Reforestation Story

Nepal doubled its forest cover to 40% in 25 years, making it a success story of the community forestry program which has since become an international model. But part of the credit for this success goes as much to outmigration that started with the Maoist armed conflict and has accelerated since. This has reduced pressure on forests in the mountains.

Excerpt of the report published 20 years ago this week in issue #180 23-29 January 2004:

Located just outside the Valley rim, the villages to the south of Lele show the effects of eight years of Maoist insurgency: settlements devoid of young men, fallow terraces, deserted bazaars.

But there is another unintended side effect: a dramatic rejuvenation of the once denuded mountains surrounding this rugged and picturesque region on the outskirts of Kathmandu. The conflict and violence has depopulated Nepal’s midhills, reducing pressure on the land, and villagers are afraid of going into the forest for fear of running into Maoists. The two factors combined have given the forests a chance to grow back.

“We don’t enter the forest much these days to cut fodder leaves or to graze goats and cattle, that is why the trees are so thick,” says Sumitra Godar, who is a forest guard with the all-women Sallaghari Community Forest User Group in the village of Mahat. “There are now a lot more birds and wildlife.”

There has been some fighting in the mountains to the south and east of Lele, and the frequent checks along the highways have restricted the mobility of the villagers. This too has helped forest regeneration, and because of the trees the women say they have noticed many more birds and wild animals such as leopards, bears and pheasants. Regeneration has been so rapid that leopards and other wild animals have actually become the number one concern of many farmers who have suffered increasing livestock losses.

For archived material of Nepali Times of the past 20 years, site search: nepalitimes.com