THE ECONOMICS OF ECOSYSTEMS AND BIODIVERSITY-INDIA ... · Biodiversity for Conservation and Sustainable Management of Inland Wetlands Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change

Economics of Ecosystem Services and Biodiversity for Conservation and Sustainable Management of Inland Wetlands

Ministry of Environment, Forestand Climate ChangeGovernment of India

Supported byMinistry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of IndiaIndira Paryavaran Bhawan, Jor Bagh RoadNew Delhi 110003 Indiawww.envfor.nic.in

Indo-German Biodiversity ProgrammeGIZ IndiaA-2/18, Safdarjung EnclaveNew Delhi 110029 Indiawww.indo-germanbiodiversity.com

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04THE ECONOMICS OF ECOSYSTEMS AND BIODIVERSITY-INDIA INITIATIVE

India a biodiversity hotspotIndia is one of the megadiverse countries in the world. It faces unique circumstances as well as challenges in the conservation of its rich biological heritage. With only 2.4% of the world’s geographical area, her 1.2 billion people coexist with over 47,000 species of plants and 91,000 species of animals. Several among them are the keystone and charismatic species. In addition, the country supports up to one-sixth of the world’s livestock population. The rapid growth of her vibrant economy, as well as conserving natural capital, are both essential to maintaining ecosystem services that support human well-being and prosperity.

To demonstrate her empathy, love and reverence for all forms of life, India has set aside 4.89% of the geographical space as Protected Areas Network. India believes in “वसधव कटमबकम” i.e. “the world is one family”.

Draft Report

THE ECONOMICS OF ECOSYSTEMS AND BIODIVERSITY-INDIA INITIATIVE

Indo-German Biodiversity ProgrammeThe Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India (MoEFCC) is collaborating with the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Government of Germany and the Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB), Government of Germany. The Indo-German Biodiversity Programme comprises the following:n The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity - India Initiative (TII)n India Business and Biodiversity Initiative (IBBI)n Conservation and Sustainable Management of Existing and Potential Coastal and

Marine Protected Areasn Himachal Pradesh Forest Ecosystem Services Projectn Access and Benefit Sharing Partnership Project

ResponsibleJR Bhatt, Scientist-G, MoEFCCKonrad Uebelhoer, Director, Indo-German Biodiversity Programme

Suggested citationKumar, R., Ambastha, K., Kumar, S., Chakraborty, A., Dalakoti, K. & Meetei, A.Y. (2016). Economics of Ecosystem Services and Biodiversity for Conservation and Sustainable Management of Inland Wetlands. The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity India Initiative. GIZ India. pp. 96.

© MoEFCC and GIZ 2016

ISBN No. 978-81-933162-3-8

Published by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH

DisclaimerThe views expressed in the report are purely those of the authors and may not in any circumstances be regarded as stating an official position of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) or GIZ. The designation of geographical entities in the report, and presentation of material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of MoEFCC or GIZ, concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.


WEtland IntErnatIonalwww.south-asia.org

ChIlIka dEvElopMEnt authorItywww.chilika.com

IMplEMEntIng partnErS:

Ritesh Kumar, WISA, New DelhiKalpana Ambastha, WISA, New DelhiSatish Kumar, WISA, New DelhiAnita Chakraborty, WISA, New DelhiKamal Dalakoti, WISA, New DelhiAkoijam Yaiphaba Meetei, WISA, New Delhi

THE ECONOMICS Of ECOSYSTEMS AND bIODIvERSITY INDIA INITIATIvE

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CONSERvATION AND SuSTAINAblE MANAgEMENT Of INlAND WETlANDS

project team

Dr. Ritesh Kumar (Project leader), Ms. Kalpana Ambastha, Mr. Satish Kumar, Dr. Anita

Chakraborty, Mr. Kamal Dalakoti, Mr. Akoijam Yaiphaba Meetei

report prepared by Wetlands International South Asia for gIZ India under Indo-german bilateral Cooperation Project-‘Incentives for Sustainable Management of biodiversity and Ecosystem

Services’Part financial assistance received under bihar Capacity building Technical Assistance (bCb TA) Project from DfID – World bank Trust fund

Report ID: 2015 – gIZ- 02gIZ Contract Reference: 83170391 of April 15, 2014photograph credits: WISA Photo library

Wetlands International South Asia acknowledges with thanks the support and guidance received from:• Mr.SashiSekhar,Secretary,MinistryofWaterResourcesandformerSpecialSecretary,

MinistryofEnvironment,ForestandClimateChange• Mr.HemPande,Secretary,MinistryofConsumerAffairsandformerSpecialSecretary,

MinistryofEnvironment,ForestandClimateChange• Dr.AmitaPrasad,AdditionalSecretary,MinistryofEnvironment,ForestandClimate

Change• Dr.J.R.Bhatt,Advisor,MinistryofEnvironment,ForestandClimateChange• Mr.BrijeshSikka,Advisor(NationalRiverConservationDirectorate),Ministryof

Environment,ForestandClimateChange• Dr.KiritParikh,Chairman,ScientificandTechnicalAdvisoryGroup,TEEBIndia

Initiative• Dr.AjitPattnaik,PrincipalChiefConservatorofForest,GovernmentofOdisha• Dr.YugrajSinghYadava,Director,BayofBengalIntergovernmentalOrganization• Mr.L.BhagatonSingh,Director,LoktakDevelopmentAuthority• Mr.BharatJyoti,AdditionalPrincipalChiefConservatorofForest,GovernmentofBihar• Mr.EdgarEndrukaitis,Director,GIZ–IndiaBiodiversityProgramme• Mr.RavindraSingh,SeniorAdvisor,GIZ–IndiaBiodiversityProgramme• Mr.SanajaobaMeitie,ProjectManager,LoktakDevelopmentAuthority• Dr.GurdeepRastogi,SeniorScientist,ChilikaDevelopmentAuthority• Mr.RiteshSharma,TechnicalExpert,GIZ–IndiaBiodiversityProgramme• WetlandcommunitiesofChilika,LoktakandKanwarJheel

Acknowledgements

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The economics of ecosysTems and biodiversiTy-india iniTiaTive

The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity –India Initiative (TII) aims at making the values ofbiodiversity and linked ecosystem services explicit forconsideration and mainstreaming into developmental planning.TIItargetsactionatthepolicymakinglevels,thebusinessdecisionlevelandawarenessofcitizens.TIIhasprioritized its focus on three ecosystems - forests,inland wetlands, and coastal and marine ecosystems- to ensure that tangible outcomes can be integratedintopolicyandplanningfortheseecosystemsbasedonrecommendationsemergingfromTII.

In addition to the existing knowledge, TII envisionsestablishingnewpolicy-relevantevidencesforecosystemsvalues and their relation tohumanwell-being throughfield-based primary case studies in each of the threeecosystems. In response to an open call for proposalsfor conducting field-based case studies in the contextof relevant policy or management challenges forconservationandthesustainableuseofbiodiversityandecosystem services, over 200 proposals were received.A Scientific and Technical Advisory Group (STAG),comprisingeminentecologistsandeconomists,appraisedthe proposals and recommended 14 case studies for commissioningunderTII.

These studies in forests deal with issues such as hidden ecosystemservicesofforests,conflictsbetweenhumansandwildlife,andtheeconomicconsequencesofspeciesdecline.Inwetlands,thestudiesdrawlessonsonwaterresources management, community stewardship andequity, and the economics of hydrological regimechanges.Incoastalandmarineecosystems,thestudiesexplore the opportunities and economic efficiency ofinterventions such as eco-labelling, seasonal fishingbans, mangrove regeneration, and the challenge ofbycatchinmarinefisheries.

Thereportsofthese12casestudieshavebeenpublishedinthisTIIseries.

THE SERIES:

09 valuation of Planted Mangroves 10 Assessment of Eco-labelling as Tool for

Conservation and Sustainable use of biodiversity in Ashtamudi lake, Kerala

11 Economic valuation of Seasonal fishing ban on Marine fisheries Services in Selected Maritime States of India

12 Economic valuation of biodiversity loss: A Study of by-Catch from Marine fisheries in Andhra Pradesh

coasTal and marine ecosysTems

04 Economics of Ecosystem Services and biodiversity for Conservation and Sustainable Management of Inland Wetlands

05 Economics of biodiversity and Ecosystem Services of Rivers for Sustainable Management of Water Resources

06 Economic valuation of Ecosystem Services: A Case Study of Ousteri Wetland, Puducherry

07 Economic valuation of landscape level Wetland Ecosystem and its Services in little Rann of Kachchh, gujarat

08 Economic feasibility of Willow Removal from Wular lake, Jammu & Kashmir

weTlands

01 valuation of forest Ecosystem Services and biodiversity in The Western ghats: Case Study in uttara Kannada

02 The Economics and Efficacy of Elephant-Human Conflict Mitigation Measures in Southern India

03 An Economic Assessment of Economic Services Provided by vultures: A Case Study from the Kanha-Pench Corridor

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loktak wetlands complex are the lifeline of the north-eastern state of Manipur. Spanning over 469 sq km, these wetlands are source of fish, edible plants and freshwater, and are the only known natural habitat of globally endangered Manipur brow Antlered Deer (Rucervus eldi eldi ) Regulating the wetlands for hydropower generation has led to an alteration in the ecology of the lake ecosystem.

FIndIngS

n The natural capital asset worth of loktak is estimated at `63.8 billion (uS$ 1.06 billion), considering its value in terms of fisheries, aquatic plants, freshwater, nutrient retention, and biodiversity-linked non-use values.

n Phumdi, floating mats of vegetation which are a characteristic feature of these wetlands, help maintain water quality by trapping nutrients. Replacing this function through artificial techniques may impose an annual cost of `113.3 million (uS$ 1.9m).

n The worth of water provided from loktak for hydropower generation is `183.30 million (uS$ 3m). This value is not adequately accounted for in hydropower pricing. The ecological costs of lake water regime regulation are not appropriately factored in, which may lead to inefficient water management decisions.

n In order to maintain biodiversity and ecosystem services of loktak, regulation of water regimes will need to consider multiple objectives rather than just maximisation of hydropower production. by lowering water allocation for hydropower during the lean season, critical ecosystem processes can be maintained.

kEy MESSagES (loktak lakE)

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n Sustainable management of loktak water regimes should be based on a full range of biodiversity and ecosystems service values.

n Alternate sources for power are to be used during winter to ensure that ecosystem processes and services are maintained.

n Integrated wetland management should be pursued to ensure that ecosystem services and biodiversity can be maintained on a long-term basis.

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Kanwar Jheel is the largest floodplain wetland of Gandak-Kosi basin of North bihar. Spanning 67 sq km, the wetland buffers floods, recharges groundwater, sustains the livelihoods of farmers and fishers and is an important waterbird habitat. Land-use changes triggering the transformation of this multi-functional resource towards permanent agriculture have created a trade-off between provisioning and regulating ecosystem services.

FIndIngS

n The ecosystem services bundle of Kanwar Jheel operates at maximum value if the wetland is managed as it was in the 1970s. At that time, the entire wetland was inundated and a diverse land-use system was in place. This land-use system could have annually provided `87 million (uS$ 1.45m) worth of fisheries, `18.42 million (uS$ 307,000) worth of wetland agriculture and `9.07 million (uS$ 15,117) worth of fuelwood.

n If the current trend of conversion of the wetland to permanent agriculture continues, there will be a significant opportunity cost in the form of lost ecosystem services. It is estimated that the annual loss for fisheries would be up to `74.19 million (uS$ 1.2m), for acquatic plants up to `7.9 million (uS$ 131,667) and for groundwater recharge up to `9.66 million (uS$ 160,000). The gain from increased area under permanent agriculture would only be worth `12.67 million (uS$ 211,168). Therefore, by changing Kanwar Jheel from a wetland to permanent agriculture, the value of lost ecosystem services are not matched by the gains from agriculture.

n In terms of wetland management, perhaps the restoration of Kanwar

kEy MESSagES (kanWar jhEEl)

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n Management of Kanwar Jheel should aim to restore

hydrological regime

as in the 1980s, wherein nearly 67%

of the wetland was inundated for at least 6 months.

n Wetland zoning principles should be used to maximise

ecosystem services and biodiversity benefits. The core

of the wetland should be maintained for biodiversity,

whereas a mix of fisheries and subsistence level

wetland agriculture should be permitted in the rest of

the wetland to address livelihood needs.

n A management authority may be constituted for Kanwar

restoration

with representation of all stakeholders and sectors.

Jheel (towards the 1970s scenario) would be desirable for its diverse ecosystem benefits, especially for fishers. However, this would be unpopular among farmers due to loss of area available for agriculture. Therefore, ideal management would be to try and maintain a moderate hydrological regime (like the 1980s scenario), where benefits to farmers and fishers were possibly more equitable.

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Ecological restoration has brought life back in Chilika lagoon, the livelihood base of 200,000 fishers and 400,000 farmers. It has also improved habitat quality of this Ramsar Site, including a million wintering migratory waterbirds and a healthy population of Irrawaddy Dolphins.

FIndIngS

n Ecological restoration of Chilika sustains an annual benefit flow of `3.38 billion (uS$ 56m) worth tourism, `1.46 billion (uS$ 24m) worth fisheries, `34 million (uS$ .57m) worth aquatic vegetation and `14 million (uS$ .24m) worth inland navigation. In addition, significant benefits are received from the wetland ecosystem’s ability to buffer extreme events and provide bioprospecting potential.

n Sustaining these benefits has required a programmatic expense of `1.6 billion (uS$ 27m) since 1991 for an integrated lake basin management programme addressing various degradation drivers.

n Every rupee invested in Chilika has transformed into `4.9 worth of benefits through sustained flow of ecosystem services.

n Interventions aimed at improving the distribution of benefits from Chilika fisheries by strengthening Primary Fishermen Cooperative Societies have resulted in 21% increase in gross value realisation by fisher households and 13% savings in interest outgo on household debt.

n fisher communities of Mangalajodi have stopped waterbird hunting and shifted to ecotourism, so as to benefit from improved habitat quality of Chilika. This transition has increased their income over 2.5 times in the last two decades. besides income gains, awards and recognitions have brought considerable incentives to these communities for stewardship of Chilika.

kEy MESSagES (ChIlIka lakE)

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n Implementation of lake basin management should be

continued

to ensure that biodiversity and

ecosystem services are maintained on a long-term basis.

n Capacity building and finance for Fisher Cooperative

Societies are required to ensure that Chilika fishers are

incentivised for sustainable fisheries.

n Models of community managed ecotourism should

be incorporated in wetland management so that

communities gain livelihood benefits from ecological

restoration.

n This experience may be used as a motivation for other

coastal wetlands (e.g. Pulicat, Ashtamudi and vembanad-

Kol) waiting to go the Chilika way.


Photo: Ritesh Sharma

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction 1 1.1. TEEBIndiaInitiative 1.2. WetlandWiseUseandValuationofEcosystemServices 1.3. ReportPurposeandScope 1.4. ApproachandMethodology

2. lake Chilika, odisha 4 2.1. Context 2.2. BiophysicalSetting 2.3. Socio-economicSettings 2.4. EcosystemServices 2.4.1.Fisheries 2.4.2.AquaticVegetation 2.4.3.InlandNavigation 2.4.4.Regulation 2.4.5.CulturalServices 2.5. EconomicValuationofEcosystemServices 2.5.1.Fisheries 2.5.2.Vegetation 2.5.3.InlandNavigation 2.5.4.Tourism 2.5.5.EstimationofConsumerSurplusforDomesticTourists 2.5.6.EstimationofConsumerSurplusforForeignTourists 2.6. ManagementCosts 2.7. TransformingEcosystemServicesBenefitsintoLivelihoodOutcomes 2.7.1.PrimaryFisherCooperativeSocieties 2.7.2.HistoryofOrganisedFishinginChilika 2.7.3.DeclineofCommunity-ManagedFisheries

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2.7.4.FisheriesResourceManagementandImpacts 2.7.5.Community-ManagedEcotourismatManglajodi

3. loktak lake, Manipur 25 3.1. Context 3.2. BiophysicalSettings 3.3. Socio-economicSettings 3.4. EcosystemServices 3.4.1.Fisheries 3.4.2.AquaticVegetationasFood,Fuel,FodderandHandicrafts 3.4.3.NutrientRetentionbyPhumdi 3.4.4.CulturalValues 3.5. SectoralDevelopmentandEcosystemServicesTransformation 3.6. CurrentManagementArrangementsandGaps 3.7. EconomicValuationofEcosystemServices 3.8. WaterManagementOptionsforRebalancingEcosystemServices 3.9. Scenarios

4. kanwar jheel, Bihar 54 4.1. Context 4.2. BiophysicalSettings 4.3. Socio-economicSettings 4.4. EcosystemServices 4.4.1.Fisheries 4.4.2.WetlandAgriculture 4.4.3.AquaticVegetationasFoodandFodder 4.4.4.GroundwaterRecharge 4.4.5.FloodControl 4.4.6.CulturalandRecreationalValues 4.5. SectoralDevelopmentandEcosystemServicesTransformation 4.6. QuantificationandValuationofEcosystemServices 4.6.1.CaptureFisheries 4.6.2.CultureFishery 4.6.3.WetlandAgriculture 4.6.4.AquaticVegetationforHumanUse 4.6.5.GroundwaterRecharge 4.7. DistributionalImpacts 4.8. StrategiesforIntegratedManagement

references 73

list of tablesTable:1: OccupationalprofileofcommunitylivingaroundChilikaLakeTable:2: EstimationofgrosseconomicvalueofChilikafisheriesTable:3: EconomicallyimportantplantspeciesharvestedfromChilikaTable:4: ValueofeconomicallyimportantplantspeciesharvestedfromChilikaTable:5: Regressioncoefficients(DomesticTourists)Table:6: Regressioncoefficients–InternationaltouristsTable:7: EconomicvalueofChilikatourismTable:8: ChangesinselectsocioeconomicindicatorsofChilikafishersTable:9: DetailsofPFCSssurveyed

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Table:10: Quantityweightedprices(`/kg)Table:11: AverageloaninterestpaymentmadeperhouseholdTable:12: Estimatedhouseholdincome(1995)Table:13: Estimatedhouseholdincome(2014)Table:14: Seasonalvariationsinlanduse/coverwithinLoktakwetlandcomplexTable:15: RecordofspeciesatLoktakWetlandComplexandtheirconservationstatusTable:16: EcosystemservicesdescriptionTable:17: Changesinlanduse/coverwithinLoktakwetlandcomplexTable:18: OutcomesofSTAPinterventionsTable:19: DetailsoffishersandcapturefisheriescatchofLoktak(2013)Table:20: ChangesinfishyieldfromLoktakduring2003-2013Table:21: RequiredartificialwetlandareatoprovidenutrientretentionfunctionequivalenttophumdiTable:22: WTPregressionmodelsummaryTable:23: Summarystatistics,correlationsandresultsfromtheregressionanalysisTable:24: WatermanagementobjectivesforLoktakTable:25: ScenariosformanagingwaterlevelsinLoktakTable:26: OutcomesofScenariosevaluatedbystakeholdersTable:27: RecordofSpeciesatKanwarandtheirconservationStatusTable:28: OccupationprofileofcommunitieslivinginandaroundKanwarTable:29: EcosystemServicesDescriptionTable:30: LandscapetransformationmatrixTable:31: TrendsinpercentcompositionoffishcatchinKanwarJheelTable:32: EconomicvalueofKanwarJheelcapturefisheriesTable:33: EconomicvalueoffishyieldfromculturesourcesinKanwarcomplexTable:34: EconomicvalueofproducefromwetlandagricultureinKanwarcomplexTable:35: EconomicvalueofproducefromwetlandagricultureinKanwarcomplexTable:36: CropproductionfunctionTable:37: EconomicvalueofgroundwaterrechargefunctionTable:38: Ecosystembundlesoutcomes

list of FiguresFigure1: DistributionofwetlandsinbiogeographiczonesofIndiaFigure2: ConceptualframeworkforeconomicassessmentofecosystemservicesFigure3: LanduseandlandcoverchangeinlakeChilikabasin(1972-2011)Figure4: Relationshipbetweenflowpulses,salinitychangesandfishmigrationinChilikaFigure5: TrendinChilikafishcatch(1986-2015)Figure6: TrendsintouristarrivalsinChilika(1994-2013)Figure7: TrendsinIrrawaddyDolphinpopulationinChilika(2002-2014)Figure8: RecreationdemandcurvefordomestictouristsFigure9: RecreationdemandcurveforforeigntouristsFigure10: Biofunctionfornon-usevaluesofChilikaFigure11: EconomicvalueofselectecosystemservicesofChilikaFigure12: TrendsinprogrammaticexpensesofLakeChilika(1991-2013)Figure13: Component-wiseprogrammaticexpensesforLakeChilikaFigure14: GrossandnetrevenueperfisherhouseholdunderthreescenariosFigure15: AnnualincomepatternswithincommunitiesofMangalajodiFigure16: SangaideerpopulationinKLNPFigure17: WaterbirdpopulationinLoktakWetlandComplexFigure18: OccupationprofileindifferentzonesofLoktakWetlandComplexFigure19: KeydriversandpressuresimpactingLoktakLakeFigure20: TrendsinnumberofathaphumandphumdiareaincentralsectorofLoktak

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Figure21: EconomicbenefitsfromLoktakecosystemservicesFigure22: MonthlywaterbalanceforLoktakwetlandFigure23: Lakeelevation–capacityrelationship(2000)Figure24: Waterlevel–KLNPphumdigroundingFigure25: PowergenerationandwaterabstractionrelationshipFigure26: ScenariosofwaterallocationinLoktakLakeFigure27: SeasonaldynamicsoflanduseandlandcoverchangeinKanwar(2009-10)Figure28: NetchangeineconomicvalueoverBAUFigure29: StakeholderdisaggregatednetchangeineconomicvalueoverBAUFigure30: Ecosystemservicespreferencesofcommunitiesindifferentpartsofwetlandcomplex

list of MapsMap1: LoktakWetlandComplexDuring2010Map2: LoktakWetlandComplexDuring1970sMap3: LocationofKanwarWetlandComplexMap4: ChangeinLandUseandInundationRegimes

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1. Introduction

1.1. tEEB India InitiativeThe Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity –India Initiative (TII) was launched in 2010 by theMinistryofEnvironment,ForestsandClimateChange,GovernmentofIndia(MoEFCC,GoI)tohighlighttheeconomic consequences of loss of biological diversityand the associated decline in ecosystem services.Theinitiativeenvisionsmainstreamingofecosystemservicesandbiodiversityvaluesindevelopmentalprogrammingusinganevidencebuildingapproachforthreeecosystemtypes,namelyinlandwetlands,forestsandcoastalandmarineecosystems.Twelvedemonstrationprojectshavebeensupportedundertheinitiativetoidentifypathwaysforapplyingeconomics-basedapproachesforimprovedmanagementofecosystemservicesandbiodiversity.

Inclusion of wetlands (as inland wetlands andas components of coastal and marine ecosystems)as prioritywithinTII is a significant opportunity forincreasing visibility of the value of their ecosystemservicesandbiodiversityinpolicyanddecision-makingprocesses. Wetlands underpin societal well-being ina number ofways, yet are under threat from a rangeof anthropogenic and non-anthropogenic drivers andpressures.Theresultantlossesinecosystemservicesandbiodiversityhavedirecteconomicrepercussions,whichare unfortunately underestimated. Making the valueofwetlandsvisibletoeconomiesandsocietycreatesanevidence base to pave theway formore targeted andcost-effectivesolutions.

1.2. Wetland Wise use and valuation of Ecosystem ServicesWetlandsareecosystemslocatedattheinterfaceoflandand water. Combining attributes of both terrestrialand purely aquatic ecosystems, wetlands are oftencharacterisedbythepresenceofpermanentorseasonalinundation, hydric soils and hydrophytic vegetation.The Ramsar Convention adopts a broad definitionof wetlands. As per Article 1.1 of the Convention,wetlands are ‘areas of marsh, fen, peatland or water,whethernaturalorartificial,permanentortemporary,withwater that is staticorflowing, fresh,brackishorsalt,includingareasofmarinewater,thedepthofwhichatlowtidedoesnotexceedsixmeters.Article2.1statesthat wetlands may incorporate riparian and coastalzones adjacent to thewetlands, and islands or bodiesofmarinewaterdeeperthansixmetersatlowtidelyingwithinthewetlands.Thedefinitionthuscoversalargenumberofinlandwetlands(suchasswamps,marshes,

lakes and peatlands); coastal and near-shore marinewetlands(suchascoralreefs,mangroves,seagrassbedsandestuaries)andhumanmadewetlands(suchasricepaddyfields,dams,reservoirsandfishponds).

The extremes of climatic, geological andtopographic diversity in India create conduciveconditions for sustaining a rich diversity ofwetlands.TheserangefromhighaltitudelakesintheHimalayas,floodplainsandmarshesintheGangetic

Brahmaputra alluvial plains, saline flats in theGreatIndianDesert,tanksandreservoirsintheDeccanregionandextensivemangrovemarshesandcoralreefareasstraddlingthecountry’s8000kmcoastlineontheeastandwest.AspertheNationalWetlandAtlas, thetotal extentofwetlands is15.26millionha,which isequivalenttonearly4.63%ofthegeographicalareaofthe country. Inlandwetlands account for nearly 69%(10.56millionha)ofthetotalarea.Riversandriverinewetlands constitute 35% of the total wetland area inthe country, and are the predominant wetland typein several bio-geographic regions: theGangetic plains(56%), Himalayas (74%), Trans-Himalayas (59%),North-east (79%), Semi-arid (34%) and theWesternGhats(30%).(Figure1).WithintheDeccan,reservoirsandbarragesform33%ofitswetlandarea.WithintheDesert, inter-tidal mudflats account for 81% of thetotalarea.

Figure 1: distribution of wetlands in biogeographic zones of India

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Wetlands are managed for wise use. Theapproach recognises that stemming wetland loss and degradation requires incorporation of linkagesbetweenpeopleandwetlands,andtherebyemphasisesthat human use of these ecosystems on a sustainablebasis is compatible with conservation (Finlayson etal., 2011). The Ramsar Convention on Wetlandsdefineswiseuseas“themaintenanceoftheirecologicalcharacter, achieved through the implementation ofecosystemapproaches,withinthecontextofsustainabledevelopment”.Ecologicalcharacteristhecombinationof ecosystem components, processes and benefits/services that characterise the wetland at a given point in time. An ecosystem approach calls for consideringthe complex relationship between various ecosystemelements and integrated management of land, waterandlivingresources.Throughemphasisonsustainabledevelopment, wise use calls for resource use patternswhich can ensure that human dependence on wetlands canbemaintainednotonlyinthepresent,butalsointhefuture.Seenintotality,wiseusecallsformaintainingwetlandvaluesandfunctionsinordertoensureflowofbenefitsfromwetlands(theirecosystemservices)inthepresentaswellasthefuture.

