TAG: GS 3: ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT
THE CONTEXT: The recent report by the United Nations Convention on Combating Desertification (UNCCD) reveals alarming statistics about the state of the world’s rangelands.
EXPLANATION:
Highlights of the report
- The report states that nearly 50% of rangelands are degraded and experiencing a “silent demise.”
- This degradation is driven by several factors, including climate change, unsustainable land and livestock management practices, biodiversity loss, and the conversion of rangelands into farmlands.
- Additionally, the lack of secure land rights for pastoralist communities contributes to the deterioration of these ecosystems.
- The degradation of rangelands directly impacts the livelihoods of communities that depend on them, reducing soil fertility and biodiversity, which in turn lowers income levels and increases conflicts over grazing rights.
What are Rangelands?
- Rangelands are defined as natural or semi-natural ecosystems predominantly grazed by livestock or wild animals.
- These ecosystems include a variety of vegetation types such as grasses, shrubs, bushes, open forests, and agroforestry systems, with their specific composition influenced by factors like rainfall, temperature, and other climatic conditions.
- According to the Rangeland Atlas, a collaborative effort by international non-profits and UN agencies, rangelands cover approximately 80 million square kilometers of Earth’s terrestrial surface area, making them the largest land cover type globally.
- Rangelands play a critical role in environmental sustainability and human livelihoods.
- They act as significant carbon sinks, absorbing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than they release, thereby mitigating climate change.
- Additionally, they serve as storehouses of freshwater and help prevent desertification.
- From an economic perspective, rangelands generate 16% of the world’s food production and provide 70% of the feed for domesticated herbivores, particularly in regions like Africa and South America.
- In India, rangelands span about 1.21 million square kilometers, ranging from the Thar Desert to the Himalayan meadows.
Who are Pastoralists?
- Pastoralists are communities involved in livestock production, including activities such as livestock rearing, dairy production, meat production, wool production, and leather production.
- These communities rear various animals, including sheep, goats, cattle, horses, donkeys, camels, yaks, llamas, alpacas, and pigs.
- Some also rear ducks and chickens.
- Their livelihoods are highly dependent on the quality of pastures available and their access rights to these lands.
- Despite their significant contributions, pastoralists often remain marginalized with limited influence over policymaking.
- Globally, there are an estimated 500 million pastoralists, with about 13 million in India across 46 groups, including Gujjars, Bakarwals, Rebaris, Raikas, Kurubas, and Maldharis.
Economic Contributions of Pastoralists in India
- India is home to 20% of the world’s livestock population, with approximately 77% of these animals reared in pastoralist systems.
- These systems are crucial for maintaining indigenous livestock breeds and preserving traditional knowledge related to animal rearing.
- Pastoralists significantly contribute to India’s position as the largest milk producer globally, accounting for 23% of global dairy production.
- Additionally, India leads in buffalo meat production and is the largest exporter of sheep and goat meat.
- The pastoralist communities are pivotal in sustaining and enhancing these sectors.
Policy Interventions and Support Needed
- Given the degradation of rangelands and the essential role they play, there is a pressing need for targeted policy interventions.
- The UNCCD report emphasizes the importance of supporting communities dependent on rangelands.
- This includes securing land rights for pastoralists, promoting sustainable land and livestock management practices, and addressing the impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss.
- Ensuring the health and sustainability of rangelands is not only vital for environmental reasons but also for the economic stability and food security of millions of people worldwide.
United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification:
- The 1994 UNCCD is the only legally binding international agreement linking environment and development to sustainable land management.
- India is a signatory to the United Nations Convention for Combating Desertification (UNCCD).
- The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) is the nodal Ministry of Government of India (GoI) that oversees implementation of the Convention in the country.
- The Convention addresses the arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas, known as the drylands, where some of the most vulnerable ecosystems and peoples can be found.
- Parties work together to improve the living conditions for people in drylands, to maintain and restore land and soil productivity, and to mitigate the effects of drought.
- The UNCCD is particularly committed to a bottom-up approach, encouraging the participation of local people in combating desertification and land degradation.
- The UNCCD is one of the three Rio Conventions—along with the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
- It was called for in Agenda 21, the programme of action adopted at the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED, or Earth Summit).
