Why in news?

The Simlipal forest reserve area frequently witnesses forest fires during dry weather conditions. A fire which started in the biosphere reserve area in February and has been raging for nearly a week now. The region is a huge source of environmental services to humans.

A Union government report published July 2019 pegged at Rs 29,897.49 crore per year, the direct and indirect benefits these forests provide to human health.

The report, Economic Valuation of Tiger Reserves in India: A Value + Approach (Phase II) calculated annual tangible and intangible benefits of STR at Rs 69.21 crore and Rs 65,793.71 crore, respectively.

These could include the forests of the tiger reserve enriching the soil by preventing soil erosion and the leaching of chemicals, fixing gases in the atmosphere and improving the genepool.

The tiger reserve provides flow benefits worth Rs 16,030.1 crore per year (Rs. 5.89 lakh per hectare) and stock benefits of Rs 49,832.80 crore per year.

The main ecosystem services provided by STR according to the report include provisioning of water (Rs 7,033.05 crore per year), genepool protection (Rs 2,623.08 crore per year) and climate regulation (Rs 3,482.72 crore per year).

When is the Simlipal national park declared Biosphere Reserve?

Similipal and the adjoining areas, comprising 5,569 sq km, was declared a biosphere reserve by the Government of India on June 22, 1994, and lies in the eastern end of the eastern ghat.

Similipal, which derives its name from ‘Simul’ (silk cotton) tree, is a national park and a tiger reserve situated in the northern part of Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district. Similipal is the abode of 94 species of orchids and about 3,000 species of plants. The identified species of fauna include 12 species of amphibians, 29 species of reptiles, 264 species of birds and 42 species of mammals, all of which collectively highlight the biodiversity richness of Similipal. Sal is a dominant tree species.

Similipal National Park is a national park and a tiger reserve in the Mayurbhanj district in the Indian state of Odisha covering 2,750 km2 (1,060 sq mi). It is part of the Mayurbhanj Elephant Reserve, which includes three protected areas — Similipal Tiger Reserve, Hadgarh Wildlife Sanctuary with 191.06 km2 (73.77 sq mi) and Kuldiha Wildlife Sanctuary with 272.75 km2 (105.31 sq mi). It is the 7th largest national park in India.

The park is home to Bengal tiger, Asian elephant, gaur, and chausingha along with some of the beautiful waterfalls like Joranda and Barehipani Falls.

This protected area is part of the UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves since 2009.

World Network of Biosphere Reserves

The World Network of Biosphere Reserves of the MAB Programme consists of a dynamic and interactive network of sites of excellence. It fosters the harmonious integration of people and nature for sustainable development through participatory dialogue; knowledge sharing; poverty reduction and human well-being improvements; respect for cultural values and society’s ability to cope with change - thus contributing to the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The World Network of Biosphere Reserves promotes North-South and South-South collaboration and represents a unique tool for international co-operation through sharing knowledge, exchanging experiences, building capacity and promoting best practices.

Where in India forest fires can be seen more often ?

The unprecedented rise in incidence of fire is not limited to Odisha alone. FSI data shows that central and southern Indian states have reported an equally menacing rise in fire points this February. If Jharkhand had reported just 116 forest fires in the February 1-March 3 period last year, this year, the number has jumped to 2,217. Andhra Pradesh had recorded 632 cases last year and this time, it has over 5,677 fire points. Similar is the pattern with Madhya Pradesh where 4,921 fire points have been reported against 249 last year.  Much of it is attributed to the climate change.

But closer home, there are issues of stubble burning as well as lighting invasive weeds in farmlands closer to Similipal. Sources say increasing mechanised harvesting is a reason farmers are now resorting to stubble burning which has contributed to the rise in forest fires.

To prevent growth of weeds near habitations, villagers are setting them on fire to protect crops.“The changing agriculture and livelihood practices in villages closer to Similipal are reasons no one is looking at.

India, which saw a 46 per cent increase in the number of forest fires in the last 16 years (2003-17), witnessed a 125 per cent spike (from 15,937 to 35,888) in such fires in just two years (2015 to 2017).

 

In 2017, the maximum number of forest fires were reported in Madhya Pradesh (4,781) followed by Odisha (4,416) and Chhattisgarh (4,373).

Who gave the Emissions gap report recently ?