Valueis‘thecontributionofanactionorobjecttouserspecifiedgoals,objectivesorconditions’(Farberetal.,2002).Valuationis“theprocessofexpressingavaluefor a particular good or service…in terms of something that can be counted, often money, but also throughmethodsandmeasuresfromotherdisciplines(sociology,ecologyandsoon)”(ibid).Valuationinvolvesassigningrelative weights to the various aspects of individual andsocialdecision-makingproblems,withtheweightsbeing reflectionsof the goals andworldwide viewsofthe community, society and culture of individuals(Costanza, 1991; North, 1994). Economic valuationis an expression of these weights in monetary terms,making them comparable with alternate uses, whichoften have benefits and costs flows defined in similarunits.Itisessentiallyananthropocentricwayoflookingat nature, wherein values are assigned to the extent

that these fulfill and directly or indirectly contributeto human well- being (positive change in well-beinghereinaftertermedasbenefitafterTEEB2012).

Achievingwise use requires addressing tradeoffsbetweenvaluespeopleholdforwetlands.Functioningwetlands produce multiple provisioning, regulatingand cultural services. Since they are interlinked, theyare affected either positively or adversely in responsetowetlanduse in thecontextofwiderdevelopmentalprograming. Some services co-vary positively (forexample, improving flood buffering capacity ofwetlands can support increased groundwater recharge and help maintain productive fisheries), whereas inseveral circumstances ecosystem services may co-varynegatively (use ofwetlands for permanent agriculturemay reduce capability ofwetlands tomoderatewaterregimes).

As public goods, a large category of wetlandecosystemservicesarenotconsideredandincorporatedin public policy. Economic values make explicit theimpactofpublicpolicyorprivatedecisionsonecosystemservice values, and enable expression of these valuechangesinunitsthatallowfortheirinclusioninpublicdecisionmaking(Mooneyetal.,2005).Itisameansofcommunicatingthevalueofwetlandecosystemservicesto different groups of people using a language thatspeaks to dominant economic and political viewpoints across the world. Economic valuation improves thepossibilityofachievingsounddecisionsonwetlanduseandmanagement,byactingasa feedbackmechanismalerting society on the consequences of consumptionchoicesandbehavior(Zavetoski,2004).

1.3. report purpose and ScopeTIIusesanevidencebuildingapproachtodemonstrateapplicationofecosystemserviceseconomicstowetlandmanagement contexts. The current report presents asynthesisofeconomicassessmentsofwetlandecosystemservices at following three sites:

Site I:LakeChilika,acoastal lagooninOdishaState; the case study provides insights into economic

As public goods, a large category of wetland ecosystem services are not considered in public policy. Economic valuation seeks to effectively communicate the value of these services, enabling sound decisions on wetland use

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efficiency of ecological restoration and mechanismsthrough which enhanced flow of ecosystem servicestransformintotangiblelivelihoodoutcomes

Site II: Loktak Lake, a floodplain lake inManipur; the case study uses economic assessmentsto inform water management options for maintaining biodiversityandecosystemservicesvalues

Site III: Kanwar Jheel, a floodplain wetlandcomplex of Gandak Kosi basin in North Bihar; thecase study uses economic assessment to demonstratetheimplicationsofchanginglanduse,andoptionsforhydrologicalrestoration

The three case studies, along with 4 othersimplementedbyTIIpartnership,willbecollated intoa sectoral synthesis report forwetlands.The synthesisaims to provide recommendations for mainstreaming valuesofwetlandecosystemservicesintodevelopmentalprogramming.

1.4. approach and MethodologyA conceptual approach linking ecosystem services,benefitsandvalues,governanceanddirectandindirectdriversusedintheanalysisofcasestudiesispresentedinFigure2. It also showsecosystemcomponents andprocesses,aswellaslivelihoodcapitalsconditiondeliveryofecosystemservices,whichoperateinaninstitutionalspace. The values and benefits are considered to bederived from these ecosystem services, as transformedby prevailing formal and informal institutions. Thevaluesinfluencedecisionmaking,whichleadtoarangeofdirectand indirectdrivers, subsequentlymodifyingecosystem components, processes, livelihood capitalsand ultimately ecosystem services. Transformationsalso lead to ecosystem services tradeoffs, leading todifferentialimpactsonstakeholders.

The analytical methodology is set in foursteps and is aimed at uncovering various reasons for

Figure 2: Conceptual framework for economic assessment of ecosystem services

lLandscapeplanningl Integrated managementlRegulationlPropertyrightslMarketbasedinstruments

Biophysical SettingsEcosystemComponents&Processes

lEconomicl SociallEcological

lFragmentationofwaterregimeslCatchmentdegradationlPollutionl Species InvasionlUnregulatedtourismlResourcesoverharvesting

lDemographic l SociopoliticallEconomic lScience&technology

ClimateChange

livelihood SettingsLivelihoodCapitals&Interactions

Institutions

Ecosystem Services

p

r C

tradeoffs from altered Ecosystem Services

r

p C

External drivers

direct drivers

Indirect drivers

governance & decision Making

Values & Benefits

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2. lake Chilika, odisha

2.1. ContextChilika, a brackish water coastal lagoon situated inOdisha, forms the base of livelihood security formorethan0.2millionfishersand0.4millionfarmersliving in and around the wetland and its adjoiningcatchments.Thelagoonspansanareaof1,165km2 and isflankedbyephemeralfloodplainsextending toover400km2.Overonemillionmigratorybirdscommonlywinter here. Chilika is one of only two lagoons intheworld that supports IrrawaddyDolphin (Orcaella

brevirostris)populations.Barkudia insularis, a limblessskink,isendemictoChilika.Thediverseanddynamicassemblageoffish, invertebrateandcrustaceanspeciesprovidethebasisofrichfishery.ChilikawasdesignatedasaWetlandofInternationalImportance(RamsarSiteundertheConventiononWetlands)bytheGovernmentofIndiain1981.

Channelisation of floodplains, increasedagriculture and decreasing forest cover in the direct catchments mobilised soil transport and increasedthe overall sedimentation of the lake (Das and Jena,2008).Coupledwith thenorthward littoral sediment

which stakeholders value ecosystem services. It alsoidentifies which tradeoffs need to be addressed whilemaking decisions regarding wetland management.The framework enables comparison of alternatemanagement regimes through their consequences onecosystemservices.

Thefirststepoftheframeworkinvolvesdefiningthe policy context. Ecosystem services are identifiedbasedonanalysisofbiophysicalandlivelihoodsettings.An analysis of sectoral developmental planningencapsulates institutional arrangements that influenceecosystemservices.These lead tokeypolicyquestionsthatneedtobeansweredthroughtheecosystemservicesassessment.

The second step involves construction of scenarios

andlinkedecosystemservicesbundles,whichcanhelpmake a comparison between various managementoptions.

The third step is aimed at evaluating scenarios.Thisincludesdeterminingthevariousecosystemservicesbundles that are associatedwith each scenario, aswellas analysing the socio-political context associatedwitheachscenario.Evaluationinvolvesarangeofeconomicand non-economic metrics, which can capture theimplicationsofchangeinecosystemprovision.

The fourth and final step involves creating thebasisfordecision-making.Itisaimedatderivingspecificmanagement recommendations, enabling integrationof wetland ecosystem services in developmentalprogramming.

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drift, thesechanges ledtothechokingof thechannel entrance from the Bay of Bengal. Average salinity within the lake reduced from 13.2 ppt (parts perthousand) in1960-61 (JhingranandNatrajan,1966)to 1.4–6.3 ppt in 1995 (Banerjee et al., 1998). Thisconcomitantly led to a decline in fisheries, with theannualaveragelandingdecliningfrom8600kgto1702kg between 1985-86 and 1998-99 (Mohapatra et al.,2007).The area underweeds increased from 20 km2 in1972to523km2inOctober,2000(WISA,2004).Introduction of shrimp culture, as well as overalldecline in fisheries, led to a gradual breakdown oftraditional resource management systems. There wasan occupational displacement due to loss of fishinggrounds of the traditional fishing communities,and resentment between traditional fishers and theimmigrants(Dujovny,2009).Chilikafisheriesgraduallyconverted from a “community-managed fishery” to“contested-common”, wherein non-fishers graduallyexertedpressureformorefishingrights.ThedeclineinecosystemcomponentsandprocessesledtoinclusionofChilikaintheRamsarConvention’sMontreuxRecordin1993.

Concerned over the rapid decline of Chilika,the Government of Odisha created the ChilikaDevelopment Authority (CDA) in 1991 under theaegis of Department of Forests and Environment, asthenodalagencytoundertakemeasuresforecologicalrestoration. The institutional design of the authorityhas theChiefMinisterof theGovernmentofOdishaas thechairperson.Thegoverningbody isconstitutedby secretaries of all concerned departments; politicalrepresentatives as well as representatives of fishercommunities. With financial support from the stategovernmentandtheMinistryofEnvironment,severalprogrammes were initiated, including treatment ofdegraded catchments, hydro-biological monitoring,sustainable development of fisheries, wildlifeconservation, community participation, developmentand capacity building at various levels. In 2000, amajorhydrologicalinterventionintheformofopeningof a newmouth to the seawas undertaken based onmodeling,andstakeholderconsultations.

The hydrological intervention, followed byan intensive programme of participatory watershedmanagement, aimed to reduce theoverall silt loadingfrom the direct catchments. A series of awarenesscampaigns on values and functions of the wetland system, particularly amongst the villages and schoolchildren, were undertaken in participation with civilsociety.AvisitorcentreatSatapadawasconstructedas

a hub of these activities. Specific initiativeswere alsoundertaken to manage tourism by building capacityof the boatmen association.To improve connectivityin island villages, a ferry services for people andvehicleswaslaunchedbetweenSatpadaandJahnikuda,benefitting more than 70,000 people and drasticallyreducing travel time between Berhampur and Puri.CDA has also strengthened fishing infrastructurethroughtheconstructionoflandingcentersandjetties.WomanSHG(Self-HelpGroups)wereorganisedandtrainedtoundertakeenterprisesonmanufactureofdryfishandcrabfattening.

The restoration initiatives had several positive impacts for the wetland ecosystem. Restoration ofmarine flow by opening a newmouth to the Bay ofBengal in2000restored thehydrological regimesandre-establishedsalinityregimes.Recoveryofthefisheriesand biodiversity was rapid. The average fish landingduring 2001-14 was nearly 13,000 MT. The annualcensus by CDA reported an increase in the numberofIrrawaddyDolphinswithinChilikafrom89to158individualsbetween2003and2014,andanincreaseinhabitatuse,improvedbreeding,dispersalanddeclineinmortalityrates.Theseagrassmeadowsexpandedfrom20km2in2000to80km2atpresent.Animprovementof the Chilika habitat, in particular the increase indolphins,has led to a resurgenceofwetland tourism,which had dwindled due to degradation.The annualnumber of tourists visiting the wetland from 2000-2014averaged0.3million—anincreaseofover60%ascomparedto1994-1999.

Based on the positive changes noticed in theecologicalcharacter,theMinistryofEnvironmentandForestsrequestedtheRamsarConventiontoremovethesitefromtheMontreuxRecord.Followinganadvisorymission in December 2001, the site was de-listedand the interventionwas recognisedwith theRamsarWetland Conservation Award and the Evian SpecialPrize for “wetland conservation and managementinitiatives”.Buildingontheknowledge-basedevelopedand interventions so far, an integrated managementplanning framework has been developed to guidewetlandmanagement.

RestorationofLakeChilikastandsoutasauniqueeffortbenefittingbiodiversityandecosystemprocesses,as well as the livelihoods of dependent communities.EconomicassessmentofecosystemservicesofChilikawas therefore included as one of the three case studies to:l Assess economic benefits resulting from ecological

restoration

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l Determinecost-effectivenessofecologicalrestorationl Identify models of community-based incentive

mechanisms,basedonimprovedecosystemservicesandbiodiversityvalues.

2.2. Biophysical SettingChilika is an assemblage of shallow to very shallowmarine, brackish and freshwater ecosystems. Thelagoon’s origin is attributed to a complex geologicprocess involvingdepositionofbeachridgesandspitsenclosingabodyofseawaterwithintheBayofBengal.ChilikaformedapartoftheBayabout6,000yearsago,andservedtobeitsgulfduringPleistocene.ThecurrentformofChilikaisattributedtosuccessiverecessionofthecoastline,aidedbymarineandfluvialdynamicsover6–7,000years(Phlegar,1969).

LakeChilikaformsapartofthedeltaicsegmentof theRiverMahanadi drainage basin.The total areaof the direct basin, including thewetland, its islandsandcoastalstripis5,020km2.Inflowsintothewetlandare received from Mahanadi River tributaries (Daya,Bhargabi,LunaandMakara),streamsfromthewesterncatchments(1560km2),runoffandirrigationdrainagefromthedeltaregion(2250km2).

Thewesterncatchmentscompriserollingplains,mostly 30-150m abovemsl in the north; higher hillsup to 600m in the northern andwestern parts (withlateritesoils,anddeepgulliesandravines interspersed

withalluvium-filleddepressions);andaportionoftheEasternGhatsinthewestandsouthwestatover600m(GhoshandPattnaik,2005).ThedeltafractionoftheChilikaBasin is low-lying (less than 30m abovemsl)alluviallanddissectedbytheDaya,BhargaviandNunadistributary channels of the Mahanadi River, as wellas rivers carrying only local runoff, in particular theMalagunithatdrainsintotheDayaRiver.

Agriculture is the predominant land use,comprising 35% of Chilika’s catchment. Dense andopen deciduous forests follow next, accounting for33%ofthelanduse.TheareaunderforestsismajorlyconfinedtothehillsoftheEasternGhats,locatedonthecrownofthewesterncatchment.Lowerelevationsandalluvialplainsarealmostexclusivelyusedforintensiveagriculture. Rice and cashew are respectively theprimaryfoodandcashcropscultivatedinthewetlandcatchments.The land use and land cover of the lakebasinindicateagradualintensificationofdevelopmentalactivities.WithintheMahanadiDelta,theoveralldenseforest coverhas declined from1,161km2 in1975 to920km2in2010,withanincreaseinopenforestareafrom2,127 km2 to 2,442 km2. Similarly,within lakebasin,denseforestshavebeenreplacedbyopenforests,and agricultural land has turned into settlements and aquaculture in the last four decades (1972-2011) (Figure3).Thelakebasinisinhabitedby2.58million

Figure 3: land use and land cover change in lake Chilika basin (1972-2011)

197219902011Settlement

197219902011Agriculture

197219902011Forests

197219902011Wetlands (Chilika)

197219902011Wetlands (Within

catchments)

2500

2000

1500

1000

500

0

Area

(Sq.

km.)

RiversandwaterbodiesSeasonalyfloodedagricultureMarshesSandyareasAquacultureMarshesAquaticvegetationOpenwaterWetlands areaPlantationScrubOpenDenseAgriculture areaUrbanRural

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people, of which 37% is urban. There are presently8 major urban centers within the lake basin. Thepopulation density of the lake basin has increasedfrom375to559personsperkm2during1971-2011,ascomparedto140-236personsperkm2 for the State ofOdisha

The water regimes of Chilika can be broadlyclassified into three sub-systems.The freshwaterflowsarereceivedthroughthetributariesofRiverMahanadiandthestreamsofthewesterncatchment.Flowsfromthe Bay of Bengal form the third sub system, whichconnects to Chilika through the lake mouths (atMagarmukhandGabakund)andthePalurCanalintheextremesouth.RiverMahanadiistheprincipalsourceoffreshwaterforChilika.Itcreatesacomplexarc-likedeltabeginningatNaraj(nearCuttack),dividingintothree distributaries, namely Kuakhai, Kathjodi andBirupa. Daya and Bhargabi, which are distributariesof Kuakhai, bring the Mahanadi flows to Chilika.The highly ravenous and gullied western catchmentis drained by 47 streams, of which eight, namelyBadaghati, Badanai, Badasankha, Kansari, Kusumi,Mangalajodi,SaliaandTarimiarethemajorones.Theflowinthesestreamsismainlyduringmonsoons.

Lake Chilika, as indicated by hydrologicalmonitoringdatacollectedsince1999,annuallyreceives5,178millioncubicmetresoffreshwaterfromtheriversystems,ofwhich75%iscontributedbytheMahanadiDeltariversystem.TheflowsreceivedfromMahanadidelta system form around 6% of the undividedflows upstream of Naraj. The lake is also subject tosedimentation from its extensive catchments as wellfrom the sea. The average annual sediment loadingintothelakeis0.8millionmetrictonnes,ofwhichtheMahanadisystemcontributed76%.Thelakeisfillingwithsediment3-5timesasfastas100yearsagoatthemarginsofthenorthernandsouthernsectors,and30%higheratthemarginsofthecentralsector.

The longshore sediment transport continues northwardsthroughouttheyear.Alongtheeastcoast,highannuallittoralsedimentdrift(oftheorderof1.2millioncubicmeters)causestheseainlettocontinuallyshiftnorthwards,leadingtothedevelopmentofalongnarrowchannelrunningparalleltothecoast.Theinletconditionisrenderedunstableduetoreductionintidalprism,withincreasinglengthofthechannel.

Assessment of water quality parametersindicate that Lake Chilika is a shallow, well-mixed,nutrient-rich water body that is generally turbid andremainsalkaline throughout theyear.The lake iswelloxygenated throughout the year due to its large size,

highphotosyntheticactivityandwindchurningeffects.A unique salinity gradient from the northern sectorto the southern sector during monsoon and post-monsoon, and towards the outer channel in the pre-monsoonperiodismaintainedinthelake.Notably,thisgradienthasbeenre-establishedafter thehydrologicalintervention of September 2000, and hasmaintainedsincethen.

Chilika and its fringe areas, along with theislands,areahabitatfor399phytoplankton,14algae,726 plants, 37 zooplankton, 61 protozoa, 6 porifera,7 coelentrates,29platyhelminthes,36nematodes,31annelids, 136mollusca,31 crustacea,31decapoda,5echinoderms, 1 protochordata, 318 fish, 7 amphibia,30reptilia,225birdsand19mammals.Thelakeisalsoahabitatforsomerareandendangeredspecies.

During 1990, reduced salinity and increasednutrient load from the catchment greatly favoureluxuriant growthof a large variety ofmacrophytes inChilika.Asaresultofreductioninsalinityanddepthin the northern sector, Paspalidium Germinatum, Ceratophyllum Demersum, and Panicum Repens were restrictedtoareaswithhigherdepthandsalinity,inthesouthern sector (Mohapatra, 1998).Post hydrologicalintervention, within the northern sector, the salinityremainswithin5pptduringmonsoonandwinter,butincreases during summer to about 15 ppt.With therevivalofthesalinityregimeofthelake,theareaunderEicchornia Crassipes rapidly declined, which increasedtheweed-freeareafrom333km2to505km2.However,there was a rapid increase in the area under Phragmites (whichisknowntotoleratesalinityupto18ppt).

LakeChilikaprovidesasuitablehabitatforarangeofcatadromous,anadromousandendemicfinfishandshellfish species.Asper assessmentsbyCDA,Chilikaharbours318fishspeciesbelongingto83familiesand20orders.Ofthis,59aretruefreshwater,76aremarineand 182 are euryhaline species. In addition to this,29 speciesofprawnand35 speciesof crabare foundin the lake (Satpathy and Panda, 2009). Overall, 73species contribute to the commercial landing (speciescontributing more than 1% to the total landing)(Mohapatra et al.,2007).Morethan70-75%offishesand70%ofmarineprawnsandcrabswhichcontributeto the Chilika fishery are migratory (Banerjee et al., 1998 and Mohanty, 2002). Migration patterns ofcatadromousandanadromousspeciesaretriggeredbysalinitychanges(Figure4).

Theannualtotalfish,prawnandcrabcatchfromChilikarangedbetween9,955and14,050MTduring2001-2015. There was a sharp fall in yield during

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1985-1999 (from an annual total landing of 8,669MTto1,745MT).Thehydrologicalinterventionhasplayed a distinct positive role in restoring the catch.The potential annual fish yield of Lake Chilika wasassessedin2003-04tobe27,153MT,providedalltheenvironmentparametersfunctionatanoptimumlevel,including the unhindered recruitment of fish, prawnandcrab,bothfromriverineandmarinesources.Themaximumsustainableyield(MSY)calculatedfromthecatchandeffortindicatedthatthesystemcouldsustainacatchof1,053-1,158MT/month,i.e.12,636-13,896MT/year(CIFRI,2006).Thecurrentproductionlevelsalmostmatchuptothepotentialyields.

Orcaella Brevirostris (Irrawaddy dolphin) is theflagship cetacean inhabiting Lake Chilika. Chilika isone of only two lagoons in the world that supportsIrrawaddyDolphinpopulations,theotherbeingLakeSongkhlainCambodia.ThespeciesisfoundconfinedwithinAsia,betweenChilikaandIndonesia.Irrawaddydolphinsaregloballythreatened,buthaveanincreasingpopulation inChilika. In 2014, the total populationwasestimatedtobe158.

Chilikaisknownforharbouringarangeofbirdspecies, which apart from being a key component ofitsbiodiversity,arealsoatouristdelight.AssessmentofdiversityandthenumberofbirdsinChilikahasbeensystematicallycarriedoutbyBombayNaturalHistorySociety (BNHS) since 2000. Lake Chilika provideshabitat to 224 bird species belonging to 50 families(ibid), including 129 waterbird species belonging to

19families.Atotalof97ofintercontinentalmigrantscome from Arctic Russia, West Asia, Europe, North East Siberia and Mongolia. Northern Pintail (Anas Acuta) and Gadwall (Anas Srepera) are the most common species amongst the ducks and geese found in the lake. The lake also provides habitat to ninethreatened birds species, namely Dalmitian Pelican(Pelecanus Crispus), Pallas Fish Eagle (Haliaeetus Leucoryphus), Indian Skimmer (Rynchops Albicollis),SpoonbillSandpiper(Calidris Pygmeus),LesserWhite-fronted Goose (Anser Erythropus) and Great Knot(Calidris Tenuirostris).

Congregation of birds helps in recycling thenutrientsbackintothesystemthroughguanodroppings.Ducksandgeeseadd33.8tofnitrogenand10.5tofphosphorous(intheformofguano)tothelake,whichhelpsinhighbiomassproductionofmacrophytesandlucrative fisheries in Chilika. Foraging by waterbirdshelps in thinning the lakevegetationandenables freemovementoffish.

Thefact thatChilikahasestablished intoanewecological regime post hydrological restoration wastested when the region was hit by a severe tropicalcycloneonOctober12,2013.Stronggales, torrentialdownpour, and floods churned the entire wetland and shifted it once again towards predominantlyfreshwaterconditions,prevailingforoverthreemonths.The sea grass beds were heavily damaged, and sowere theecologicalhabitats.Athird inletwasopened between the existing Dhalabala and Gabakunda

Figure 4: Relationship between flow pulses, salinity changes and fish migration in Chilika

250

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Laketoseamigrationofprawn,threadfins,perchesandclupeidsbrood

Sea to lake migration of threadfins,perchesandclupeidsjuveniles

Sea to lake migration of broodofperches

Rivertolakemigrationofbroodofminorcarpsandjuvenilesthreadfins,catfishesandfeatherbacks

LaketorivermigrationofT. ilisha and R. corsula

Laketoseamigrationofprawnandmulletbrood

Laketoseamigrationofbroodofperchesandthreadfins

Sea to lake migration of mullet and prawn juveniles

Rivertolakemigrationof freshwater prawn

Salin

ity(p

pt)

FreshwaterFlowSalinity(ppt)

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inlets.However,ecologicalmonitoringduringthe lastyear has indicated maintenance of fish catch levels,reestablishment of sea grass beds, and restoration ofsalinitydynamics.

2.3. Socio-economic SettingsThe shorelines of Chilika are densely populated,especially on the southern, central and northernsector margins. There are 424 villages within 2 kmof thewetlandboundary (including all island villageson the seaward side), falling within eight blocks ofthree districts (namely, Puri, Khurda and Ganjam).Livelihood systems prevailing in and around LakeChilika are mainly related to fisheries, agriculture,pettybusinessorthegovernmentsector.Fishery-basedlivelihoodsincludefishers,smalltimefishtraders(whoprocurefish fromthefishers/localmarkets and sell inareas adjoiningChilika),middlemen and commissionagents (who procure fish from fishers and primarilyindulgeinexporttomarketsoutsideChilika).

Fishing and fish trade are the predominantactivities,supportinglivelihoodsof64%oftheworkingpopulation(Table1).Agriculturefollowsnext,beingtheprimaryoccupationof27%ofthepopulation.Therestdrawssustenancethroughemploymentintheprivateorgovernment sectorand/orundertakingpettybusiness.The northern and central sectors, fed by MahanadiDelta Rivers and western catchment tributarieshave relatively higher proportion of the populationdependentonagriculture(40%and56%respectively)ascomparedtofisheries (48%and33%respectively).The southern sector and outer channel have the highest proportion of fish traders and middlemen. Fishersettlements are dispersed over 152 revenue villages.Theiroverallpopulationin2009was403,356,ofwhichthefisherhouseholdsformed36%.Projectingfromthedataonworkforceparticipation,thenumberofactive

fisherswasestimatedtobe34,700andthenumberofmiddlemenandtraderswasaround2,900.

Organised fishing in Chilika dates back to the17th century,wherein it is believed that Srihari SevakMansingh settled in the hostile but secure islandenvironsandgraduallysettledvillagesinandaroundthewetland,whichearned livelihoodthroughagriculture,fisheries, andmanufacturing salt. Fisheries inChilikaweretakenupasanoccupationbytheloweststrataofthesociety,primarilybelonging to sevenmajor sub-casteseg.Keuta,Kartia,Kandara,Gokha,Nolia, andTiara.Thefishersestablishedauniquesystemofgovernancebased on a complex system of resource partitioning,wherebyaccessbyeachfishergroupwasbasedonthespecies caught (Sekhar, 2007). The norms includedsetting spatial limits (what places to fish), temporallimits (seasonality), gear restrictions (what harvestinggearmaybeused),andphysicallimits(whatsizesmaybefished).Thesewere traditionally set andwere evenexchanged during periods of scarcity and calamities(ibid). Each fisher village had an organisation called‘desh’, responsible for settling disputes, administeringcommon property resources and organising collectivefishing for communal purposes (Samal and Meher,2003). Presently, Primary Fishermen CooperativeSocieties (PFCS) are the key community institutionsthat influence fishers’ efforts and local managementwithin the wetland. These institutions were nearlydecimated due to onset of highly commercial andcapital-intensive shrimp farming by non-fishers, buthave remergeddue to strategic effortsmadebyCDAandtheDepartmentofFisheries.

