we moved through sections that smelled terrible, delicious, and just weird.  It was divided into sections of fruits, vegitables, fish, and clothes.  Once I get rupees, I plan on going back to get some exotic fruits.

Himalayan Hazards (academic)

The article “Himalayan Seismic Hazard” discusses how India’s basement rock flexes and slides beneath the Himalayas during large earthquakes.  This is similar to what happens in deep ocean trenches when plates converge rapidly, causing the ocean floor to bend downward, and thus create earthquakes.  As India and Tibet converge at a rate of 20+3 mm per year, the stress is not spread out over the entire plate.  80 percent of strain is absorbed by a 50 km stretch along the southern edge of the Tibetan Plateau.  Small earthquakes and uplift are most common in this region.  The rest of the Himalayan mountain range absorbs the remaining 20 percent of the strain.  The accumulation of stress, from the converging plates, is measured in potential slip, and on average the potential slip of the region is about two meters per year, which is released during periodic earthquakes (Bilham, et al., 2001).  The article “Great Himalayan Earthquakes and the Tibetan Plateau,” argues that the the region accumulating the stress from plate convergence, and then releasing it, is much broader than the previous paper suggested, but only one fifth of that region actively engages with the earthquake cycle (Feldl, Bilham, 2006).

During great earthquakes, the displacement of formerly adjacent points on opposite side of a fault average to be about 4 meters (Bilham, et al., 2001).  However, the average slip may not be a reflection of the potential slip, or stress, that the plate is under, and depending on the the length of the rupture during an earthquake, all of the stress may not necessarily be released.  Rupture lengths shorter than 150 km leave significant strain in southern Tibet, thus shortening the renewal time for another earthquake in that region.  For ruptures longer than 150 km, generally all the strain is released (Feldl, Bilham, 2006).

Because of the lack of any great earthquakes in the region over the past three centuries, it is now estimated that the slip potential for the for the Himalayan region is greater than 6 m.  And in some isolated areas it is possible that there has not been any major earthquakes for the past five to seven centuries, which could cause a slip of more than 10 m (Bilham, et al., 2001).

The lack of any great earthquakes in the Himalayan region over the past few decades, and in some areas, centuries, the buildup of stress on the plate, along with exponential population growth, could spell disaster for some of the major cities.  1950 was the last great Himalayan earthquake, and since then the population has doubled, and since 1905 the population has increased by a factor of 10.  The 1905 earthquake killed close to 20,000 people in the region, today about 50 million people are at risk in the same region (Bilham, et al., 2001).

The lack of infrastructure strong enough to withstand a serious earthquake, and loose building codes, make the situation even more dangerous.  Were a great earthquake to strike the himalayan region today, it would likely lead to the death of 200,000 people, and hundreds of thousands more injured (Bilham, et al., 2001).  The countries of India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Pakistan need to drastically strengthen the infrastructure, and the strength of buildings, so as to minimize death and injury.  And although one might think that a region would be safe after a major earthquake, due to rates of renewal time for plate convergence, Feldl and Bilham’s model shows that great earthquakes can be followed by major earthquakes much more rapidly than one might assume for typical rates of plate convergence.  An example of this is the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Nepal in 1833, and then in 1934, an 8.2 magnitude earthquake struck Nepal and Bihar.  Because of this phenomena, areas struck by earthquakes cannot assume that the next one is centuries away, and must rebuild infrastructure to withstand the force of more earthquakes.

Bilham, R., Vinod, K., & Molnar, P. (2001). 22 himalayan seismic hazard. Science, 293, 1442-1444.

