NATIONAL7Spotlight Weekly)]

Under Threat

A new report calls for government commitment to meet the threats the country's environment is facing

By BHAGIRATH YOGI

During his brief visit to Nepal this week, executive director of the Nairobi-based United Nations Environment Program Klaus Topfer was spellbound by the natural vistas of the Himalayan kingdom. But he was equally worried about the fast-degrading environment in this country. "There is a need for protecting the environment and promoting sustainable development without harming the conditions for harmony between people and nature," said Topfer, launching the State of the Environment (SoE) Report for Nepal, 2001, Monday.

A forest : For conservation

Poverty is the most toxic element in the environment and warned of the environmental dangers from western-style consumerism and globalization.

Referring to research data, Mr. Topfer said out of nearly 7,000 spoken languages in the world, a third of them in Asia, and more than 2,500 were in danger of immediate extinction. "Maintaining biological diversity is strongly linked with preservation of indigenous knowledge and language," he said.

The SoE report, prepared by the Nepalese government in association with the UNEP, ICIMOD, SACEP and NORAD, discusses five key environmental issues in Nepal, namely forest depletion, soil degradation, solid waste management, water quality and air pollution.

"Forest depletion is one of the major environmental issues in the country," said the report. It said the forest area of Nepal has declined to 29 percent of the total land area in 1994 from 38 percent of the total land area in 1979. The agricultural area increased by nearly 600,000 hectares over the last one decade ending in 1995, mainly due to the encroachment on forest areas. In eastern Nepal, the forest area decreased as a result of construction of Bhutanese refugee camps in and around the forests. Nepal has been providing shelter to nearly 100,000 Bhutanese refugees for the last 11 years on humanitarian grounds. The report further said that landslides, soil erosion, and floods have occurred as a result of the clearing of forests, particularly in the hills.

The report quoted studies saying that 60 to 80 percent of the total annual soil loss from cultivated terraces occurs during the pre-monsoon season. The report said urbanization in Nepal is characterized by haphazard and unplanned urban growth, inviting many environmental problems such as air pollution, water pollution, and solid waste.

The report further said major towns and cities in the hills have acute problems of water availability. The water quality of rivers and lakes flowing through the large urban areas is deteriorated. The rivers are also major places for urban solid waste disposal and industrial effluents.

The report said air quality, particularly in the large urban areas of Nepal, has deteriorated. Due to air pollution, the number of people suffering from respiratory diseases has gone up over the past few years.

Officials do agree. "Sustainable development and preservation of the natural environment have become challenges for today's Nepal," said Dr. Govinda Raj Bhatta, Secretary at the Ministry of Population and Environment.

Though known worldwide for snow-topped and forest-clad mountains, all is not well with Nepal's mountain environment. "The towering ridges are holding in a brown cloud of pollution over South Asia. Many forest area are disappearing. Water is becoming increasingly polluted. In short, this beautiful mountain environment is in danger," said J. Gabriel Campbell, director-general at the Kathmandu-based International Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD).

Led by Dr. Bandana Kayastha-Pradhan, the report was prepared by a team of professionals and experts both from Nepal and abroad. The report is the fist of seven national reports focusing on two Asia-Pacific subregions, namely South Asia (Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka) and the Greater Mekong subregions (Laos and Vietnam).

The report said that environmental conditions in Nepal are deteriorating, despite several policy measures undertaken by the Nepalese government. The rapid and uncontrolled growth of population and poor management and use of the available resources are the major reasons for the deterioration. The reason for these is the inadequacy of capital and human resources and lack of public awareness. "For sustainable development of the environment, strong commitment on the part of the government to implement programmes that are appropriate and encourage existing programmes is required," the report concluded.