THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With an intense heat wave blighting lands across the country, Tamil Nadu Forest Department has sought the state’s help in managing forests for ecosystem services. The state’s transformational model of forest management, it has been found from experience, is enhancing the availability of water in the ecosystem.
Recently head of forest force (HOFF) Dr B S Corrie shared the initiatives undertaken by him in the state with the top brass of Tamil Nadu Forest department. Corrie’s ‘transformational model’, developed during a Fulbright Environmental Leadership Fellowship in the US, rests on a foundation of providing personnel a vibrant work environment while developing a citizen service orientation.
This brings together managerial sciences - advances in forestry practices which focus on improving the flow of ecosystem services - and technological advances to help personnel work more effectively and efficiently. “For the first time in the country a forest department has attempted to undertake a Multi Species Inventory and Monitoring and an Ecosystem Health monitoring framework,” Mr Corrie said. A network of sample plots spread throughout the State has been set out. In addition to this, important ecosystem health parameters are monitored.
“This will help address the threat of bio piracy and poaching while ensuring sustainability of the ecosystem and the flow of ecosystem services to the community,” Corrie said. Protocols for conduct of inventory, monitoring, repairing, restoring and enriching ecosystems will be operationalised. This will help enhance ecosystem health and the flow of ecosystem services including increased availability of water to the ecosystem.
“This is significant in the current context where temperatures are rising and drought situations will continue to plague us unless we act decisively now,” the HOFF said. The foundation of Corrie’s transformational model rests on speed and accountability with measurable indictors of success. “Bringing in accountability in a bureaucratic environment is challenging and it is here that the usefulness of the model lies,” he said.
Corrie said that the results were already beginning to show with what he terms “a hitherto unheard of vibrancy in the work environment.” “The cutting edge personnel- the drivers and the protective staff have responded with élan,” the HOFF said.
Citizen outreach has been encouraging. In the last financial year community response was enthusiastic- in the turtle and bird conservation programmes and the greening programmes- 1010 nakshatravanams, 492 herbal gardens,1380 kuttivanams, 22 nature appreciation centres, 1109 kuruvikood’s, and 910 forestry clubs were set up, and 351 citizen conservators were enlisted.
