Thursday, February 10, 2011

PROMOTING FORESTS VITAL FOR ECO-SECURITY, REPLENISHMENT OF RESOURCES AND NATURAL BALANCE: DR. DHIMAN

LUDHIANA, FEBRUARY 10:(Gurzent Singh Saggu))

A three-day IUFRO (International Union of Forestry Research Organization) international symposium on 'Short Rotation Forestry (SRF): Synergies for Wood Production and Environmental Amelioration,' organized by the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, PAU, under the auspices of BENWOOD, European Commission, commenced here today. The symposium has been designed in conjunction with the International Year of Forestry 2011, celebrating the central role of people in the sustainable management, conservation and sustainable development of world's forests.

Inaugurating the symposium, the chief guest Dr KR Dhiman, Vice-Chancellor, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan, said that Ludhiana was the most polluted city in the country and that the SRF has helped to reduce pollution here. Dr. Dhiman said that Chirapunji which was once well known for its honey of orange flora, is not so now due to the disappearance of orange cultivation owing to the cement factory at Chirapunji. He said, "We have exploited the natural resources beyond limit. One natural resource is water around which everything revolves be it biodiversity, agriculture or life." \'Agro-eco system varying from region to region has region specific problems\', stated Dr. Dhiman adding that the strategy to tackle the problems should also be made through region specific agro-climatic planning. He shared that in Himachal Pradesh 31% water is available for production systems and that the rest is lost due to evapo-transpiration, wastage and other causes. He suggested that rain water harvesting can help save water. Dr. Dhiman highlighted that enhancement in the water use efficiency by 5% can lead to doubling of production. He quoted Sunder Lal Bahuguna\'s slogan that \'Save Water, Save Himalayas, Save Life\'. Quoting Mahatma Gandhi that Nature has given everything for our need, not for our greed, Dr Dhiman emphasized that due care should be taken of the native resources and biodiversity as the prosperity of the country is linked. Dr. Dhiman said that while making any introduction of trees in the forest area, its impact on the native vegetation should be taken into consideration. There are many instances where the introduction of teak species and rubber plantation have adversely affected the native under vegetation, said he. All strategies must aim at enhancing native bio-diversity, economic viability and ecological sustainability, he said.

In his presidential remarks, Dr Manjit Singh Kang, Vice-Chancellor, Punjab Agricultural University, said that the environmental security has become a serious concern across the globe. He dwelt upon the environmental degradations which include: loss in biodiversity, degradation of soil, depletion of water resources, salinization, land degradation, following mining activities and coal burning for thermal power generation.

He added that in developing countries such as Indian sub-continent and many countries in Africa and South America, the problems of environmental degradation are quite serious. He shed light on the environmental services which have not been traded so far in developing countries – carbon sequestration, organic farming, crop-residue management, soil conservation and rehabilitation of degraded land, improvement in biodiversity, moderation in the weather, reduction in drought, etc. Referring to the role of trees, Dr Kang elaborated that there are two major areas where tree cover can be increased – afforestation of forestlands and agroforestry/farm forestry. It has been estimated that nearly 38 giga tons of carbon could be sequestered during next 50 years, 30.6 giga tons by afforestation and 7 giga tons through increased adoption of agroforestry practices. The role of forestry and agroforestry systems in carbon sequestration has increased global interest in the land-use options to stabilize green house gas emission, said Dr Kang.

Earlier Dr Avtar Singh, Head, Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, welcoming the chief guest and the eminent scientists from round the world, said that SRF, the rapid silvicultural practice to reforest areas of barren forest/lands/deforested mountains/salty grounds, etc., enhances farm income from subsistence farming and mitigates adverse influence of global climate change. SRF helps in saving the virgin forests' wealth and acts as vegetation filter, said he.

The first technical session on 'SRF Resources, their management and GHG mitigation potential' was chaired by RK Rawat (Dehradun) and co-chaired by Dr Davorin Kajba (Croatia). The Rapporteurs were Dr TP Thomas (Kerela) and Mrs Rahmawaty (Indonesia). The second technical session on 'SRF tree-crop interface' was chaired by AS Dogra, IFS, Chandigarh and co-chaired by Dr KS Verma (Solan). The rapporteurs were Suchita Bhandari (Gurgaon) and M. Rahman (Bangladesh). The third technical session on 'bio-energy and phyto-remediation' was chaired by Dr Thomas Guse (Germany) and co-chaired by Dr MS Hooda (Hisar). The rapporteurs were Jyoti Bhandari (Nepal) and Dr RS Dhillion (Hisar). In all the three technical sessions, scientists, managers, industrialists, conservationists, NGOs, etc., exchanged their experiences and their future endeavors on the subject.

Dr Sanjeev Chauhan, Organsisng Secretary IUFRO Symposium, proposed the vote of thanks. Those present on the occasion were registrar, deans, directors, additional directors, faculty and heads of various departments of PAU. An exhibition on the technologies relevant to forestry and agro-forestry was organized on the occasion. The symposium will conclude on February 12.
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