ThehydrologicalinterventioninChilikaLakeledtoasignificantrecoveryofoverallaestheticfeatures,mostnotablydeclineinfreshwaterweedsandimprovementinpopulationandhabitatusebywaterbirdsanddolphins.Asaconsequence,therehasbeenresurgenceinChilika

Table 1: Occupational profile of community living around Chilika Lake

NorthernSector CentralSector Southern Sector OuterChannel Average

Fishing 47% 33% 76% 78% 59%

Fishtrading 1% 3% 6% 8% 5%

Middleman ~1% ~1% ~1% <0.5% ~1%

Shrimp farmer <0.5% <0.5% <0.5% <0.5% <0.5%

Agriculture farming 40% 56% 4% 6% 27%

PettyBusiness 4% 2% 3% 4% 3%

Govt./Privateservice <0.5% ~1% ~1% ~1% ~1%

Others 4% 4% 10% 3% 6%a

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tourism, providing an opportunity for livelihooddiversificationandassetbuilding.

As with fisheries, collective management oftourism emerged as a strategy to avoid competitionandconflicts.Theuptakewasthefastestamongstouterchannel villages, which had to lose their traditionalfishing groundsdue to theopeningof anewmouth.Thecommunitiesinitiallyengagedinprotests,butweresoontoinvestintourism,buildingonthefactthattherewasan increase inhabitatusebydolphinswithin theouterchannelasthedisturbancesduetofishingactivityweredrasticallyreduced.Eightnewfisherassociationswere registered since 2000. Mostly called the touristmotorboat associations, these community institutionshave taken up the task of assigning tourists to the memberboats, liaisingwith the taxidrivers to ensurea steady inflow of tourists to the association and incertain cases,maintaining infrastructure such as boatjetties,fastfoodjoints,toiletsandotheramenities.Themembersoftheassociationaremostlycastefishers(90%ofthemembership).Thedegreeoftrustincertainnewassociations isstillnotfullydeveloped,aswasevidentinaveryviolent conflict atSatapadaon the rights toattendthetourists.

The average annual household income was assessedtobe`26,403,orapercapitaannualincomeof `4,632.Farming,fishingandpettybusinessformedthelowestincomegroups,whereasthemiddlemenandshrimp farmers fare the highest. Amongst livelihoodsystems that are related to fisheries, fishing yieldsthe lowest income, whereas the jobs that relate tohigher value chain, i.e trading and fish-agents, havesignificantlyhigher average incomes (30%and124%higher than fishing respectively). Shrimp farming,whichisanillegalpracticewithinthelakesystem,alsoyields higher incomes (104% higher than fisheries).Comparisonofincomesacrossvarioussectorsindicatesthatthefishagentshavethehighestincomes,whiletheagriculturefarmershavethelowestincomes(exceptinnorthernsector).

Incomesarestronglycorrelatedtoassetownership.Fishingwithinthelakeisacollectiveactivity.Atypicalfishing expedition involves 4-6 fishers per boat, eachgettinganequal shareof thecatchvalue.Agriculturallandprovidesanimportantmeansofassetdiversificationtohouseholds.Presently,30%of thehouseholdsownland,withtheaveragelandholdingbeing1.5acresperhousehold.Fishagentshavethemaximumproportionofhouseholdsowningland(92%),followedbyagriculturefarmers(40%).Onanaverage,69%ofthehouseholdsareindebted.Indebtednessisparticularlyhighamongst

theagriculturefarmers(83%)andfishers(74%).Mostof the loansare sourced frominformalcredit sources,i.e localmoneylenders(74%)andfriendsandrelatives(24%). Formal credit institutions such as banks, areused for thepurposeof takingcreditbyonly26%ofthe respondent households. The average amount ofloan taken per indebted household was estimated tobe`24,232,whichisalmostcomparabletotheannualhousehold income from fisheries (`24,006). Of this,an average of 83%was provided by informal sources(majoritybeinglocalmoneylenders(68%),followedbyrelativesandfriends).

TheadultliteracyrateamongstvillagesinChilikawasassessedtobe77%.Fishers,fishtradersandpettytraders’householdshadliterateadultpopulationsbelowaverage. While almost all the villages had primaryschools,theproportionofvillageswithmiddleandhighschoolswas81%and73%respectively.Therewere17institutionsimpartingtechnical/vocationalcourses.

Ingeneral,thecoastalareasofOdishahaveverylowsanitation.Withinthesurvey,thiswasreflectedinlow proportions of households having separate toilets (22%),aseparatekitchen(45%),drainage(23%)andseparatebathrooms(30%).Incomeandassetownershiphad distinct influence on these indicators. Relativelywell-offhouseholds(middlemenandthoseengagedintheservicesector)hadbettersanitaryinfrastructure,ascompared tofishersandagriculture farmers.Spatially,the outer channel households were the worst off intermsofallindicatorsassessed.

Information onwater supply sources and usagepatterns indicates that only 15% of the respondenthouseholds had access to piped drinking water, therest sourcing it from wells, ponds and rivers. Giveninadequate sanitation and very limited access to safedrinking water, there is high rate of of water-bornediseasessuchasgastroenteritis,diarrhoeaanddysenteryin the villages. In terms of energy resourceuse, thereis a high dependency on fuelwood,with 95% of therespondenthouseholdsidentifyingitasthemainsourceof energy.The degree of penetration of kerosene andLPGwithinthesevillagesisverylow.Nearlyhalf(49%)ofthehouseshaveelectricity,and27%haveaccesstofair-weatherroad.Inarankingofmoststrenuousandhardest jobs for thewomenfolk,carriedasapartofasocio-economic survey by JICA, drawing drinkingwater for household use and fuelwood collection were ratedthehighestamongallsectors.

Therehasbeenrapiddevelopmentofinfrastructurerelatedtofisheries.Thenumberoffishlandingcentershasincreasedfrom12in1999to18atpresent.There

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are21icemanufacturingunitsinandaroundthelake.The trend of change in livelihood assets that

emerges from the data indicates that the period up until 2000wasoneofdecliningnaturalresourceproductivityand diminishing social and financial capital. Thehydrological restoration led to increase in fisheriesand thereby improved natural resource productivitycomparedtotheconditionsin2000.

However, returns per active fisher and per boatdonotcomparewiththesituationasdescribedinthe1950sand1960s.Thestrangleholdofcoercivemarketstructures led to further diminution of social capital.In termsoffinancial assets, though therehasbeenanincrease in income, indicators suggest that there hasbeenalmostnoimpactonthepatternsofdebt.Trendsinhumancapitalarepositive.Similarly,therehasbeenbetterment of several components of physical capital;however, aspects of water, sanitation and hygieneremainacauseforconcern.

2.4. Ecosystem ServicesThe dynamic ecological components and processesofLakeChilikaunderpin itswiderangeofecosystemservices. The key provisioning services includecommercial fisheries, aquatic vegetation for economicuseandameans for inlandnavigation.Theability to

regulatehydrologicalregimesisanimportantregulatingservice provided by Chilika. Cultural services in theformofreligiousaswellasthevalueoftourismarekeysourcesofsustenance.

2.4.1. FisheriesLakeChilikaharbours73fish,prawnandcrabspeciesof commercial value. The annual average harvest of11,958MT(averagefor2001-15)supportslivelihoodsof 0.14 million fishers living in 152 villages spreadaround Chilika (Figure 5). There are 34,700 activefishers thatfish forover220days in thewetland.Ofthetotal landing,24%issold inandaroundChilika,21% inOdishaState,47%exported to statesoutsideOdishaandthebalance8%isexportedtointernationalmarkets.Fishing isorganisedalongacomplexmarketchain, involving middlemen and commission agents.Theannualcatchisalsoclosetomaximumsustainableyield,underliningtheneedformanagement.

Chilika also contributes to off-shore fisheries,as several estuarine fish and prawn species use thewetlandasspawningandbreedinghabitats,andfinallymigratetowardsthesea.Theexistingbodyofresearchonspecies-specificrecruitment is limited,andtherebyquantification of the contribution ofChilika towardsfisherieshasnotbeenattempted.

Figure 5: Trend in Chilika fish catch (1986-2015)

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2.4.2. aquatic vegetationChilika Lake harbors a rich diversity of aquaticvegetation, several species of which are harvested forusebythecommunitieslivinginandaroundthelakeand its associated floodplains. Schoenplectus Littoralis (Sipala) is used by fisher communities located nearBhushundpurvillage,tomakemats,Phragmites Karka (NalaDala)isusedasfuelbyvillagersonthenorthernshores, Potamogeton Pectinatus and Naja sp. (ChariDala)aspreservationmaterialforthefishes,crabsandprawns.Paspaldium sp.isusedasfodderformilchcattle.Gracelaria, aagarproducingalgae,isanotherspeciesofeconomic importance. Three seaweed derivatives viz.agar,alginatesandcarrageen,arecurrentlyutilisedforeconomicpurposes.Besides,theyhavegreatecologicalvalue as a natural habitat for crabs and other relatedspecies.Asperanassessmentin2007,over58,000MTof vegetation are harvested for the above mentioneduses.

2.4.3. Inland navigationChilikaisusedasmodeofinlandnavigation,especiallybytheislandvillages.Forseveralofthem,thisistheonlymode of communication.This is a source of revenuegenerationforthegovernment,aswellasfortheprivateboatoperatorswhoferrythepassengersfromonesectorofthelaketotheother.During2003-14,over35,000passengers used this mode of transport on an average annually.

2.4.4. regulation of hydrological regimesLake Chilika, with an enormous storage capacity of1200MCMofwater (with awater level variation inexcessofameter)providesahugecapacityforbufferingfloods and impacts of extreme events. This wasevidentduringPhailin,whereinthewetlandabsorbeda significant proportion of cyclonic impact, therebyreducingimpactonneighboringvillages.Regulationofthesalinitygradientalsounderpinsproductivefisheriesandmaintenanceofthehabitatforarangeofspecies.For example, extensive sea grass beds inside Chilikaneedappropriatesalinitylevelstoexist.

2.4.5. Cultural ServicesChilika Lake, with its rich biodiversity and scenicbeauty, isoneofthe importanttouristdestinationsofthe state, andaccounts for8-10%of the total touristarrivalintothestate.Balugaon,SatpadaandRambhaarethemaintouristiclocationsinandaroundthelagoon.Ofparticular interest to thedomestic tourists are thereligious sites. Numerous temples and holy springsare present aroundChilika and on its islands.Kalijai temple is situated on an island considered to be theabodeoftheislandgoddessKalijai.Sheisparticularlyvenerated by the local boatmen. BabakundaleswarTemple is located near Manikapatna and Narayani,Bhagbati and Dakshya Prajapti Temples are locatednear Barakul, also important religious sites locatedin and around Chilika. Bird Island, a rocky islandin the southern sector of the lake has huge hanging rocks covered with herbs, shrubs and creepers thatare inhabited by numerous resident and migratorybird species. Somolo and Dumkudi, located within the central and southern sectors of lake and the inundated remnants of the Eastern Ghats presenta picturesque sight, with Khalikote hill range as abackdrop. Similarly, Parikud, a complex of islandsincluding Baranikuda, Malatikuda, Badakuda andSankuda, entrenchedwith sanddunes, are ideal spotsfor nature lovers. Irrawaddy Dolphin sightings nearSatpada are an important component for visitors to thelake.

The trend of tourist arrival at Chilika for theperiod 1994-2013 is indicated in Figure 6. As isevident, theaveragenumberofannual touristarrivalssincethehydrologicalrestorationof2000is85%morethan the 1994-99 period. Ecological restoration andhabitat management measures have also resulted inthemaintenanceofahealthypopulationofIrrawaddyDolphinsinthewetlands(Figure7).

2.5. Economic valuation of Ecosystem ServicesInthecurrentsection,theeconomicvalueoffisheries,aquatic vegetation, inland navigation, tourism andnon-usebenefitsarepresented.Thevalueofregulatory

Chilika lake harbors a rich diversity of aquatic vegetation and is used for inland navigation, buffering flood and the impacts of extreme events, a variety of cultural services, and, increasingly, tourism

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ecosystem services has not been attempted due toabsenceofquantifiableindicators.

2.5.1. FisheriesFishbeingamarketedcommodity,canbevaluedusingthe market price method. The average annual catchinthe lastfiveyearsrepresentsareasonablepictureofstateofwetlandfisheries.During2011-2015,thetotalannualcatchwasestimatedtobe12,465MT,ofwhichfish,prawnandcrabspeciesconstituted57%,40%and3%respectively.

Prawns are the most valued component ofChilikafisheries.Ofthetotalcatch,43%isexportedtointernationalmarkets,withthetradealmostrestrictedto three species, i.ePenaeus Monodon, Fenneropenaeus Indicus, Metapenaeus Monoceros and a very limitedproportionofscampi.ItmaybenotedthatthecurrentlandingdataexcludesharvestfromillegalprawnfarmslocatedonthesouthernandouterchannelofChilika.Around 26% of total prawn landing is exported to

statesoutsideOdisha,whereas23%isconsumedinandaroundChilika.Asmallproportionofthetotallanding(8%)istradedinthewesternandsoutherndistrictsofOdisha.

Chilikafishistradedinthreeforms,i.e.freshfish(98.14%),livefish(1.03%)anddryfish(0.83%).Thefreshfishcomponentincludesthelandingintwoislandvillages,Maluda and Jadupur.They receive fresh fishdirectlyfromthefishersandthereforedonotformpartof the catch landed at anyof the 18 landing centers.47%of the total catch is exported to atleast 8 states,i.eWest Bengal, Jharkhand, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh,Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.Local consumption, which includes through marketsaroundChilikaandconsumptionbythefishers,formsthenextmajorcategory (40%).14%of the totalfishcatch is also traded within the western and southern districtsofOdishaState.

Local consumption mostly comprises cat-fishesandlowervaluesfish,whereastheonesexportedoutofstateareofrelativelyhighervalue.Thelivefishtradeisalmostexclusivelyfocusedonmarketsoutsidethestate,witharound95%senttoWestBengalandtheresttoAndhra Pradesh.This form of trade constitutes 22%and 30%of totalmurrel and featherback catch fromChilika. On similar lines, dried fish is largely tradedwithinthestates(butoutsidemarketsaroundChilika).

The opening of a new mouth and subsequentshortening of the distance between the sea and themain lakehas ledtodistinctcreationofcrabfisheriesinChilika.Ofthetotalcatch,52%isexportedtostatesother thanOdisha,whereas48% is consumedwithinthestate(includingwithinChilika).

Estimationof gross economic value is based on

Figure 4: trends in tourist arrivals in Chilika (1994-2013)19

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thevaluerealisationtofishersthroughsaletoretailers,fishcooperativesandcommissionagents.DataontradelocationandquantitysoldineachmarketsegmenthasbeencompiledfromprimaryrecordsofCDA.Quantityweighted prices have been estimated for eachmarketsegment.Aspertheassessment,thegrossannualvalueoffishcatchisestimatedtobe`1463million.Thegrossannual value of the catch, which is incremental overthe pre-restoration period (average for 1996-2000) isestimatedtobe`1,275.19million.(Table2)

2.5.2. vegetationValuation of benefits emanating through the use ofaquaticvegetationisbasedontheassessmentofextentofresourceharvestandusepatterns.Theextentofharvest

of the four speciesbasedon the survey isdepicted intable3. Valuation of the use of Schoenplectus Littoralis for mat making is based on the price of the finalproduce, i.e. the mat. Trade mainly takes placewithinmajor towns and cities.Trading ofmats takes place through a series of middlemen, the largestmarket being Bhubaneswar. Therefore, average pricesat Bhubaneswar have been used for the presentpurpose.ValuationoftheuseofPhragmitesisbasedonthe opportunity cost of time valued at the prevailingwagerate.Useofplantspeciesaspackingmaterialhas

beenvaluedat thecostpaid for transportationof thematerial to the shoreline. Valuation of economicallyimportant plant species derived from Chiliika ispresentedinTable4.

2.5.3. Inland navigationInlandnavigationwithinChilikacanbebroadlydividedintotwosegments.Thefirstsegmentcaterstotransportneeds of the island villages, which have limited roadconnectivity and have to primarily depend on watertransport. The other segment caters to tourists. Thetourist boats operate from four locations, i.e. Barkul,Balugaon,SatparaandSipakuda.Therearenearly1,400boats presently catering to this segment.Valuationofinlandnavigationbenefitsrelatedtothetouristsegment

Table 2: Estimation of gross economic value of Chilika fisheries

Fish Prawn Crab Total

Tradelocation(inMT)

WithinChilika 2,610.36 995.07 - 3,605.43

WithinOrissaState 859.40 326.27 185.18 1,370.85

ExportedOutsideOrissaState 3,677.76 1,341.75 154.02 5,173.53

Exportedtointernationalmarkets - 2,315.75 - 2,315.75

7,147.52 4,978.84 339.21 12,465.57

Quantitysoldto(inMT)

Retailers 765.08 536.08 1,301.16

PFCS 5,079.73 3,529.99 8,609.72

CommissionAgents 1,302.70 912.78 339.21 2,554.69

Quantityweightedprices(perkg)

Retailers `94.12 `214.28 `165.60

PFCS `78.43 `178.57

CommissionAgents `62.13 `131.58 `138.00

GrossValue(in`Million) 551.35 865.33 46.81 1,463.48

table 3: Economically important plant species harvested from Chilika

Species Use Annual harvest(MT)

Schoenplectus littoralis

Matmaking 3,836.00

Phragmites karka Fuel/Roofing 54,878.04

Potamogeton pectinatus and Naja sp. ( Chari dala)

Packingmaterialforfisheries

1,985.76

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is included within the assessment of consumer surplus derived from tourism. Hence, the valuation aimsat capturing the surplus gained from the domestic transportsegmentonly.

Presently,35,600personsuseChilikaasamodeof inland navigation, which leads to an average timecostsavingof4.5hrs.CDAoperatesapassengerferrybetweenislandsonano-profit-no-lossbasis.Sincedataonageandoccupationprofileofthepassengersisnotavailable,itisassumedthattheproportionofworkingpopulation within the passengers is similar to that of the regionalaverage(42%).Thevalueofopportunitycostof time, usingwage rate accrued to thefisher (`182/day),isestimatedtobe`13.6million,whichisalmostcomparabletotherevenuegenerated(`12.46million).

2.5.4. tourismTheIndividualTravelCostMethod(ITCM)hasbeenusedtoestimatetourismandrecreationalbenefitsfromChilika.Demandcurvesrelatingtheannualsitevisitationratetothevisitcosts,income,andothersocio-economiccharacteristicshavebeendevelopedseparatelyfordomesticandforeigntourists.Individualconsumersurplushasbeenaggregatedtothetotalsitearrival for estimation of the overall consumer surplus forthesite.

Asurveyoftouriststoelicittheoveralleconomicvalueattributed towetland-based tourismwascarried

out in and around Chilika. Overall, 433 touristsrespondedtothesurvey,ofwhich36respondentswereofforeignoriginandtherestwereIndiannationals.Theassessmentofconsumer surplus isprovided separatelyforthetwocategories.

2.5.5. Estimation of Consumer Surplus for domestic touristsThefollowingdoublelogdemandfunctionwasfoundtobe thebestfit,with annual visitation rate, derivedfrom the number of visitsmade in the last 10 years,beingthedependentvariable:(Table5)

An assessment of the model indicates that the predictors do a fairly good job of predicting thedependent variable as indicated by high R squarevalues.TheANOVAtestwithahighvalueofFisher’sStatistic and low p value indicates that the independent variables do a good job in predicting the dependantvariable.Basedonthesignsoftheindependentvariablecoefficients and their significance, the visitation ratehasbeenobservedtobenegativelyrelatedtodistance,groupsizeandperpersontripcost.ThedemandcurveestimatedfromtheregressionispresentedinFigure2.6.

Theindividualconsumersurplusisgivenby: _______ __ _______ ___ CS=(ec * trip _ durβ1 * distβ2*jour_purβ3*gsizeβ4 ______ __ * incomeβ5 * ageβ6tcmax

∫ tcβ7

d(tc)

tc min

_______ __ _______ ___=(ec * trip _ durβ1 * distβ2*jour_purβ3*gsizeβ4 _____ __ * incomeβ5 * ageβ6 * [(tc)β7+1]tcmax

________

β7+1 tc min

From the dataset, the tcmax (maximum travelcostperperson)andtcmin(minimumtravelcostperperson)areestimatedtobe3,750and75respectively.Substituting thevalues in theequationabove,wecanrewritetheequationasfollows:__CS=5.86*[3750.819−75.819]

=5806.82 ____________

table 4: value of economically important plant species harvested from Chilika

Species ValuationMethod EconomicValue

(`Millions)

Schoenplectus littoralis

Valueoffinishedproduce

9.59

Phragmites karka Opportunitycostoftime in collection

20.75

Potamogeton pectinatus and Naja sp. ( Chari dala)

Opportunitycostoftime in collection

3.97

35,600 people currently use Chilika as a mode of inland navigation, with an average time cost saving of 4.5 hrs, thus generating a time-opportunity cost of `13.6 million

.819

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The annual average consumer surplus based onthedemandcurvehasbeenestimatedtobe`5,806.82

2.5.6. Estimation of Consumer Surplus for Foreign touristsTheoverallsamplesizefortheforeigntouristswasnotlarge;only32responseswerereceived,ofwhich31werefurtheranalysedfordevelopmentofdemandfunction.The double log function, of which the estimationparametersarepresentedintable6below,wasfoundtobebestfitforthedata:

The regression model has low levels of predictability.Ofthevariousparameters,onlytripcostperpersoninfluencesthevisitationratenegatively.Thedemand curve estimated from regression is presented in Figure9.

From the dataset, the tcmax (maximum travelcostperperson)andtcmin(minimumtravelcostperperson)areestimatedtobeUS$20,000andUS$250respectively. Substituting the values, the equation canberewrittenasfollows:___CS=1.6015*[2000.775−250.775]

=2686.56 ___________

The annual average consumer surplus based on thedemandcurvehasbeenestimatedtobeUS2,686.56,which is `170,597atthecurrentexchangerate.

2.5.7. aggregate Consumer SurplusThe aggregate consumer surplus has been estimatedbasedonaveragearrivalsduring2010-2013.(Table7)

2.5.8. Non-Use BenefitsEstimation of consumer surplus derived from

non-use benefits of the lagoon ecosystem is based onanalysisoftheclosed-endeddata,usedtogeneratethemeanwillingnesstopayforbiodiversity.TheWTPwasassessedusingalogitmodeltoidentifythedeterminantsoftheresponsestothequestion:“Yes,Iamwillingtopay` X”or“No,Iamnotwillingtopay`X”,whereX

Table 6: Regression coefficients – International tourists

Parameter Coefficients t(Significance)

(Constant) 0.718 0.211(.835)

Ln(GroupSize) -0.0064 -0.41(.685)

Ln(Income) -0.126 -0.579(.568)

Ln(Age) 0.273 0.652(.521)

Ln(Tripcostperperson) -0.225 -3.136(.005)

Ln(JourneyPurpose) -0.008 -0.256(.800)

Ln(TripDuration) -0.004 -0.385(.704)

AdjustedR2 .455

DWStatistic 2.240

N 31

FStatisticandsignificance

32.05 (.020)

table 7: Economic value of Chilika tourism

AverageWTP Arrivals TotalSurplus(`Millions)

Domestic 5,806.82 521,326 3,027.34

Foreign 170,597 2,062 351.77

Total 176,403.82 523,388 3,379.11

Table 5: Regression coefficients (Domestic Tourists)

Parameter Coefficients t(Significance)

(Constant) 4.303 7.995(.000)

Ln(TripDuration) -.108 -1.426(.156)

Ln(Distance) -.420 -9.963(.000)

Ln(JourneyPurpose) .147 1.728(.086)

Ln(GroupSize) -.173 -3.760(.000)

Ln(Income) 0.016 .397(.682)

Ln(age) .102 1.059(.291)

Ln(Tripcost/person) -.181 -4.616(.000)

AdjustedR2 .540

DWStatistic 1.948

N 179

FStatisticandsignificance

28.674(.000)

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referstotheamountofclosedbidineachcase.Themodelrelatesthe1(yes)and0(no)response

variabletothebidlevelsfacedbyeachrespondent.ThemodelgeneratescoefficientstodescribeacurvethatfitsthroughthelineinFigure8below,usingthemaximumlikelihoodmodeltodescribethedata.

Thegeneralformofthemodelisexpressedbythefollowingequation:Pi = E (Y=1I X i )=1

_________

1+e−(β1

+β2X1)

Wherein,PiistheprobabilityofanindividualiwillingtopaythestatedbidamountX.Usinga logitregressiontorelateindividualresponsestothebidvaluesresultsinestimatesofcoefficients β1 and β2,whichcanbeusedtoderivethemeanWTP.Themodeloutputispresentedbelow:

variables in the Equation

B S.E. Wald df Sig. Exp(B)

Step WTPLOG -.005 .000 278.255 1 .000 .995

1a Constant 3.829 .244 247.022 1 .000 46.022

a.Variable(s)enteredonstep1:WTPLOG.

The Hosmer and Lemeshow Test yields asignificancevalueof.005,basedonwhichwerejectthenull hypothesis that there is no significant differencebetween the observed and predicted values of theWTP. The Cox and Snell R Square and NagelkerkeR Square values have been estimated to be .382 and.509.Theclassification table indicates that themodelestimates“No”and“Yes”valuesat89.1%and70.9%

correctly, with an overall percentage of correctness at80.1%.ThemodeloutputindicatesthatthecoefficientforWTPLOG(β1 and β2) isnegativeandsignificant,therefore theprobabilityof accepting aparticularbidlevel decreases with an increase in the bid amount.Thisisconsistentwiththetheory.Theestimatedmeanwillingness to pay for the sample is `257.63. ThepredictedbidfunctionfromthesampleispresentedinFigure11.

The aggregate non-use value, calculated byextrapolatingwillingnesstopay,amongthepopulationof Bhubaneswar City, has been assessed at `166.952million.Anoverallpictureofuseandnon-usevaluesofLakeChilika,asassessedduringthestudy, isreflectedinFigure9.

2.6. Management CostsCDAisthedesignatedagencyinstitutedandmandatedby the Government of Odisha for conservation andsustainable management of Chilika. Much of theinvestment forwetlandmanagement is fundedbythestate and national government at present and routed through CDA. Thereby the programmatic expensesofCDApresentarealisticpictureofcoststomaintainChilika’sbiodiversityandecosystemservicesvalues.

Asperdataonprogrammatic expensesofCDAfromitsinceptionin1991till2012-13,theauthorityhas invested cumulatively 1545.55 million towardswatershed management, maintenance of hydrological

Figure 8: recreation demand curve for domestic tourists

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regimes,habitatconservation,community livelihoods,monitoring and evaluation, and communication andoutreach. Figures 12 and 13 present the trends inprogrammeexpenditure(includingcumulativeexpensesadjusted at anominal rateof5%) andprogrammaticcomponents.

