Integrated resource study for conservation and management of Ropar wetland ecosystem, Punjab

Photonirvachak Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing, Vol. 26, No. 4, 1998

Integrated Resource Study for Conservation and Management of Ropar Wetland Ecosystem, Punjab

V K VERMA, RAJIV CHOPRA, P K SHARMA and CHARANJIT SINGH Punjab Remote Sensing Centre, Ludhiana- 141004

Introduction

Wetlands are one of the most productive ecosystems on the earth exhibiting a great diversity. Although significance of wetlands has been known since long, their role in maintaining ecological balance is less understood. The Ramsar Convention of International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) held during 1971 in Iran had drawn the global attention on conservation and management of wetlands. Wetlands in India are distributed in various ecological regions. The Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of

India released "Directory of Wetlands" in 1988. As per the directory, an area of 40,40,137 ha in the country was designated as wetlands. The wetland directory included 14 wetlands of Punjab including Kanjli and Harike notified wetlands, covering an area of 22,476 ha. Subsequently, in 1991, the Punjab Government also declared the Ropar lake behind the Ropar Head Works as "Notified Wetland" in addition to already notified wetlands of Harike and Kanjli. According to a recent study on wetlands in India (Garg et al., 1998), an area of 75,81,871 ha is under various categories of wetlands, out of which 71,879 ha lies in the State of Punjab.

(Recd. 4 Feb. '98; in final form 30 Dec. '98)

186 V.K Verma et al.

Remote sensing technology has been widely used to collect information on qualitative and quantitative status of natural resources in protected areas. Parihar et al. (1986) have used high resolution space photographs to derive information on vegetative cover in order to study wild life habitat. The wetland ecosystem of Kanjiranga (Dutt et al., 1988) and Sunderbans (Naidun and Unni, 1988) have been studied using IRS-1A data. Several investigators have used remotely sensed data for water quality monitoring of lakes and reservoirs (Carpenter and Carpenter, 1933; Khorram and Cheshire, 1985). Manu and Robertson (1990) have estimated the concentration of suspended sediments using Landsat MSS data, where as Ramsey and Jensen, (1990) could derive water volume reflectance from airborne MSS data using in situ water volume reflectance and a combined optimization technique and radio- active transfer model. Wani et al. (1996) have effectively used the IRS LISS-II data to quantify suspended sediment concentration in the Dal lake surface water. The study showed the existence of a positive correlation between the concentration of suspended solids and visible wavelength.

For integrated conservation and manage- ment of wetland ecosystem, the basic infor- mation about the natural resources of the lake and surrounding area is essential. In view of thi:;, the present study was undertaken to generate information about physiography, drainage, landuse in Ropar wetland ecosystem and water spread and turbidity level in Ropar wetland under National Wetland Mapping Project funded by Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India.

Study Area

Ropar wetland came into existence after the construction of Ropar barrage across Satluj river near Ropar city. The Ropar wetland ecosystem lies between 30o57 , - 31~ N latitude and 76~ ' ' - 76~ ' E longitude at an elevation of 275 metre above mean sea level (Fig. 1) and cover an area of 12095 ha, with a ponded area of

220 ha. The Satluj river, Sirsa river and their tributaries feed the lake. It is a deep lake with a variety of flora and fauna prospering in and around the lake.

Data Used and Methodology

A physiographic map of Ropar wetland ecosystem was prepared by interpreting black and white aerial photographs of 1991 on 1:20,000 scale and satellite imagery on 1:50,000 scale. The land use and drainage maps of the study area were prepared through visual interpretation of SPOT TM and IRS-1A LISS-II multidate data in the form of false color composites on 1:50,000 scale generated from bands 2, 3 and 4 and aerial photographs (1:20,000 scale). The details of data products are listed in Table 1.

Table 1. Data used for mapping and monitoring of Ropar wetland ecosystem

Type of Data Path Row Date of Pass Season

IRS IA LISS I1 30 46 November, Post 1991 Monsoon

IRS IA LISS II 30 46 May, 1992 Pre Mol~soon

IRS IA LISS 11 30 46 March, 1993 Spring

Aerial - - March, 1991 Spring Photographs

In order to monitor the water spread of Ropar lake the pre monsoon, post monsoon and spring season satellite data was interpreted. The qualitative turbidity ratings (low, moderate and high) were assigned to the lake according to the hue as manifested on the false colour composite. The details were transferred to the base map prepared from Survey of India (SOl) toposheets on 1:50,000 scale. The final map was prepared on the same scale. The area of various units was calculated using digital planimeter.

Integrated Resource Study for Conservation and Management of Ropar... 187

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Fig. 1. Ropar wetland - Location.