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) flagship Emissions Gap Report, which was released recently said in its executive summary. Countries collectively failed to stop the growth in global GHG emissions, meaning that deeper and faster cuts are now required.”

 

Among the report’s headline findings:

 Despite scientific warnings and political commitments, GHG emissions continue to rise, including by China and the United States, the two biggest polluters. “GHG emissions have risen at a rate of 1.5 per cent per year in the last decade, stabilizing only briefly between 2014 and 2016. Total GHG emissions, including from land-use change, reached a record high of 55.3 GtCO2e [gigatonnes (thousand million tonnes) of carbon dioxide equivalent] in 2018,” the report said.

Although the number of countries announcing net zero GHG emission targets for 2050 is increasing, only a few countries have so far formally submitted long-term strategies to the UNFCCC.

The emissions gap is large. In 2030, annual emissions need to be 15 GtCO2e lower than current unconditional NDCs [Nationally Determined Contributions; the heart of the 2015 Paris Agreement] imply for the 2°C goal, and 32 GtCO2e lower for the 1.5°C goal.

Dramatic strengthening of the NDCs is needed in 2020. Countries must increase their NDC ambitions threefold to achieve the well below 2°C goal and more than fivefold to achieve the 1.5°C goal.

The COP25 will not seek to get countries to ramp up pledges to cut emissions; rather, it will seek to hammer out the final rules on implementing the Paris climate accord.

The World Meteorological Organisation,a specialized agency of the United Nations mandated to cover weather, climate, and water resources, reported that the emissions of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide — all major greenhouse gases — have increased in the atmosphere since the middle of the 18th century.

The Production Gap Report said that “governments are planning to produce about 50% more fossil fuels by 2030 than would be consistent with limiting warming to 2°C and 120% more than would be consistent with limiting warming to 1.5°C”.

This report — which follows in the footsteps of the UNEP’s Emissions Gap Report and other reports that review countries’ greenhouse gas emissions and compare them with the emission levels needed to meet global climate goals — is the “first assessment of countries’ plans and outlooks for fossil fuel production, and what is needed to align this production with climate objectives.

The production gap is the largest for coal, the report said — “by 2030, countries plan to produce 150% (5.2 billion tonnes) more coal than would be consistent with a 2°C pathway, and 280% (6.4 billion tonnes) more than would be consistent with a 1.5°C pathway”.

Oil and gas are also on track to exceed carbon budgets as countries continue to invest in fossil fuel infrastructure that “locks in” oil and gas use, the report said.

The effects of this lock-in widen the production gap over time, until countries are producing 43% (36 million barrels per day) more oil and 47% (1,800 billion cubic metres) more gas by 2040 than would be consistent with a 2°C pathway.

How intense was the fire?

A total of 399 fire points have been identified in the fringe areas bordering the forest, close to the villages.

Generally, with the onset of summers and towards the end of autumn, the forest area remains vulnerable to forest fires. They are a recurrent annual phenomenon, but are also brought under control due to short span of precipitation. The months of January and February witness rainfall of 10.8 and 21 mm, respectively. The last incident of a major forest fire was reported in 2015.

This duration coincides with the shedding of deciduous forests in the forest areas. The fallen leaves are more vulnerable to catching fire and facilitate the spreading of these forest fires quickly over the entire forest area.

Such fires are generally brought under control by natural rains. Forecasting fire-prone days and including community members to mitigate incidents of fire, creating fire lines, clearing sites of dried biomass, and crackdown on poachers are some of the methods to prevent fires. The forest fire lines which are strips kept clear of vegetation, help break the forest into compartments to prevent fires from spreading.

This year, the forest department intensified its mitigation measures and formed a squad each for 21 ranges across the five divisions to closely monitor the situation. 1,000 personnel, 250 forest guards were pressed into action. 40 fire tenders and 240 blower machines were used to contain the blaze. Awareness programmes are also being initiated at a community level to prevent such incidents.

There has been a huge impact on the biodiversity of Similipal. Birds, snakes, lizards, monitor lizards, peacocks and pangolins would all have been caught up in the fire. Thousands of medicinal plants and saplings which are essential to the forest ecosystem have all been wiped out. Similipal is famous for its orchids – it has 95 species – and thousands will have been lost.