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December 29, 1998
Kashmir Forests Ablaze: a preventable disaster
Kashmir Environmental Watch Association (KEWA) has been closely watching with deep concern the outbreak of multiple forest fires throughout Jammu & Kashmir since November. Through monitoring of local media as well as through contact with observers and locals living in affected areas, it appears that the fires raging across Jammu & Kashmir have reached alarming dimensions. It is heartbreaking to learn that the fires have mercilessly consumed thousands upon thousands of acres of old growth and alpine forests. It is even more heartbreaking to learn that this environmental disaster was almost entirely the result of human action. In other words, this was a potentially preventable environmental disaster.
Though there are climatic conditions which have created an underlying proclivity for these fires, it is distinctly clear that human behavior (including military action) and subsequent inaction or inability by locals/local authorities to properly respond has played the principal role in the rapid spread of these fires. Moreover, the current lack of a proper forest fire prevention/response plan as well as the underlying conflict in Jammu & Kashmir and the restrictions on access that it creates along the militarized "Line-of-Control" has exacerbated the environmental crisis.
Even more alarming, is that only now authorities on both sides of the LOC have woken up to this problem. The problem of forest fires has been existing in remote areas for two months now, yet authorities totally ignored these. Now in populated areas for the last three weeks people have suddenly become aware because of smog. But the problem can be no longer ignored by authorities since the gases and smoke emitted from the fires combined with a mixture of city pollution in Muzafarabad, Srinagar, and even Jammu have created a thick smog which has made it difficult for people to breath. There are reports from both Muzafarabad and Srinagar, that hospitals have been overloaded with patients complaining of Respiratory tract problems. This smog has created visibility problems for flights in Muzafarabad, Srinagar, and Jammu and people on both sides of the LOC have stopped traveling on highways because of visibility problems.
How quickly a much ignored "remote" environmental problem has come knocking on the doors of Srinagar and Muzafarabad !
Extent of the Damage
There have been more than 38 forest fires reported from both sides of the LOC in Jammu & Kashmir. The fires cover an extensive area ranging from the northern parts of District Baramulla to the southern reaches of Doda. Major fires have been reported all the way along the LOC from Tangdar, Gurez, Neelum, and Uri. In addition, fires have been raging in district Anantnag, Hirpora area of Shopian, and Kupwara among others. The area of Neelum a.k.a. Kishenganga River Valley has been severely hit with fires engulfing large areas of forest on both sides of the "cease-fire line" there. An estimated 122,000 acres of forest have been affected in this area alone, reports indicate. The exact figures of affected forest area has not yet been ascertained, but already damage reports estimate 100 plus hectares of forest to be involved. This indicates a serious blow to the condition of Jammu & Kashmir’s flora and fauna. The habitat loss caused by these forest fires alone is sure to push the already weak wildlife populations further towards the threshold of extinction.
LOC - Not an Environmental Border
The mere fact that these forest fires have spread across the LOC is a strong testament to the fact that Jammu & Kashmir’s ecology and environment are interconnected from region to region irrespective of the present division of the state. Jammu & Kashmir’s ecology is delicately interconnected. The LOC does not stop rivers from flowing through it or wildlife populations from migrating from one side to another. For this reason KEWA strongly believes that only a joint environmental program applied on both sides and in all regions of J&K can properly address the task of saving Jammu & Kashmir’s environment. Though such a development remains elusive at this stage, it is possible for people to people efforts to save the environment. With the internet coming to all parts of Jammu & Kashmir it might be possible for a coordination of efforts to save the environment. For example, joint communication and planning for the clean-up of the Jhelum River could result in volunteer efforts in Srinagar which would improve local conditions as well as benefiting those living downstream along the Jhelum.
Causes of the Fires
The fires have come about as a result of a very long dry spell in Jammu & Kashmir which made the forests vulnerable for fire. But it is clear that human behavior/military action is responsible for the onset of these fires. In addition, these actions could have been prevented.
The causes of the blazes can be summarized as:
Human accident
The first fires in Jammu & Kashmir which occurred in early November were on the outskirts of places like Srinagar and other towns adjacent to forests. These seem to be accidental fires which were most likely a result of carelessness by the inhabitants of areas bordering forests. However, human accident seems to be the least significant reason for the initiation of the fires.
