---

.CHAPTER16
Sustainable '

I 064~HI 6 Management of
Natural Resources
\

'Living in harmony With nature' is not new to us. Sustainable living has
always been an integral part of India's tradition and culture. It has been
integrated with our long-lasting traditions and practices, ·customs, art
and crafts, festivals, food. beliefs, rituals and folklore. Ingrained within us
is the philosophy that 'entire ~atural world be in harmony'• which is
reflected in the famous phrase in Sanskrit Vasudhaiv kutwnbakam' that
means "the entire earth is one family". The •phrase is mentioned in
'Mahaupanishad', that is probably a part of the an~ient Indian text, ,
Atharoa Veda.
In Class IX we have already learnt about ~ome natural resources
like soil, air and water and how va]jous co111ponents are cycled over and
over again in nature. Also, we-learnt in [Link] chapter about the
pollution of these resources because of some of our activities. In fu!s
chapter, we shall look at some of our resources and how we -are- using
them. Maybe we should also think about how we ·ought to be· using our
resources so as to sustain them and conserve our environment. We shall
·be looking at 9ur natural resources like forests, wildlife,_ water, coal and
[Link] and_ see what are the issues at stake in deciding how these
resour~es are to be managed for sustainable development along with
the input from our traditional Practices.
We often hear or read about environmental problems. Thes_e are often
• global-level problems and we feel helpless to bring any change. There
are international la~s and regulations, and then there -are our own
national laws and acts for enviror:imental protection. There are· also
nation~ and -international organisations working towards protecting our
environment. -

Activity 16.1
... Find out about the international norms to regulate the emission
of carbon dioxide., •
Have a discussion in class about how we can contribute towards
meeting jhose norms.
 •
tvltY 16.2
are a numb~r of organisations that seek to spread awar~ness
t our environment and promote activities and attitudes that
to the conseivatlon of our environment and natural resources.. \
out about the [Link](s). ~ctive in y(?ur neighbourhood/
age/town/city~ . • . : _· ...
d out how you can contribute towards the same cause, ,·_. ,
\ J
.
,• ii .. J

'

'
Awiueness about the problems caused by unt.!1inkingly explotting
resources has been a fairly recent phenomenon in our SQCiety. And
ce this awareness rises, some action is usually taken. You must have
eard about th~ Ganga Ac~on Plan. This multl-crore project came abo~t
In 1985 because the quality of the water in the Ganga was very poor.
Coliform is a group of bacteria, found in human intestines, whose ,
presence in water indicates_ contami:nauon by disease-causing \

microorganisms.

. . .
1000000 Faecal coliform lev~ls from Gangotrl to Diamond Harbour Garden Reach
. .
Dakshineshw ar
'
Devprayag Varanasi
J

. 9100000
0
·O

z ._ ·~. ...
p.. Roorkee Diamond
10000
-""'
Q)-
Harbour

::3
Z- 1000
-,c
Q)

_,. .;.as._
,c
- '

£
+,I
. al
10
·o
:s -2007
2011
10 Gangotrt

Rishikesh
•
0
..
Figure 16._l Total colifonn count levels i~ the -Ganga
• ' (

Source: Central Pollution Control Board, 2012

I
..__. I

. \

.'
 Pollution of the Ganga
The Ganga runs its course of over 2500 km from Gangotii in the Himalayas to Ganga
Sagar in the Bay of Bengal. It is being turned into a drain by more than a hundred
towns and cities in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal that pour their garbage
and excreta into it. Largely untreated sewage· is dumped into the Ganges eveiy
day. In addition, think of the pollution caused by other human activities like
bathing, washing of clothes and immersion of ashes or unburnt corpses. And then,
industries contribute chemical effluents to the Ganga·s pollution load and the
toxicity kills fish in large sections of the river. Namami Gange Programme is an
Integrated Conservation Mission approved as a Flagship Programme by the Union
Government in June, 2014. It was launched to accomplish the twin objectives of effective
abatement of pollution conservation and rejuvenation of River Ganga. The National
Mission for Clean Ganga is the implementati on wing set up in October, 2016.

As you can see, there are some measurable factors which are used
to quantify pollution or the quality of the water that we use for various .
activities. Some of the pollutants are harmful even when present in very •.
small quantities and we require sophisticated equipment to measure •.
them. But as we learnt in Chapter 2, the pH of ,vater is something that
can easily be-checked using universal indicator.

Activlt~ 16.3
-
Check the pH of the water supplied to your house using universal ~-
indicator or litmus paper.
Also check the pH of the water in the 10:cal waterbody (pond, river,
lake, stream).
Can you say whether the water is- polluted or not- on the basis of
your observations?

. We he~d not feel pow~rless or overwhelmed by the scale of the

problems beca_use there are many things we can do to make .a difference.
You musthave_co1ne across the five R's to save the environment: Refuse,
Reduce,' Reuse, Repurpose and Recycle. What do they refer to? _
Refuse: This means to say ~o to things people offer you that you
. _don't need. Refuse to buy products tpat can liarm you and
the environment, s~y No to single-use plastic caTI)' bags.
Reduce: .Th~s ~eans that you use less. You s~ye electricity by
SWitchiIJg off [Link] lights and fans. You save water
by repailing leaky taps. Do not waste food. Can you think
of other th~gs tha~ you can reduce the usage of?
Reuse: This is actually even better thah recycling because the
,
.energy. In the reuse
process of recycling uses some ,
.
strategy, you simply use things again and again. Instead
d
of throwing away • used envelopes , you can reverse 1·t an
.
• it. again.. The
use . plastic , • •you b uyvanous
. . bottles 1·n whi'ch
~ood-1te~s like Jam or pickle can be used for storing things
1n the kitchen. What other items can we reuse.?