Amajorityofthefunding(76%)hasbeenreceivedintheformofGrant-in-aidbytheFinanceCommission(tenth,eleventh,twelfthandthirteenth).TheMoEFCCandtheGovernmentofOdishahaveprovided5%and7%respectivelyofthetotalprogrammefundssofar.Ofthetotal,nearlyhalf(46%)isinvestedonmaintenanceof hydrological regimes (connectivity with the sea).One-fifth of the investment (19%) has been madeon wetland monitoring and evaluation and another

one-fifth on fisheries development and livelihoodimprovement.Ascanbeseen,thetotalcostsaremuchlower than the annual flow of ecosystem servicesassessed in theprevious section. In annual terms, theratioofprogrammaticcosts toecosystembenefits is aminimumof1:15.88.

2.7. Transforming ecosystem services benefits into livelihood outcomesThe impact of ecosystems services on livelihoods ismediatedbythepre-existinginstitutionalenvironment,

Figure 10: Bid function for non use values of Chilika

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Figure 12: trends in programmatic expenses of lake Chilika (1991-2013)

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which influence access and benefit sharing withincommunities. In Chilika, such interlinkages areparticularly relevant in the case of fisheries andtourism related recreational benefits. CDA, withinthe larger ambit of integratedmanagement planning,has undertaken measures to strengthen the role of communityinstitutionssoastoensurethatcommunitiesare incentivised for natural resource stewardship. Inthis section, the impact of interventions related tothe strengthening of primary fisher cooperatives andcommunity-managedecotourismhavebeenassessed.

2.7.1. primary Fisher Cooperative SocietiesFisheriesinstitutionsinfluencetheoveralldistributionalequityrelatedtoChilikafisheries.Ensuringeffectivenessof Primary Fishermen Cooperative Societies (PFCS)is an important management goal for Chilika in theoveralleffortstowardspromotingresponsiblefisheries.

2.7.2. history of organised Fishing in ChilikaThe rulers and administrators promoted communal fisheriesby supporting the rights of castefishers, andpreventing entry of non-caste fishers, or non-fishers.Recordsdated1880indicatethatChilikawasdividedby

erstwhileadministratorsintoover300fishinggrounds,whichwereleasedouttofishersonpaymentofrevenue.

The emergence of Bengal as an importanttrade center in the early 19th century ushered in therole of traders in fisheries leasing.This prompted thegovernmenttoensuresystemsfororganisingcollectivefisheries,primarilywithanobjectiveofprotectingtherights of traditional fisheries. In 1922, the erstwhileBihar-Odisha government established the first fisherycooperative store at Balugaon, for supply of fisheryrequisites and other daily necessities at fair prices totheChilikafishers.Thecooperativestorecontinuedtofunctionuntil the laterpartof the1950s.ThefisherycooperativesocietyinChilikawasestablishedin1942,withanobjectiveofimprovinglivelihoodsoffishersandpreventing exploitation in the hands of middlemen.By 1959, 25 Primary Fishers Cooperative Societies(PFCS)emergedaroundChilikaasthegrassrsootlevelof fishery institutions. ACentral Fishers CooperativeMarketingSociety(CFCMS)Limitedwasconstitutedin 1959 at Balugaon as an apex body for ensuringsmooth management of fishery leases, marketing offishcatch,providingnecessaryinfrastructure,andmostimportantly working capital to the affiliated fishersforpurchaseoffishingnetsandboats.Theexisting25PFCSwereaffiliatedtotheCFCMS.

2.7.3. decline of Community-Managed FisheriesThecommunity-managedfisheries,sinceestablishment,wereunderpressureduetoentryofnon-fishers,largelyluredintotheoccupationintheinterestofshort-termmonetarygains.FisheriesofChilikagainedtheinterestof Kolkta merchants in the early 19th century, whousedtotakeleasesfromthefishingsourceownersandsub-leasetofishersathigherrates.Aftertheabolitionofestate,thenon-fisherswereallottedasmallshareofdianand janofisheries.DasCommittee noted in its 1993reportthatduringtheperiod1959-1988,somePFCShadtransferredfishingrightstonon-fishersinviolationoftheleasetermsandconditions.Till1988,while203fishinggroundswereleasedtoPFCS,92groundswereleasedtonon-fishersources.

Figure 13: Component-wise programmatic expenses for lake Chilika

Socioeconomic improvement and

livelihood12%

Wetland monitoring and evaluation

19%

Improvement of waterexchange

46%

Weed management1%

Habitatmanagement

2%

Outreach4%

FisheriesDevelopment

8%

Watershed Management

8%

The impact of ecosystems services on livelihoods is influenced by the pre-existing institutional environment, which shapes access and benefit sharing within communities

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The introduction of shrimp culture, however,changedthewholemarketstructureofChilikafisheries.A steady increase in global demand of fish providedsignificant impetus to aquaculture development sincethe 1970s globally. Prawns, which had very littlecommercialvaluetillthe1970s,cametoberecognisedas ‘pink gold’ (Kurien, 1992). Chilika, which had P. Monodon naturally occurring in the wetland system,caughtattentionoftheaquaculturefarmersinthe1980s.In1984-85,prawnculturewasintroducedtoChilikaasapartofasupplementaryincomeprogrammeforlowincome families, titled ‘Economic Rehabilitation ofRuralPoor’ (Mohanty,1988).Nearly,120haof landon the shores of Chilika was allotted to householdsfor shrimp culture, with each beneficiary householdentitled to 0.2 ha of excavated shrimp culture tank.Economicfactorscontributingtothehighprofitabilityof shrimp farming included a devaluation of the Indian Rupee (Costanza, 1991) and the development ofexport markets.Trade liberalisation further expandedopportunities andexportpotentialof shrimp farming(ShimpeiandShaw,2009).

Prawn aquaculture was distinctly picked up asaneconomicopportunitybythenon-castefishers.Thetraditional fishers were unable to cash in this trendbecause of high capital investment and dependenceon trade chains for value realisation. The non-fishersgradually encroached upon the capture fishingarea, deploying economic and political methods.The government also provided impetus to prawn aquaculture,andasafirstmajor indicator,sanctioneda project for the establishment of a shrimp farm inover three hundred hectares of land at Panaspada, ata total cost of 1.7 crores. The site was subsequentlyhanded over to OMCAD Corporation by the stategovernment,whichfailedtoimplementtheprojectduetomanagerial issues.Theprojectwasfinally launchedasa jointventurebetweenTataandOMCAD, in theform of Chilika Aquatic Farms Limited (CAFL). In1991,thegovernmentformallydistinguishedbetweencultureandcapturesourcesinthelakethroughits1991fishingpolicy.This led to further allocationof nearly

6,000haofcapturefishingareatoculturefisheriesledbynon-fishers.

The introduction of shrimp culture, as well asoverall decline in fisheries, brought about changes ininstitutions and freedoms of the fisher communities.The traditional caste–occupation relationships brokedown with the introduction of new fishing gearand increased profitability through prawn farming.Introductionofnylonnetsandmechanisedboatsinthe1970sposedamajorchallengetothetraditionalcraftsandgearoffishers,enablinghighercatchperuniteffortand enhanced capability to cover additional fishinggrounds per fishing excursion. The economic returngeneratedbyprawnaquacultureledtoamassiveinfluxof individuals from the farming communities into thisfisheryandevenattractedtheinterestofinvestorsfromoutside thebasin(Pattanaik,2008).Dueto lowagricultural productivity of soils in the coastal tracts,many individuals from farming communities alsotookupfishingasalivelihoodstrategy(Samal,2002).Thisledbothtooccupationaldisplacementandlossoffishinggroundsbythetraditionalfishingcommunities,and resentment between traditional fishers and theimmigrants,describedasana-matsyajibiornon-fishersbythefishers(Dujovny,2009).

Chilika fisheries gradually converted from a“community-managedfishery”to“contested-common”,whereinnon-fishersgraduallyexertedpressureformorefishingrights.In1990,thenon-fishers’petitionintheOdishaHighCourt,challengingthetraditionalrightstofishinggroundsheldbyfishers,resultedindirectionby the court to abolish the traditional system, andreallocate fishing grounds to fishers and non-fishersinaratioof60:40(Ghoshetal.,2006).Thisdecisionwaschallengedbytraditionalfishers,whodemandedareview of the judgement.The fact-finding committeeestablishedinresponsebythegovernment,recognisedthe prevalence of a coercive culture fishing structurethat impinged on the rights of traditional fishers, yetreiteratedthat the livelihoodneedsofnon-fishersalsoneededtobeaddressedbythefisheriespolicy.Followingapublicinterestpetitionchallengingtheprawnculture

The introduction of shrimp culture, as well as overall decline in fisheries, brought change to institutions and freedoms of the fisher communities. With the introduction of new fishing gear and increased profitability from prawn farming, traditional caste–occupation relationships broke down

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on environmental grounds, the Supreme Courtsubsequently banned all aquaculture within 1,000metersofthelake.Thisofficiallyendedaquaculture,butillegalprawnculturecontinuesalongmore than60%oftheshoreline(2009satelliteimages),especiallyinthesouthernsectorandontheislands.

The CAFL also witnessed an unprecedentedresistance from traditional fishers, non-fishers andothers concernedabout the environmental conditionsofthewetland.TheChilika Bachao Andolan is a mass movement set against theproject.MeetTheStudent,astudentforum,wasoneofthekeysupportersofthemovement.Themovementledtoseveralrallies,sit-insandsymbolicdemolitionofembankmentsandgheraoof State Legislative Assembly. The project was finallyabandonedbytheTatas.

The commission agents have institutionallyoccupied the same functions as was expected fromthe PFCS, albeit with a mandate of seeking profit.The PFCS were crowded out by the merchants andshrimp farmers through subletting of fishing rights,encroachments,anduseofmuscleandpoliticalpower.In2001,theleasepolicywasagaindrasticallyrevised.Thediversefisherieswerebroadlyclassifiedintoprawnandnon-prawnsources.Bahani,Jano,prawngrounds,Dian and Uthapani were merged into the prawncategoryandtherestintothelatter.Theleasetermwasonceagainreducedtooneyear,andasinglevaluefixedirrespective of the productivity and area (`9,300 fornon-prawn sources, and`27,900 for prawn sources).TheDistrictCollectorsleasedthefisherysourcestotheFISHFED(whichreplacedCFCMSastheapexagencyin1992,holdingasimilarmandateandobjective)everyyearandinturn,FISHFEDsub-leasedtoPFCSswith

a10%increaseintheannualleasevalue.During2001-2004,although127fisherysourceswereleasedoutbyFISHFED,15weresurrendered,sincemanyPFCSwerenotinterestedinsub-leasesduetounproductivenatureanddisputesonthesource.Again,fromtheremaining112sources,nearly30%wereforciblyencroacheduponbynon-fishersandoutsidersforillegalgheryoperation.By 2009-10, of the 104 PFCS registered under theFISHFED, 11 became moribund and defunct. TheperformanceofFISHFEDitselftookaseverebeating,with a decline in marketing activities and financialsupporttothememberPFCS.

The impact of middlemen on distribution ofbenefitsfromChilikafisheriesiselucidatedinTable8below,constructedfromKumaretal(2011).Itcanbeseenthatdespiteanearlyfive-foldincreaseinfishcatch,the incomesoffishers increasedmarginally, and therewasnodiscerniblechangeinindebtedness.

2.7.4. Fisheries resource Management and ImpactsIn 2010, CDA in technical collaboration with JapanInternationalCooperationAgency(JICA),formulatedaFisheriesResourceManagementplan(FRMP)basedon over 3 years of resource survey, assessment of thebiology and ecology of eight commercially importanthighvaluefish,prawnandmudcrabspecies;modelingfor various conservation and management options;wide-range stakeholder consultations and ratificationbyanexpertcommittee.Theplanentailsconvergencein fisheries governance to ensure sustainable fishproduction throughwise use of fisheries resources, aswell secure livelihoods of fishers. Rejuvenating PFCS

table 8: Changes in select socioeconomic indicators of Chilika fishers

Surveyyear 1999 2007

Numberoffisherhouseholds 12,363 16,710

Numberofactivefishers 27,200 32,200

Averageannualfishcatchperactivefisher(kg.)

64.2 309.2

Average annual income per capita in US$at2011prices

84 113

%householdshavingoutstandingloan 86% 88%

%loansourcesfrominformalsector 71% 70%

Averageamountofdebtperfisherhousehold(US$at2011prices)

398 738

table 9: details of pFCSs surveyed

NumberSurveyed 8

Averagenumberofmembers/Society 485

Averageannualoperationalexpenses(`) 524,100

Proportionoftotalfishcatchtradedbysociety

71%

%membersavailingloansfromthesociety

22%

Averageloanamountperdebtor 17312

Rateofinterestchargedbythesociety/annum

4.14%

Termofelectedmember 5Yrs.

AverageseedcapitalreceivedpersocietyfromGovernment(`)

914,000

%seedcapitalpaidback 77%

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has been identified as one of the major interventionareasintheFRMP.

In July 2010, the state government establisheda Central Fishermen Cooperative Society (ChilikaFishermen Central Cooperative Society Limited orCFCCS) as an apex agency for managing Chilikafisheries. Under a pilot initiative, CDA, throughthe Fisheries and Animal Resources Department, isprovidingrevolvingfunds,PFCSsandice-boxesto itsmembers,torevivetheinstitutionandensurecreditatfairerratesandterms.Thecooperativesarebeingtrainedin bookkeeping and accounting. They are also beingsensitised towards Code of Conduct for ResponsibleFisheries.

In order to assess the impacts of measures undertakenoneconomicreturnstothefishers,8PFCSs(3fromtheCentralSector,4fromtheNorthernSectorand1intheOuterChannel)wasassessed(Table9).Dataon the society’s operational costs, total fish handled,prices paid to fishers, cost of fishing equipment, andworkingcapitalwerecollectedandanalysed.Toarriveatnetvalues,thedepreciatedcostoffishingequipment,fuelandsocietyexpenseswerereducedfromthegrossrevenue accrued by the fisheries. The gross revenuegenerated by the fisherswas estimated based on totalcatch sold by themembers to society and a quantity

weightedprice(estimates forfish,prawnandcrabarepresentedinTable9).

The society incurs costs towards maintenanceof infrastructure, transportation, payment of loaninstallments,andconductingmandatoryannualaudits.These expenses are recovered by levying a nominalchargeperkilogramofcatch(`7forakgofprawnand`5forfish).Figure14presentsthegrossandnetrevenuerealised per member fisher, for three scenarios. Thepresent scenario corresponds to 71% the catch beingtradedthroughthePFCSandtherestthroughexistingchannels. These have been compared with gross andnet revenues when the entire catch is traded through middlemenandPFCS respectively. It is assumed thatthemembersarepricetakers,canselltheentirecatchtomiddlemenorthePFCS,andfacesimilaroperationalcostsunderthethreescenarios.Ascanbeseen,intermsof gross value, the current situation is at least 21%higher than the situation if the entire catch is sold to themiddlemen, and is likely to be 30% if the entirecatchistradedthroughthePFCS.Intermsofnetvalue,the current situation is at least a 21% improvementcompared to the situation in which all catch was sold tomiddlemen,anda32%improvementifallcatchwastradedthroughfishercooperatives.

A substantial benefit is also accrued in termsof reduced interest for loan. The interest charged bymiddlemen, works out to be in excess of 24% perannum.Theaveragedebtperfisherhouseholdbasedona2009householdsurveywasestimatedtobe`24,159,whichworksouttobe`32,375in2015(adjustedfora5%per annum increase).The cost savings in termsof lower annual interest outgo in percentages over the baseline situation (assuming of the total loan was tobesourcedfrommiddlemen),tothepresentsituation(wherein of the 74% households needing debt, only22%areabletosourceloansfromthecooperative,andthe amount availed is only 53% of the requirement)

table 10: Quantity weighted prices (`/kg)

PFCS Middlemen %hike

Prawn 178.57 131.58 35%

Fish 78.43 62.13 26%

Crab * 138* not traded by surveyed PFCS

table 11: average loan interest payment made per household

Annual Interest

payment(`)

%reductionover

middlemen

Present 6,740 13.2%

If the entire loan is sourced from middlemen

7,771

If the entire loan is sourcedfromPFCS

1,295 83.3%

Figure 14: Gross and net revenue per fisher household under three scenarios

45,00040,00035,00030,00025,00020,00015,00010,00050,000

0Annu

alH

ouse

hold

Rev

enue

(`)

All catch through middlemen

All catch through PFCS

Present

GrossRevenueNetRevenue

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hasbeenestimatedtobe13%(Table11).Iftheentireloan were to be made available through the fishercooperative,thecostsavingswouldbe83%againsttheper household interest outgo of `7,771.

Data fromthesampledPFCSindicates that theinvestments made in strengthening their operations haveledtoenhancedvaluerealizationtofishers(21%in net terms) and reduced loan servicing costs (13%overbaseline).Makingcooperativesfinanciallyviableislikely tobring in further reductions indebt servicingcosts.However,forincreasedvaluerealisationforcatch,there is a need to improve prices paid to the fishersthroughimprovementinvaluechain,andtransferringmarketchainsurplustowardstheseinstitutions.

2.7.5. Community-Managed Ecotourism at ManglajodiThecaseof ecotourismatManglajodi standsout as acommunityinitiativeforcreatingwin-winopportunitiesforwetlandconservation,aswellassecuringlivelihoodsofdependentcommunities.

LocatedalongthenorthernshorelinesofChilika,Mangalajodi village fringes the marshy environmentof the wetland’s northern sector. Shallow depth,plentiful food and varied vegetation makes this area an ideal habitat formigrating waterbirds.The fishersof Manglajodi, once deriving livelihood from illegalwaterbird hunting, presently sustain themselves on

community-managed wetland ecotourism, a ventureundertheaegisoftheirsociety,‘SriSriMahavirPakshiSurakshyaSamiti(SSMPSS)’.

Waterbird hunting in Manglajodi flourished inthe1980sand1990s.ManglajodiwasspeciallyknownasanestablishedsourceofillegallyhuntedRed-crestedPochards, transported to markets as far as Kolkata.The 25 members of the group earned significantlyhigh income during the winter migration season,supplementing their meager income from fisheries.TheeffortsofMr.NandKishoreBhujabal,anavidbirdpoacherfromtheregion,wholatertransformedintoastrongadvocate forbirdprotection,playeda catalyticrole in waning fishers away from illegal hunting toecotourismasalivelihoodoption.

Controlling illegal hunting of waterbirds wasidentifiedasamajorissuewithintherestorationeffortsof Chilika. CDA, with support of the local NGOWildOdishainitiatedacommunitybasedecotourismprogrammein1999tocurtailinstancesofillegalhuntingand promote ecotourism as an alternate livelihood option.TheestablishmentofSSMPSSwasfacilitatedin1999.CDAprovidedsupportfortheconstructionofanofficespace,providedthreeboatstocatertothetourists,awatchtower, trainingfor identificationofbirds,birdwatchingequipmentandguides.

AsthenumberoftouristsvisitingChilikasoaredafter the hydrological restoration, the number offootfalls to Manglajodi (which consistently supportslarge waterbird congregation numbers, next only toNalabana) also increased. The community has sincebeenmakingsteadyincomefromtouristsinterestedinbirdwatching,muchbetterthantheincomelevelsandrisksassociatedwithillegalwaterbirdhunting.

Presently,theareaisvisitedby5,000touristseachyearandstandsoutasoneofthepopulardestinationsforwatchingmigratorywaterbirdsinasereneenvironment.

Apartfromdirecteconomicbenefits,theinitiativehasresultedinimprovedhabitatqualityformigratingwaterbirds. Over 50 species of waterbirds have beenrecorded in thisarea,ofwhichover30aremigratory.Communitymembersprovideprotectiontonestsandeggs, and promptly report any damage to the societymembers.

There is a self-imposed regulation on use ofmotorised boats; only manual paddle boats areused for showing tourists around. Similarly, use ofplastic is prohibited. The community also maintainsregular watch and ward on the area through its three watchtowers. With the construction of Godwit Eco-Cottages, a private venture, seriousbirdwatchers can

table 12: Estimated household income (1995)

Leader Members

Numbers 2 23

Probabilityofbeingcaughtand prosecuted

0.6 0.17

Incomepermemberfromillegal hunting if not caught

`80,000 `25,000

Greasemoneypaidwhencaught

`10,000 `5,000

Valueofreducedcatchifmembercaughtandprosecuted

`21,000 `15,750

Probabilityweightedincomefromillegalwaterbirdhunting/ household

`61,400 `21,391

Incomefromfisheries `20,000 `20,000

Average annual household income

`81,240 `41,391

Average annual household income(forentiregroup)

`44,592

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alsostayovernightandenjoylocalhospitality.Efforts of SSMPSS are now widely recognised.

AwardssuchasPakshiBandhuPuraskar(2001)andBijuPatnaikPakshiMitra (2007)have instilledconfidencein the society to pursue and strengthen conservationefforts. CDA, in collaboration with BNHS, isimplementing a long-term waterbird monitoringprogramme,tocontinuouslyassesstheecologicalhealthofthemarshesaswaterbirdhabitats.

Analysis of income patterns validates the directbenefitsaccruedtothecommunitiesduetolivelihoodtransformation.Figure15capturestheannualhouseholdincome in two scenarios, one pertaining to 1995,wherein illegal huntingwas rampant, and the secondscenario pertaining to present situation. As indicatedin Table 12, each household, on an average, earned`24,952 from illegalwaterbirdhunting.The incomevariedwiththeirlevelofproficiencyintrappingbirds,withthe2leadersearningasignificantlyhigherincomeduringseasonthantherestofthegroup.Theriskoftheleadersbeingcaughtandtheconsequentimpactontheseason’s earningwas also high.Adding`20,000 fromfisheries, each of the 25 member households earned`44,952. The present income from ecotourism andfisheries based livelihoods translates to `112,460 perannum(Table13),whichis2.5timeshigherinabsolutetermsthantheprevioussituation.

The ecotourism atManglajodi is presently low-keyandenvironmentfriendly.However,toensurethatthecommunitiescontinuetobenefitfromanimprovedenvironment, and to prevent their incremental gainsbeing crowded out due to adverse anthropogenicimpacts, it is importanttointegratethismodelintoawidertourismmasterplanbeingdevelopedforChilika.Itisalsopertinenttoensurethatthenumberoftouristsvisiting this ecologically fragile area is regulated sothat waterbird habitats are not unduly disturbed.There is lot of scope for adding value to the existingtourism experience, such as enhancing bird watchinginfrastructure like hides and walkways, and buildingthe capacity of fishers in interpretation skills. Thereis presently no direct engagement of communities inthe operation of the accommodation infrastructure.Creatingavenuesforhomestayswouldservetoenhancetheoverallexperience,andallowtourists toengage inlocalcultureandtradition.

1 Heterogeneousmassesofover70speciesofplants,soilandorganicmatteratvariousstagesofdecomposition.

Figure 15: annual income patterns within communities of Mangalajodi

1,20,000

1,00,000

80,000

60,000

40,000

20,000

0

Annu

alH

ouse

hold

In

com

e( `

)

WaterbirdhuntingEcotourismFishing

1995

2014

table 13: Estimated household income (2014)

PeakSeason Remainingyear

Touristsinflow(no.) 3500 1500

BoatrentPertripOfwhichtoGuideToBoatmanTowardsBoatrentTowardsSociety charges

`750`200`400`100`50

`750`200`400`100`50

Numberofsocietyboats

7 7

Numberofexternalboatshired

13 10

Rentpaidperexternallyhiredboat

`400 `400

Numberofdailytripsperboat

2 1

Grossrevenuetosocietymembers

`2,700,000 `11,47,500

PayouttoSociety `369,000 `171,000

Payouttohiredboat

`936,000 `360,000

NetTotalrevenuefrom ecotourism to members

`1,395,000 `616500

Income/member `55,800 `24,660

Totalannualincome/memberfromtourism

`80,460

Income from fisheries

`32,000

Totalannualincome/member

`112,460

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3. loktak lake, Manipur

3.1. ContextThe floodplain wetlands of Manipur River, knownas the Loktak Lake complex (encompassing Loktak,Pumlen, Ikop,Kharung,Khoidumandother satellitewetlands), are the lifeline of thenortheastern state ofManipur. Spanning over 469 km2 in Bishnupur andThoubal districts within a basin of 6,872 km2, thesewetlands are the largest source of fish, edible plantsand freshwater;providingwater and food security fora large population dependent on wetland resources for sustenance. Loktak Lake, the largest wetland ofthe complex, is characterised by floating chunks ofvegetation,locallycalledphumdi1.KeibulLamjaointhesouthernpartofLoktakhasasinglecontiguousmassof phumdiarea,spanningaround40km2.ItservesasanaturalhabitatforgloballyendangeredungulatespeciesRucervus Eldii (Manipur Brow AntleredDeer, locallycalledSangai),andhasbeennotedasaNationalParksince1975.LoktakwasdesignatedbytheGovernmentof India as a Wetland of International Importance undertheRamsarConventionin1990.

Sustained provision of ecosystem services ofLoktak is critically linked to its hydrological regimes.Loktak, like other wetland ecosystems, is adapted to

the spatial and temporal variations in water depth,flow patterns, water quality as well as frequency anddurationofinundation,whichdetermineitsecologicalcharacter. However, developmental planning in theManipur River basin, particularly implementationof water resource development projects for floodmitigation,hydropowergenerationandirrigation,haveled to severemodificationof thenatural hydrologicalregimesofLoktak.ConstructionoftheIthaibarragein1984,entailingregulationoflakelevelsforhydropowergeneration, converted a naturally fluctuating wetlandinto a reservoir.This caused inundation of peripheralareas, loss of migratory fisheries, reduction anddegradation of the national park habitat, and declineinwaterquality.Floodattenuationcapacitywasfurtherimpactedbyincreasedsiltloadreceivedfromdegradedcatchments. Inadequate sewerage in the upstreamurbancentersledtothedumpingofuntreatedsewageandsewerageintothelake,leadingtoadeclineinwaterquality.

The application of economic valuation is intended to focus on assessing overall ecological and economic efficiencyofpolicydecisions,andinparticularidentifyoptionsforwatermanagementthatcanbalancewaterallocation for human purposes (hydropower andirrigation)andecologicalpurposes.

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3.2. Biophysical SettingsTheLoktakwetlandcomplexisaseriesofshallowandhighlyvegetatedwetlandslocatedinthesouthernpartofManipurValley,alongManipurRiver(Map1and2).Thepresenceofdepressionsalongtheriverchannel,asemiimpervioussubstrate,constrictedoutflowatIthaiandasuddenriseintheriverbeddownstreamIthaiatSugnu,createconduciveconditionsforthemaintenanceofthisextensivewetlandregime,locallycalledpatareas.ThemarginsofLoktakwetlandcomplexarediffuseandmergeontheexteriorwithfishfarmsandricefields,withsmallhillocksmarking theboundaryon the southernend. Spanning between 24.40º-24.72º latitudes and93.76º-93.99º longitudes, the complex is constitutedbyshallowwaterbodiesformedintheinterfluvialareas.Differenttributariesandhillstreamsconnectwiththemainriverchannel.

