Community Conserved Area Project

Strengthening of Community based conservation in Western Arunachal Landscape

Presently with support from ‘Sir Dorabjee Tata Trust’, WWF-India is implementing one project, in continuation of the project initiated at pilot scale in the year 2004 to promote community based conservation of forest areas, traditionally owned by the local villagers, in the form of ‘Community Conserved Area’ (CCA). The project is being implemented in two sites – Thembang village of West Kameng district and Lumpo and Muchat village of Tawang district.

In Thembang village, where in the pilot phase of the project the local villagers notified 30sq.km area as Thembang Bapu CCA in the year 2004, have now decided to extended the area to nearly 312sq.km in meetings held in the village on 16th May and 12th August 2007. In the second site, two neighboring villages – Lumpo and Muchat, last village of India sharing boundary with China and Bhutan have came together and declared nearly 98sq.km area as Pangchen Lumpo Muchat CCA after meetings held at Lumpo village on 16th April and1st June 2007. Works are now in progress to demarcate Intensive Use Zone from where sustainable extraction of firewood, bamboo, medicinal plants and use of summer and winter grazing areas will be allowed and Critical Wildlife Habitat based on the information collected from the villagers and baseline survey conducted in the month of September-October 2007. After the finalization of the Maps and collection of information regarding the dependence of the villagers on forest resources, the Management Plan for both the CCAs will be developed.

The village level CCA Management Committee constituted for Thembang Bapu CCA has already been registered under Society Registration Act and has opened Bank Account at SBI Dirang. Members for the newly constituted CCA Management Committee of Pangchen Lumpo Muchat CCA have been finalized and works are in progress for registration under Society Registration Act.

Consultant from Ecotourism & Conservation Society Sikkim, Mr. Renzino Lepcha and Earthy Goods, New Delhi, Mr. Deepak Sandalya visited both the sites to do feasibility study for the promotion of Ecotourism and other alternate livelihood options for the villagers as conservation incentives.

Based on the outcome of the feasibility studies, it ha been decided that Community Based Ecotourism will be promoted in both the sites as alternate livelihood options for the local villagers. In this regard, an exposure visit was conducted for the villagers from both the sites and was taken to Sikkim. During the visit, villagers interacted with Officials of ECOSS at Gangtok and Khangchendzonga Conservation Committee (KCC) at Yuksom village. The participants also interacted with villagers at Yuksom who are engaged in various tourism related activities like Home-stay, guide etc.

Interaction with KCC helped the participants to understand the role of the constituted management committees in both the sites in conservation of forest and wildlife and promotion of CBET by ensuring equal benefit sharing among local villagers.

In the month of September – October 2007 baseline survey of two CCAs were conducted. For the surveys, 11 days and 5 days trekking were conducted with the villagers and experts from WWF-India and WII, Dehradun. During the survey information regarding the indicator wildlife species like Red Panda, Goral, Serrow, Musk Deer, Blue Sheep, Barking Deer, Takin, Asiatic Black Bear and birds like Monal, Tragopan and Blood Pheasant were collected with GPS points. Besides, vegetation types of the areas where direct sighting/any evidences of above mentioned fauna have been observed were also noted down. Any kinds of pressure in these sites were also recorded. For the baseline of vegetation, at different points randomly selected during trekking, five dominant plant species with the canopy cover, circumference at breast height were noted down.

For the baseline information regarding the Grazing areas, randomly five 1m X 1m quadrates were laid in different grazing sites. All the plant species found inside the quadrates were noted down. Above ground biomass were also collected. At Pangchen Lumpo Muchat CCA due to bad weather condition, this kind of information has not been collected.

The altitude range of both the CCAs is from 2300m to above 5000m and the vegetation types accordingly ranges from Temperate to Alpine pasture. Both the areas have rich diversity of fauna which includes rare and threatened animals like Red Panda, Musk Deer, Blue Sheep, Takin, Goral, Leopard, Himalayan Black Bear, Wild Dog. Blood Pheasants, Monal and Satyr Tragopan were found to be abundant and can be sighted easily.

During the survey many rare and threatened plants like four species of Aconitum, Swertia, Rheum nobile, Picrorhiza kurrooa, Saussurea gossypiphora, Taxus bacata etc. are found growing abundantly.

Presently works are in progress to develop the final Maps of CCAs with Intensive Use Zone and Critical Wildlife Habitat Zone. Two local boys from both the sites have been appointed as Trainee to work with WWF-India for two years. During this period they will learn about project proposal writing, report writing, financial management etc. so that after the completion of this project, both the Management Committees get trained personnel to work for them.