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Results and Discussion

Physiography

Based on interpretation of aerial photo- graphs and satellite data six physiographic units (Fig. 2) have been identified in the Ropar wetland ecosystem (comprising 12095 ha area). The brief description of each unit is as follows:

Hills (H):

The Siwalik hills with general slope ranging from 25 to 60 per cent cover an area of 5159 ha. Hills comprise of two types of rock formations viz. loose sand stone and silt stone giving rise to sandy and silty soils respectively. Most of the area is under degraded forest and is severely eroded.

188 V.K. Verma et al

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L E G E N D

SYMBOL PtiYSIOGRAPHY AREA (ha)

H HII,LS 5159 V VALI,EY 557 Ap ALLUVIAl, PLAIN 2590 Pm PIEDMONT I'LAIN 2402 TI LOWER RIVER TERRACES 325 'i"2 UIWER RIVER TERRACES 125 Rb RIVER SAND BARS 400 RC RIVER COURSE 537

WETLANI) BOUNDARY

ROAD

CANAL

RAILWAY LINE

SEASONAl. RIVUI,ETS

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SETTLEMENT

Fig. 2. Ropar wet land ecosys t em - Phys iog raphy .

Integrated Resource Study for Conservation and Management of Ropar... 189

Valley (V): Land use

The valley has variable width and gentle to moderate slopes. The ground water is mostly at shallow depth. This unit is partly cultivated and covers an area of 557 ha.

Alluvial Plain (AP):

It is nearly level to gently sloping with 1 to 3 per cent slope. This unit covers an area of 2590 ha. The deposits in the vicinity of the river and rivulets (choes) are coarser and those away are comparatively finer in texture. Most of the area is under cultivation and is used for growing agricultural crops.

Piedmont Plain (PM):

The piedmont plain is found as a single persistent unit on the foot slopes of Siwaliks. Many seasonal rivulets pass through this unit before joining Satluj. This unit covers an area of 2402 ha and is partly cultivated. The deposits in and around the rivulets are sandy in nature with gravels and pebbles.

River Terraces (T1 and T2):

The river terraces occur on both the sides of the Satluj river. These are further sub divided into lower and upper river terraces. Lower river terraces (T1) are located at the present level of river Satluj and covers an area of 325 ha. These are flooded every year during monsoon. The upper river terraces (T2) are found at the base of piedmont plain. These deposits are coarse textured with high permeability. This unit covers an area of 125 ha and is occasionally flooded in the monsoon season.

River Course (RC):

The present courses of river Satluj and Sirsa cover an area of 537 ha. The deposits of river bars (Rb) are sandy in texture and are the products of braiding action of river Satluj. This unit covers an area of 400 ha.

Five major landuse categories viz., built up land, agricultural land (crop land, plantation), forest, wasteland and wetlands were identified and mapped. Level-II categories were also recognized and mapped (Fig. 3) and their area computed. The perusal of the data in Table 2 indicates that out of 12095 ha area of the Ropar wetland ecosystem, 57.9 ha iscovered by swamp and 11.2 ha is waterlogged (seasonal). The tanks cover 7.5 ha whereas 170.0 ha area is covered by ash pond/cooling ponds of Ropar Thermal Plant. The area under wastelands comes out to be 659.0 ha. The area under closed, open and degraded forest is 313.4, 5454.3 and 517.7 ha respectively. An area of 3595.4 ha is being cultivated whereas 1.6 ha area is under plantation. The built up land including Thermal colony and village settle- ments cover 770 ha area.

Table 2. Area under various landuse categories in Ropar wetland ecosystem (Based on Fig. 3).

Map Landuse Area Percent Symbol Category (ha) of total

area

i. 1 Built up land 770.0 6.37 2.1 Crop land 3595 4 29.73 2.2 Plantations 1.6 0.01 3.1 Closed forest 313.4 2.59 3.2 Open forest 5454.3 45.10 3.3 Degraded forest 517.7 4.28 4.1 Land with or without scrub 522.0 4.32 4.2 Barren rocky/stony 137.0 i. 13

waste/sheet rock area 5.1.1 Water logged (seasonal) 11.2 0.09 5.1.2 Swamp/Marsh 57.9 0.48 5.2.1 Tanks 7.5 0.06 5.2.2 Ash pond/Cooling pond 170.0 1.40 Re River course 537.0 4.44

Total 12095.0

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L E G E N D

I.I BUILT UP

2.1 CROP LAND 2.2 PLANTATION

3.1 CI,OSED 3.2 OPEN 3.3 DEGRADED

4.1 LAND WITH OR WITHOUT SCRUB

4.2 BARREN ROCKY/ STONY WASTEI SHEET ROCK AREA

5.1 NATURAL 5.1.1 WATER LOGGED

(SEASONAL) 5.1.2 SWAMP/MARSH 5.2 MAN MADE S.2.1 TANKS 5.2.2 ASH POND/

COOLING POND

F i g . 3 . R o p a r w e t l a n d e c o s y s t e m - L a n d use .