Arising nearKarong village in Senapati district,ManipurRiverflows southwards,wherein it is joinedby River Iril on its left bank at Lilong (Loumnabi).Therivercontinuesitssouthwardscourse,whereinitisjoinedabovethevillageMayangImphalbytheThoubalRiverontheleftbank.Waithou,Punem,Aongbikhong

andUchepekpiwetlandsarelocatedinpatchesbetweentheconfluencesofRiverThoubalandManipurRiver.

LoktakLake,thelargestwetlandofthecomplex,flankstherightbankofManipurRiverbetweenIshokand the confluence of Khuga River. It comprisesabout20smallandlargerpatareas,ofwhichLoktak,Takmu, Ungamen, Laphu, Thaumnumacha, Khulak,Yena and Tharapokpi are major. During rains, thesepat areas become contiguous, but can be discernedas separate waterbodies as the water level recedes.LoktakisconnectedtoManipurRiverviatheKhordakchannel.Fourislands,namelyThanga,Karang,Sendraand Ithing, are located in the central part of Loktak.Theoverallareaofthewetlandcomplex,usingsatelliteimageryfrom2010-11,hasbeenassessedtobe466.5km2 (Table14).LoktakLake is the largestwetlandofthecomplex,accountingfor61%ofthetotalarea.

HydrologicalregimesoftheLoktakareprimarilydefinedby surfacewater flows received from the lakecatchmentof4,947km2.TheManipurvalley,spanninganareaof1500km2,withanelevationof760-800mamsl, forms a bowl-like depression, surrounded bymountainrangeswithsteepslopesandinciseddrainage.The hills, with an elevation of 800-2500m amsl, arepredominantly covered with forests (73.6% of basin

Map 2: loktak Wetland Complex during 1970sMap 1: loktak Wetland Complex during 2010

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area)ofwhichonly52%hascanopycoverover40%.Geologically, the hills comprise young rock

formations of tertiary orogenyof theHimalayas.Thevalleybottomiscoveredinalluviumcomposedofclayandmud,derivedfromtheweatheringofargillaceousrocksanddepositedbytheriversandstreamsflowingintothelowergradients.

HydrologicalregimesoftheLoktakwetlandsareregulatedbyhydraulicstructuresbothontheupstreamaswell as downstream rivers.All themajor inflowingrivers are dammed for various purposes. While thewestern catchment flows directly into the lake, theflows from the Imphal, Iril and Thoubal basins arereceived into the wetland complex through ManipurRiver. Flows from theHeirok and Sekmai basins arelargely diverted from the basin through irrigationschemes,limitingtheeffectivecatchmentareato4,241km2.Theoutflowofthelakeisregulatedbystructuresconstructedunder theLoktakLake, amulti-purposeproject aimed at controlling floods and reclaimingshallowareasofthelakeforagriculture(PWD,1967)2.Theprojectdesignedin1967alsoenvisageddivertinglakewaters for irrigating12,100ha (30,000 acres) ofagriculturallandandgenerating70MUofhydropower.Loktak and its associated wetlands were visualisedas natural reservoirs of water, harnessed through the

constructionofabarrageattheconfluenceofManipurandKhugaRivers.Waterwas diverted to a 105MUhydropower generation station at Leimatak througha water conductor system adjoining Ningthoukhongtownonthewesternmarginofthelake.

InflowstoLoktakarereceivedthrough34streamsfromthewesterncatchmentsandManipurRiver(viatheKhordakandUngamelchannels),whereastheoutflowstakeplacethroughthepowerchannel(forhydropowergeneration) and release through the barrage. Waterbalance of the lake3 for a full water year (2000-01chosenbasedonavailabilityoffullandconsistentdataon various parameters) indicates an overall inflow of1589Mm3, ofwhichwestern catchment streams andManipurRivercontribute55%and21%respectively,therestbeingrainfall.Theoutflowswereestimatedtobe1,156Mm3,ofwhichwaterabstractionforhydropowerand releases from Ithai barrage account for 67% and20% respectively.The balance 13% is on account ofevaporationandevapotranspiration.DuringtheperiodofMay-October,thelakeisanetstoreofwater,whichis then subsequently drainedduring the lean seasons.ThecontrolofIthaiBarrageontheoveralloutflowsisapparent.

Thelakelevelsplayacrucialroleindeterminingavailability ofwater for hydropower generation, sincetheoretically, water can be taken for hydropowergeneration only when the lake levels are higher thanthat of the power channel.TheLake is quite shallowat itsmargins, and at its deepest portion, is only 4.5metersdeep.TheKeibulLamjaoNationalPark(KLNP)atanaverageelevationof766mamsl,is2.5mhigherthan the centralpartof the lake.Thepower channel,through which water is abstracted from the lake forhydropower generation is located at 766.2m amslat the western margin of the lake. Overall, the lakelevel increases during monsoon (May-July) and thengraduallydeclines.Theannualrangeisamaximumof2meters, as compared to3meters in thepre-barragesituation.The decline in lake levels is howevermuchmore gradual than that observed before hydrological

table 14: Seasonal variations in land use / cover within loktak wetland complex

Landuse/Landcovercategory

Area(inha)

March2010 January2011

Openwater 7657 9662

Marsh 28526 23761

Fishfarms 3700 9486

Agriculture 4754 1728

Settlements 979 979

Forests 1049 1049

Total 46665 46665

2WaterBalance=SurfaceInflows(Streaminputfromcatchments+ManipurRiver(viaKhordakandUngamel)+Rainfall)–Outflows(Abstractionforhydropower+ReleasesthroughIthai+Evaporation+Evapotranspiration).Thecomputationisstillindicativeasitassumesnogroundwaterinteractions,andexchangesfromotherwetlandswhilebeingconnectedduringthemonsoonseason.Thereisalsodirectabstractionofwaterfordomesticusages.Theliftirrigationschemeiscurrentlydysfunctionalandthereforehasnotbeenaccountedforinthecurrentequation.

The lake levels play a crucial role in determining availability of water for hydropower generation, since water can be taken for hydropower generation only when the lake levels are higher than that of the power channel

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regulation,withthelevelsmaintainedabove768mamslfor almost entire year. In contrast, the lake levels in1956-66diddiptolevelsbelow767mamslduringtheleanflowperiod.

Estimationof thewaterholding capacityof thelakewascarriedoutintheyear2000.Accountingforthe losses due to phumdi, islands and fish farms, the net capacity has been estimated to be 448 Mm3 at 768.5m amsl3. Bathymetric surveys carried outby WAPCOS in the 1980s indicated the capacityto be 600 Mm3 at the same water level. There are two apparent reasons for this loss in water holding capacity,i.e.siltationfromthecatchmentsandchangesin land use, especially on the peripheral regions ofthe lake.The annual average sediment input into thelakehas been estimated to be 650,000MT,with thedegraded hills of the western catchments accounting for 65% of the total yield. The natural profiles ofthe link channels have also undergone volumetric

reduction.After theconstructionof theIthaibarrage,thenumberoffishfarmshasincreasedtremendouslyintheperipheralregionsofthelake.Asperremotesensingimageries,theareaunderfishfarmshasincreasedfrom97.6km2(12,568fishponds)in2003,to107.48km2 (around13,800fishponds).

ThewaterqualityoftheLoktakLake,ingeneral,fallswithin classC toE as per theCentral PollutionControl Board (CPCB) designated best use criteria.The lake water is not fit for direct drinking withouttreatment,butcanbeusedforirrigationandecologicalpurposes. A comparative analysis of water quality ofdifferent zones indicates significant levelsofpollutionintheNorthernZoneandSouthernZone.

High intensity of fertiliser usage in agriculturalfields and the practice of fish farming contributesignificantly to water quality deterioration inthe Northern Zone. The Nambul and Nambolrivers also discharge pollutants in this zone. TheSouthern Zone is polluted, as all the pollutants flow finally here and get accumulated due to poorflushing. A large population of 0.28 million peoplelivingwithin theNambul catchment generates 72.23million tonnes of solid waste and 31,207 cum ofsewage on daily basis. Nambol also contributes 4.9milliontonnesofsolidwasteand2,121cumofsewageannually.AllthewastedirectlyorindirectlyfinditswayintoLoktakLake.

InKLNP, thepHvalue remains acidic, rangingfrom 4.5-,8.5 at the surface and from 4.1-8.3 at thebottom. At some spots, its value remains below 6,whichisunhealthy.Highervaluesoffreecarbondioxideand lowvaluesofDOshowrelativelyhighprocessofrespiration anddecompositionover photosynthesis ofphytoplankton and aquatic vegetation. This may beattributedtothefactthatmostoftheareasarecoveredbyphumdi and almost no light can penetrate inside the water.

Loktak wetland complex, with its numerousfloating lands,coversavarietyofhabitats that sustainrich biological diversity. Available information onspeciesrichnesscollatedfromvarioussources,analysedforconservationstatusispresentedinTable15.

TheKeibulLamjaoNationalParklocatedinthe

4Whiletheoverallcapacityofthelakeat768.5mamslis519Mm3,13%isreducedtopresenceofislands,phumdiproliferationandconstructionoffishfarms.

Figure 16: Sangai deer population in klnp

1976

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1009080706050403020100

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Figure 17: Waterbird population in loktak Wetland Complex

1994

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60000

50000

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0

706050403020100

TotalBirdTotalSpecies

Tota

lBird

Cou

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n‘0

00’)

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southernpartofthe lake, isauniquefloatingwildlifereserveandisarefugeforthehighlyendangeredbrowantlered deer, locally called Sangai (Figure 16). Thelakehasalsobeenthebreedinggroundsforanumberof riverine fishes and continues to be a vital fisheriesresource. It supports a significant population ofmigratoryandresidentwaterbirds(Figure17).

Closureofmany feederchannelsandregulationof thebarragehas affected theupstreammigrationoffishes from Manipur River to Chindwin River. As aresult, the seasonal appearance (during rainy seasonsonly)ofLabeo angra, L. bata, L. dero and Osteobrama belangeri has declined.These species usually used theNongmaikhongandotherstreamstoenterthelakeforbreeding. Exotic catfishes such as Clarias gueripinnus and a riverine species Aplocheilus punchax have beenrecordedinthelake.TwelvefishspeciesreportedearlierbytheFisheriesDepartment(1981)(SinghandSingh,1994;Singh,1996)havenotbeenobserved in recentstudies,whichisattributedtotheblockageofmigratorypathwaysoffishes.

The proximity of Loktak Lake to the CentralAsianFlywayandEastAsianFlywaymakesLoktakan

important site for feeding, foraging and roosting ofmigratorywaterbirds.Over100speciesand40majorcongregation sites of waterbirds have been recordedhere.

3.3. Socio-economic settingsLoktakwetlandcomplexformsapartoftheManipurValley, which is the economic hub of the state.Physiographically, the valley region forms only 10%of the total geographical area of the state, but isinhabitedby59%ofitspopulation,givingrisetoahighpopulationdensityof635personsperkm2.Populationtrendsindicateincreasingpressureonthevalleyregion,withthevalleydistrictsregisteringadecadalgrowthrateof24.86%in1991-2001,againstthenationalaverageof21.56%.Meiteisconstituteamajorityofthevalleypopulation. The population in the hills is mostly oftribes,ofwhichNaga,Kuki,Aimolaremajor.

Thereare85villageslocatedaroundthewetlandcomplexmarginsandtheislands.Traditionally,fishingand farming formed the main source of livelihoods of these communities.Connectivitywith the riverineenvironment ensured highly productive fisheries. As

5TombiSingh(1994),PishakSingh(1996)

table 15: record of species at loktak Wetland Complex and their conservation status

Biodiversity No.ofSpecies

Observationperiod

ConservationState

CR EN VU NT DD LC NE

Flora

Phytoplankton 70 2002-2004 70

Macrovegetation 130 34 96

Fauna

Zooplankton 171 2002-2003 171

Annelids 15 1992-1993 15

Molluscs 10 1992-1993 9 1

Insect 7 Feb-Jul,2008 3 4

Fish 54 6 37 11

Amphibia 28 1992-1993;2004-2007

2 26

Reptile 40 1992-1993 1 3 1 9 26

Aves 78 3 2 72 1

Mammal 22 3 3 13 3

Conservation Status as per IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesCR=CriticallyEndangered;EN=Endangered;VU=Vulnerable;NT=NearThreatened;DD=Datadeficient;LC=LeastConcern;NE=NotEvaluated

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theinundatedareashrunkduringwinters,highlyfertilefloodplains were exposed and used for agriculture.Construction of the Ithai Barrage affected a majorchange in hydrological regime and triggered a shiftin livelihood patterns. Operation of the barrage formaintaininglakelevelsaround768.5mamslledtothesubmergenceoflargeagriculturalareasonthewetlandperiphery.

Permanent inundation induced a shift towardsfisheries based livelihoods. As more people movedinto capture fishing, crafts and gear became moreexploitative.Theperiodoftheearly1990switnessedanincrease in the use of nylon nets of finermesh sizes.Use of athaphum, a fishing technology using phum enclosures,asafishaggregatingdeviceinopenwatersintensified significantly.Between2000 and2005, thenumberofathaphuminLoktakvirtuallyexploded,andthegovernmenthadtofinallyresorttotheuseofforceto eliminate its practice in Loktak. Meanwhile, themarsheslocatedonthewetlandfringeswereextensivelyconverted for fish farms and permanent agriculture.Thus, in the last six decades, livelihoods transformedfrom being based on capture fisheries and seasonalagriculture, to those dominated by fish farming andagriculture,withcapturefisheriesgreatlymarginalised.Figure18shows theoccupationprofileofhouseholdsliving in different zones of the Loktak WetlandComplex.

Apartfromprovidingasourceoffish,thewetlandcomplexprovidesarangeofproductsthatareusedintheday-to-daylifeofthesecommunities.Intheabsenceofpipedwatersupply,waterfromriversandwetlandsisanimportantsourceofwaterforseveralhouseholds.The complex also provides ameans of navigation forthesecommunities.

Besides direct and indirect occupationaldependence on the wetland complex, the variousecologicalaspectsandwetlandfeaturesfindinextricablereflectionsinsocialcustomsandbeliefsystems.Variedreferences in local mythology, folklores, festivals andcustomsare a testimony to the connection that existsbetween Manipuri society and its most prominentwetland regime. These cultural linkages have formedthe basis of several forms of local regulations, whichhave been important forwetlandmanagement in thepast.

The average annual household income ranges between`0.74and1.92lakh,withanaverageof`1.37lakh.Annualincomesarehigherwhereintheproportionofcommunitiesengagedinfishfarmingishigher.Theislandcommunitiesreportedtohavetheleastincome,

asopportunitiesforincomediversificationwerelower.Accesstocleanenergysourceswasobservedtobe

low,witharound27%ofhouseholdsreportingtouseLPGastheprimarysourceofenergyforcooking.Pipedwaterwasavailableto33%ofthepeopleinandaroundthewetland.Therestdependedonvillageponds,riversandlakesfortheirdomesticwaterneeds,themajoritybeingcultureandcapturefishers.Onanaverage,only60%ofthehouseholdshadtoiletsinPumlen-Khoidumand Manipur River. Only 45-50% of capture fishershouseholds in the wetland complex had toilets. TheIkop-Khraung region reported 100% sanitation. Fishfarmingcommunitiesfaredbetterintermsofindividualassetownership.

Community institutions (which includeorganisations as well as norms and belief systemsthat influence individual and social behaviour) haveplayedanimportantroleintheecologicalstatusofthewetlands. The main organisation within the villagesaround the complex is the gram panchayat, headedby a pradhan (village head), and assisted by the upa-pradhan(assistanttothevillagehead)andmembersinthemanagement and administrationof village affairs.It is an important instrument for dealing with matters concerning the activities of the local community.Often,thedecisionsaremadecollectivelybytheentirevillagercommunity,andnotjustthePanchayat.Leikai,informal village bodies, play an important role inmakingdecisionsaboutvillageaffairs.

Meira Paibis (Women Torch-bearers) is a

Figure 18: Occupation profile in different zones of loktak Wetland Complex

100%90%80%70%60%50%40%30%20%10%0%

AgricultureFishFarmingCaptureFishingOther

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akIs

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akN

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prominent women’s organisation of the society,which plays an important role in ensuring women’sparticipation ineconomic, socialandpolitical spheresofdaily lifeand insafeguarding their rights.Theyareknown to fight for the rising disorder in the societyby doing night vigils/patrols in their respectiveleikais (locality).Every leikai in Imphal,Thoubal andBishnupur districts has a Meira Paibi. It comprisesvirtually the entire adultMeitei femalepopulation.Aformal body exists comprising a president, secretary,treasurerandadvisor.Inseveralareas,fishermengroupshavebeenformedwhichleasespecificareasofthelakeforfishing.ThereareseveralNGOs,CBOsandyouthclubs that undertake developmental activities at thevillagelevel.Marupsorinformalsavingscreditgroupsareanimportantpartofallsocieties,providingcreditintimesofneed.

Historically, the kinship prevalent around thewetlandcomplexenabledseveralpracticesthathelpedmaintain various wetland values. Fishing duringmigration seasons was banned. During specific timesinayear,theinletandoutletchannelswereclearedofvegetationandsilt.Phum spread in the central sector of LoktakandPumlenwerecheckedbycuttingintosmallsections and draining through the outlet channels.Whilethenationalparkwasagamereserve,poachingofSangaiwasconsideredtobecriminal,tobepunishedby the choppingof bothhands of the convict.Thesepractices were instrumental in maintaining the various valuesof thewetlandcomplexfora longtime,albeit,during a period of low population and lesser demands onwetlandresources.

In recent times, the nature and extent of theinfluence of community institutions on wetlandmanagement has greatly reduced. The whole processofimplementationoftheLoktakMultipurposeProjecthas been highly contested.Organisations such as the‘LoktakProjectFloodAffectedAssociation’contesttheextentofrehabilitationofferedaftertheproject.Localcommunitieshadverylimitedsayineitherthedesignor implementation of the project, and were largelytreatedasbeneficiaries.

Thereareseveral instancesofconflictsrelatedtothe exercise of private land rights in and around thecomplex.Privatelandrightshavebeengrantedfortheentireareaofthewetlandcomplex,barringthoseunderpermanent inundation.TheenactmentofTheLoktakLake(Protection)Act,2006hasledtothedemarcationof a core and a buffer zone within the Loktak area,whereinarangeofrestrictionsapply.In2011,whentheentire central zone of the lake,which forms the corezone as per the Act, was cleared of athaphum, and asurge of protests were made against the government of Manipur andLoktakDevelopmentAuthority (LDA).The action was perceived as an infringement of rights on acommonpropertyresource.Similarly,onthefringes,those with private land rights have been convertingmarshesintofishfarmsandagricultureareas.Whilethegains from such conversions are private, the damagesintermsof lostecosystemservicevaluesaccruetotheentiresociety.

There are still some instances of positive action bycommunityorganisations.Theself-imposedbansondestructivefishingpractices(suchastheuseofexplosives)andchemicals(suchasendosulfan)aregoodevidencesinthiscontext.SeveralNGOshavebecomewatchdogsfor the implementationofprojects related towetlandmanagement, regularly airing their views throughprint and electronic media and communications to the ministryandotherorganisations.

3.4. Ecosystem ServicesCommunities living in and around Loktak and itsassociated wetlands have depended on lake resources for sustenancesincehistorictimes.Theseasonalvariationsin inundations have supported agriculture in the dryseason and enabled communities to harvest fishes,molluscs, aquatic vegetation and water in monsoon.There was an abundance of fish, fodder and fuel forcooking, vegetables and household constructionmaterialsinthewetland.Thelakewasmanagedonthecommunity level and there was ample food security.Table 16 details the ecosystem services and theirenablingbio-physicalandsocio-economicsituations.

Historically, the kinship prevalent around the wetland complex enabled several practices that helped maintain various wetland values. In recent times, though, the extent of community influence in wetland management has been significantly reduced

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3.4.1. FisheriesLoktak is the largest fishery resource of theManipurstate,andaccountsforoverhalfofitsfishproducingarea.FishisanimportantsourceofanimalproteinforthepeopleofManipur,andtherebyoccupiesadistinctplaceinlocaltraditionsandlivelihoods.Amixofcaptureand culturefisheries ispracticed inLoktakLake.Theopenwatersurfaceofthecentralsectorislargelyusedforcapturefishingbythevillageslivinginandaroundthewetland.Theyusearangeofgear,ofwhichnets(gillnetswithmeshsizesranging14-140mm,dipnets,castnets, lift nets and scoop nets), multi-pronged spears,lineandhooks,andtrapsarethemajority.

Themarshesaroundthelake,particularlyinthenorthern sector, have been extensively converted forculturefisheries,whichproduceasubstantialamountofIndianMajoraswellasexoticcarps.Athaphumfishinggainedprominence,particularlyaftertheconstructionofIthaiBarrage,buthasbeendeclaredanillegalactivityundertheManipurLoktakProtectionAct(2006).Thefarmers were offered a one-time compensation as anincentivetoabandonthepractice,subsequenttowhichthe phumcirclesweremechanicallyremovedfrom2009to2011.Simultaneously,LDA,withthesupportoftheDepartmentofFisheries,alsoinitiatedtheprogrammeofartificialrestockingthroughthereleaseoffingerlings.

Assessments on fishery diversity and theproductivityofLoktakwerecarriedoutduring1999-2003.Surveyscarriedoutduringtheperiodidentifiedthe presence of 54 species, representing 17 families.Notably, the assessments recorded restricted presenceofminor carp species (Labeo angara, L.bata, L. Dero and Oesteobrama belangiri). The annual productionranged between 1,261 and 1,685 MT during 1999-2003.Athaphum(reportedtohaveincreasedfrom217in1989to2,642in2004)contributednearly500MTofproduction,or40%ofthetotalcatch.3.4.2. aquatic vegetation as Food, Fuel, Fodder and

handicraftsVegetation plays an important role in the ecologicalprocessesandfunctionsof the lakeecosystem,besidesbeing of great economic and cultural significance tothe people. The rich plant diversity of the lake is ofconsiderableimportanceasfood,fodder,fuelandvalueto the gene pool. Loktak Lake is a source of severalplantsused for variouspurposesby the communities.Someofthekeyeconomicusesare:

Food:23speciesareusedasfoodplants,ofwhichZizania, Polygonum, Nelumbo, Euryale, Nymphaea, Alpinia, Hedychium, and Ipomeaarewidelyfoundinthelake and harvested for consumption as well as income generation.

Fodder: 18speciesareusedasfodder.Echinocloa, Capillipedium, Zizania, Alternanthera and Brachiaria arewidelyfoundandharvestedbythecommunitiesasfeedforcattle.

Fuel: Coix, Phragmites and Saccharum species are usedasfuelbythecommunitieslivinginandaroundthelake,especiallyforfishdrying,smokingandcooking.

Construction of hutments: 8 plant species,particularlyArundo, Phragmites, Zizania and Saccharum,arefoundinabundanceandusedforthatching,fencingandhutmentconstruction.

Medicinal: 17 species are observed to havemedicinal properties, ofwhich 4 species viz.Fuirena, Polygonum, Impatiens, and Malaxis are found in abundance in Loktak. Fuirena umbellata rhizome is usedfortreatmentoffeverandjaundice.Polygonum sp isusedbycommunitiesasatonic.RhizomesofArundo donax areusedasanemollientanddiuretic.Theflowerof Eichhornia crassipesisusedtraditionallyfortreatmentof skin diseases, particularly those of horses. Enhydra fluctuans isusedinskinandnervousafflictions,andasanti-biliousdemulcent.Hedychium coronarium rhizomeis used in stomach and liver disorders and for treatment of inflammations. Hedychium coronarium, as well as

Loktak is the largest fishery resource of Manipur and provides a majority of the state’s fish producing area. Fish is an important source of animal protein for the people of Manipur, influencing the extensive conversion of marshes around the lake for culture fisheries

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shoots of Mikania cordata, are used as antidote forsnakebites,thelateralsobeingusedforfishpoisoning.

Handicrafts: Sere pecies such as Cyperus and Scirpusareusedinmakingmats,cushions,baskets,hats,andotherhandicrafts.Theseproducts,beingethnic,areinhighdemandinseveralpartsofthecountry.Around1200 ha of thewetlandswere estimated to be undermatting rush, locally called Kouna (Schoenoplectus lacustris and Schoenoplectus mucronatus)withcultivationconcentratedmostlyinThoubalandBishnupurdistrictinManipur(Jain,2005).Theearningsofeachpersonduring the peak season is estimated to be around`10,000,whileduringtheleanseason,itis`3.000.

Cultural: 11 species are used by communitiesfor several religious and cultural purposes. MeiteihouseholdsespeciallyusetwigsofEchinocloastagninafor worship of their gods and goddesses. Nymphaea and Nelumbo species are also used in several religious ceremonies.

Food: In 2005-2006, Imphal market receiveda total volume of 68.63 tons of edible wetlandplants, involving a business over of `9,077,78.Thoubal received 23.62 tons of vegetables. involving `3,11,436whileBishnupurreceived20.18tons,withatrade of `2,41,080.Nearly70%oftheannualincomefromwild edible plants of the threemajormarket ofImphal are generated by seven species (Euryale ferox, Colocasia esculenta, Oenanthe javanica, Nelumbo nucifera, Polygonum barbatum, Hedychium coronarium and Sagittaria sagittifolia), while the rest of the species contribute the remaining 30%. Among theindividual species, Euryale ferox was sold in highest quantities(43.39tons),followedbyColocasia esculenta, Oenanthe javanica and Nelumbo nucifera; Lemna australis was the most expensive species, as recorded inImphalandThoubalmarket;Fagopyrum esculentum wasrecordedas thecheapestamongall thevegetablessold.

3.4.3. nutrient retention by phumdiPhumdi plays an important role in the maintenanceof overall water quality, through filtering of mineralnutrients. A thick strip of phumdi in the northern sector is critical to the maintenance of water qualityof the lake, by acting as a biological sink to the keynutrients.Asper estimates,478.6 tonnesofnitrogen,39.6 tonnes of phosphorous and 157.2 tonnes ofpotassiumareannuallyaccumulatedwithinthephumdi ofthenorthernzone.Thehugeamountsofpollutantsbrought in by the rivers, particularly Nambul andNambol,ifnotabsorbedbythesephumdi would have

been available in thewater thereby leading to furtherdegradation making the lake unfit for fisheries andotheraquaticbiodiversity.