A number of fires currently raging in Jammu & Kashmir are likely the result of deliberate arson. In the case of fires in the Hirpora forests of Shopian area as well as in forests of District Islamabad, there are strong indications that they are the direct off-shoot of the timber smuggling problem which continues to be a major cause of deforestation in J&K. Apparently timber smugglers, after illegal cutting and timber smuggling from internal forest areas, deliberately set fires to destroy the evidence of the offence. These arsons are a regular method employed by timber smugglers. (In addition it is possible that timber smugglers can accidentally start these internal forest fires through careless disposal of cigarettes or extinguishing of camp fires.) Unfortunately, the extremely dry conditions prevailing this season have proven to be a very volatile combination with these arsons.
The largest fires currently burning in Kashmir exist directly along the militarized Line-of-Control which currently divides the state of Jammu & Kashmir. Perhaps the LOC forest fires have been more extensive because there is no ability to fight or control the fires that are ravaging in this area since these are military zones. The Neelum Valley a.k.a. Kishenganga River Valley has been the worst hit since this is a heavily forested area which lies directly in between the deployments of Indian and Pakistani military bunkers which follow along the LOC. The mutual exchange of artillery fire (it is near impossible to say who shot first since these firings are a daily occurrence for at least the last decade) by Indian and Pakistani troops have ignited the dry forests in multiple areas of this valley and on both sides of the LOC. The LOC-adjacent areas of Tangdar, Gurez, and Uri have also faced a similar fate. (There are also unconfirmed reports from locals in Kupwara alleging that fires have been "deliberately" lit by Indian counter-insurgency units to flush out militants from such areas. Whether or not this is true, KEWA can not confirm, but it is likely that exchange of heavy arms fire could have ignited the dry forests in the Kupwara area.) Worse off, even if the local authorities were well-prepared to deal with the fires, the Indo-Pak military situation along the LOC would prevent anyone from accessing these forested valleys to fight the blazes.
These fires raging on both sides of the LOC and specifically in forests adjacent to the LOC are a grave reminder of the fact that Jammu & Kashmir’s environment has directly been jeopardized by the ongoing conflict in Jammu & Kashmir.
Unchecked Spread of Fires: Ill-Prepared Authorities
The fires have only recently attracted the attention of the governing authorities in the winter capital of Jammu on the Indian-administered side and in Muzafarabad on the Pakistan-administered side of J&K. Neither authority seems prepared for battling the fires nor do they seem to have a contingency plan for the necessary response. In addition, it seems from reports that the state agency dealing with forestry and timber-smuggling on the Indian-administered side have not yet even visited those areas where timber smuggling/arson have been reported locals. This is both an indication of the authorities inability to properly monitor and check illegal deforestation in the state let alone deal with an environmental emergency such as the current forest fires. The way things are being handled on both sides of the LOC, it seems that people are just waiting for the rains to come. And since concerned Kashmiri environmentalists are powerless to combat the blazes, all we can do now is also pray for the rains to come.
Local and Global Environmental Impact
Forest fires are a regular factor contributing to deforestation in Jammu & Kashmir, but this year the fires have been much more significant. Along with deforestation come serious soil conservation problems such as erosion which causes this top soil and silt to flow into the rivers and lakes. Deforestation and the resulting loss of habitat is also driving a number of endangered species to extinction.
From a global perspective, biomass burning anywhere is a major source of greenhouse gases and aerosols (tiny liquid or solid particles suspended in the atmosphere). These "emission products" significantly impact atmospheric chemistry, clouds, and the Earth's radiant energy budget (heat and sunlight) in ways that influence climate on regional and global scales. The unusually large fires in Kashmir this year are sure to contribute to these negative global trends.
KEWA Recommendations
In assessing the causes, extent, and eventual environmental impact of the fires in Jammu & Kashmir it is patently clear that human behavior and impact is chiefly responsible for the extent to which these fires have been initiated and spread. In many ways, the fires were either totally preventable or at least more manageable. It is for this reason that KEWA would like to present a number of recommendations to the people and local concerned agencies on both sides of Jammu & Kashmir as well as to the governments of India and Pakistan.