··268
Science
 :...--nose_: This means when a product c~n • ,
,...r . al no more be used for the
ortgm purpose, think carefully and use 1·t,1or some other
useful purpose. For example crack 'd • k
with b k ' e croc ery, or cups
ro e~ h~dles can be used to grow small plants
and as feeding vessels for birds.
. _.. '

aeeycle: This m~ans that you collect plastic, paper, glass and metal
l
~~ems a.i:id recycle these materials to make required things
mstead of synthesising or extracting fresh plastic. paper,
I
f , glass o~ metal. In order to recycle, we first need to segregate .
I
-- ou~ wastes so that the material that can be recycled is not
_ dumped along ~th o~er w~stes. Does your village/town/
city have a :r:nechanis~ in place for recycling these mateiials?
Even while making everyday choices, ·we· can make environment-
f ·friendly decisions. For doing this, we need [Link] more about how our '
choices affect the environment, these effects may be immediate or long-
J term or .long-ranging. The co~cept of sustainable development
1 : encourages forms pf growth that meet current basic human needs, while

/ preserving the resour_ces for the needs of future generations. Economic

l . development is linked to environmental conservation. Thus sustainable
' development implies a change in all aspects of life. It depends upon the
l. _ willingness of the people to change their perceptions of th~ socio..,economic --
and environmental conditions around tpem, and the readiness of each
individual to alter their present ~se of natural resources. •
.--~ ~,..-.~.:-.:-, ~.._ • .. -~}~;..:~:~-±~,~. .,._. .-~ ""';/' ~:,.f~ :·~ • ,·.~-,.~--- / ~:~--... •. l .::.- ~. • ......~ .

~-~~tivit y 16. 4 ~- • •• • : ; : ••_ ' • •.- ; - : · . . . ·\_< >{ . • _'-, :.~ :· :_· • / _ · • • •
=•-•: • ~•...:,.. --;:, •• • }-...._~• • •..;.1 • •• •. . . . . I • •• -.•

Have you· ~ve~ visited a town or villa~e after a few y_ears of a~sence? ·; .,
• - ,. .. ...,-- ,r

,.( - t.t·
:__ : -:.. _ If so,· have you noticed· h~w road~ -~d house_s t~at have c~me up -_
• • · - · you were there last? Where do you think the matenals fo~
:;·-~•: :~ng these roads and 1;:>uild~ngs have .com: from?_· • •- .1
~-:~-~~.:·Try and. make a list of the materta~s _a~d • the1_r probable s\nrrces. -..
~:,.:·- Discuss•• th 1·ct you have prepared with your classmates. Can-
., .., 1i} e 1~ r - ·a1 b . .:..~ d?
... ;~:·. -;.~~~you thin~ 9 f 'Yays ill: wi:uch t?e u~e_of the_s:}~1a~e1? _s e rcuuce_ .. • .•

-
.;;.1 ··~ oo WE NEED
. d b 'ld. gs but all the things we use or consume~
TO MANAGE OUR RESOURCES?
J
. ~ot just road~ an . u1 inf , ,· ·ture tools and vehicles - are obtained
~£ · d , C,1O thes books toys, urm '
00 . ' :th ·The only thing we get from outside i_s energy .
·. fro~ resolll:ce~ o~ this Sun. Even this e~ergy is pr?ces~ed ~y living
- which we receive r?m
. and vanous phys1ca
f
. 1 and chemical processes on the ~ffii:~
. . . .
orgarusms . . . # _ _ , • • • •
)
before we make use of it. . • ',. rces carefully? Because these are
. Why do we need to use our rh~so~ n population increasing at a ,
· d ·th the uma · - \
not unlimited an Wl t 1·n he·alth-care. the demand for all .
treme~dous rate d~e to unproyemen tial rate. The management of
. . . g at an exponen . . . • .
resources 1s mcreasin perspective so that these will
uires a long-term 1 . d th
natural resources r~q _ • d will not,merely be exp 01te to e
. . - • erations to come an •
last for the ge~ _ ( . .
. . I

• ent of Natural Resourc~s

I •

Sustainable Managern
 hilt for short-term gains. This management sh~uld also ensure equitable
distribution of resoilrces so that all, and not Just a handful of rich anc1
powerful people, btiiefit from the develop~ent of thes~ resources.
Another factor to be considered while we exploit these natural
resources is the damage we cause to the environme~t. while these
resources are either extracted or used. For example, m.1ning causes
pollution because of the large amount of slag which is discarded for
every tonne of metal extracted. Hence, sustainable ~atural resource
managemen~ demancls that we pla11 for the safe d1~posal of these
wastes too. - ---~
The present day global concems for sustainable development and
conservation of natural resources are of recent origin as compared to
the long tradit}on and culture of nature conservation in our country.
Principles of conservation and sustainable management were well
established in the pre-historic India.
Our ancient -literature is full of such examples where values and
sensitivity of humans towards nature was ·glorified and the prin~iple of
sustainability wa~ established at its ~est. ./

Activity 16. 5
• Observe various traditional. practice~ for conservation of nature
in your day-to-day lif~. Share wlthin the peer group. Make a report
.. and submit ..