Integrated Resource Study for Conservation and Management of Ropar .. 191

The ecosystem experiences severe environ- mental degradation as 45.10 and 4.28 per cent of the total area is under open and degraded forests, Turbidity Map respectively. Further an area of 4.28 and 1.13 per level Symbol cent is under scrub land and stony waste, respectively. Most of the area in the catchment is Low L severely affected by gully erosion. Landslides/

Moderate M landslips is a common phenomena in the area.

High H

Table 3. Classification of turbidity in Ropar lake

Hue on FCC

Dark blue

Medium blue

Light blue/Whlt;sh blue

Dramage

The river Satluj forms the main drainage system in the area and generally flows from north towards south. It is well supported by Sirsa river from eastward direction. The Satluj river in the hill front appears to have iost the gradient as evidenced by braiding in the channel course thus indicating high rate of channel bed infiltration. The seasonal rivulets/choes either join the river Satluj or die out while debauching from the hills which indicate high permeability in piedmont zone. The drainage map (Fig. 4) prepared from aerial photographs revealed that the drainage pattern is sub-dendritic, sub parallel. Most of the streams in the hilly tract have a narrow gorge and a fairly long length of flow. It is observed that land dissection/gullying in hilly tract is high due to steep gradient, poor vegetal cover, and less consolidated geological strata. Due to steep slopes and high rainfall during the months of July to September, considerable run off takes place leading to formation of rivulets (choes).

Turbidity

In this study, qualitative turbidity of Ropar lake has been recorded based on the hue as manifested on false color composites for spring, pre and post monsoon seasons of 1991, 1992 and 1993 (Fig. 5). The turbidity classification is based on the system proposed by the Space Applications Centre, Ahmedabad (Table 3). The distribution of turbidity levels of three seasons has been shown in Fig. 5.

Monitoring of Water Spread

In this study the seasonal variation in water spread of Ropar lake has been mapped and monitored during post monsoon season of 1991. (Fig. 5A), pre monsoon season of 1992 (Fig. 5B) and spring season of 1993 (Fig. 5C). The stud5, reveals that post monsoon extent of Ropar lake was 220.6 ha, whereas the water spread during pre monsoon and spring-season was 214.7 and 217 ha respectively. The water spread in the post monsoon season is more because of heavy rains in the catchment of Satluj river, Sirsa river and other seasonal rivulets/choes.

Threats to Ropar Wetland

The increase in human population has enhanced the pressure on land for agriculture, urbanisation and industrialization manifold. These developmental activities has severely threatened wetlands, which for long have been perceived as wastelands unless drained and put to more productive uses. The threats to wetlands can be classified into two broad categories: Human threats (direct or indirect) and Natural threats.

Based on physiography, drainage and landuse maps, the threats to Ropar wetland have been analysed. The most. important threat to Ropar wetland is from anthropogenic pressure i.e. indiscriminate use of wetlands for cultivation, habitation, industrial expansion, quarrying and recreational activities. Due to high inherent fertility of wetland area, its conversion

192 V.K. Verma et al.

to paddy fields is a common practice. The study area is also affected by excessive human interference like overgrazing and deforestation which have stimulated the local geocatastrophic processes of landslides and gulley formation due to accelerated soil erosion. The indiscriminate exploitation of forest and other lands supporting biomass at the hands of growing population for material needs of fuelwood, timber, fodder/ grazing and other forest products have virtually stripped the whole region of its meaningful vegetative cover.

Degradation of Ropar wetland may also be attributed to chemical pollution by industrial units in the catchment. Ropar Thermal Plant discharges water into the lake which has been used as a coolant. The oxygen content of the heated water is far less than that of natural lakes. It thus affects fish production. It is well known that the dissolved oxygen is essential for natural purification process. The fertilizer plant at Nangal discharges surplus ammonia into the Ropar lake, so much so that it killed the entire fish population few years back and Fisheries Department claimed compensation from the factory. This damage may be there every year but at a scale not perceptible to human eyes (Samra, 1991). The industrial pollution is a serious threat to the Ropar wetland ecosystem.