3.4.4. Cultural valuesLoktakLakeisofimmenseculturalimportancetothecommunities living inandaround the lake.Given itscentral role in ensuring food and water security forthe state of Manipur, Loktak lake is associated withimmense cultural values. Loktak lake is viewed as“Loktak Ema Lairembee” (Mother Goddess Loktak)as it supports the livelihoods of people living in and aroundthelake.Thelakehasbeenanimportantcenterforholdingculturalevents, includingLoktakDay,onwhich boat races are organized within the lake. TheLakeistheonlyvenueofwatersportnthestate.Thecultural values are also linked to the richbiodiversityof the wetland system. Conservation of wildlife andnaturalhabitatsispartofManipur’sfolkcustomsandbeliefs.TheendangeredBrowAntleredDeer(Sangai)orthedancingdeer towhichLoktak is theonlynaturalhabitat, is Manipur’s state animal and an importantcultural identity.Variedreferences in localmythology,folklores, festivals andcustomsarea testimonyof theinextricable connection that exists between Manipurisociety and its most prominent wetland regime. Aten day long Sangai Festival is celebrated every yearduringthemonthofNovemberwitha lotofcolorfulprogrammesandfestivities.

Mondummahadeva(stoneimage),afamousLordShivatemple,situatedinthesouthwestpart,about63kmaway fromImphal,near thePumlenLake, isoneof the important pilgrimage sites in Manipur. EverySunday and full moon day of the month, pilgrimsvisittheplacetoperformworship.LoktakandKeibulLamjaoNationalParklakehavehugetourismpotential.Chaoba hill, Sendra hill and Chingthi, Karang areknownmajorpotential recreationsites in thewetlandcomplex.

3.5. Sectoral development and Ecosystem Services transformationEcosystem services and the biodiversity of LoktakLake complex are under stress due to lopsideddevelopmental planning within the basin. Waterresource development projects for flood mitigation,agriculture and hydropower generation have ledto modification of hydrological regimes, seriouslyimpacting the processes, functions and attributesof the wetlands. In particular, the construction of the Ithai barrage downstream of Loktak in 1984,

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Provisioning

FisheriesLoktaklakecomplexisthelargestfisheryresourceoftheManipurstateaccountingformorethan50%ofitsfishproducingarea.Loktakwetlandcomplexarethelargestcapturefisheryresourcesfortheentirestate.TheopenwaterareasinLoktakandPumlenarethemainfishingareas,whereastheextensivemarshesintheeasternpartofthecomplexalsoserveasimportantfishbreedinggrounds(particularlyforairbreathingfishes).

Fishfarmsfringetheentirewetlandcomplexandtheriverchannels.TheirconcentrationishighinthenorthernsectorofLoktakandtheeasternpartofthecomplexalongIkop-KharungandPumlen-Khoidum.

Over5,000households depend oncapturefisheriesfromLoktak.Inadditional,therearenearly13,800fishfarms around the lake.

lConnectivitywiththeriverineenvironmentwhichenablesexchangeofriverinefishspecieslSufficientwaterspreadareaduring lean seasonlAdequatelevelofnutrientsandwell-oxygenatedenvironment

lLeikai,thevillagePanchayatsandotherinformalvillagebodiesplayamajorroleinfacilitatingdecisionmaking over resource use

lFisherieshavebeenaffectedbyreducedconnectivitywithriverslChangesinlakeecosystemespeciallyrapidproliferationofphumdiinthepasthadledtodeclineinfishcatch,impededmovementinlake,lossoffishinggearandcrafts.lExploitativemodesoffishing,suchasuseofnylonnetsandwidespreadathaphumfishingledtocrowdingoffisheriesleadingtopromulgationofLoktakLake(Protection)Act,2006thatprohibitedthecultivationofathaphumandathaphumfishinglCulturefisherieshasacquiredmoreprominenceassourceofincome.Between1970and2009,112.8km2of272.8km2ofmarshareaswereconvertedtofishfarmsandagriculture,fragmentingtheoverallwetlandregime,stressingbiodiversityhabitatsandfurtherreducingtheoverallwaterholdingcapacityofthelakelCultureoperationsarecostintensivebesideshavingconsiderableenvironmentalimplicationslCulturefishproductionissub-optimalduetoduetoinadequateinfrastructurelikehatcheries,connectingroads,postharvestinginfrastructure,technicalknowledge,institutional lacunae and capital investment

AquaticvegetationAsperestimates,annually4,699MTofplantbiomassisharvestedforuseasfuel;350MTforuseasvegetables;thecultivation of species for handicraft manufacturing generates `22lakhperannum

l17,000householdsextractaquaticplantfor fuelwoodlOver9,000households harvest vegetables,whereas1,000householddepend on the lake forfodder.

lVariableinundationregimeandhighnutrientscreateenablingconditionsforsubmerged,floatingandemergentvegetation.

lCommercialexploitationisprohibitedundertheLoktakAct,2006

ThegrowthandproductionsoffruitofTrapanatans,Euryaleferox,fruitandrhizomeoflotusplanthasdecreasedtoagreatextent.Productionhasalsobeenimpactedbydegradedwaterquality.

AccordingtotheStateofEnvironmentReport,2007,therehasbeensharpdecreaseinthepopulationofanumberofeconomicplants(Saccharumsp.,Setariapumila,Alpinianigra,Hedychiumspicatum,etc).

ThethickandtallstandsofPhragmiteskarkawhichprovidedsheltertotheSangaideerarenowstuntedingrowth.AsthemajorfoodplantslikeZizanialatifolia,Carexspecies,Coixspeciesareonthedecline,themainsourceoffoodforSangaiisvisiblyreduced.

Regulating

NutrientretentionbyphumdiPhumdiisanaturalfeatureofthewetland.Itsspreadinthenorthern and southern sectors is important for maintenance of overallwaterqualitythroughfilteringofmineralnutrients

Aspertheestimates,478.6tonnesofnitrogen,39.6tonnesofphosphorousand157.2tonnesofpotassiumareannuallyaccumulatedwithinthephumdiofnorthernzone

lNearly50,000households living in andaroundLoktak.

lThePhumdilayeractsasabiologicalsinktothekeynutrientsimprovingwaterpurificationfunction of the wetland

Phumdisprofuselyproliferatedinthelakeduring1989–2002withtheareaofphumdisinthelakeincreasingfrom116.4km2to134.6km2

table 16: Ecosystem services description

EcosystemServicesDescription Stakeholder ExistingbiophysicalenvironmentenablingdeliveryofES

ExistingsocioeconomicenvironmentinfluencingES

Recenttrends

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Provisioning

FisheriesLoktaklakecomplexisthelargestfisheryresourceoftheManipurstateaccountingformorethan50%ofitsfishproducingarea.Loktakwetlandcomplexarethelargestcapturefisheryresourcesfortheentirestate.TheopenwaterareasinLoktakandPumlenarethemainfishingareas,whereastheextensivemarshesintheeasternpartofthecomplexalsoserveasimportantfishbreedinggrounds(particularlyforairbreathingfishes).

Fishfarmsfringetheentirewetlandcomplexandtheriverchannels.TheirconcentrationishighinthenorthernsectorofLoktakandtheeasternpartofthecomplexalongIkop-KharungandPumlen-Khoidum.

Over5,000households depend oncapturefisheriesfromLoktak.Inadditional,therearenearly13,800fishfarms around the lake.

lConnectivitywiththeriverineenvironmentwhichenablesexchangeofriverinefishspecieslSufficientwaterspreadareaduring lean seasonlAdequatelevelofnutrientsandwell-oxygenatedenvironment

lLeikai,thevillagePanchayatsandotherinformalvillagebodiesplayamajorroleinfacilitatingdecisionmaking over resource use

lFisherieshavebeenaffectedbyreducedconnectivitywithriverslChangesinlakeecosystemespeciallyrapidproliferationofphumdiinthepasthadledtodeclineinfishcatch,impededmovementinlake,lossoffishinggearandcrafts.lExploitativemodesoffishing,suchasuseofnylonnetsandwidespreadathaphumfishingledtocrowdingoffisheriesleadingtopromulgationofLoktakLake(Protection)Act,2006thatprohibitedthecultivationofathaphumandathaphumfishinglCulturefisherieshasacquiredmoreprominenceassourceofincome.Between1970and2009,112.8km2of272.8km2ofmarshareaswereconvertedtofishfarmsandagriculture,fragmentingtheoverallwetlandregime,stressingbiodiversityhabitatsandfurtherreducingtheoverallwaterholdingcapacityofthelakelCultureoperationsarecostintensivebesideshavingconsiderableenvironmentalimplicationslCulturefishproductionissub-optimalduetoduetoinadequateinfrastructurelikehatcheries,connectingroads,postharvestinginfrastructure,technicalknowledge,institutional lacunae and capital investment

AquaticvegetationAsperestimates,annually4,699MTofplantbiomassisharvestedforuseasfuel;350MTforuseasvegetables;thecultivation of species for handicraft manufacturing generates `22lakhperannum

l17,000householdsextractaquaticplantfor fuelwoodlOver9,000households harvest vegetables,whereas1,000householddepend on the lake forfodder.

lVariableinundationregimeandhighnutrientscreateenablingconditionsforsubmerged,floatingandemergentvegetation.

lCommercialexploitationisprohibitedundertheLoktakAct,2006

ThegrowthandproductionsoffruitofTrapanatans,Euryaleferox,fruitandrhizomeoflotusplanthasdecreasedtoagreatextent.Productionhasalsobeenimpactedbydegradedwaterquality.

AccordingtotheStateofEnvironmentReport,2007,therehasbeensharpdecreaseinthepopulationofanumberofeconomicplants(Saccharumsp.,Setariapumila,Alpinianigra,Hedychiumspicatum,etc).

ThethickandtallstandsofPhragmiteskarkawhichprovidedsheltertotheSangaideerarenowstuntedingrowth.AsthemajorfoodplantslikeZizanialatifolia,Carexspecies,Coixspeciesareonthedecline,themainsourceoffoodforSangaiisvisiblyreduced.

Regulating

NutrientretentionbyphumdiPhumdiisanaturalfeatureofthewetland.Itsspreadinthenorthern and southern sectors is important for maintenance of overallwaterqualitythroughfilteringofmineralnutrients

Aspertheestimates,478.6tonnesofnitrogen,39.6tonnesofphosphorousand157.2tonnesofpotassiumareannuallyaccumulatedwithinthephumdiofnorthernzone

lNearly50,000households living in andaroundLoktak.

lThePhumdilayeractsasabiologicalsinktothekeynutrientsimprovingwaterpurificationfunction of the wetland

Phumdisprofuselyproliferatedinthelakeduring1989–2002withtheareaofphumdisinthelakeincreasingfrom116.4km2to134.6km2

table 16: Ecosystem services description



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entailing regulation of lake levels for hydropowergeneration,convertedanaturallyfluctuatingwetlandinto a reservoir. This led to the inundation of peripheralareas,lossofmigratoryfisheries,reductionand degradation of the national park habitat, anddeclineinwaterquality.Rapidgrowthofpopulation in the hills has led to expansion of the area undershifting cultivation, enhancing lake siltation and loss of flood attenuation capacity. High levels ofurbanisationwithintheupstreamreaches,alongwithinadequateseweragesystems,hasledtothedumpingof untreated sewage and sewerage into the lake,causing decline in water quality. Inundation of theperipheral areas due to constant water levels has forced an occupation shift from traditional agriculture– fishery based livelihood systems to fisheries. Thedeclining resource base, along with increasingpopulation pressure, forced propagation of harmfulfishing practices, ultimately leading to phumdi

proliferation and choking of the central sector of the lake.The ultimate effect has been disruption oflivelihoods and increased poverty within wetlandcommunities.

The variability of the inundation pattern hasbeen greatly altered in the last three decades dueto hydrological regulation and land use changes,particularly along the fringing marshes (Map 2).The Ithai Barrage operations do not allow for muchlowering of water levels. There was considerableincreaseinopenwaterareaspostthebarrageoperation.Thenewlyinundatedareaswereusedforfishfarming.Overaperiodoftime,extensiveconversionofmarshesinto fish farms has taken place. Land along the riverchannelshasbeenreclaimedforpermanentagriculture,enabled through water levels managed by regulators.FragmentationismoreextensiveintheIkop-Kharungsegment, wherein the roads connecting Laisenthang,Tentha andWabgai create threedistinct components.

Freshwater useKeyeconomicuseishydropowergeneration.Withadesigncapacityof448MUpowerfromLoktakhydroelectricprojectaccountsfor35%ofthetotalenergydrawlofManipur

TheLoktakmultipurposeprojectalsoprovidesirrigationtoanareaof24,300hainthewesternhalfofManipurValley

lPopulationlivinginLoktakwest.lEntirepopulationofManipurandneighbouringstatesl Agriculturists aroundLoktak

lOptimallakewaterlevelsandwaterquality

Waterregulationislargelydictatedbyhydelpowergeneration.KeydepartmentsbeingNHPC,IFCD,CADA,MinorirrigationThere is no appropriate water use/ allocation plan for other sectors such asfisheries,maintenanceofKLNPandlakeecosystem

During1998–2003,theaverageannualpowergeneratedwas531MUhigherthatthedesigncapacity.Inrecentyearsabstractionofwaterhasbeenmuchbeyondthedesigncapacityofthepowerplant.

Cultural

RecreationalandculturalvalueGivenitscentralroleinensuringfoodandwatersecurityforthestateofManipur,LoktaklakeisassociatedwithimmenseculturalvaluesandistreatedasLoktakEma

KeibulLamjaoNationalParkistheonlynaturalhabitatfortheendangereddancingdeerortheSangaideer.Mondummahadeva(astoneimage)famousLordShivatempleissituatedinsouthwestpartabout63kmawayfromImphalnearthePumlenlakeisoneoftheimportantpilgrimagesitesinManipur.

AtendaylongSangaiFestivaliscelebratedeveryyearduringthemonthofNovemberwithalotofcolorfulprogrammesandfestivities

SendraHillandChingthi,Karangareknownmajorpotentialrecreationsitesinthewetlandcomplex

RegionaroundLoktak;nationalandglobalcommunityat large

lPresenceofopenwaterexpanselPresenceofSangaideerandwaterbirds

DeclarationofKLNPNationalparkandenactmentofLoktakLake(Protection)Act,2006haspositiveimpactsonwildlifehabitats.

HabitatqualityofSangaideerhasbeenimpactedbynearconstantwaterlevelsinthe lake



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ThemarshareastotheleftofLaisenthang-Tentharoadhave been converted for fish farms and agriculture.Similarly, the area between the river channel and theroads is converted to fish farms, with only a smallpart between Khelakhong and Khongmai channelsmaintaining marsh characteristics throughout the year.AbuffalofarmhasbeenconstructedbytheStateDepartmentofAnimalHusbandryontheperipheryofWabgaimarshes.

SimilarchangescanbeobservedinthePumlen-Khoidum part, wherein marshes fringing the centralportionhaveallbeenconverted tofish farms.OnlyasmallpatchofPumlenhasanopenwaterarearoundtheyear,therestbeingmarshes.AroundLoktakLake,thespreadoffishfarmscanbeobservedtobemostdenseinthenorthernmargins, followedbythewesternandsouthern margins.Table 17 and Figure 19 present acomparativepictureofthechangesinlandusebetween1970andMarch2011.

3.6. Current Management arrangements and gapsThe government of Manipur constituted LoktakDevelopment Authority (LDA) in 1986 as a nodalagency forconservationandmanagementof the lake.Constrained by the lack of an information base forthedevelopmentofwetlandmanagement strategies, asix year project called ‘Sustainable Development andWater Resources Management of Loktak Lake’ wasimplementedduring1996-2003.Systematicinventoryand assessment of hydrological, ecological and socio-economic features carried out under the projecthelpeddefinebaselineconditionsandtrends,aswellasidentify critical ecological components and processesfor wetland management. Based on the projectoutcomes, a Manipur River Basin scale-integrated plan for conservation and management of Loktak Lake was formulated in 2005. The plan aims atconservation and sustainable use of Loktak andits associated wetlands for ecological security and

Freshwater useKeyeconomicuseishydropowergeneration.Withadesigncapacityof448MUpowerfromLoktakhydroelectricprojectaccountsfor35%ofthetotalenergydrawlofManipur

TheLoktakmultipurposeprojectalsoprovidesirrigationtoanareaof24,300hainthewesternhalfofManipurValley

lPopulationlivinginLoktakwest.lEntirepopulationofManipurandneighbouringstatesl Agriculturists aroundLoktak

lOptimallakewaterlevelsandwaterquality

Waterregulationislargelydictatedbyhydelpowergeneration.KeydepartmentsbeingNHPC,IFCD,CADA,MinorirrigationThere is no appropriate water use/ allocation plan for other sectors such asfisheries,maintenanceofKLNPandlakeecosystem

During1998–2003,theaverageannualpowergeneratedwas531MUhigherthatthedesigncapacity.Inrecentyearsabstractionofwaterhasbeenmuchbeyondthedesigncapacityofthepowerplant.

Cultural

RecreationalandculturalvalueGivenitscentralroleinensuringfoodandwatersecurityforthestateofManipur,LoktaklakeisassociatedwithimmenseculturalvaluesandistreatedasLoktakEma

KeibulLamjaoNationalParkistheonlynaturalhabitatfortheendangereddancingdeerortheSangaideer.Mondummahadeva(astoneimage)famousLordShivatempleissituatedinsouthwestpartabout63kmawayfromImphalnearthePumlenlakeisoneoftheimportantpilgrimagesitesinManipur.

AtendaylongSangaiFestivaliscelebratedeveryyearduringthemonthofNovemberwithalotofcolorfulprogrammesandfestivities

SendraHillandChingthi,Karangareknownmajorpotentialrecreationsitesinthewetlandcomplex

RegionaroundLoktak;nationalandglobalcommunityat large

lPresenceofopenwaterexpanselPresenceofSangaideerandwaterbirds

DeclarationofKLNPNationalparkandenactmentofLoktakLake(Protection)Act,2006haspositiveimpactsonwildlifehabitats.

HabitatqualityofSangaideerhasbeenimpactedbynearconstantwaterlevelsinthe lake



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livelihood improvement of local communities through catchment conservation, water management,biodiversity conservation, fisheries development,management of aquatic vegetation and institutionaldevelopment. The overall outlay of the managementplanwasestimatedtobe 494.72crore(at2007prices),andtheimplementationwasinitiatedin2007withanallocation of `50croreby thePlanningCommission,GovernmentofIndia.

Implementation of the management plan was reviewedbythePlanningCommissionin2007,anditwas recommended to prioritise the plan in the form of a ShortTermActionPlan(STAP)focusedonimmediatemeasures for ecological restoration of Loktak. Theemphasis was on addressing the proliferation of phumdi in the central sector of the lake.Examinationof pastrecords and maps indicated that while phumdi was a natural feature of thewetland, its spreadwas limitedonly in the northern and southern parts. The use ofphumenclosuresoffishingwasrestrictedtoonlycertainparts of the central sector, and only in the winter.With the operation of the Ithai barrage, large areaswerepermanently inundated, forcing anoccupationalshift towardsfish-based livelihoods.Athaphum fishinggradually spread to the entire central sector andtransformed from seasonal to actively carried outthroughouttheyear(Figure20).

Amajor implication of the spread ofathaphum was its contribution to phumdi proliferation in the central sector, fragmentation of the hydrologicalregime,degradedwaterquality, reducedareaavailableforcapturefisheries,impedingmovementandreducingoverallaesthetics.

TheSTAPdesigntherefore focusedonrestoringthe open area in the central sector of Loktak. Thiswas accompanied by interventions for revegetatingdegradeddirectcatchments, improvingwaterregimes,

enhancingcaptureandculturefisheriesanddiversifyinglivelihoods to reduce pressure on lake resources.Building capacity for integrated management withinLDA and strengthening park management were alsoincluded as means for improving lake governance.The Planning Commission approved an outlay of `373.99croreforimplementingSTAP.

The STAP was implemented during the periodJanuary, 2009-March, 2013, entailing an expenditureof `255.63crore4.

The outcomes of the STAP implementationare presented inTable 18.These have been classifiedinto three broad categories: ecological benefits, socio-economic benefits and institutional benefits5. Theecological benefits mainly include state changes inwetland components and processes, and have beeninterpretedfromtheanalysisofremotesensingimagesand monitoring data. The socio-economic benefitsrelatemostlytochangesintheavailabilityofresources,and have been derived from a survey. Institutionalbenefits include changes in institutional responses tolakemanagementissues.

Figure 19: key drivers and pressures impacting loktak lake

table 17: Changes in land use/cover within loktak wetland complex

Landuse/Landcovercategory Area(inha)

1970 2011

Openwater 6295 9662

Marsh 23313 23761

Fishfarms 0 9486

Agriculture

Settlements 1220 979

Forests 1518 1026

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However, the envisaged restoration of LoktakLakecomplex (as set in theManagementPlan)couldnotbeachievedtilldate.Someofthekeylimitingfactorshave been very limited investment in conservation ofassociated wetlands which form an integral part of the wetlandcomplex.ThewastemanagementinfrastructurewithinManipurRiverBasinhasnotdevelopedtotheanticipatedcapacitytherebyleadingtocontinuedstresson the wetland system. Interventions for livelihoodtransformationhavehadadelayedstartduetovariousreasons. Institutional arrangements, especially inter-department coordinationneeds further strengthening.LoktakLakecontinues tobe inMontreauxRecordastheadversechangeinitsecologicalcharacterareyettobecomprehensivelyaddressed.

Thefollowingissueshavealsoemergedasbeingofkeyconcerntowetlandmanagement:l Conversion ofmarshes:Themarsh systemswithin

Loktak Lake complex have been extensivelyconvertedforfishfarmsandagriculture.Assessmentsbasedonremotesensingimageriesindicatethat112km2ofnaturalmarsheswereconvertedsince1970,leadingtoreducedcapacitytoregulatehydrologicalregimes, cycle nutrients, support biodiversity andcommunitylivelihoods.

l Fragmentationofhydrological regimes:Theoverallconnectivity of Manipur River with the LoktakWetland Complex as well as within the wetlandsystem has been severally impeded throughconstructionof embankments,diversionofnaturalflows, channel siltation and aggradation. Reducedability of the wetland complex to regulate flowregimeshasincreasedinstancesoffloodsandreducedconnectivitybetweenbiodiversityhabitats.

l Increased pollution loading: Inadequate sanitationinfrastructurewithinhighlypopulatedandrapidlyurbanizing Manipur Valley is leading to anincreaseddischargeofuntreated sewageand solid-waste into LoktakWetland Complex. This is oneof the key factors promoting growth of luxuriantvegetation impacting natural ecosystem processesandfunctions.

l ThecurrentprovisionsunderWetland(ConservationandManagement)Rules,2010andManipurLoktak

(Protection) Act, 2006 restrict unsustainable useof wetland resources. However, the act has notbeen effectively applied in the absence of requisiteinstitutional infrastructure. The regulatoryframeworkalsodoesnot create abasis for creatingpositive incentives for community stewardship,which is vital for sustainable management of thewetlandsystem.

l Climate change risks: The climate risks are stillvery weakly addressed in management planningprocesses. Further research and assessments arerequiredtobuildsuitableadaptationmeasuresinthemanagementplanimplementation.

3.7. Economic valuation of Ecosystem ServicesThe assessment of wetland features reveals the keyecosystem services that are critical for sustaininglivelihoodsofpeopleinLoktakWetlandComplex.Aneconomicvaluationofwetlandecosystemserviceshasbeencarriedoutusingmarketandnon-marketbasedmethods.

Quantumofharvestofwetlandproducts(fishandaquaticplants)havebeenestimatedbasedonhouseholdsurveys in the absence of monitoring data. Marketpriceshavebeenusedtoestimateeconomicvalue,asfullinformationforadjustingthepricesforexternalitiesandmarketdistortionscouldnotbegenerated.Productionfunction method was used to estimate the economic

Figure 20: trends in number of athaphum and phumdi area in central sector of loktak

7000

6000

5000

4000

3000

2000

1000

0

7000

6000

5000

4000

3000

2000

1000

0

AthaphumNumberPhumdiarea

1989

1999

2002

Atha

phum

Num

ber

Area

(ha.

)

4Ofthetotalexpenditureof`255.63crore,thePlanningCommissionprovided`222.79crore.`32.53crorewasreceivedasmatchinggrantfrom state government and `4.31crorefromtheTwelfthFinanceCommission.5Amorecomprehensiveapproachforidentificationofbenefitswouldhavebeenthroughsystematicallydesignedstrategicimpactassessment,buildingonecological,hydrologicalandsocio-economicmonitoring.Inthisassessment,projectcostsemergingasaresultofimplementationofactivities(forexamplereductionincatchfromathaphumfisheries)havebeenexcluded.Similarly,thebenefitsarenotevaluatedintermsofsustainability.