• Indian texts such as Upanishads and .S~tis contain many descrtptions [Link]
uses and manage_µient of forests, and highlight sustainabilicy as an implicit theme.
One hymn from·Atharva Veda 1112.. 1-: 11 IL, later qanslatedihto English in the book
•Atharva Veda-· the Sanskrit Text with English Translation, wrttten by. Devi Chand
in 1997, reads: .. · • • • •
> •

yiray~ste parvata .[Link] te prthivi syonamastµ - _

babhrutp kr~t}.aqf rohi,[Link] ·visvariipam dh~varp. bhumi prthi~1J1indi-aguptam
ajitohato ak~atodhya~tham prt;hivimaham I112.i.111 I (flthan:a' Veda)
"O Earth! Pleasant be thy hills,
. snow-clad m0uritains and forests· O numerous
. coloured, firm and protected earth! On this earth I stand ' -..undefeated ' unslain '
unhurt." •
- •

An~ther hymn that reveaJ.s utilisation and regeneration principles from

Atharva Veda II l2. l.35 II reads: ___ _ -~ • , :
-
ya~te bhiime vikhanami k~iprarp tadapi rohatu · • • • •
,mate marma vimrgvari mate hrdayamarpipa~ 1112.1.351.l {Atharva Veda)
'~Whatever J d~g out of y9u, 0 Earth! May that h;,~ quick regeneration again;
may we not damage thy vital habitat
- . and heart." :. .....

_ During the Vedic period, both productive as w€:ll as protective aspect

~f forest _vege~tion were emphasised. Agriculture emerged as a dominant
conom1c activity during the later Vedic period. This was the time when

170 Science
 _ concept of cultural landscape such as
e . ,:cred corridors an d a Variety of •
ethno-fore!acred forests and groves,
I ' t•conttnued to the post-V
ediC period, bes·try practices were evolved
'. :Su yp rac tic es were infused With the .
tra d:e s a Wide range of ethno-
iatid follo~ed as a means for protection of ons, cus
I toms and rituals
; ,: . ,;, ,b' , . -···.. .. .natur~ and nat
. .. / C\·~l~,:.,~/,tl ·-·~.. :E\ ural resource.
/. ·~:.:-•·s-'~-~!···
.·.:~3•-: .::. . ::..::~.:.\\J·.·.';;.,'f'/.
• • • • • •.,-;,\,' .
:.:·:~i: ¥•, ••
-.-:•i_. :_:

1. __ _. Wh at cha nge s can you ma ke ;(':'.:....-~.•··:··!2:<;::,..·/(~ \/ .\·::·::... _;_.!\.. ·' •.•

S
• •• . ...•••.... "- ..- •
:/~·'.'i- T:·. 'f;·r ~·1·:;·:·:\·o: - ~- ~:N_
in .• • •••• ,., ......, :- •• _. ·_ •• •• .~.
. _ frie ndl y? -\ you r hab its to become more environ
ment-
2: Wh at wo
I

. uld be the adv t

- . an ages of exploiting •reso • -
urces with .short-term - •
, •. 3.. · - How wo uld the se adv
t t aims?
•,- .
: - erm perspective. in ma an ages d'f"' 1 1 er from jhe •
advantages of • usin
• • •
nag ing our resources? • g a long -
.
,': 4~ Wh y cio you thin k tha t there sho
uld be equitable distributio~ of res~
~- Wh at forces would be wprking against urces?
an ~quitable distribution ·of our resource
s?"
~-. ·16
. .
.1 FORESTS AND WILDLIFE
. ,...... .
._
..
: ·.- For est s ar~ 'bio div ers ity hot spo
ts'. On e m~ asu r~ of the biodiversity
. ·,.:-· area is the num ber of of an
spe cie s fou nd the re. However, the
_:·life for iqs {ba cte ria, _fungi, fem ran ge of diff erent
s, flowering pla nts , nem ato des , ins
-. bir ds, rep tile s and so on} fou nd, ect s,
is also imp orta nt. One of the ma in
:~· . of con set vat ion is to try and pre aim s
ser ve the'biodiversity we hav e inherit
·. EX{)[Link] and field stu die s ed. -
sug ges t tha t los s of diversity ma y lea
· los s of eco log ica l stab ilit y. : d to
. , . .. _ •
~- -r~ ~S tak eh ol de fS < •. - --
. . . •:
._ ·'

:".:-,\~·-:::t ·:· '~\_::~ :

• .
: ; ·", Activity 16.6 - ·:- i. ~.-::'·J) i ·: )·~ :•.
. f---' :;- --~-.c: ::' .,. .-: "--,-~ .. ,.,,.~, •"'' :-.~"-._ --· ..... •.
a •. . • • ' .•.•• . li.·

- :-'-- ·•· Make list of forest produc

a

f.

~ tha t
: ',. ,·.,:. :·.. ·, ,·.

