Legality of national parks and involvement of local people : case studies in Java, Indonesia and Kerala, India (original) (raw)
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Tropics, 2008
Moder n national parks (NPs) bor n in the USA cannot be introduced wholly to developing countries, on assumption that institutional arrangements have been applied on the proposed areas. Therefore, procedures to create a NP become an important matter. Kerala State in India and Java Island in Indonesia were selected for the conditions that fulfilled the assumption. The focus of this study is the dif ferences of legislative measures and local responses on the establishment of NPs. Results show that differences in legislative measures caused increment in reser ved forest areas in India, while Indonesia is loosing its forest areas. However, both countries rarely finalized the NPs , establishment procedures, because NPs have been established from already existing forest areas by changing the previous status and function. NPs were established even in highly populated region of the countries in order to protect and conser ve the ecosystems as well as to support local people , s livelihood. Adoption of ecodevelopment initiatives and zoning systems in the management plans became the gateway and the solutions for better NPs management in Kerala and Java, respectively. Settlement of rights and establishment of legal basis of NPs in the early stage with transparency is required to make ever y effort for NP administration and management effective.
Analysis and resolution of protected area–people conflicts in Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, India
Environmental Conservation, 2000
Conflicts between local people and protected area managers are a common problem in developing countries, but in many cases there has been little attempt to comprehensively characterize the underlying problems. Resource uses, management practices, economy and people's perceptions of problems and likely solutions were analysed in two villages near and two villages away from the core zone of Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve in the Indian Himalaya. Agriculture, although practised on less than 1% of the area, was the primary occupation of local people. Six annual crops of a total of 22 and all four horticultural crops on private farms were damaged by wildlife, but Reserve management provided compensation only for livestock killing by wildlife and compensation amounted to only 4–10% of the total assessed monetary value of killed livestock. A variety of wild plant products were used locally but 27 were marketed by more than 50% of surveyed families; income from wild products was substantia...
People and protected areas: some issues from India
People and protected areas: some issues from India. India is one of the 17 mega biodiverse countries, occupying only 2.5 % of the world's geographical area and 1.8 % of the its forest area but supporting 16 % of the world's human population and 17 % of its livestock population. Biotic pressure on the country's protected areas is tremendous and managers of these areas face an uphill task in balancing divergent needs of different stakeholders of national parks and wildlife sanctuaries. The job of managing such areas is highly challenging because of the many difficult issues such as human-wildlife conflicts, encroachments, overgrazing, tourists' pressure (including pilgrimages into the forests), poaching, and an ever-increasing demand for diversion of protected areasfor development purposes. In the present article we discuss some of these issues with reference to India and emphasise the danger of losing ecosystem services (mostly of an intangible or regulating kind of nature) emanating out of these protected areas.
Criteria for the establishment of National Park in Indonesia are aimed at benefiting the purpose of ecological sustainability of the area on scientific basis, so that the national park establishments often neglect the sociocultural aspects. This phenomenon causes overlapping between national park territory and customary territory and creates conflicts related with spatial arrangement and natural resources utilization, due to disharmony of criteria in the zonation pattern and spatial pattern of traditional community. Three important findings are found through an approaching the importance of biodiversity conservation and livelihood of customary community. First, the sustainable use of natural resource would be in place where customary community still keeps their traditional way of life particularly that in relations to conservation. Second, so far the park zonation policy does not take into account the values, norms and livelihoods of the customary community. Third, the regulations and criteria for park zonation hinder the traditional access and control of customary community over national park. The last two mentioned factors could potentially create conflicts between customary community and parks. Adaptation was needed toward the prevailing science-based ecologically-oriented regulation on zoning plan, so it would incorporate the customary community in order to achieve effective management of national park.
Policies and Legal Frameworks of Protected Area Management in Nepal
Environmental Management in Asia, 2010
The Protected Area (PA) is a common resource, and provides basic necessities for livelihoods. As a result, access to this resource is very much of interest to local communities. The success of PA management depends on the socioeconomics and politics of the governing countries and communities. This study examines the policy implementation that encourages the conservation of biological diversity. It was carried out in the Langtang National Park and its surrounding buffer area in the central Himalayan region of Nepal. It was found that local communities are heavily dependent on park resources for their livelihoods. Protected Area policies that provide access to grazing, and firewood collection from the park area are considered conducive to acceptance. However, the traditional rights over these resources are still the issue of park-people conflict. Medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) are still "locked resources" for local communities. The present PA policy fails to incorporate the issue of wildlife crop damage and livestock depredation. The rights and responsibilities of buffer zone (BZ) institutions are poorly delineated. There is a need to encourage local participation in buffer zone management activities. It is necessary to review the existing root causes of park-people conflict. The roles, responsibilities and authorities of BZ institutions need to be clearly delineated. It is suggested that the buffer zone management council (BZMC) be strengthened as an apex decision making body, whose role should not be limited to the BZ boundary. Furthermore, the policy should address the issue of wildlife damage and mechanisms to compensate such loss would be an asset in PA governance. Local communities should be given management rights, at least to forest areas near the settlements. A long term and prescribed management plan for MAPs is necessary. The equitable benefit-sharing mechanisms help to overcome the major setbacks in sustainability of PA, a common property resource.
Conservation: pride or prejudice? An analysis of the Protected Areas of India
‘Biodiversity Conservation’ is replete with conflicts and controversies, flooded with questions and questioned belief systems, and punctuated with prejudice and pain. This paper presents a study of the values behind the biodiversity conservation in India, which manifests itself widely through the national network of Protected Areas (PAs). We asked whether there was a bias towards setting up protected areas in particular regions such as hilly and tribal areas both for the current, and proposed protected area network. The results point towards a specific tendency in the establishment of PAs in tribal and hilly districts of India. This propensity will be more prominent if current the proposals are implemented and the complete network of PAs assumes full shape. Investigation of the infl uence of the state’s wealth in these decisions reveals a higher propensity of protection in the tribal and hill districts in wealthy states than in poorer states. It cannot be deduced statistically whether more protection is results from states’ wealth or vice-versa as the detailed figures for each district’s wealth are unavailable. Nevertheless, this stresses the need to understand the intricate relationship between the social, political and ecological dimensions of the conservation practice in this densely populated country. If the IUCN target of 10% of the nation in protected areas is to be achieved with attention to justice, the implications of protected areas on marginalized people must be understood.
Earth Perspectives
A network of Protected Areas (PAs) has been the main strategy adopted in India for conservation of biodiversity and wildlife. Thus, more than 600 PAs are established; however, pressures from the human settlements in the proximity have been a serious concern for their management. To appreciate the interplay of governance of PAs and human settlements around them, we selected Keoladeo National Park (KNP), a Ramsar and world heritage site in India, as a model. We compared the socioeconomic state of the inhabitants in the 13 villages and their dependency on KNP for resources two decades ago with that of the present. Information on socioeconomic indicators was collected from the villagers using a customized questionnaire. Data was also collected from concerned government departments. Significant changes in human population, literacy, households, fuel use, water level, agriculture, occupations and irrigation techniques were seen. Much of the traditional agricultural fields are now open for other uses. The changes reflect reconciliation by the neighborhood community with the governance strategy and a shift in their resource utilization. The major local driver for the changes was an abrupt change in conservation praxis in the KNP.