Feldl, N., & Bilham, R. D. (2006). Great himalayan earthquakes and the tibetan plateau. Nature, 444, 165-170. Retrieved from http://cires.colorado.edu/~bilhamHimalayanEarthquakes/ natureHimalaya06.pdf

Public Health Issues Related to Natural Disasters (academic)

The article “Earth Perturbations and Public Health” discusses natural disasters such as  earthquakes, tropical cyclones, floods, droughts, volcanic eruptions, landslides, and land subsidence and how they can cause both short and long term health problems.  During natural disasters, hospital and other medical facilities can be destroyed, along with food and water supplies (Earth Perturbations).  On serious public health problem that this article hardly addresses is the issue of mental health and post traumatic stress after natural disasters.  Among victims of earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes, there are dramatic increases in suicide rates in the years following these natural disasters (Krug, Kresnow, et al. 1999).

The clearest indication of the effects natural disasters have on the health of a population is the direct mortality from trauma.  In eastern Pakistan in 1970, coastal inundation caused the death of 761,000 people, and Tangshan, China, in 1976, an earthquake caused the death of 557,900 people.  More recently, the Sumatran tsunami in 2004 caused the death of at least 285,00 people.  Post disaster health issues include indirect mortality and sickness from infectious diseases, and mental health problems such as post traumatic stress and suicide (Earth Perturbations) and (Krug, Kresnow, et al. 1999).

Although natural disasters do not discriminate, it is the poorest countries that are most vulnerable to short and long term health effects.  Approximately 66% of the world’s population that live in the poorest areas account for 95% of deaths from natural disasters (Earth Perturbations).  This is likely due to the fact the poorest countries lack infrastructure that is resistant to natural disasters, and thus it is more likely that buildings and roads will destroyed during a disaster.  Also, the poorest countries already lack adequate health care services, and during a disaster, they must rely on international aid for guidance and stability.  Reasons one may commit suicide in the days, months, and years following a natural disaster include, the loss of family, friends, property, jobs, and post traumatic stress.  In impoverished areas, these issues are exasperated and pose an even greater problem (Krug, Kresnow, et al. 1999).

It is interesting however, that different natural disasters can greatly vary the effect on ones mental state.  Suicide rates increase for about 4 years after flooding, two years after hurricanes, and only one year after floods.  After flooding, suicide rates increase 13.8 percent, and 18.9 percent after hurricanes (Krug, Kresnow, et al. 1999).  A possible reason that increased suicide rates remain high for the longest period of time after flooding may be because floods occur more often than other natural disasters, even if that are not considered a federal disaster, and victims of floods report three times as much financial loss and four times as many injuries.  Also, flood victims are more likely to take out loans, giving temporary relief, but adding stress over the long run.  Water also carries many disease, which makes makes flooded regions even more vulnerable to disease outbreaks (Krug, Kresnow, et al. 1999) and (Earth Perturbations).  

The use of technology in preventing indirect deaths after a natural disaster is crucial.  Geographic Information System can be used to plot disease outbreaks and the likely rate and direction the disease will spread.  This can give epidemiologists the upper hand, and allow them to more effectively stop the spread of disease, thus saving thousands of human lives.  Also, GIS can be used to map areas and help officials determine which type of naturals disaster a certain area might be prone to (Earth Perturbations).  Strong infrastructure is also important in reducing the severity of natural disasters.  And although it is often overlooked, mental health support is necessary after severe disasters.  This could come in the form of social support, or financial aid, and because flooding causes the largest impact on mental health, the building of flood walls, and reforestation, can help reduce the intensity of flood based mental health issues, along with the obvious effects of direct mortality from trauma (Krug, Kresnow, et al. 1999).

Krug, E. G., Kresnow, M., Peddicord, J., Dahlberg, L. L., & Powell, K. E. (1999). Suicide after natural disasters. The New England Journal of Medicine, 338(6), 373-378. Retrieved from http://www.nejm.org/doi/pdf/10.1056/NEJM199802053380607

(n.d.). Earth perturbations and public health impacts. National Academy of Sciences, 99-111.

