1
Summary
Environment Class 08

FOREST FIRE (5:05 PM)

  • Forest fire in India should be understood in the context of the deciduous forest that dominates the peninsular landmass
  • The deciduous forest, particularly those that are part of tropical to sub-tropical regions of the peninsular region of India with low to moderate rainfall, are much more prone to wildfires and forest fires
  • Causes of forest fires in India
  • 1. Spells of dry climate
  • The dry climate in the deciduous forest can easily lead to huge areas of forest  coming under forest fire
  • The dry climate makes the vegetable litter on  the ground dry which could facilitate forest fires to spread over huge areas
  • The dry climate makes the wood dry and therefore the frictional contact between dry wood can trigger forest fires which can also spread easily
  • Dry condition also makes the soil dry and hence the litter is even more drier because of the absence of soil moisture
  • 2. Deforestation
  • Deforestation can trigger forest fires and help in their spread
  • Deforestation increases wind speed, hence frictional contact between dry wood is increased, which can trigger fires
  • Deforestation dries up water bodies due to reduced recharge of the groundwater
  • This can help forest fires to spread over much larger areas because of the absence of water bodies, which can break the spread of these fires
  • Deforestation exposes undergrowth to direct solar energy which dries up this undergrowth along with the litter, hence fire can spread over a much larger area
  • 3. Introduction of invasive species
  • India's forest fires are also because of the spread of invasive species on a large scale in the sub-Himalayan forest and also peninsular forests
  • Invasive species have the property of multiplying rapidly, wiping out the local vegetation
  • the sub-Himalayan region of Himachal, Uttarakhand, pockets of Punjab, and Kashmir regions have large areas under the invasive Charpine
  • The leaves of these trees are waxy and also have a lot of raisins
  • These leaves also do not decompose easily, and therefore the vegetable litter made up of these leaves and branches becomes very thick
  • Since these leaves are highly inflammable, forest fires can spread over huge areas in a short span of time
  • The peninsular forest has large areas under the shrub Lantana (Camara)
  • This spread as a thick undergrowth
  • In the dry season, it can help in the spread of forest fires rapidly
  • Similarly, Eucalyptus in peninsular forests has depleted underground water, drying up the undergrowth and bush
  • This intensifies forest fire
  • 4. Illegal activities
  • Illegal felling of trees, particularly by organized timber mafia is a major factor for the forest fires in Himalayan forest and also in pockets of peninsular India
  • The government of India has a law that does not allow felling of trees above a particular height
  • The timber mafia starts fires above this height and this forces the government to relax the rule, permission is now given to fell the trees that are damaged
  • This creates an opportunity for the mafia to fell a large number of trees illegally, with the indirect support of forest officials
  • These groups again start forest fires after illegal felling to destroy the evidence
  • 5. Shifting Cultivation
  • Shifting cultivation is a major factor triggering forest fires in northeast India, central India, and parts of southern peninsular India
  • The tribal communities always burn the stumps after cutting down the tree, this can trigger forest fires accidentally
  • Since shifting cultivation is practiced in tropical mountainous regions, the risk of forest fire is much more
  • 6. Unplanned Rural Settlements
  • Unplanned rural settlements on the margins of grasslands and forests are also responsible for triggering fires accidentally
  • The settlements come up in the fringes because this community depends on minor forest produce for their livelihood, and also uses pure wood as a source of energy
  • These settlements can trigger forest fires accidentally
  • Types of Forest in India (6:37 PM)
  • Forest Act 1927 categories forest into reserved forest, protected forest, and village forest
  • State of Forest Report classifies forest into reserved forest, protected forest, and unclassed forest
  • Reserved Forest
  • It is notified by the state government in India from an existing forest land or a wasteland
  • The state government holds property right but the land is held by the government of India
  • All activities, even this those that were carried out earlier before it was notified, are prohibited unless specifically allowed by the forest officer
  • The forest officer can also allow, the collection of non-timber forest and grazing if it is critical to the livelihoods of some local communities 
