How to Protect Forests

Bharat Dogra

While protection of natural forests has always been a very important part of the efforts to protect the environment and bio-diversity, its importance has increased further in times of climate change, from the perspective of mitigation as well as adaptation. Further the experience worldwide has been that the protection of existing natural forests in good condition can be best achieved on a sustainable basis with the close involvement of rural communities of neighboring areas. Tribal communities are found closer to forests in India and elsewhere and traditionally, their life has been more closely inter-linked with the natural forests of their area compared to other people. They also have much better and deeper knowledge and understanding of forests, their ecology and biodiversity, and of the wildlife living in and belonging to forests.

Traditionally, there has been a close protective relation between tribal communities in particular (as well as other rural communities) and the forests existing close by. Unfortunately, during colonial times, the integrity of the protective relationship between people and forests came under enormous strain as arbitrary decisions relating to violations of the needs and rights of communities were taken. Even after independence, the injustice done to tribal communities was not undone adequately, despite efforts being made in this direction, while some new threats also appeared. Regrettably, even conservation projects were often planned in such a way that instead of tribal communities being involved in the protection of forests they were either displaced or their forest rights were severely restricted.

Some eminent conservationists have warned that this is a highly distorted approach that is harmful for tribal communities as well as for conservation work.

In Bharatpur Park area in Rajasthan, some years back, an arbitrary decision to ban grazing led to protests and subsequent police firing on protesters, which led to the death of seven villagers. However, a study by the Bombay Natural History Society later revealed that buffalo grazing was “an integral part of the ecosystem, helping to counter the tendency of the wetland to turn into grassland.” In some other cases, including the famous Valley of Flowers in the Himalayan region, bans on traditional grazing practices had a negative impact on diversity and required a reintroduction of grazing or grass-cutting.

It is much better to involve the nearby rural and tribal communities, including nomadic and semi-nomadic ones, in deciding sustainable patterns of use while at the same time securing their help in protecting forests.

Work such as extinguishing forest fires (which have been increasing in times of climate change) and rainwater harvesting and water conservation in and near forests is best taken up with the help of rural and tribal communities of areas close by.

The regeneration of degraded forest land is a very important task which again is most likely to succeed when taken up with the involvement of local people. This is very different from monoculture plantations. Instead the effort should be try to mimic nature and natural forests, in terms of local conditions and biodiversity, as much as possible. One way forward is to give the responsibility to a group of poorest villagers for a certain area. They can fence this area, using wages under various government schemes, providing a temporary rest to the land to allow it to regenerate.

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Frontier
Vol 58, No. 3, Jul 13 - 19, 2025