Forest in Mizoram are degrading at alarming rate

Forests in Mizoram are degrading at alarming rate to an extent that it has adverse effect on plantations, said H Lalengmawia, Commissioner & Secretary for Mizoram’s Environment, Forests & Climate Change department on Monday. Addressing the inaugural function of a 3-day workshop for officers of Indian Forest Service (IFS) Lalengmawia said forests in Mizoram are experiencing extreme threat due to over exploitation. “Due to such overexploitation, degradation of forest is occurring in an alarming rate,” he said, highlighting the extent of climate change on livelihood of farmers particularly to the orange growers.  Lalengmawia informed that the orange orchards in western region of Mizoram once growing vast quantity of orange suddenly stopped their production. He also said that the current government is taking environment and sustainability to a matter of serious concern and taking necessary step to promote ecotourism. He also called for a coordinated effort of forest officials and scientific community in this regard. He also focused on key issues such as carbon sequestration and sustainable forest management through sound intervention such as agroforestry. He said that preparation of ecosystem health card is a matter of utmost importance to address these issues.

He also gave a brief idea on the geographic, economic and cultural condition of Mizoram. He said that Mizoram is a state in which forests are a major source of livelihood. Forests play a key rolein providing various tangible and non-tangible benefits, he added.The three-day workshop on ‘the preparation of ecosystem health cards’, was organised by the ICFRE-Bamboo & Rattan Centre in Aizawl. The event is being organised in collaboration with National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management, Chennai and Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal.Altogether, 30 IFS officers from different states of India, including those from Mizoram, are attending the workshop. The first day of the three-day long workshop on started with the welcome address from the Director of Rain Forest Research Institute, Jorhat. He focused on the importance of the ecosystem and its health. The director focused on both ecosystem and forest health. He also highlighted the role of ICFRE and its various institutions in this regard. The director applauded the role of ICFRE-BRC, though being a small institution, in taking active participation in research and development in forestry.

Sanjay Bala, Scientist- Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal highlighted that although Mizoram has the highest percentage of the forest of total forest in terms of total geographical area in India, yet the composition ofthe forest in terms of economic value is not very good. Balahighlighted the necessity and importance of sustainable forest management for addressing the pressure on present forest. He also highlighted the effect of climate change with a particular focus to the state of Mizoram. He proposed that to address the issue, a consensus must be developed among various stakeholders. He highlighted the importance of assigning economic valuation to various ecosystem services. He also emphasised the importance of the Management and Development Programme proposed by Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM). He gave a brief idea of sustainable forest management and various indicators for their assessment.