  • Reserved forests can never be changed  into national parks and wildlife sanctuaries
  • Only those portions of reserved forest which have become  part of national parks and wildlife sanctuaries get the status of protected areas
  • They make up almost 53% of the total forest in India
  • Protected Forest
  • They for the lands which are not part of reserved forest
  • States have property rights, but the land is held by the central government
  • All activities are allowed unless specifically prohibited
  • The state notifies the protected forest for two reasons:
  • 1. The state gets some opportunities to raise revenues from timber and non-timber forest produce etc. which can be exploited
  • 2. The state can prevent indiscriminate exploitation of resources because it has the power to form guidelines and rules on the exploitation of resources because it holds property rights
  • This helps in the conversation of the resources
  • Protected forests cannot also be changed into wildlife sanctuaries and national parks
  • Village Forest
  • These are also community forests, which the state government assigns to a village or a group of villages
  • The state government assigns a part of the reserved forest to the village as a village/community forest
  • The local community will exercise grazing rights and also can collect some non-timber forest produce, but without harming the ecosystem
  • The community is managing and protecting these forests
  • Unclassed Forest
  • All forest which is not part of a reserved forest or protected forest but is part of a recorded forest is put under the category of unclassed forest
  • Recorded Forest
  • The recorded forest is also called a forest area
  • This is an area entered as a forest area in the revenue records of the government  or it is declared as a forest under a state forest law
  • Forest Cover
  • It refers to the land of at least one hectare with a canopy cover of more than 10% regardless of ownership
  • Tree Cover
  • It is land less than one hectare with a canopy cover of more than 10% regardless of ownership
  • Data as per India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2021
  • Reserved Forest
  • The absolute area under the reserved forest in India is highest in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh
  • Least reserved forest: Punjab 
  • Reserved Forest UT: J&K, A&N, D&D, Delhi, Chandigarh
  • The least reserved forest among UT is in Lakshadweep
  • Forest cover as a percent of the state area or forest density is Mizoram (85.4%), Arunachal Pradesh (79.6 %), Meghalaya (76.3 %),  Manipur (75.4%), Nagaland (75.3%)
  • Tree Cover
  • Tree cover of states Maharastra, Rajasthan, MP, and UP
  • The least tree cover is Sikkim
  • Union Territories in tree cover: Andaman and Nicobar, Dadra and Daman, Puducherry, Chandigarh
  • The least tree cover among union territories is in Lakshadweep
  • Recorded Forest
  • Largest area under-recorded forest: MP, Maharashtra, Odisha, Chattisgarh, Arunachal Pradesh
  • Least recorded forest area: Haryana, Punjab
  • Recorded forest in UT: J&K, A&N, D&D, Delhi, Chandigarh, Puducherry
  • Least recorded forest amongst UTs is in Lakshadweep
  • Protected Forest
  • Protected forests in the state area-wise: MP, Himachal, Odisha, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand
  • Least protected forest in states: Kerala= Nagaland (0), Tripura (2 sq. km)
  • Protected forests in UT: J&K, A&N Islands, Delhi, Dadra&Daman
  • Least protected areas in UT: Chandigarh = Ladakh (0)
  • World's top ten countries in forest area: Russia, Brazil, Canada, USA, China, Australia, DRC, Indonesia, Peru (1.82%), and India (1.8%)

BIODIVERSITY (7:43 PM)

  • Walter G. Rosen coined the term biodiversity
  • Biodiversity refers to the collection of all plant, animals, and microorganic life, their habitats, and ecological process in that region
  • Genetic Diversity
  • It is the variation in the genetic makeup across individuals of a species
  • A gene pool is the collection of all the genes in a given species
  • Species Diversity
  • It can be understood in terms of species richness, which is the number of different species in a given ecosystem
  • Species richness is measured by:
  • 1. Alpha Diversity
  • It is the direct count of the number of species in a given ecosystem or habitat
  • 2. Beta Diversity
  • It is the change in species in different ecosystems within a given region
  • 3. Gamma Diversity
  • It is a measure of overall species diversity in different ecosystems in a given region
  • Species Evenness is the other way to measure species richness
  • It refers to the number of individuals of different species in the same ecosystem
  • If this number is almost the same or close, there is high species evenness
  • If this number of individuals is highly variable, then there is low species evenness

Topics for the next class: Continuation of biodiversity