. ): . ll Wh at d<> yoti thin k :a person livin you use.-.--_:_.·.:·_.,_·.··,._::.:,· . , _. ••. :,. _

• • . . • .:
•

g nea r a forest would u,:e? • • . :·•.i

.· ~~:,.. • · Wh at do you- thin k a per
son livin g in a fo~est :would use. • .
•• •
· ..:..-·,)·.' ·. ,_\ • •- • , •
.. , .. ~· • c~ Dis cus s . , you
· ·' · wt- th
. r classmates . how
. th:es_e needs differ or do_ not ·.: "· . _,
r. • · .. _ .. differ and the . . . ._ __ • .
· t?•< •·.. , , . ·••• ,..'.~'..:..<~· :· . ~:. :'-~·' rea sons for same. ·•. ·, '. • . · . :· .:_. . "; •. ._••.' ·:_ •• •
4

·,; -~
,

",;.;,•,... ,._; ,~..._,·,: ....• : •·• :~-... • • -., t"~ •• ,...,.::.;.,..-,;,.,;.,.::- w.•. •-:• ••
• •.~ •• • . ,
. _-~~---. - all var tou S for est pro duc e. Bti t our
· .·· We •. depeildenC)' on forest ••.
.es Som e of us hav e acc ess to alte
res our ces _ ,va rna tive s, some do not . • •
Wh en we connsid•.er the con ser . _ ._
vat ion of forests, we nee d to look
at the
• .. . • • ...
sta keh old ~rs wh o arh~J-li - ·n··-nr aro
~- ("} the peo ple w o ve1 v und fore st~ ar~ dep~nde~t on for est.
• 1 for var tou sas pec tso (se eFi•~.1 6. 2) •
•
. pro duc e fth eir life •
•
-· t. f the Go vem • .-_ :: '"
. (·. ") the For est De par tme n o me nt wh ich owns the lan d •
u 1 th res our ces from forests. ,
and con tro s e f ,· th • • ..
. • ar ts w· ·ho use . •ten du' leav es t~ ma ke·
{iii) the indu_sj~ 18 . - rom. mil ose ----- •
. l -wh o use various forest produce,
, [Link] to the ones wit h pap erthe fore s
bu t are not dep end ent on s ts in any o_ne are a:• •
•
. wildlife and nat ure ent hus ias s t who wa nt to conserve nat ure - •
{1v} the . . • . . . •
.in its pri stin e form. • , ,

ent of Natural Resources

Sustainable Managem - --~-~-~--~
 .
- Let us take a look at what each of these group s needs /gets out of th
forests. The local peopl e need large quant ities of firewood, small tirnbe
e.
and thatch . Bamb oo is used to make slats for huts, and baskets
fir
. collecting and storing food materials. Implements for agriculture, fis~r
and hunti ng are largely maje of wood, also forests are sites for fishing
.
and hunti ng. In additi on to the p~ople gathe ring fruits, n~ts an~
medicines from the forests, their cattle also graze in fore st areas or feect
on the fodder which is colle,cted from forests.
Do yo·u think such .use of forest resou rces would leaq to the ,
exhau_stion of these resources? Do-not forget that before the British came
and took over most of our fqrest areas , people had been living in these
forests· for centuries. They had· developed practi ces to ~nsure that the
resources. were used in a sustai nable mann er. After the British took
control of the forests (whicl:1 they exploited ruthle ssly for their own
purposes), these people [Link] to depen d on much smaller areas
and forest resources st3.!1:ed becoming over-exploited to some extent.
The Fores t Department in indep enden t India took over from the British
but local knowledge and local heeds contin~t?d to be ignored in the
mana geme nt practices. Thus [Link] [Link] have been converted
to moriocultures 9f pine, teak or eucalyptus. In order to plant these
,:
trees, huge areas are first cleared of all vegetation. This destroys a large
amo:unt of b°iodiversity in the ~ea. Not _only this, the [Link] of the
•
• local peqple - leaves for fodder, herbs for medicines, fruits and nuts for
fooci - ~an no longer be _met from such forests:. Such plantations are _ ,
)
. useful for the ind~stries to acce~s ~pecific pro~uc~ [Link] an important
• -· 1--:..

source of revenue for_ the Forest Department. • ,.. :' __ _ .

Do. you know how_ inany industries ar-e ....
based on fore st produce? A short count reveals
timber, paper, lac sports equipment.
Indus tries would· consider the forest as
merely a source of ra~ material for its factories.
And huge interest-groups lobby the government
for access to these raw materials at artificially
low rates. Since these industries have a greater
..- rec\ch than the local peop~e, .they-a re not -
interested in the sustainability of the forest in
one particular area. For: example, after cutting
down all the teak trees one area, they will get
Figure 16.2 their teak from a forest farther away . .They do not have any stake in
A view of afores t life . ensu_ring that one particular area should
yield an optimal amount of
. • some _produce for al_l gei;ie~ations lo come. What do you think will stop
the local people in behaving in a similar manner?

