World Wildlife Week is celebrated from October 2 to 8 to raise awareness about the importance of wildlife conservation and the need to protect India’s rich biodiversity. However, little attention is given to the growing problem of garbage threat in our forests.
Coorg Wildlife Society (CWS) has made significant progress in reducing plastic and other non-biodegradable littering in Nagarhole Tiger Reserve, with a notable 90% reduction achieved through their efforts along with the forest department’s support.
However, the increasing tourist footfall and transit traffic poses a challenge, particularly in areas like Annechowkur and Makutta range, where traffic is heavy – day and night.
Key Challenges:
- Inadequate Waste Management: The existing waste management infrastructure is insufficient to handle the increased tourist traffic, leading to littering and environmental degradation.
- Lack of Enforcement: Without strict enforcement and penalties, penal anti-littering laws, it would continue to pose a problem, undermining conservation efforts.
- Need for Collaboration: Effective collaboration between the Forest Department, CWS, and other stakeholders is crucial to address the issue of littering and promote sustainable tourism practices.
Potential Solutions:
- Enhanced Enforcement: A dedicated Wing in the Forest department to address littering inside wildlife sanctuaries could be an effective solution. The wing could focus on strengthening enforcement mechanisms, including regular monitoring and penalties for littering.
- Increased Public Awareness: Continuing public awareness campaigns can educate visitors about the importance of preserving the environment and wildlife.
- Improved Waste Management Infrastructure: Installing more waste bins and improving waste collection facilities can help manage the increased waste generated by tourists.
- Collaboration and Community Engagement: Engaging local communities and stakeholders in conservation efforts can foster a sense of ownership and responsibility, promoting sustainable practices.
The CWS has already taken steps to install mesh waste bins at entry gates and engage with tourists and local communities. However, more needs to be done to address the scale of the problem, particularly in high-traffic areas. The Forest Department’s commitment to enforcing anti-littering laws and promoting sustainable tourism practices is crucial to protecting the reserve’s fragile ecosystem.
Hey folks in Kodagu and those living in the vicinity of Kutta surroundings ! 👋 The team at CWS is putting in work to tackle the plastic menace inside and outside the Nagarhole Sanctuary and we need your help! It’d be awesome if locals could volunteer and lead the cleanup efforts. it’s heartening to see a few dedicated folks stepping up. Imagine if we all spend a few hours during long weekends to spread awareness – we’d be making some serious progress! Let’s get involved and make the difference! 💪🌿
Those interested may please call / DM 903-636-0633. Navin Bopiah. 990-106-4054 Vishal Ponappa
Thank you.
These are the headlines that should make us humans rethink what we are doing to the Planet:
– Asian elephants are ingesting large amounts of plastic from landfills in India
– This is because plastic waste is found in rubbish dumps near where the forest meets human communities, and where elephants eat.
– Once the plastics are brought into the forest via the elephants’ dung, they may be consumed by and damage other species.
– Why forest elephant extinction will make climate change much worse
While Organisations like CWS are best equipped to spearhead the effort in keeping our forest perimeter free of garbage – the reality is that it is every single person’s commitment that will bear the desired results.
One sad truth about life is that you may not even be part of the future you’re stressed about. But the fact is that 25 years ago this trash was not found like we see the garbage strewn around now. Tourists and Locals have to buckle up and ACT RESPONSIBLY.
There’s a very hard-hitting adage that is relevant under the circumstances – When the axe came to the forest, the trees said the handle was one of us. Until they felt its cuts BETRAYAL IS within. Without precious green-cover that the forests provide, humans will NOT EXIST.
It’s really a very sad state of affairs happening around reserve forest, I am basically from Coorg and settled in Mysore, I am a frequent traveler to Coorg via Annechookur and now a days I see lot of tourists specially from Kerala having a tea or liquor along with a smoke inside the reserve forest and sometimes I find people from Bangalore or other places having a photoshoot inside the reserve forest and due to my busy schedule I am not able to stop at the forest office and talk to the concerned officer, what a pity to see these educated people behaving like illiterate people, worst than the animals living in the forest, they throw all kinds of things inside the reserve forest area as if they have paid to throw unwanted things ( pet bottle, cigarette pack, children nappy pads, thermo packet of left over food etc etc) are they not ashamed of these type of uncultured behaviour, they come in flashy big big cars showing of their money, piece of crap on their faces, shame on them. I request our honorable member of the Assembly to enforce very strict penalty, place cameras and ask for a frequent patrol and seize their vehicles and don’t release the vehicles for one week then they will learn their mistakes and put up sign boards at the gates and distribute hand slips so that it becomes a clear message for every citizen to keep the reserve forest area clean and tidy.