Sedimentation also poses threat to Ropar wetland. Sedimentation is a process that occur naturally in every wetland resulting in filling of natural depression over a period ranging from few decades to tens of thousands of year. The removal of vegetal cover due to overgrazing in the catchment has accelerated soil erosion. The Siwalik hills around Ropar wetland are severely eroded due to high drainage density and poor vegetative cover. During the rainy season the dried up top soil of the hills is detached by beating action of rain and moves along with run off and gets deposited in the lake, thereby decreasing the water spread.

Eutrophication (enrichment of lake water with nutrients) due to inflow of sewerage and the

industrial effluents alongwith the decaying vegetation is another threat to Ropar wetland. Eutrophication and deposition of sediments has led to the growth of different kinds of vegetation which may be harmful to aquatic life in particular. Illegal fishing is another danger to the fish population in the wetland, though it is regulated by Fisheries Department.

The area in the past used to be flooded by Satluj river, but now it has been fairly well checked due to construction of barrage and embankments along its course. Occasionally, in the years of above normal rainfall (for example 1988 & 1993), a part of the area is flooded despite these measures causing extensive damage to crops, embankments etc.

Conservation and Management

Soil, water and vegetation are the three important natural resources in the areas which need to be preserved and efficiently utilized. Unfortunately all these natural resources are being constantly wasted and mis-utilised due to vagaries of nature coupled with over exploitation by inhabitants. Keeping in view, the threats to Ropar wetland, the following steps are recommended for its proper conservation and management.

Preventing illegal encroachment of wetland for agricultural and other purposes, grazing, hunting of wild animals, birds and aquatic life, through fencing of strategic areas. Illegal fishing should be banned.

Disposal of effluents from industries warrant monitoring of water quality parameters (physical, chemical and biological characteristics). Appropriate measures to be taken by National Fertilizers Limited (NFL), Nangal so that only treated water is discharged in the river to avoid further pollution of the lake.

Integrated Resource Study for Conservation and Management of Ropar... 193

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G E N E R A L L E G E N D

RIVER DRAINAGE ROAD

R A I L W A Y . . . . . . . . ~ :

SETTLEMENT

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LAUOI MAJRA

F ~

8

COLONY

Fig. 4. Ropar wetland ecosystem - Drainage.

194 V.K. Verma e t a l .

Soil conservation measures and afforest- ation around the wetland be taken up to prevent siltation of the lake. This will maintain ecological balance besides preventing sediment contribution. It will also improve the overall productivity of the ecosystem.

Control of weeds should be undertaken to save the lake from further deterioration.

To analyse the biotic components, food chain sequence and potential threats and to make long term conservation strategies, specific research studies need be undertaken.

The long term solution of protecting wetlands lies in educating people. Although

some awareness about importance of wetlands has increased in recent years, but there is still a wide gap between "being done" and "to be done". Much more needs to be done until wetland destruction becomes a socially unacceptable offense.

Acknowledgements

The authors are thankful to the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India for providing funds for this project. Authors also wish to thank Dr. Baldev Sahai, Former Deputy Director & Mission Director, RSAM and Sh. J.K. Garg, Project Manager, Wetland Project, Space Applications Centre (ISRO), Ahmedabad for their supervision and guidance to accomplish this project.

SEASON, POST HONSOON' INOV. 19911 DATA, IRS -1A LI~S-I I ~ " ~ r "t WATER SPREAD, 220.6 ha / ~

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SEASOn, VRE ~ t ~ mn' DATA, IRS- IA IJSS-II h ~ ~

,.%-, WATER SPREAD s 21&.1 ho , ~ , ~-.. o 1x, .~,

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SEASON ~ SPRIt~ I MARCH 1993 I DATA z IRS -1A LI$S-II _ _ ' t .

,t~,~.~- ,~k.~.:'. , ,WATER SPREAD = 218 ha

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TURBIOITY CLASSES OF ROPAR LAKE

SYMBOL TURBIDITY HUE ON COLOUR COMPOSITE

Q LOW

( ~ HODERATE

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L E G E N 0 GENERAL LEGENO

DARK BLUE

HEDIUM BLUE

LIGHT BLUE/ WHITISH BLUE

SYHBOL CATEGOR~

C CUt.TIVATED

F FOREST

S SAND

P FISH POND

W WEEDS

Fig. 5. Monitoring of water spread/aquatic vegetation/turbidity of Ropar wetland.

References

Integrated Resource Study for Conservation and Management of Ropar...

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Samra J S (1991). Use Ropar wetland as Eco-monitor. The Tribune Ill (178): 10 (June 27, 1991).

Wani M M, Choubey V K and Joshi Himanshu (1996). Quantification of suspended solids in Dal lake, Srinagar using Remote Sensing Technology. J. Indian Soc. Remote Sensing. 24(1):25-32.