,r
 I

.
co m e to th e n a tu re and Wild e enthusiasts wh O . no
r,astlY, w e h hf
e forests ' b u t w O may h ave consider bl
are in .
dependent otn Tthh
• en • e conservation· t i~ ? IO
Ymanagem
n ts : ~ w e: e in itially taken u ;W ge •
tigers, elepha oceros. They now
reco ~
~ a ls like lions, ty a s a w h rh10
dJe need to pre~erv
e biodiversi
~ e. ~ u t sh o u ld n't we r e c o :: :
st s s;
le a s fo rm m g P a rt of the fore on m . T he re have been enough
pe op tradiK forest
pepple working r conservation of asth s.
instances oflocalca se of Bishnois co ~ y ~o
estern Rai an
for example. the the Thar desert C mnse muruattyioliVinfgfl in w
on the bord er of • o rv . n orest and Wildlife hasr .· °
-
re
I -~
ig io
• enet for them Th
s t_ e n atu re -lo v in g people have fo
t,een e~ ing
nseIVing the fl~r e extent ofsacrfflc
centuries, been co ct the enViro a an fauna to th g With the basic -
te
their lives to 'pro IiVing' thingsnhment. ~ egy are livin·
philosophyTt}h:lat
al l av e a - to s urvive and share ana ,
n h t
• d· h 'Annit
• overnment of In tly instituted an
resour~es. e Gtional Award for \V~:Ufias recen e memoiy of
Devi BiShnoi Nii , ':Vho in 173 I sacrffl:~onse1:7ation' ginw~ith 3 6 3 others
hno1
. Amrtta Devi Bis n of 'khejri' tree : . Kh ra he~ ~ e alonnear- Jo d h p u r in
eJ li village
•for the l)ro.' te-ctio Il l
•
-Rajasthan . . ·
itional use of
e sh o w n th t th
e ag ai nst th e trad
s h av ud 1c
:· Studie h a s no basis aH e ~reJ example - th e gr ea t Himalay an
forest a re a s • er e is a n do w s whi ch
al p . k . . ea," alpine mea
rved ar
-N f r co n ta in s, Within it s rese ep h er d s drove th
eir flock
.' _c tI?Il . a . N om ad ic sh ed, •
~r az e~ _? Y s~ ee p in su m m er n th is na ti on al p ar k was form
_.we~e m m er . ~ e ut th e regular
_u~ fr o m ~ al le ys ev ei y su it is se en th at witho
en d . N ow en falls over
~~ct_ice w as
p u t to
rs t gr ow s ve iy tall,. an d th - .-
· sh ee p th e g ra ss fi , -
g ra zi n g b y es h growth~ . _.
e local people
fr s by keeping th
__ . p re v en ti n g ot ec te d· ar ea in th e iong
e n t o f pr ly b e successful n n o t b e •
-~~em n n o t po ss ib
n g force ca forests. ca
.. o u t o r b y u si se , th e d am ag e •ca u se d to qlind eye
-.. . . ru n . In a n
y ca
?p le - on e ca n n o t tu m a
o n ly th e loca l pe p:ryent
: at tr ib u te d to y in du st ri al ne ed s or. develo
at io n ca u se d b mage ca u se d in
to th e ~ ef o re st d in g ro ad s o r d am s. The da their- •
·_ p ro je ct s li ke b u il th e ar ra n g em en ts m ad e for
. st s o r
:i v es by. to u ri
~ - th es e re st al so to e cons
b idered . as be en veiy
co n v en ie n ce is
th at h_ um ar t interv_ention h ag ed in
ac ce p t hat h as to be ~ an tion?.
. _We n ee d to la nd sc ap e. W
m u ch a part o o f th is interven th
f th e fore~t
d w h at m ay b e th e ext~nt n er th at is bo -
- th e n at u re an s o u g h t to b e u se d in a m an o th er words, while th e Figure 16 .3
urce d - in
. ,F o re st "reso: y an d developmentally so u n ploitation go Khejri Tree,
en v ir o n m en ta ll
be ne fi!__ s of th e controlled ex ic growth
d, th e econom
ent: is preserve decentralised d
.• . . . environm l people, a p ro ce ss in which d. The ki nd of economic an
to th e loca h an d in !r an et h er th e
-cons,ervation go ill ultimately determine w h nment
a n d ecological .we --~ant w d. The envi ro
p m en t fu rt h er destroye
so ci al d ev el o ve .~ o r l s . It is
o n m en t will b e co ns er
ec tion of pl an ts an d ~ a
, en v ir istine ~o ll s f~r o u r
n o t b e re ga rd ed as a pr a ra ng e of n at u ra l resource
m u st fe rs omic
ex entity th at of tion for 9 u r econ
a v as t an d co m pl
to u se th es e re
so ur ce s w it h d u e ca :u
aspirations.
, u se . We n ee d th, an d to m ee t o u r ~ at er ia l
-a n d so ci al grow
\

rces
Natural Resou
ta in ab le M anagement of
-- -- :- -. us
 . .

16.2.2 Management of forest

We need to co~sider if the goals of all the above stakeholder s With regard
to the management of the 'forests are the same. Forest resources are
_often made available for industrial use at rates far below the market
value while these are denied to the local people. The ~hip!co Andolan
('Hug the Trees Movement') was the result of a grassroot level' effort to
end the alienation of people from their forests. ~e m?vement o.~ginated
• •incident in a remote village called Reni 1n Garhwal, high-up in
froman . - d
the Himalayas du~g the early 1970s. ~ere was a i~pute b ~tween -
the ( .
·local villagers and a logging contractor ~ho had been allowed to fell . •.
• in a forest
.trees . close to the village. On a particular. day, the [Link]'s
•~orkers app~ared in the forest to cut the tree~ while the men folk were • •
absent. Undeterred, the women of the village reached the forest quickly
and clasped the tree trunks thus preventing the wQ:r~er~ from felling the
trees. Thus thwarted, the contractor had to withdraw. - • •
Intierent in such a·co,npetiti on to control a natural resource is the
conseiv~tlon of~ replenishab~e resoµrce. Specific~y the· method of use
was be~ng called into questio~. The c;ontractor would have felled the
trees, ·destroying them forever. The· co~unitie s traditionall y lop the
•branches and [Link] le~ves, allowing ~e resource t<:> replenish over
time. The Chipko movemept quickly ~pread across communiti es an~ _
. - media, and forced the government; to whqm the forest belongs, to re:tbink .•
j
-their priori~~s in the use of forest pr<?duce. ~xpe~enc:. has taugh~ people _
-~at the destruction ?f forests affected notju~t t~e ayailability of forest·
._ products, but also tpe quality of soil' and the sources of water.
i
• ••.Participati on of the-local people can indeed lead to tlie efficient -11