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table 18: outcomes of Stap interventions

EcologicalBenefits

Increase in open water area in 4 central sector Openwaterareaincentralsector

km2 65.55 AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofNovember2012(IRSResourcesat-2)

46.08 AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofMarch2007(IRSCartosat–1)

Improvementinwaterquality/(waterqualitymaintaineddespiteincreasingpollutionloadingfromtheinflowingrivers)

pH Logarithmofhydrogenion concentration

6.2-7.3 LDAmonitoringdata(2010-12) 6.2-7.6 LDAmonitoringdata(2000-01)

DO mg/l 2.79-8.21 LDA-Averageofmonthlyobservationsfrom18stations(2010-13)

2.8-8.9 LDAmonitoringdata(2000-01)

Transparency m 0.36-1.53 LDA-Averageofmonthlyobservationsfrom18stations(2010-13)

Nitrate-nitrogen mg/l 0.27-0.420.13-0.8 SharmaandSharma(2009)9LDAmonitoringdata(2000-01)

Phosphate-phosphorus mg/l 0.12-0.320.03-0.31 SharmaandSharma(2009)LDAmonitoringdata(2000-01)

Totalcoliform MPN/100ml 8-421 LDA-Averageofmonthlyobservationsfrom18stations(2010-13)

130-520 LDAmonitoringdata(2000-01)

Increaseinwaterholdingcapacityduetoreductioninareaunder phumdi in central sector

MCM 9.81 Estimatedbasedonchangeinareaunder phumdi in central sector

Increaseinvegetativecoverindirect(western)catchments Totalvegetatedareainwesterncatchment

ha 23,896 AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofNovember2011(IRSResourcesat–2)

23,068 AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofNovember2011(IRSResourcesat–2)

Decreaseinareaundershiftingcultivation Area under shifting cultivation in western catchment



Enhancementoflakeasawaterbirdhabitat Numberofwaterbirdspeciesusingthelakeashabitat

Numberofspecies 56 Waterbirdcensusestimatefortheperiod2010-2013reportedbyCCNCS

15 Waterbirdcensusfortheperiod2006-09

Populationofwaterbirdspeciesusingthelakeashabitat

Population 34,369 CCNCS(2012-2013) 16,736 ESRSPF(2004)

Increase in overall aesthetics Communityperception Rankonascale0-1 0.75 Householdsurvey(2013) 0.15 Householdsurvey(2014)

Reducedriskofphumdiproliferationfromathaphum Lakeareaunderathaphum ha Negligible AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofNovember2012(IRSResourcesat-2)

2258 AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofMarch2007(IRSCartosat–1)

Increaseinareaundersubmergedvegetation Areaundersubmergedvegetation

ha 2,325 AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofNovember2012(IRSResourcesat-2)

Verylimitedareaasthecentral sector choked with athaphum

SocioeconomicBenefits

Increaseincatchofcapturefisheries Annual catch MT 3,800 Householdsurvey(2013) 1,473 Averageannualcatchfor2001-03(TrisalandManihar,2004)

Improved navigation and access to lake Perceptionrankingona0–1scale

Rank 0.66 Householdsurvey(2013) 0.13 Householdsurvey(2014)

Decreaseddamagetofishinggearduetomovingphum Amount in `lost/year ` 10,607 Householdsurvey(2013) 14,643 Householdsurvey(2014)

Increased use of toilets in lakeshore villages Householduseoftoilets %tototalhouseholds 79 Householdsurvey(2013) 26.6 Householdsurveydata(2001-02)

Projectresults Indicator Unit PostProject PreSTAP

Value DateandDataSource Value DateandDataSource

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EcologicalBenefits

Increase in open water area in 4 central sector Openwaterareaincentralsector

km2 65.55 AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofNovember2012(IRSResourcesat-2)

46.08 AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofMarch2007(IRSCartosat–1)

Improvementinwaterquality/(waterqualitymaintaineddespiteincreasingpollutionloadingfromtheinflowingrivers)

pH Logarithmofhydrogenion concentration

6.2-7.3 LDAmonitoringdata(2010-12) 6.2-7.6 LDAmonitoringdata(2000-01)

DO mg/l 2.79-8.21 LDA-Averageofmonthlyobservationsfrom18stations(2010-13)

2.8-8.9 LDAmonitoringdata(2000-01)

Transparency m 0.36-1.53 LDA-Averageofmonthlyobservationsfrom18stations(2010-13)

Nitrate-nitrogen mg/l 0.27-0.420.13-0.8 SharmaandSharma(2009)9LDAmonitoringdata(2000-01)

Phosphate-phosphorus mg/l 0.12-0.320.03-0.31 SharmaandSharma(2009)LDAmonitoringdata(2000-01)

Totalcoliform MPN/100ml 8-421 LDA-Averageofmonthlyobservationsfrom18stations(2010-13)

130-520 LDAmonitoringdata(2000-01)

Increaseinwaterholdingcapacityduetoreductioninareaunder phumdi in central sector

MCM 9.81 Estimatedbasedonchangeinareaunder phumdi in central sector

Increaseinvegetativecoverindirect(western)catchments Totalvegetatedareainwesterncatchment



Decreaseinareaundershiftingcultivation Area under shifting cultivation in western catchment



Enhancementoflakeasawaterbirdhabitat Numberofwaterbirdspeciesusingthelakeashabitat

Numberofspecies 56 Waterbirdcensusestimatefortheperiod2010-2013reportedbyCCNCS

15 Waterbirdcensusfortheperiod2006-09

Populationofwaterbirdspeciesusingthelakeashabitat

Population 34,369 CCNCS(2012-2013) 16,736 ESRSPF(2004)

Increase in overall aesthetics Communityperception Rankonascale0-1 0.75 Householdsurvey(2013) 0.15 Householdsurvey(2014)

Reducedriskofphumdiproliferationfromathaphum Lakeareaunderathaphum ha Negligible AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofNovember2012(IRSResourcesat-2)

2258 AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofMarch2007(IRSCartosat–1)

Increaseinareaundersubmergedvegetation Areaundersubmergedvegetation

ha 2,325 AnalysisofremotesensingimageryofNovember2012(IRSResourcesat-2)

Verylimitedareaasthecentral sector choked with athaphum

SocioeconomicBenefits

Increaseincatchofcapturefisheries Annual catch MT 3,800 Householdsurvey(2013) 1,473 Averageannualcatchfor2001-03(TrisalandManihar,2004)

Improved navigation and access to lake Perceptionrankingona0–1scale

Rank 0.66 Householdsurvey(2013) 0.13 Householdsurvey(2014)

Decreaseddamagetofishinggearduetomovingphum Amount in `lost/year ` 10,607 Householdsurvey(2013) 14,643 Householdsurvey(2014)

Increased use of toilets in lakeshore villages Householduseoftoilets %tototalhouseholds 79 Householdsurvey(2013) 26.6 Householdsurveydata(2001-02)

Contd...



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costofLoktakLakewatersasaninputtohydropowerproduction,referencedtoassessmentsofecologicalandsocial limits of use of water for various economic and ecological purposes. Cultural values were estimatedthroughanalysisofindividualhouseholdbehaviourinhypotheticalmarkets.

Theeconomicanalysispresentedinthereportisbased on rapid assessment, anduses to a large extentsecondary datasets. Assessment of project benefitshas been done through interpretation of remotesensing imageries (for status of western catchmentsand extent of phumdi proliferation), assessment ofexistingmonitoringdata(onwaterquality,waterlevels,biodiversity), information from project evaluationreports6 andmonitoring records for theperiod1999-2003pertainingtoSDWRML7project.

Ecosystems are inherently complex with non-linear characteristics. The study uses market pricesand financial costs given the short time frame forassessment. For future assessments, these wouldneed tobe adjusted formarket distortions, aswell asreviewingtheopportunitycostsofalternateinvestmentopportunities.

Fisheries:Whilefisheriesassessmentshavebeendiscontinuedsince2003,anattempttoassessthecurrentcatchlevelswasmadethroughsurveysoffishers.Dataon catch, fishing gear, fishing days, prices,marketingandconsumptionpatternswascollectedfrom260fisherhouseholdsfrom21villages.Aspertheassessment,thecurrentannualfishcatchfromcapturesourcesisaround

3,800MT(Table19).Thereisalsoanoveralltransitionin fisheries observed during 2003-2013 (Table 20).While therehasbeenadecline inathaphumfisheries,therehasbeenanincreaseincapturefisheriesaswellasculturefisheriesintheperipheralareas.Theareaunderfish farms has increased from 97.6 km2 (12,568 fishponds) in 2003 to 107.48 km2 (around 13,800 fishponds)in2012.

The gross economic value of annual capture fisheriescatch,usingmarketprices8weightedbycatchcomposition is `53.34crore9.

Aquatic vegetation for various economic uses: LoktakLakeisasourceofseveralplantsusedforvariouspurposesbycommunitieslivinginandaround.Overall132 plant species associated with phumdi have beenidentifiedwhichareutilizedbythepeopleasvegetables,food,fodder,fuel,thatch,fencingmaterial,medicines,rawmaterialforhandicrafts,andforreligious&culturalpurposes.

As per survey, 56% of the communities livingin and around wetland reported harvesting aquaticvegetation for various purposes. The total amountof biomass harvested for various economic uses wasassessedtobe11,700MT.

Theannualquantityofbiomassusedasfuelperhousehold inandaroundLoktakhasbeenassessedtobe1825kg,ofwhich36%issourcedfromthewetlandsystem.Usingthisestimateofannualaveragehouseholdconsumptionof fuelwood, the totalannualharvestoffuelwood from Loktak Lake has been estimated at

Increaseddiversityofuseofcapturefishinggears %fisherhouseholdsusingcapturefishinggear

%tototalfisherhouseholds

85 Householdsurvey(2013) 32 Householdsurveydata(2001-02)

Improved convergence of schemes within line departments to supportimplementationofSTAP

Statefundsmadeavailableforimplementationofprojectactivities

` crore(overtheprojectimplementationperiod)

59.74 Projectfinancialstatements 0



The study uses market prices and financial costs because of the short assessment time frame. future assessments need to adjust for market distortions, and review the opportunity costs of alternate investment opportunities

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4,669 MT. The economic value of the fuelwood isderived using the prices of conventional head load sold inthemarket.Usingthepricesof`110/mon(1mon=40kgs),thevalueisestimatedtobe`5.14crore.

Communities also harvest 2,500 kgs of aquaticvegetation daily from Loktak, both for personalconsumption as well as for sale in the markets. Theaverage availability of vegetables from the lake is for4.66months,or140days.Therefore the totalannualharvest of vegetables from Loktak is 350 MT. Sincespecies disaggregated data is not available for thevegetable harvest, valuation is done using aweightedprice,assumingthatallspeciesareconsumedinequalproportion. The average weighted price of vegetablesis `37.16/kg.TheannualmonetaryvalueofaquaticvegetationharvestedfromLoktakforuseasvegetableshavebeenassessedtobe`13.01crore.

Further,asperthefieldsurveys,400householdsin8lakeshorevillagesarepresentlyengagedincultivationofCyperusandScirpus species foruse inhandicrafts.Cultivated across 200 ha, the activity generates `22lakhperannumasrawmaterials.

Freshwater:Loktakisamajorfreshwaterresource.A key economic use is for hydropower generationthrough abstraction by the Loktak Hydro-electricprojectoperatedby theNationalHydroelectricPowerCorporation. The average annual production fromthehydropowerunitwhichwasdesignedat448MU,hasbeen always above these targets for almost all theyearssince1989.PowerfromtheLoktakHydroelectricprojectaccountsfor35%ofthetotalenergydrawalofManipur13.The averageperunit price of power fromotherpowersourcesin2002-03werehigherby171%ascomparedtotheunitpricechargedbyNHPC.Thestate also receives 12%of the total power generationfree of charge (as per guidelines for operation andestablishment of central sector power plants in thenortheastern region of India), which accounted for13%ofthetotalenergydrawalforstatein2002-0314.Powerfromthehydroelectricprojectissharedbysevenothernortheasternstates,includingArunachalPradesh(4.76%); Assam (25.97%); Meghalaya (9.14%);Mizoram (6.70%); Nagaland (7.24%) and Tripura(14.38%).

Increaseddiversityofuseofcapturefishinggears %fisherhouseholdsusingcapturefishinggear

%tototalfisherhouseholds

85 Householdsurvey(2013) 32 Householdsurveydata(2001-02)

Improved convergence of schemes within line departments to supportimplementationofSTAP

Statefundsmadeavailableforimplementationofprojectactivities

` crore(overtheprojectimplementationperiod)

59.74 Projectfinancialstatements 0



6FinalReportofThirdPartyEvaluationofShortTermActionPlanforConservationandManagementofLoktakLakeandassociatedWetlandsintegratingManipurRiverBasinsubmittedbyWaterInstitute,KarunyaUniversitytoLoktakDevelopmentAuthorityinJune20137SustainableDevelopmentandWaterResourcesManagementofLoktakLake’wasimplementedduring1996-2003byLoktakDevelopmentAuthority(LDA)8Pricesused:IndianMajorCarp(`125/kg),Minnows(`175/kg)andothers(`80/kg)9Forthepresentexercise,thevalueofculturefisherieshasbeenexcluded.Majorexpansionoffishfarmsisthroughconversionofmarsheswhichplayasignificantecologicalroleinsustainingthewetland.STAPdidnotintendtoaddresssustenanceofculturefisheries.10Catchcomposition:IndianMajorCarps(39%),Minnows(45%)andothers(16%)

Table 19: Details of fishers and capture fisheries catch of Loktak (2013)

Island Villages

VillagesaroundLoktak

Total

Fisherhouseholds Number 3100 1,950 5,050

Fishingdays PerYear 236 173 212

Activefishers PerHousehold 1.25 1.01 1.22

Catch perkg/day 3.0515 2.89 2.89

Totalcatch MT/Annum 2,789.22 984.69 3,773.91

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Thereisnospecificallocationofwaterforothersectors, partly because the demand for industrial anddomesticpurposesisnegligibleandpartlybecausetheotheractivities,exceptincidenceofsurplusreleaseswithconsequentflooding,beinglocatedandexecutedwithinthelakeitselfarenotexpectedtoexperiencedifficulties.Thequantumofwaterused for lift irrigationdirectlyfromthelakeisvariableandnotestimated.

EstimationofeconomicvalueofwaterusedfromLoktakforhydropowergenerationisdonethroughuseof production function approach. The specificationof the function involves total hydropower generatedfrom the project as a dependent variable, and waterused forhydropower generation, andoperational andmaintenance cost (as proxy for capital). Evaluationof benefits derived through sale of hydropower hasbeendoneatthecurrentsalepriceofelectricity.Costof abatement of sedimentation induced by the Ithaibarragehasbeenusedasaproxyforthesedimentationimpactof thebarrage.Costofmechanical removalofathaphums constructed as a response to inundation broughtaboutbybarragehasbeenusedasanindicatorfor phumdiproliferation.Valuationofcrop lossesdueto inundation has been done using market prices ofcrops and the affected area. Impacts onfisherieshavebeenestimatedastheopportunitycostoffisherieslostduetoreducedmigration.ImpactsonKLNPhavebeenassessed by developing a functional linkage betweenwater level fluctuations, habitat availability of Sangaiandwillingnesstopayforbiodiversity.

A Cobb-Douglas specification is used for theproductionfunction,estimatedusingstandardordinaryleast squaresprocedure appliedon annualdata valuesfor the period 1986 - 2003. Estimation yielded the

followingequation:

ln(Y)=0.918ln(W)+0.131ln(C)−1.103

All the estimated coefficients were found to bestatisticallysignificantat95%confidence,andthevalueofR-squarewasobservedtobe0.755.

Theeconomicvalueofwaterusedforhydropowergeneration has been estimated using the coefficientfor water (as derived in the previous equation) for aproductionvalueof400MU.This is estimated tobe`18.33crore.Thisvalueisalmostcommensuratetothecommercialrevenuegenerationfromthesaleofunits.

Nutrient retention by phumdi: Phumdiplaysanimportantroleinmaintenanceofoverallwaterqualitythroughfilteringofmineralnutrients.Athickstripofphumdi in the northern sector is critical to maintenance of water quality of the lake by acting as a biologicalsinktothekeynutrients.Aspertheassessmentscarriedduring 1999-2003, 478.6 tonnes of nitrogen, 39.6tonnesofphosphorousand157.2tonnesofpotassiumareannuallyaccumulatedwithinthephumdi of northern zone.The huge amount of the pollutants brought inbytherivers,particularlyNambulandNambol,ifnotabsorbedbyphumdiwouldhavebeenavailable inthewater thereby leading to further degradation makingthelakeunfitforfisheriesandotheraquaticbiodiversity.

Estimation of nutrient retention function ofphumdihasbeendoneusingreplacementcosttechnique.Thisfunctionofphumdicanbemostcloselyreplicatedthrough the use of constructed wetlands15 designed forwastewater treatment.Estimationof required areaisdoneusingak-Cmodelwiththefollowinggenericform:

1n((Ce - C*))=k

_______ _

Ci - C

q

Ce= outlet target concentration, mg/L; Ci =inlet target concentration, mg/L; C*=backgroundconcentration,mg/L;k=firstorderarealrateconstant,m/yrq=hydraulicloadingrate,m/yr

Data for estimating the equationwere used forNambulRiver(whichflowsintotheNorthernSector)

Table 20: Changes in fish yield from Loktak during 2003-2013

Fishcatch/yield(MT)

2003 2013

Capturefisheries 1,47311 3,800

Culturefisheries 10,500 11,50012

Athaphumfisheries 550 Negligible(declaredillegal)

16Averagecatchfor1999-2003.Datasource:SDWRMLproject,publishedasTrisalandManihar(2003)17Basedonstockingdensityderivedfromsamplesurveydata(IMC:4600fingerlings,exotic:775fingerlings;minnowsandothers:2200fingerlings)andconsidering50%mortalityduringgrowthperiod.Harvestsizederivedfromsamplesurveydata:IMC(0.5kg),exotic:0.75kg,minnowsandothers:80g.Effectivefarmareahasbeentakenas70%ofthetotallandarea.Productiondatafor2003hasbeenderivedassumingafarmingtechnologysimilartothatpresentlyused.18DepartmentofPower,GovernmentofManipur,200319DepartmentofPower,GovernmentofManipur,2003

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andcentralsectorofLoktakLakeandpertainto2003-04 (Table21).The sumof capital andoperation andmaintenancecostsofthesurfaceflowwetlandisbeingusedasaproxyoftheeconomicvalueoftheecosystemservice.

The basic investment costs for constructedwetlands include land, site investigation, systemdesign, earthwork, liners, filtration or rootingmedia,vegetation, hydraulic control structures and othermiscellaneous. The total capital investment is alsoknown to vary from low estimate asUS$ 29 perm2 in India (Billore etAl.,1994)andUS$33perm2 in CostaRica(Dallasetal.,2004)toEuro257perm2 in Belgium(Rousseau,2004).For thepresent study, thecapitalandoperationalcosts ($44,622/haandUS$400/acrerespectively)suggestedbyKaldecandKnight(1995) for surface flowwetlands at 1993 prices havebeenused.

Toobtaincomparativecostsavingsmadeduetonaturalfunctioningofthewetland,thecostshavebeenconverted in Rupees using Purchasing Power Parityexchangerate,andannualizedusinga4%discountrate.

Based on the above estimations, an annualsavings of `11.33 crore is made through nutrientretention function of the phumdi in the northern sector ofLoktak.TherestorationofphumdiinthenorthernsectorcarriedunderSTAPis likelytofurther increasethenutrientretentioncapacityofLoktak.

Flood buffer: In its natural regimes, LoktakaccommodatedahugeproportionofmonsooninflowsfromManipurRivertherebyprovidingfloodprotectionto communities living in and around.However,with

commissioning of Ithai Barrage and regulation ofnaturalregimes,thisecosystemserviceshasbeenhighlycurtailed and the adjoining settlements, especiallylocated in southern, eastern and western marginsfrequentlyexperienceprolongedwaterlogging.Thishasthereforebeenexcludedfromthecurrentanalysis.

Cultural Values: Loktak Lake is of immensecultural importance to the communities living in and aroundthelake.Thelakeitselfisreferredinthefolkloreas‘LoktakEma’meaningmothergoddesses.

Theculturalvaluesdonotfindanexpressioninthecurrentmarkets.Hence,acontingentvaluationsurveywasusedtoelicitwillingnesstopayforconservingandsustainingculturalvalues.Therespondentswereaskedtorankstatementswhichsymbolizedtheexistence,optionandbequestvaluesofthe lake.ThemodeofpaymentforWTP was in the form of voluntary contributionof time and/ormoney to a hypotheticalLoktakLakeconservation fund designed as an investment instrument for projects aimed at conserving cultural values.Willingness topay in termsof labourwere convertedinto monetary equivalent and the maximum annualaggregatesofthecontributionswereusedtomodeltheWTP.Ofthe260responses,196responseswereusedforanalysisafterscreeningofmissingresponsesaswellas extreme values. 192 respondents elicited positiveWTPwhereasfourrespondentsexpressedtheirinabilitytopaybecauseofmoneyandtimeconstraints.53.5%ofpeoplefeltthatLoktakDevelopmentAuthoritywasresponsible for conservation of Loktak Lake. 68.5%people strongly felt that they too owed the collectiveresponsibilitytoconservethelake.

15Constructedwetlandsareengineeredsystemsthathavebeendesignedandconstructedtoutilizenaturalprocessesinvolvingwetlandvegetation,soilsandassociatedmicrobialassemblagestoassistintreatingwastewaters.Theycanbeclassifiedbasedonthelifeformsofdominatingmacrophyte(asfreefloating,floatingleaved,rootedemergentandsubmergedmacrophytictypes);flowdirection(horizontalandvertical)andhydrology(surfaceorsub-surface)types.Usesofconstructedwetlandtechnologieshaverangesfromtreatingwastewaterfrompetrochemical,paperandpulpwastewaters,abattoir,textileandtanneryindustries,distilleryandwinery,pigandfishfarms,nurseryrunoffsetc.

Estimations suggest that an annual savings of `11.33 crore is made through nutrient retention function of the phumdi in the northern sector of loktak. The restoration of phumdi in the northern sector carried under STAP is likely to further increase the nutrient retention capacity of loktak

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Thedatawereanalysedbyavarietyofstatisticalmethods including descriptive statistics (mean values,standard errors, skewness and kurtosis).The variableswere log transformed in order to ensure a normal distribution. All analysis were performed using SPSSversion 16.0.The linear relationship ofWTP for theecosystem services was modelled by means of linearregression.Thelinearregressionanalysiswasperformedusing the following variables based on responsesobtainedfromthesurveyquestionnaire:

AGE=ageoftherespondentEDU=YearsofformaleducationHHSIZE=HouseholdsizeINCOME=Annualhouseholdincomefromall

sourcesEVLD = Existence value of Loktak value

expressed in terms of ranks related to expression ofcultural linkages

OVSA=OptionvalueofLoktakvalueexpressedin terms of ranks given to conservation of the lake as a societalassetthoughnodirectbenefitsarebeingderivedbytherespondent

EVSD=ExistencevalueofLoktakvalueexpressedin terms of ranks given to conservation of the Sangai Deer

BVLD=BequestvalueforLoktakLakeexpressedin terms of ranks related to conservation of Lake for

future generationsStepwise method was used for entering the

variables which uses the change in predictive valuesof variables to enter and remove variables at eachstep.Fourvariableswere included in thefinalmodel:EVLD,Income,EVSDandOVSAasperthefollowingregressionequation:

ln WTP = -11.269 + 7.265*lnEVLD + 0.494*lnIncome + 2.342*lnEVSD + 0.441* lnOVSA

The R –square value indicates that about 48.8% of the variance is explained by the four predictorvariables. There is a significant relationship betweenthepredictorvariablesandtheWTP.All thevariablesincluded in themodel are significant as indicated bythe b-valueswhichareunder0.05.Thevaluesindicatethe relative influence of the entered variables, that isLogEVLDhadthegreatestinfluenceonWTP(=0.46),followedbyincome(0.31)followedbyEVSD(=0.21)andOVSA(=0.17).Restofthevariablesdidnotmeettheentryrequirements.Regressionstatisticsrelatetotheexplainedportionofthevariance.ThepositivevaluesoftheBetavaluesindicatethatallthefourvariableshaveapositiveloadingontheWillingnesstoPay(Table22and23).

TheMeanannualWTPfortheculturalecosystem

Table 21: Required artificial wetland area to provide nutrient retention function equivalent to phumdi

InflowfromNambulRiver m3/day Q 44,109.59

BOD TN OrganicN

InfluentconcentrationofNambulRiver mg/L CI 50 13.4 1.7

Effluentconcentration(atLoktak) mg/L Ce 6.8 1.67 1.6

Wetlandbackgroundlimit mg/L C* 6.15 1.5 1.5

Reductionfractiontotarget Fe=1-Ce/Ci 0.864 0.86 0.059

Reductionfractiontobackground Fb=1-C*/Ci 0.877 0.89 0.12

ArealRateconstant m/yr K 34 22 17

RequiredWetlandArea ha A 1,994.30 3,109.13 696.45

Areaofartificialwetlandrequired=3109.13haCapitalcostequivalentforLoktak=`4,46,72,86,28316

Averageannualizedvaluebasedon4%discountrate(over50years)=`3,10,96,394Operationalcost(2012/ha)using4%incrementperannum=`26,440Totalannualoperationalcost=`8,22,08,373Totalannualcost=`11,33,04,767.

16ConversionbasedonExchangeRateofUS$1=`58indexedataPurchasingPowerParityof4.5.Effectiveexchangerate,thereforeis`58/4.5=`12.88

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servicesoftheLoktakLakeisestimatedtobe 1881.81.Projectingthisamounttothetotallakeshorepopulation(earning members of households, factoring in forhouseholds expressing nullWTP), the grossWTP isestimatedtobe`26.33crore.

Collatingbenefitsderivedfromecosystemservicesindicates a minimum annual value of `127.7 crore,which represents an asset value of `6,385crore(at2%discountrateinperpetuity;Figure.21)

3.8. Water Management options for rebalancing Ecosystem ServicesTheanalysis in theprevious section indicates the roleof water regimes in governing ecosystem services.Harmonizingwaterallocationforhumanpurposes(i.ehydropowergeneration,agricultureanddomesticuse)with ecological demands for maintenance of wetland ecological character (maintenance of KLNP habitat,fishmigration,lakewaterqualityandoverallecosystemhealth)iscentraltoensuringconservationandwiseuseofLoktakandassociatedwetlands.

Identification of objectives that need to bemetthroughmanagingwaterregimesofLoktakformsthebasicfoundationofdefiningthetradeoffs.

Establishing water management objectives alsoneedstobereferencedtothe fact theLoktakwetlandcomplex has already gone through a phase of rapidmodification particularly in the last three decades,

andthereforethesystemnolongerexistsinitsnaturalregimes. Several processes, including regulation ofoutflows, channelization, construction of fish farms,reduced connectivity with other wetlands within thecomplex,canbevariablyattributedascausativefactors.The demands from water management have also changedwithsocietalneedsandeconomicdevelopment,particularlywith respect to the roleofhydropower insocioeconomicdevelopmentofthenortheasternregion.Under these circumstances, revising the operation ofhydraulic structures cannot serveas the“silverbullet”forrestorationofecologicalcharacterofLoktak.

Revision of watermanagement planningwouldrequire addressing allied processes which effecthydrological regimes, primarily restoration of thecatchments, preventing further fragmentation ofLoktakWetlandComplex (andundertakingmeasuresfor enhancing connectivity), improvement of waterquality, and ensuring livelihood systems compatiblewiththedynamichydrologicalregimesofthewetland

table 22: Wtp regression model summary

R RSquare AdjustedRSquare

Std.ErroroftheEstimate

Durbin-Watson

.699 .488 .468 .958 1.612

Predictors:(Constant),logEVLD,logIncome,LogEVSD,logOVSADependentVariable:logWTP

table 23: Summary statistics, correlations and results from the regression analysis

Coefficients values t Sig CorrelationwithlogWTP

(Constant) -11.269 -5.489 .000

logEVLD 7.265 .465 5.633 .000 .478**

logIncome .494 .308 4.057 .000 .265**

LogEVSD 2.342 .205 2.483 .015 .581**

logOVSA .441 .166 2.182 .031 .022**Correlationissignificantatthe0.01level(2-tailed).

Harmonizing water allocation for human purposes with ecological demands for maintenance of wetland ecological character is central to ensuring conservation and wise use of loktak and associated wetlands

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system.Water management objectives and required

hydrological conditions in the wetland have beenidentified based on stakeholder consultations (Table24).

3.9. ScenariosFrom comparison of different water managementobjectives for Loktak Lake (Table 24), it can beobserved that all objectives, except objective 1 and9, can be achieved by operationalizing a lake levelmanagement close to natural regime. However, theobjectives related to hydropower generation and tocertaindegreemaintenanceofculturefisheriesrequirestable and regulated lake level conditions. One wayto explore the rangeofoptions is to exploredifferentwater management scenarios and evaluate their impacts on multiple criteria. The current water managementregime,whichisdictatedbytheneedsofhydropowergeneration, and the baseline natural regime (whichaddresses ecologicalneedsonapriority) canbe taken

as two extreme ends of scenario development. Thefollowingthreescenarioshavebeenconsideredtoassistunderstanding of implications of changes in water management:

Scenario 1: Mimicking natural regime –prioritizingbiodiversityconservation

Scenario 2: Multiple objectives – allocationof water for hydropower generation, biodiversityconservationandfloodcontrol

Scenario 3: Business as usual – prioritizinghydropowergeneration.

