DEFORESTATION

It is the conversion of forested areas to non-forested ones. It is estimated that almost 40 per cent forests have been lost in the tropics, compared to only 1 per cent in the temperate region.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, forests covered about 30 per cent of the land of India. By the end of the century, it shrunk to 19.4 per cent, whereas the National Forest Policy (1988) of India has recommended 33 per cent forest cover for the plains and 67 per cent for the hills.

Trees are axed for timber, firewood, cattle ranching and for several other purposes. Slash and burn agriculture, has also contributed to deforestation.

One of the major effects of deforestation is increased carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere. It also causes loss of biodiversity due to habitat destruction, disturbs hydrologic cycle, causes soil erosion, and may lead to desertification in extreme cases.

Reforestation is the process of restoring a forest it may also occur naturally in a deforested area.

Case Study of People's Participation in Conservation of Forests

A Bishnoi woman of Khejarli village, Jodhpur, Rajasthan named Amrita Devi showed exemplary courage by hugging a tree.

Amrita Devi Bishnoi Wildlife Protection Award - for individuals or communities from rural areas that have shown extraordinary courage and dedication in protecting wildlife.

Chipko Movement. It is movement which was initially meant for protecting trees but not meant for preservation of environment including habitat and wildlife. Chipko movement was born in March 1974 in Gopeshwar in Chamoli district. The movement has two leaders, Chandi Prasad Bhatt of Gopeshwar and Sunder Lal Bahugana of Silyara in Tehri region. A similar movement was undertaken by Paudurang Hedge in the South. It is known as appiko movement.

Government of India in 1980s has introduced the concept of Joint Forest Management (JFM) so as to work closely with the local communities for protecting and managing forests.

ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS FOR CONTROLLING POLLUTION

Important legislations directed at the protection of environment in India are listed below:

(i) The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986

(ii) The Insecticide Act, 1968

(iii) The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974

(iv) The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 (Amended in 1987 to include noise as an air pollutant.)

International Initiatives for Mitigating Global Change

The long-term challenge of stabilising the atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases requires that global emissions be significantly lowered than what they are today.

In 1987, many countries signed the Montreal Protocol (effective in 1989) at Montreal (Canada), a landmark international agreement to protect the stratospheric ozone by agreeing to limit the production and use of ozone-depleting substances, phasing out of ozone-depleting substances and helping the developing countries to implement use of alternatives to CFCs.

The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED, Earth Summit), held at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992, established the principles for reducing greenhouse gas emission.

The Kyoto Protocol, approved by a follow-up conference held in Kyoto, Japan, during December 1997, has specified the commitments of different countries to mitigate climate change.

This protocol requires countries to take appropriate measures to reduce their overall greenhouse gas emissions to a level at least 5% below the 1990 level by the commitment period 2008-2012.