.::::;:t:;:::;::;s hrt1~ip~ti oll in the bage~en t of Forests

In 1972, the West l3engal Forest Pep~en t ~ecognis~d its failures in
1
re:vfving the_ degraded Sal for~~t; in the south-west ern di~tricts of th~ -- ..
state.~ Traditional methods of sutve~llanc e and·· policing had. led- to a
'comp!ete _alien~tlon of tlie people from the administra tion', resulting in
- freq~ent clashes be:tween forest ~fficials a:nd \111agers. f or~st ru1d land
. related conflicts in the region were also a rnaJ<?r factor in f~elling the ._ ..
• militant peasant move~ents }ed by jhe·Naxalit es. --~ ' ., "· ..• ·_ .
. Accordingly_. the ·oepartmen t~ cha~ged .its strategy,· making a
-be~g in ~e Arabart f~restrang~ of Midn~pore district. Here, at the
inSistence of a far-seei~g forest officer, A.K~ [Link]~ villa:gers were
involved in the protection ?f' 1,272 hectares ~f badly degraded sal forest.
In re~ ~or help in protection, vll!agers were given employmen t in both
silvtculture and h r · . · ·. • ·,. · .
. . atves 1ng operations, 25 per cent of the final harvest,
and allowed fu I d d,• • -- - ·-
'fee. With e_ woo a~. _~odder c~llection on Pcljffie!it of a no~nal
• the ~ctive_ and willmg participatiOn of the focal community , the
 de rw ent • .. •
rorests of A ra ba rt un
less forest w as v : remarkable recoveiy - by 1983
~ o u sl y worth - Ued Rs 12 5 •a
,~ .. • • crores. .
A ct iv it y 1 6 . 8 .
. ••
e ca us ed t
:Pebate the damag by the followtng _: ;
{at •. Building rest ho us es t~or ests
UI1sts in nattonaI
ror°
zing do m estic .
(b) · Gra
throwt [Link] plal s 1n national parks •parks. .
{c) T~urisal ts bottl es / covers and 0•th .litter in.
!

as ttc
tl , . • er
.. .n8: on park. s. , ,
_ .
. ..
.. I

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1.• Wb.y sho{ild w d Wildlife?

·. - ns er ve .fores ts an •
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th . • •
'. 2. Su gg es t so m e ap pr oa ch es towards . e conservation of fores
ts.
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-India from an atlas.·

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in
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in fa ll pa tte rn s the. re gi on s ,_of •
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tu dy .th e ·ra w at er is ab un da nt arid ,
e· re gi on s~ wh er e
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- (: _., •~·. id en ~ th city. ~- _ •.. • •... . , . .. -. ··. ' •

i'-..: --..~: :. •~a. t~i-- scar.

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regions _
surprised to learn th at
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ry
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ve
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ity , w ou ac ut e poverty?
After th e above activ rre lated to th e regions of
ty ar e cl os el y co tr ut h be hi nd
of w at er sc ar ci tte rn s do es no t reveal th e whole
of ra in fa ll pa ar e largely
• A st ud y
re gi on s in India. Rains in India
in a few
• ..r
• ,
y in US
os t of th e ra in falls
th e w at er availabilit
l'a r!O
hi s- m ea n$ th at m
so on. s.. -T ilure to su st ai n
~- du e to th e m on
..

te na tu re 's m on so on bounty, fa
m on th s of th e year . O es pi th e lo ss of
.....

de rg ro un d ha s re su lte d largely from tion

un di ng crops, an d pollu
w at er av ai la bi lit y r hi gh w at er de m an
ver~ion fo hods like da m s,
ve ge ta tio n cover, di d ur ba n wastes. Irrigation met
fr om in du st ri al ef flu en ts an nc e an ci en t
be en us ed in va rto us pa rt s of In di a si
ve people
.ta nk s an d ca na ls ha y lo ca l in te IV en ~o ns m an ag ed by loc8!
!}erall athi~[Link]~
tim es . Th es e w er e ge in im um requrremenThts for bothf s st or ed
e ba si c m
an d as su re d th at th ·met ~h ro ug ho ut th e year. e us e o
er e
an d da ily ne ed s w
 . lated and the optimum cropping patterns basect
water was strtctly regu . d a ton the basis of decades/ centunes
ail bility were amve
on the water
• neeav a . f these irrigation systems was also a
of expene , the maintenanc e o
local affair. • al fthe Bntls . . h c h anged these systems as it changed many
O
The arnv
. Th concep t·10n o f large scale projects - large . dams anct
other things. . e e distances were first conceived and implemented
canals traversing
.. dIarg
carried on • WI·th no less gusto by our l1f'\vlv lonnect
by the Bntish an t These mega-projec ts:led to the neglect of the
indepe1:de~t govemmen ~d the government also inc:r:easingly took over
local irrigation methods,
the administrati on of these sys tems leading I
to the loss of control over
the local water sources by the local peop e. .