Our recommendations are as follows:
In order to curb human accidents causing forest fires, serious efforts must be made to increase local Kashmiri awareness about forest fire prevention, especially in those residential and village areas located adjacent to forests. Something along the lines of the Smokey Bear Forest Fire Prevention program in the USA could be carried out in the schools.
The local authorities on both sides of the LOC should devise a comprehensive plan for the Protection of Forests and Prevention of Forest Fires. This should include more emphasis on the monitoring and prevention of timber smuggling in addition to the drawing up of a contingency plan for the fighting of forest fires. Given the limited resources probably available to the state authorities in Srinagar and Muzafarabad, it will be more cost effective to work on the prevention of forest fires to begin with. However, time and resources should be spent on devising methods for at least minimal control of those fires that do occur.
The local authorities, perhaps in cooperation with local meteorologists and the respective Forestry Departments, should devise a wildfire risk index. In this way, the monitoring of natural or man-made fire probability can increase response readiness as well as alert locals to be more careful when dealing with fire in areas adjacent to forests.
The preservation of forests and prevention of forest fires in those areas bordering the LOC, such as Neelum Valley, present a very challenging problem in the implementation of environmental protection since military conflict is at its height during these days and there is not even the minimal local agency jurisdiction in these "no man zones". Simply put, there presently exist no institution or authority capable of protecting the environment in this area of J&K.
It is important to mention that since the LOC is an active military "cease-fire line" between the Indian and Pakistani armies, thus international pressure can go along way towards preventing future humanitarian and environmental disasters here. In this regards, KEWA has decided to raise international attention to this burning environmental issue existing along the LOC.
The only way to truly protect these areas would be to declare these areas as "environmental and humanitarian safe-zones" and request both the Indian and Pakistan militaries to cease shelling permanently and pull heavy artillery and major deployments back away from the LOC. Since this is an unlikely development in the foreseeable future, less ambitious means might be applied in order to achieve some environmental, not to mention humanitarian protection of the areas along the LOC.
Some more plausible suggestions are as follows:
1) both the Indian and Pakistani armies should adopt an environmental policy,
2) during high risk periods for forest fires an alert should be sounded by local authorities in Srinagar and Muzafarabad and during this time "maximum restraint" could be exercised to avoid outbreak of fires along the LOC, and
3) in the event of forest fires caused by Indo-Pak shelling compensation should be paid equally by both sides (except in the un-likelihood that somehow blame on either side could be proved).
This compensation should not be paid to the budgets of local governments but should instead be paid 50-50 for specifically for local environmental awareness efforts, for the purchase of wildlife habitat reserves, for soil conservation projects, and for seedling reforestation of those areas along the LOC affected by the fires, etc.on both sides of the LOC. For example, the Pakistan army would pay compensation to go towards environmental efforts in Pak-administered J&K and the Indian army would pay compensation to go towards efforts in India-administered J&K. To oversee this, perhaps a commission with representatives of authorities as well as local environmentalists from both sides of the LOC could be created. Another option would be an expansion of duties of the UN Military Observer Group in Kashmir to include environmental monitoring. The UN military observer group could appoint an environmentalist on its staff to specifically work on monitoring of environmental conditions/destruction along the LOC.
KEWA Appeal
The Kashmir Environmental Watch Association would like to appeal upon all those concerned to take serious note of the current forest fires and the effect that they are having on the general environment of J&K, and subsequently the health of the people of Jammu & Kashmir. It can not be denied that the health of Indians and Pakistanis living in Northern Punjab or Himachal Pradesh are also being directly affected by the poor air quality caused by the smoke, nor can it be denied that the global atmosphere is being negatively affected.
We hope that our recommendations might be given serious attention since these forest fires are, in many ways, preventable environmental disasters.
Kashmir Environmental Watch Association
Suggested Links:
- Fact Sheet: Wildland Fires - information of forest fire prevention and management
- Smokey Bear Forest Fire Prevention - an awareness campaign