AURANGABAD: In a bid to increase the state's forest cover to 33% as prescribed under the National Forest Policy, the social forestry department (Marathwada) will launch the fortnight-long 'Harit Maharashtra Abhiyan' on Friday to spread awareness about the issue. Praveen Srivastava, chief conservator of forests and deputy director general, social …
Economic valuation of biodiversity and ecosystem services is possibly the most powerful tool for halting the loss of biodiversity while maintaining incomes and livelihoods. Yet rarely have such approaches been applied to tropical forest "hotspots", which house the vast majority of the planet's plant and animal species. This groundbreaking work …
Does rural fuelwood use and more generally rural biomass use cause forest degradation? This question has been debated in scientific and policy circles. The author presents a framework for defining degradation and sustainable use of forests that might help clarify some of the confusion.
The hilly tract of Uttara Kannada district in the Western Ghats of India has been famous for its arecanut and spice orchards for several centuries. The cultivators have evolved complex horticultural practices to maintain productivity under conditions of high rainfall, hilly terrain and leached soils.
VILLAGERS in Uttara Kannada district are waging a battle against Karnataka Forest Department officials who are allowing contractors to fell trees in the betta lands -- tracts of forests sanctioned to farmers of the region during British rule. The trouble began in March when villagers in Adnalli gheraoed a contractor …