lh in Himachal Pradesh
Ku s ed a local system of canq.l irrigation called
Parts of Himachal Pradesh had evolv water flowing in the streams was diverted
kulhs over four hundred years ago. Theh. t to numerous villages down [Link]
• 1 h. h took t is wa er
into man-made channe s w ic fl . ·n these kulhs was by common
hillside. The managemen : of the water ~;ngd~rin g the planting season, water
agreement among all th_e villages. Inte:~a f:C~ the source of the kulh, then by
was first used by the village fartheSt Y ed b two or three people
villages prog~essively hivil'
?hler. up. TIhesd~~~~1 :t:~~g~:~ wafer from these kulhs
who were paid by the agers. n a k lhs
also ercolated into the soil and fed springs at various points. After the u were
take~ over by the Irrigation Department , most of them became defunct and there
is no amicable sharing of water as before.

16.3.1 Dams
Why do we seek to build dams? Large dams can ensure :he stora~~ of
adequate \\'ater not just for irrigation, but also for generat~ng electnc1ty,
as discussed in the previous chapter. Canal systems leadmg from these
dams can transfer large amounts of water over great distances. For
example, the Indira Gandhi Canal has brought greeneiy to considerabl e
areas of Rajasthan. However, rnismanage ment of the water has largely
led to the benefits being cornered by a few people. There is no equitable
distribution of water, thus people close to the. source grow water intensive
crops like sugarcane and rice· while people farther downstream do not
get any water. The woes of these peopie who have been promised benefits
which never arrived are added to the discontentm ent among the people
who have been displaced by the building of the dam and its canal network.
In the previous chapter. we mentioned the [Link] opposition to
the construction oflarge dams, such as the Tehri Dam on the river Ganga.
You must have read about the protests by the Narmada Bachao Andolan
('Save the Narmada Movement') about raising the height of the Sardar
Sarovar Dam on the river Narmada. Criticisms about large dams address
three pi"oblems in particulr- •
(i) Social problems because they displace large number of peasants
• and tribals without adequate compensati on or rehabilitati on.
(ii) Economic problems because they swallow up huge amounts of
public money without the generation of proportiona te benefits,

276
Science
 (JJ1J Env iron men tal prob lem b
to defo resta tion and th e slossecau se they
I h h ofb· • cont nbut
. e enon nous l
111e peop e w o ave been di 1 IologicaI d.
,re iargely poor triba ls who do sp aced by vano u ;ersr ty. •
y
.. t1d are alie nate d from the·irnlot get any benef~t efvelopment projects
ti Th and s s rom th ese projects
'.¾y
,:a>•
coJI1pensa on. e oust ees of th and fore sts Wit
ngbtlng for the bene fits they weree Taw a Dam built . th hout adeq uate
:tnd prom ised . m e 1970 s are still
ted
led
he
16.3,2 Water Harvesting
·er Watershed man agem ent em h as1s . es • erm l te,, ch nology is helping
"wattiona
IndiAa's tradi

:r~f an save thou sand s of

P tific
er . orde r toscien
soil and wate r cons eiva·tion lil · parc hed Vill
thou sand s d tr~s form the lives of
the ~iom ass prod ucti on. The aim is to~~re ~se agers m one of India's
prim ary reso urce s of land and ve op mos t artd .
prod uce seco ndar y reso urce s of wate r, to of Dr ~egt ~ns. In "two decades of efforts
plan ts and othe r ~tru ra Singh, 8,60 0 Johads and
anim als for use in a t . . . c ures to collect water have been
man ner whic h Will "W; t h
caus· e ecol ogic al .imb alan c e. W ater shed no bbuiltgh in Raja sthan ,,' and a er ad been
m3; ~em ent not only incr ease s the prod uctio n rou ... t back to a 1,000 villages across the
an mco me of the wate rshe d com mun ity but state . In 2015 , he won the. Stockholm
~lso miti gate s drou ghts and floo ds 'and Wat er Prize. It is the mos t piest igiou s
awa rd whic h hono urs a perstion on who
- mcrease_s the life of the dow nstr eam dam and cont ribu tes to the cons erva and
rese "tr.
t
pro ectioil of wate r reso urce s for the well-
rv_orrs . vari ~us
kin , orga nisa tion s have been
g on reju vena ting anci ent syst ems of bein g of the plan et and its inha bitan ts.
wor __ __ __ __ __ __ __ _.),
wate r hru:v estin g as an alter nativ e to the 'mega- .. __
hund reds of
~ro~ ects ' like dam s. The se com mun ities have used
trickle of wate r that
~md 1gen ous wate r savi ng meth ods to capt ure ever y
put in place simp le·
Ka-a -fall en on thei r land ; dug sma ll pits ~d lakes ,
ed dykes, sand
wate rshe d syst ems , buil t sma ll earth en dam s, cons truct
ng units . This has
and lime ston e rese rvoi rs, set up rooftop water-collecti
s back to life.
rech arge d grou ndw ater leve ls and even brou ght river
ins, tank s and
Wat er haiv estin g is an age- old conc ept in India. Khad
nad is in Raja stha n, band hara s and tals in Mah
aras htra, bund his in
s in Bihar, kulh s in
Mac;:lhya Prad esh and Utta r Prad esh, ahar s and pyne
region, and eris
Him acha l Prad esh, pon ds in the Kan di belt of Jam mu
s in Kam atak a
(tank ~) in TaII lil Nad u, sura ngam s in ~era la, and katta
wate r conveyance,
are som e of the anci ent wate r harv estin g, inclu ding
example). Wate r
stru ctur es still in use toda y' (see ·Fig. 16._4 for an
the bene fits are also
harv estin g tech niqu es are high ly locale specific and
r r~so urce s ensu res
loca lised . 'Giving peop le cont rol over their local wate
e reso urce s is
that mis man agem ent and over -exp loita tion of thes
redu ced/ rem oved . s are main ly
In larg ely leve l terra in, the wate r harv estin g struc ture
conc rete- and-
scen t sha' ped eart hen emb ankm ents or low, strai ght
ed gullies. Mon soon
:~b le "che ck dam s" buil t acro ss seas onal ly flood
st stru ctur es hold
rain s fill ond s behi nd the stru ctur es. Only the large after the mon soon s.
p d· mos t dry up si.X mon ths or less
. year
wat er ' how ever , is not to hold surfa ce wate r but to rech arge
. rounose,
store d in the grou nd
Toe rr roam purp b neat h The adva nfag es of wate r .
the grou nd wate r e ,. • . _
 t reads out to recharge Wells anct
are many. It does not ev~porate, bu spa wide area. In addition, it does
ti vegetation over
Provides moisture or uitoes like stagnant .water collectect
ding grounds for mosq
not provide bree ial lakes The groundwater is also relatively protected
in ponds or
artific h • and animal waste.
from contamination by ~man