Nutrition in India (academic)

In the article “Nutrition transition in India,” Shetty discusses how the upper class in developing countries, specifically India, are consuming more calories, and are receiving a larger portion of those calories from animal based products.  This is leading to an epidemic of non-communicable diseases, which is commonplace in the industrialized world, but has yet to be seen in the developing world.  40 percent of deaths in the developing world are now caused by non-communicable disease, and 75 percent of deaths in the industrialized world are caused by non-communicable diseases.

Studies of the rapidly urbanizing of populations, occurring in developing countries, has shown the relationship of genetic and environmental causes of non-communicable diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.  When migrants adopt the diet and lifestyle of the native population, they tend to acquire similar diseases as the native population, but in some instances their genetic differences can cause them to be more prone or more resistance to certain non-communicable diseases (Shetty, 2002).  Also, residents of urban areas tend to have a higher BMI because of a more sedentary lifestyle, and higher caloric consumption (World Health Organization).  As Indian society develops, and urbanizes, the standards of living increase.  Unlike already developed nations, in which there are higher rates of obesity among the poor, it is the upper class in India that are showing higher rates of weight gain and obesity.

In Urban areas of India, there is a socio-economic divide of obesity rates.  Urban residents that make up the upper class have obesity rates of 32.2 percent for males, and 50 percent for females.  Among the middle class, 16.2 percent of males, and 30.3 percent of females suffer from obesity.  For the urban poor, many of which live in slums, the obesity rate for males is only 1 percent, and 4 percent for females (Shetty).  The change in energy intake as income increases is generally not a shift towards higher caloric intake, but a shift in diet favoring increased intake of animal based fat and protein, and sugar, and a decrease in the consumption of vegetable fat and protein (World Health Organization).  In India, those in the upper income strata consumed a diet in which 32 percent of the energy was derived from fat, while those in the lower income strata consumed a diet in which only 17 percent of the energy was derived from fat (Shetty).  However, when caloric intake does increase, it is almost always because an increase in animal fat and protein consumption.  In a diet of 2000 kcal, the fat calorie ratio is 10 percent, but for a 3600 kcal diet, the fat calorie ratio is 41 percent, showing the increase of input from animal based fats going from 29 percent to 64 percent.  This increase occurred because of the per capita supply of animal goods increased since 1965 from 7 grams to 12.5 grams in 1999.  The income based disparity of caloric intake is most visible in the fact that “40 percent of all edible fat available in India is being consumed by 5 percent of the total population” (Shetty).

A healthy diet, and weight loss prevention necessitate the inclusion of vegetables, fruits, cereals, and grains in ones diet, along with physical activity (World Health Organization).  India’s large share in the international production of fruits and vegetables is not evident in its populations consumption of fruits and vegetables.  This can be attributed to the fact that much of the agricultural production in India is cash crops that are exported overseas (Shetty).

Time dedicated to physical work has decreased with population transitions to urban areas for work in offices.  Physical activity has also decreased because of the increased use of cars, mechanical replacement of once manual jobs, and increased leisure time which is generally dedicated to sedentary activity such as watching television (Shetty).  For those with sedentary lifestyles, a fat intake of no greater than 20-25 percent of total energy consumed, is necessary to minimize energy imbalance and weight gain (World Health Organization).

The inverse relationship of animal fat consumption and income, between developing and developed nations, is likely due to the fact that the most caloric dense food found in developed countries are the cheapest.  Whereas in developing countries, the caloric dense food is a luxury item the only the wealthy have access too.  As the average income of Indians continues to rise, so will the consumption of animal based products and sugar, and thus an increase in the prevalence of non-communicable disease.  Through subsidies, and mass production, it is also possible that India will make unhealthy caloric dense foods available to its poorest members, causing an increase of obesity in the poor.

Shetty, P. (2002). Nutrition transition in india. Public Health Nutrition, 5(1A), 175-182.

World Health Organization (WHO). Obesity: Preventing and Managing the Global Epidemic. Report of a WHO consultation.  WHO Technical Report Series No. 894.