Impact of climate change and anthropogenic pressure on wildlife and biodiversity of the Western Ghats Mountain Forests

Changing climate together with large-scale human interference is a threat to the wildlife and biodiversity of the Western Ghats Mountain forest in India. The Ghats is one of the recognized global biodiversity hot spots.... [ view full abstract ]

Changing climate together with large-scale human interference is a threat to the wildlife and biodiversity of the Western Ghats Mountain forest in India. The Ghats is one of the recognized global biodiversity hot spots. Climate extremes, unsustainable use of resources and unwise government policies pose serious threat to the existence of many rare and costly medicinal plants, herbs and precious trees. Encroachment and introduction of plantation crops in the last century lead to the depletion of vast area of natural forests. Poachers have widely destroyed the precious trees such as sandal, rosewood and teak and killed hundreds of elephants. Major hydropower projects submerged large areas of forests. Rainfall in the region is becoming more seasonal and intense, resulting in the erosion of the already degraded soil. Because of long dry season and falling groundwater storage, seasonal plants become extinct. Forest fire becomes common. Strong winds uproot big trees. Shift in regional climate may affect the biodiversity significantly. As a result of increasing seasonal drought, wild animals have started raiding human settlements in search of water and food, endangering lives of people settled in fringe areas of the forest. More than 300 people were killed in the state of Kerala in the last ten years. This is besides the damage caused to thousands of acres of crops and the unmeasured psychological stress on the affected community. A number of wildlife species, especially elephants, tigers, and leopards, are killed in retaliation. Several elephants were killed in train accidents and electrocuted by sagging power lines. Rules and regulations to protect the forests become farce because of weak administration, corruption and vested political interference. Government has initiated several programmes to face the situation such as control of night traffic, wildlife corridors, afforestation, digging ponds in forest, rail fencing, SMS system to alert local people about the movement of animal and community forest projects to improve livelihood conditions of the forest depending tribal communities. Present paper analyses the factors leading to human animal conflict in the Ghats region and the current policies and strategies related to forest and suggests guidelines for an appropriate forest policy.