. - - Catchment Khadin
Shallow
area [Link] or cropped area bund
j
dugwell

•
Figure 16.4 Traditional •
water harvesting •
• system- an [Link] setting of the khadin system .

l. Find out about the traditional systems of water harvesti~g/

management in your region. .
2. Compare the above system with the pr?bable systems in hilly I
mountainous a)-eas or plains· or platea_u regions._
3. Find out the source of water in your region/locality.· Is water fro~ this
source available to all people living in that area?

16.4 COAL AND PETROLEUM

We have seen some of the issues involved in ·th·e conseivation and
sustainable use of resources like forests, wildlife and water. These can
meet our needs perpetually if we were to use them in a sustainable
manner. Now we come to yet another important resource :-- fossil fuels,
that is, coal and petroleum, which are important sources of energy for
us; Since the industrtaI revolution, we have been using increasing
amounts of energy to meet our basic needs and for th~~-manufacture of a
large number ofgoods upon which oUr lives depend. These energy needs
have been largely met by the reseives of coal and petroleum.
The management of these energy sources involves slightly different
perspectives from thOse resources discussed'earlier. Coal and petroleum
were formed from the degradation of bio-mass millions ofye~ ago and
hence these are resources that will be exhausted in the future no matter
how carefµlly
sources , r. them.
gyuse
of enewe •
And then we would need to look for alternative
1 r • vanous estimates exist-as to how long these resources
171
Science
1 ,..11 iast lf the present rate of usag
,~ 1 e conttn
' petro eum resources Will last ues. It is estimated
,__al resources will last for anoth tw us for about forty y that our
1 er o h d ears and th
aut looking at other sources f un red years. e
, l k o energy1
\fben we oo at the consumption of coals not the only cons·ct
1 eratton
and petroleum have been formed from b • and petroleum si·n
• ce coal
these contain hydrogen, nitroge lo-mass, in addition to carb
n and sulph Wh on,
the prod uct s are carbon dioxi·d ur. en these are bur t
e, water oXid f . n,
of sulphur. When combustion takes , . es o nitrogen and oxides
then carbon monoXide is formed in place m insufficient air (oxygen),
products, the oxides of sulph st
ead of carbon dioxide. Of these
. ur and nit g
are p01sonous at high concentra . ro en and carbon [Link]
greenhouse gas. Another way of100~1ons and carbon dioxide is a
they are huge reservoirs of carbon n~ at coal :111d petroleum is that
to carbon dioxide the th 8.!ld if all of this carbon is converted
' n e amount of carb a· ·ct
is going to increase leading to int 1 obn ioxi e in the atmosphere
· ' ense g o al warming Th d
to use these resources judiciously. • us, we nee

• Co~ is used in thermal power stations and petroleum products

like petrol and diesel are used in means of transport like motor
vehicles, ships and aeroplanes. We cannot really imagine· life
without a number of electrical appliances and constant use of
--~·- transportation. So can you think of ways in which our consumption
,_~of -coal and petroleum products be reduced?

.Some simple choices can make a difference in our energy consumption

patterns. Think over the relative advantages, disadvantages and
environment-friendline ss of the following - • •
_ (i} Taking a bus, using your personal vehicle or walking/ cycling.
-.,..;.__,__ (ii} Using LED bulbs or fluorescent tubes in your homes.
{iii} Using the lift or taking the stairs.
{iv). Wearing an extra sweater or_using a heating device (heater or
.'sigrt') on cold days.
The management of coal and petroleum also addresses the efficiency
of our machines: Fuel1s most commonly used in internal combustion
- ...... I

engines for transpo~tlon and recent research in this field concentrates

•

on ensuring·complete combustion in these engines in order to increase

efficiency and also reduce air pollution.

·, .
You must have he~d of the Euro I and Euro II norms for emission
0
from vehicles. Find out how these norms work towards reducing
air pollution.
•