Why Rewilding?
Rabid Urbanization
As urbanization makes en route to natural ecosystems, the habitats lose ground, and a large number of species comprising local flora and fauna begin to vanish. The first impact is the destruction of the niche with small water bodies and surrounding greenery giving into concretization and unsustainable land use. Wildlife cannot survive in manicured environments and this is one major reason for species extinction on Earth.
Protect One and All
Like the buffer zones of protected areas, the cornered niches are vital for sustaining species in our neighborhoods in urban and rural localities. The presence of natural elements including diverse life forms sustains the environment in the vicinity and impacts favorable climate patterns. They prevent temperature variations that are not in tandem with the geographical features that have prevailed throughout the ascent of evolution on Earth.
We have lost swathes of forests, aquatic ecosystems, grasslands, and deserts in wake of economic progression. The major impact has arisen through infrastructure build-up, ingress, and pollution. The deforestation process is continuous and is engulfing or degrading the natural ecosystems. Coupled with uncontrolled emissions due to fossil fuels consumption and irresponsible biotic and abiotic indulgence, climate change due to increasing Co2 generation is warming up the planet rapidly and the impact is being felt all around the globe irrespective of the source of emissions.
Besides reducing carbon footprints, it has become imperative to recover lost ground but in absence of any rewilding policy, there is a strong need for structural reforms in land use and energy consumption besides tending to the complex systems we dwell in. The use of alternative energy is one solution that will reduce the negative impact of fossil fuels. Another solution that the world is looking forward to is locomotion using electrical or solar energy which is imminent if not on a commercial scale yet. Rewilding is another imperative for tempering greenhouse gases and creating a life-sustaining equilibrium on Earth.
The answer for tackling these urgencies lies immensely in rewilding giving space to the lost ecosystems with minimal intervention so that they recoup in time to come. This implies that we should demarcate large swathes of land as remedial action or rather for the prevention of global warming and let them regenerate. This is for the planners to act upon. They should place a moratorium on natural lands and make them inviolate perhaps forever. The creation of core areas in PAs in India and elsewhere can be called a good beginning but this is by no means enough.
Unsustainable Land Use
A country hell-bent on keeping up with the dominating economies is developing infrastructure at a rapid pace. There have been plenty of instances of ingression in the ecosystems which still stand preserved today due to a stroke of luck or due to our intervention.
Development is a prerogative in modern times but if not carried out in a planned manner and thought, it will be disastrous in the long run. Visit any industrial area and you will experience how they have damaged the local ecology, and the areas have become unsustainable in terms of healthy living.
It is our haste that is doing irrevocable damage, we have to be circumspect when using the land. We cannot develop or intrude just anywhere, and large swathes of land should be left completely inviolate. We should take a cue from the destruction of forests in South America and the large-scale production of palm oil as examples. We are following suit by excavating extensively for fossil fuels and mining. We are a diversified economy and there is no pressure on a single resource for sustenance.
Mapping India
A vast country like India should have large tracts of land inviolate naturally, but this is not the case there is human intervention everywhere. Leaving inaccessible mountainous areas most of the ecosystems like the grasslands and aquatic bodies have been impacted. Talking about the mountainous areas the ecology of most of our hill resorts has been totally ruined due to the encroachment of urban dwellings and commercial establishments.
In order to sustain an ever-expanding population, there is an immense need to increase productivity from lands we have already taken over for agrarian practices. The impact of the unruly unsustainable livestock industry is in urgent need of modernization and induction of sustainable practices pan India.
Livestock keeping has become imperative for small-income families in rural confines. However, there is a need for alternatives in order to discourage unproductive unorganized livestock rearing in rural confines. Unorganized livestock keeping enhances deforestation competes with natural inhabitants (wildlife) and impacts the environment thus increasing carbon footprints in the vicinity. Most of the forests have been taken over for agricultural purposes or degraded by uncontrolled biotic pressures.
Nature-Based Economy & Depopulation
Most of the reserves are fine examples of the nature-based economy which is a sustainable answer to deforestation and livestock keeping.
Wildlife tourism should be conducted by enhancing the use of vehicles powered by electricity, the resorts have to strictly comply with responsible practices and the economic opportunities that are tied to nature should be explored further.
In the case of areas comprising vital ecosystems, local economies will experience a paradigm shift as the educated youth migrate to urban centers for employment. Migration is not because of educated youth alone even those who provide labor in farming and industry are moving to urban centers with a tendency to populate.
There is a definite depopulation taking place in rural areas, and the impact is noticeable with an unmanageable rise in urban populations.
Traditional farming and livestock rearing will not be sustainable in the long run due to an aging population, the impact is already evident. The local communities will have to find alternatives that are nature-friendly and sustainable.
Large-scale commercial projects that impact the local ecology are being banned near the reserves and sanctuaries thus there will be a pressing need for a nature-based economy to take over. This will further increase the migration of youth towards urbanity if an alternative is not in place.
Depopulation though considered something good will lead to frequent economic paradigm shifts and demographic changes and the absence of sustainable solutions can lead to poaching, wood logging, and other practices which are detrimental.
Rewilding Imperatives
Rewilding is not only declaring the area as inviolate and sacrosanct or resorting to the plantation of endemic species. Nature not only in India is inextricably tied to local economies. If we have to regenerate forests, encourage reintroduction, or the survival of endangered species we need to keep in mind the perspective of the local economy which is imperative for the survival of communities dependent upon local resources.
While rewilding impacts nature favorably it should sustain the local economy by creating enterprises that are nature friendly and generate finances. It is vital for experts, NGOs, and dispensation to play an active role in finding the right solutions in terms of services generated and help in product marketing.
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Uday freelances as a naturalist and loves to write about tiger conservation and the environment.
He also provides SEO and Content and teaches Digital Marketing in his hometown Jabalpur.
Contact:
pateluday90@hotmail.com
9755089323
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