The following empirical relationships were used to develop the lake level scenarios:l MonthlywaterbalanceforLoktakwetlandbasedon

hydrologicalmodelling(Figure22)l Area – elevation – capacity relationship developed

onthebasisofbathymetricsurveyof2000(Figure23).

l Waterlevel–KLNPphumdigroundingrelationshipdeveloped based on the outcomes of hydrologicaland ecological survey conducted in 2000 (Figure24).

l Hydropower production – water utilizationrelationship based on records provided by NHPC(Figure25).

An appropriate understanding of the inflows and outflows from a wetland system is an importantbasis forwatermanagement planning.This is usuallyachieved through analysis of a longer term hydro-meteorological datasets. However, the currenthydrologicalobservationsforLoktakareofverylimitedtime period and patchy.Attemptwas thereforemadeto address this issue through hydrological modellingmaking the best use of available information. Theobjective was firstly to arrive at the gross picture ofwaterresourcesavailabilityintheManipurRiverBasin,particularlythatavailableatthedownstreamofLoktakLake, and secondly building a water balance for thewetland. The modelling was done using the SWAT(Soil andWaterAssessmentTool) , developed by theUnitedStatesDepartmentofAgricultureandanopen

Figure 21: Economic benefits from Loktak ecosystem services

60

50

40

30

20

10

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Econ

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Ben

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( `C

rore

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MarketedNon-Marketed

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s

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eget

atio

n

Fres

hwat

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Nut

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rete

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Non

-use

val

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Establishing water management objectives also needs to be referenced to the fact that the loktak wetland complex has already gone through a phase of rapid modification particularly in the last three decades, and therefore the system no longer exists in its natural regimes

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source community of scholars and practitioners sincethe1990s.SWATcanberunstand-aloneorlinkedtoArcGISplatform.ForLoktak,theArcSWATplugintoArcGISwasused.

TheSWATmodelisbasedonasemi-distributedframework in which unique combinations of Land Use, Soil Type, and Slope comprise individualhydrological response units (HRUs). Each HRUproducesacertainwateryieldbasedonmeteorologicalforcings. The models were calibrated using observedflow values for Iril, Thoubal and Nambul stations.Comparison of averages and the standard deviationsindicate that the SWAT model is slightly under-predicting the runoff in theThoubal basin and over-predicting it in theNambul basin, and very close toreality in the Iril basin. This is to be expected given the relatively large spatial extent of the Loktak drainagebasinandtheconcentratednatureofrainfall

withinin.Withamorecomprehensive,denselyspacednetwork of meteorological stations, it is likely thatthese modelled vs. observed figures would converge.The correlations indicate close fit between observedand modelled datasets. The Nash–Sutcliffe Efficiency(NSE)indicatesthatthemodelhasperformedwellforIrilandThoubalbuthasnotdoneaswellforNambul.Parameters for Iril and Thoubal were finally used formodelling.

Basedontheabovefourrelationships,amonthlyrule for lake levels corresponding to the three scenarios andhydrologicalconditionsarepresentedinFigure26andTable25.

An evaluation of the scenarios, on the watermanagement objectives identified by the stakeholdersispresented inTable26. It canbe seen thatScenario3 performs better in terms of objectives related tohydropower, but does not augurwell for biodiversity

Figure 22: Monthly water balance for loktak wetlandJu

ne July

Augu

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ptem

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Oct

ober

Nov

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ecem

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Janu

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300250200150100500

-50-100-150

Inflo

ws,

Out

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sand

St

orag

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)

InflowOutflowNetStorage

Figure 23: Lake elevation – capacity relationship (2000)

764

764.

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765.

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766.

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767.

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768.

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350300250200150100500

7006005004003002001000

Area

(in

km2 )

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AreaVolume

Elevation(inmamsl)

Figure 24: Water level – KLNP phumdi grounding

768.

5

768

767.

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767

766.

5

766

20181614121086420

Area

(km

2 )

GroundedPhumdiGroundedPhumdi(>1m)

LakeLevel(mamsl)

Figure 25: power generation and water abstraction relationship

5.00

10.0

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706050403020100

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MonthlyPowerGeneration(MU)

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and lake ecosystem processes related objectives. Ontheotherhand,theScenarios1and2provideforlakeecosystemprocessesatthecostofreducedhydropowergeneration. Under scenarios 1 and 2, the powerproduction during lean seasons is affected, with theimpactshigherin1than2.

The overall scenario analysis clearly indicatesthe trade-off between hydropower generation andmaintain lake ecological character. There is a verynarrow window of opportunity for achieving boththe objective simultaneously, under the current constrained situations. However, given the fact that

the lake is a Ramsar site, and the government is committed towards maintenance of ecological character of the wetland, scenario options whichimprovemaintenanceofecologicalcharacterareclearly preferred.Hence,oftheoptions1and2,avariantof2couldbetranslatedintoasuitablebarrageoperationrule.

Thepresentanalysisisquiterestrictiveinthesensethat it does not currently address several sensitivitiesthat could affect water availability within the basin.The important factor to consider is that of climate change.Since theGeneralCirculationModelsdonot

table 24: Water management objectives for loktak

Watermanagementobjective Requiredwaterregime Requiredlakecondition

1:MaintenanceofKeibulLamjaoNationalParkhabitat

Loweredwaterlevelsduringleanseasonsallowingphumditotouchthebottomandreceivenutrientreplenishment(achieveatargetof767.4mamslwithin the park17inJanuary)

Gradualincreaseinwaterlevelswithintheparkduringthemonsoontopreventflooding

lCirculationandflushingofwaterwithintheparktopreventdevelopmentofanoxicconditionslFlowsfromlinkchannelstoKLNPareregulatedtoensureadequateloweringofwaterduringleanseasons18

2:Hydropowergeneration Waterlevelismaintainedat768.5mamslatpowerchannel,andshouldnotfallbelowtheminimumdrawdownlevel(766.5mamsl)19

lStoragecapacitywithinthelakeismaximizedtoensurewateravailabilityduringtheleanseasonslLakeareawithinthecentralsector,especiallynearthepowerchanneliskeptclearofphumdilHighlyacidicoralkalineconditions,siltcontentbeavoidedastheyhavepotentialtodamagethehydropowergenerationunitslCatchmentmanagementpracticesensureminimumsiltdeliverytothelake

3:Maintenanceofwaterbirdhabitats Maintenanceofmarshesonthewetlandperiphery lHydrologicalconnectivitywiththemarshesismaintainedandfragmentationprevented

4:Flushingofsediments Noobstructiontosedimentladeninflowsduringmonsoon.

5:Providingwaterforirrigation Waterlevelinthelakebemaintainedhightowardstheendofmonsoontosupport irrigation during the lean season

Retentionofwaterinupstreamstructures(fromtheflowsofManipur,Thoubal,IrilandSekmai)arerationalizedtoprovideadequatedownstreamflowretentioninLoktak

6:Reductioninfloodinginperipheralsettlements and agricultural lands

Lakelevelsareloweredtobelow768.5mamsltoensurefloodattenuation

Targetlevelof768mamslwithinthecentralsectionoflakeismaintainedduringmonsoonseasons,andbarrageoperatedaccordingly

7:Phumdimanagement Lakeoutflowsareensuredduringthemonsoontoenablephumdiflushing lHighnutrientconditionsinthelakearepreventedastheycontributetoproliferation

8:Supportingfisheries(Capture) Lakeoutflowsareensuredduringthemonsoonstoenableupstreammigration lFlushingwithintheparkduringthemonsoonstoensurethatanoxicconditionsarenotdeveloped

9:Supportingfisheries(Culture) Inter-annualvariabilityofthelakelevelsberestrictedto0.5to0.7m

10:Maintaininglakeaestheticsfortourism and water sports

lCentralsectorofthelakeismaintainedclearofphumdilExcessivenutrientenrichmentisprevented

17Thisisrecommendedbasedontheobservationofdifferentwaterlevelswithinthelakesystem18OnewaytoachievethisisthrougharegulatoratUngamel.However,anydecisiontoconstructsuchastructureshouldbebasedonastrategicenvironmentalassessment.19ThemaximumretentionatIthaibarrageis769mamsl(source:NHPCPresentationtostakeholder’smeeting,dated23March2010)

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providehighresolutioninformationforsmallregions,the impacts of climate change on the northeastern regionofIndiaarerelativelylessknownandexplored.However, several studies (Das, 2004) also indicate adeclining trend in summer monsoon rainfall. Thesetrendsneedtobeconfirmedfor the stateofManipurandManipurRiverBasininparticular.Morerecently,ananalysisoftheimpactsofprescribedglobalwarmingon the lake regimes indicate that the current water management infrastructure might not be capable tohandleinprojectedriseinlakelevelsandtheassociatedimplicationsforlanduseinthelakeperipheryaswellaslakebiodiversity.30

table 24: Water management objectives for loktak

Watermanagementobjective Requiredwaterregime Requiredlakecondition

1:MaintenanceofKeibulLamjaoNationalParkhabitat

Loweredwaterlevelsduringleanseasonsallowingphumditotouchthebottomandreceivenutrientreplenishment(achieveatargetof767.4mamslwithin the park17inJanuary)

Gradualincreaseinwaterlevelswithintheparkduringthemonsoontopreventflooding

lCirculationandflushingofwaterwithintheparktopreventdevelopmentofanoxicconditionslFlowsfromlinkchannelstoKLNPareregulatedtoensureadequateloweringofwaterduringleanseasons18

2:Hydropowergeneration Waterlevelismaintainedat768.5mamslatpowerchannel,andshouldnotfallbelowtheminimumdrawdownlevel(766.5mamsl)19

lStoragecapacitywithinthelakeismaximizedtoensurewateravailabilityduringtheleanseasonslLakeareawithinthecentralsector,especiallynearthepowerchanneliskeptclearofphumdilHighlyacidicoralkalineconditions,siltcontentbeavoidedastheyhavepotentialtodamagethehydropowergenerationunitslCatchmentmanagementpracticesensureminimumsiltdeliverytothelake

3:Maintenanceofwaterbirdhabitats Maintenanceofmarshesonthewetlandperiphery lHydrologicalconnectivitywiththemarshesismaintainedandfragmentationprevented

4:Flushingofsediments Noobstructiontosedimentladeninflowsduringmonsoon.

5:Providingwaterforirrigation Waterlevelinthelakebemaintainedhightowardstheendofmonsoontosupport irrigation during the lean season

Retentionofwaterinupstreamstructures(fromtheflowsofManipur,Thoubal,IrilandSekmai)arerationalizedtoprovideadequatedownstreamflowretentioninLoktak

6:Reductioninfloodinginperipheralsettlements and agricultural lands

Lakelevelsareloweredtobelow768.5mamsltoensurefloodattenuation

Targetlevelof768mamslwithinthecentralsectionoflakeismaintainedduringmonsoonseasons,andbarrageoperatedaccordingly

7:Phumdimanagement Lakeoutflowsareensuredduringthemonsoontoenablephumdiflushing lHighnutrientconditionsinthelakearepreventedastheycontributetoproliferation

8:Supportingfisheries(Capture) Lakeoutflowsareensuredduringthemonsoonstoenableupstreammigration lFlushingwithintheparkduringthemonsoonstoensurethatanoxicconditionsarenotdeveloped

9:Supportingfisheries(Culture) Inter-annualvariabilityofthelakelevelsberestrictedto0.5to0.7m

10:Maintaininglakeaestheticsfortourism and water sports

lCentralsectorofthelakeismaintainedclearofphumdilExcessivenutrientenrichmentisprevented

Figure 26: Scenarios of water allocation in loktak lake

Janu

ary

Febr

uary

Mar

ch

April

May

June July

Augu

st

Sept

embe

r

Oct

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770.00

769.00

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764.00

Wat

erle

vel(

inm

am

sl)

NormalHEPoperationalmaximum

42%phumdigroundinginKLNP

MinimumdrawdownlevelforHEP

90%phumdigroundinginKLNP

Month

Scenario3:BusinessasUsual

Scenario2:Multipleobjective

Scenario1:Mimickingnaturalregime

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table 25: Scenarios for managing water levels in loktak

Scenario 1 Scenario2 Scenario3

ScenarioObjectives Mimicnaturalregime–prioritizewaterallocationformaintainingparkhabitat

Multipleobjective-Optimizinghydropowergeneration and irrigation while ensuring water allocation for maintaining parkhabitat

Businessasusual20–maximizeandprioritizewater allocation to hydropower

Lakelevelmanagement rules

January–April:Lakeleveldropsgraduallydue to evaporation and water use for hydropowerandagriculture.Otheroutflowsareminimized

May–Withonsetofmonsoon,lakelevelisallowedtoincreasegraduallyto768mamsl so that the national park does not flood

JunetoAugust–Lakelevelismaintainedat768mamslbutisallowedtoincreasefor short periods to create optimum conditionsforflushing

SeptembertoDecember–Lakeismaintainedat768.5mamsltomaximizestoragefortheleanseason,andthengraduallydropsduetoevaporation,andabstractionforhydropower,irrigationanddomestic use

January–April:Lakelevelsare allowed to drop from 788to767.4mamsltoensure grounding of phumdi andflushingwithinthepark.Waterismadeavailableforirrigationandhydropowergeneration(reducedavailability)

May:Withonsetofmonsoon,thelakeisallowedtograduallyriseto768.5mamsl,ensuringthattheparkdoesnotflood

June-December:Lakelevelismaintainedat768.5mamsltoensurehydropowergeneration.Waterdoesnotexceed786.5mamsltopreventfloodinginperipheralareas.

January–May:Lakelevelsgraduallydropby1.3mfrom768.7mamsl due to evaporation and water use for hydropower.

June–August:Lakelevelgraduallyrisesto769.5m amsl on account of monsoondriveninflows

September–December:Lakelevelisconsistentlymaintainedabove768.5amslanddropsfrom769.5mamslto769.1mamslonaccountofabstractionsforhydropower,andevaporation,evapo-transpiration losses

20Referencescenario–includedtoenableassessmentofchangeswhendecisionismadetoimplementscenarios1–2insteadof3

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table 26: outcomes of Scenarios evaluated by stakeholders

Watermanagementobjective Scenario1:Mimicnaturalregime

Scenario2:Multipleobjective

Scenario3:Businessasusual

1:Hydropowergenerationa)Totalannualproductionb)Leanseasonproduction(Jan–April)

340MUOperatesatminimumdrawdownlevelsforMarchandApril;declineinproduction in April

360MUOperatesclosetominimumdrawdown levels on April andMay;declineinproductioninFebruary

600MU21

Productionmaintainedasperinitialprojectedschedule

2:MaintenanceofKLNPhabitat

BetweenJanandMarch,11–73%ofthephumdiinKLNPisgrounded.

Riseinwaterlevelsdueto onset of monsoons is gradual,preventingparkflooding

Flushingofwatertakesplacewithinthepark,preventing development of anoxicconditions

BetweenJan–March,1–20%ofthephumdiinKLNPisgrounded

Riseinwaterlevelsdueto onset of monsoons is gradual,preventingparkflooding

Partialflushingofwatertakesplacewithinthepark,preventing development of anoxicconditions

Negligiblegroundingtakesplaces

Riseinwaterlevelscanberapid

Negligible/noflushingofwater takes place within the park,leadingtodevelopmentofanoxicconditions

3:Maintenanceofwaterbirdhabitats

4:Reductioninlakesedimentation

Barragereleasesavailableinmonsoon months to ensure flushingofsediments

HighbarragereleasesonlyinthemonthofSeptember–October

Verylimitedrelease,oftenad-hoc

5:Providingwaterforirrigation

AvailabilityofirrigationwaterfromNovember–February(~100Mm3)

AvailabilityofirrigationwaterfromNovember–April(~180Mm3)

Limitedavailability

6:Reductioninfloodinginperipheral settlements and agricultural lands

Limitedfloodingaswaterlevels are maintained around 768.5mamsl

Limitedfloodingaswaterlevels are maintained around768.5mamsl

Highfloodinginperipheralsettlements as lake levels movebeyond768.5mamslduringmonsoonseasons,andevenbeyond

7:Phumdimanagement Opportunityforflushingphumdithroughbarrage

Opportunityforflushingphumdithroughbarrage

Limitedopportunityforphumdiflushing

8:Supportingfisheries(Capture)

Conduciveconditionsforfishmigration

Conduciveconditionsforfishmigration

Limitedopportunitiesforfishmigration

9:Supportingfisheries(Culture)

Fluctuatingwaterlevelsimpactculturefisheries

Fluctuatingwaterlevelsimpactculturefisheries

Conduciveconditionaslakelevels are regulated

10:Maintaininglakeaesthetics for tourism and water sports

Highopportunitiesformaintaining lake aesthetics

Highopportunitiesformaintaining lake aesthetics

Limitedopportunitiesformaintaining lake aesthetics

21TheNHPChydropowerplantwasexpectedtoproduce450MUaspertheoriginaldesign

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4. kanwar jheel, Bihar

4.1. ContextKanwarJheelispartofanextensivefloodplaincomplexformedinthelowerreachesofGandak-KosiinterfaninNorthBihar.Locatedatadistanceof21kilometerfromBegusaraitown,Kanwaristhelargestofseveralshallowpermanent and ephemeral wetlands formed betweenRiver Burhi Gandak and paleo-channel of RiverBagmati.Duringmonsoon,Kanwarconnectswith17adjacent waterbodies to form a large inundated areaextendingtonearly6700ha.Withretreatofmonsoon,theinundationshrinkstoaround600hamainlyaroundtwosmallpatches,MahalayaandKochalaya,exposingnearly2600haofgrasslands, largepartsofwhichareusedforagriculture.

Kanwar Jheel is a multi-functional ecosystemsupporting livelihoods of 22,000 farmer and fisherhouseholds.Highsoilmoisture,betterwateravailabilityand the highly fertile silt received from the riverineinundations underpin high resource productivity.Kanwar helps reduce flood risk for the adjoiningsettlements by acting as buffer and accommodatingsignificant proportion of local runoff and bank flowsof River Burhi Gandak. The wetland teems withwaterbirdsinthewinters,andisoneoftheimportantcongregation areas in North Bihar, particularly formigratingducksandcoots.Over200birdspecieshave

been recordedhere,ofwhichnearly56aremigratorywaterbirds. Kanwar is also an important source ofanimalfodder.TheislandofJaimangalagarhlocatedinits southern part has high archaeological significance.Considering its high waterbird diversity, Kanwar hasbeendesignatedasasanctuarybythenameof‘KanwarLakeBirdSanctuary’since1989undertheprovisionsofIndianWildlife(Protection)Act,1972.

Despitesuchhighecologicalandsocioeconomicsignificance,managementofKanwarhasreceivedlittleattentionintheregionaldevelopmentalprogramming.Drivenbyperceptionsofbeingwaterloggedwasteland,the wetland complex has been subject to extensivehydrological regimefragmentationandconversion forpermanent agriculture. Such land use transformationhas led to near complete decimation of fisheries,adversely impacted biodiversity habitats especially ofmigratorywaterbirds and impaired ability ofwetlandcomplex tomoderatehydrological regimes. Shrinkingresourcebasehasaccentuatedconflictsbetweenfarmersand fishers. Kanwar has gradually transformed into‘contestedcommon’withwetlandusemadesubservientto conflicting sectoral and stakeholder interests.Existinginstitutionalarrangementscraftedtopreservebiodiversity values are insufficient in addressingecological connectivity with rivers or aligning privateproperty rightsprevailingwithin thewetlandwith itswiderangingecosystemservicesandbiodiversity.

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TheGovernmentofBiharhasidentifiedKanwarJheelasaprioritywetlandforrestorationandsustainablemanagement. An integrated management plan forsecuring diverse ecosystem services and biodiversityvalues of the wetland complex alongwith livelihoodsof dependent communities is being prepared byWetlands International SouthAsia for theForest andEnvironment Department, Government of Bihar.The economic assessment of ecosystem services andbiodiversityofKanwarJheelunderTEEB-Indiaaimsatcomplementing management planning through:l economicanalysisof tradeoffsassociatedwith land

usechangeswithinwetlandregime;l assessingdistributionconsequencesoflanduseland

coverchanges;l recommendingmeasures for recognizing full range

ofecosystemservicesandbiodiversityvaluesinsitemanagement.

Data for economic analysis has been obtainedthrough primary survey of 481 households of 17villages located around thewetland complex.RemotesensingandGISanalysishasbeencarriedouttoanalyzelanduseandlandcoverchanges.Detailedparticipatoryappraisalshavebeenconductedineightvillagestoassessecosystem services bundle preferences and restorationoptions. The analysis is presented in eight sections.Following the context setting in section one, thebiophysical and socioeconomic set up of thewetlandis discussed in sections two and three. Identificationof ecosystem services has been done in section four.Thisisfollowedbydiscussiononsectoraldevelopmentand ecosystem services transformation in sectionfive,andquantificationandvaluationofecosystemservicesin section six. An economic analysis of distributionalconsequences is discussed in section seven. Sectioneight concludes with recommendations for integrated managementofKanwar.

4.2. Biophysical SettingsTheIndo-Gangeticbiogeographicregionischaracterizedby the presence of numerous palaeo levees, cut offloopsandox-bowlakesformedbymeanderingofriverchannels.Suchchannelavulsionhasleftmanynaturaldepressionsandcut-offmeanders,laterfedbyrainwaterandoverbankflowsto formmarshesand intermittentlakeslocallycalledasmaun,chaur,taalandjheelareas.Kanwar Jheel is the largest of a complex of 18 suchinterconnected wetlands formed in the lower reaches of RiverBurhiGandak(Map3).

Kanwar Jheel contains a mosaic of landformsincludingopenwater,marshes,plantations,agricultural

landsandinterspersedsettlements.Theentirecomplexgetsinundatedwithmonsoontoamaximumdepthof1.5metres.Theeasternpartmaintainsopenwaterandmarshareasalmostroundtheyear,whereasintherest,driedoutmarshareasarecultivated.SeasonaldynamicsoflanduseandlandcoverwithinthewetlandcomplexiselucidatedinFigure27basedonanalysisofremotesensingimageriesofOctober2009andApril2010.

KanwarwetlandcomplexislocatedinthebasinofRiverBurhiGandak.BurhiGandakisaperennialriveroriginatingfromtheupperplainsinWestChamparanDistrict (Chautarwa Chaur near Bishambharpur).It flows through a length of 550 kmdraining 13300km2ofalluvialplainsbeforemergingintoRiverGangesonitsleftbanknearKhagaria.Thebasinhasanorth-southelevationprofile.Thecrest,accountingfor15%of total area has elevation ranging between 100-500m amsl, followed by extremely gentle relief rangingbetween50–100mamslwithin57%ofbasinarea.Theremainingsegmentofthebasin(28%)whichgraduallymerges into River Ganges has an extremely gentlerelief ranging between 25 – 50 m amsl. Agricultureaccounts for nearly 70% of land use in the basin.Forests aremarginally present in the basin’s crest andconfinedtoareasaroundSomeshwarhills fromwheretheriveremerges.Thelowerreachesofthebasinhavelargerwetlandcomplexesintheformofintermittentlyto permanently waterlogged areas which connect tothe riverswithfloodpulses increasing significantly insizeduringmonsoonandpostmonsoonperiods, andrapidlyshrinkinginthesummers.

Figure 27: Seasonal dynamics of land use and land cover change in kanwar (2009-10)

Area

(ha)

350030002500200015001000500

0

Finalmonsoon(October2009)Freemonsoon(April2010)

Agric

ultu

re

Mar

shes

(>6

mon

ths)

Mar

shes

(Int

erm

itten

t)

Ope

n w

ater

Plan

tatio

n

Settl

emen

ts

LanduseandLandcover

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Map 3: location of kanwar wetland complex

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Rainfall, overbank inundations received fromRiver Burhi Gandak and groundwater are the majorsourcesofwater inflowintoKanwar.TheRiverBurhiGandak is banked in its lower reaches. Overbankflows from River Burhi Gandak are mainly receivedduringfloodswhenriverisinunusuallyhighstageandsometimes as a result of breaching of embankments.Severe erosive action on the banks causes frequentbreaches in the embankments even in medium floods almost every year. In a normalmonsoon year, the wetland receives 26.9 MCM of water, which is lost to evapotranspiration and direct and indirect extraction for agriculture. There is a net recharge ofgroundwater from the period May–October, and a netdischargeforrestoftheperiod.Groundwaterfluxplaysanimportantroleinmaintainingtheinundationareas. Notably, agriculture has been reported in drymonths of April within Kanwar, wherein in areasadjoining wetland land is usually left fallow due to lack of water. Kanwar is undergoing a phase a shrinking inundation regime. Peak inundation areasthat were reported to be around 6700-7400 ha inthe early fifties shrank to nearly 4100 ha. Available rainfall data indicates a decline during 1989 – 2012,particularly during south - west monsoon which ina normal year contributes nearly 80% of the totalprecipitation.

Kanwar Jheel is a shallow, well oxygenated,alkaline, nutrient rich freshwater wetland. Water isalkaline with an average pH of 7.8 (CPCB, 2012).Despitehighphosphateconcentration,algalbloomsareabsent in thewetland.High total and faecal coliformnumbers have been observed indicating water ofKanwarJheelisunsuitableforhumanuselikedrinkingorbathing.GroundwaterinareassurroundingKanwarisalkaline(pH-7.4),hardness(330-345mg/l),andhashighironcontent(0.43mg/l).Thesodiumabsorptionratio, residual sodiumcarbonate,percent sodiumandelectrical conductivity place the groundwater underthe class C3S1 (at Manjhaul and Cheria-Bariarpur)of irrigation water i.e. with medium to high salinity

hazard.Begusarai is amongst the sixdistrictsdeclaredarsenicaffectedbyCentralGroundWaterBoard.

Hydrologicalandecologicalconnectivitybetweenthe river channel, riparian zone, and floodplainsunderpin the high biological diversity and habitatheterogeneityfoundinfloodplainwetlandsasKanwar.Floodsandfloodpulsesconnect thevarious loticandlentic environments facilitating exchange of matter,speciesandenergy.TheimportanceofcyclicinundationforbiodiversityoffloodplainwetlandsofNorthBiharis apparent. Exchange of fish brooders and juvenilesbetween the river channel and thefloodplains sustainhigh fish biodiversity and productivity of the entireIndo-Gangeticplains.

Therelativedominanceofemergent,submergedand floating vegetation as seen in different seasonsinKanwar is also linkedwith flood pulses.With theonsetofmonsoon,highinundationwithnutrientfluxfavours growthof submerged andfloatingvegetation.Thedominanceshiftsinfavouroffloatingvegetationaswaterrecedesandloticpocketsemergeinthewetland.The peripheral marshes are dominated by emergentmacrophytes in thepostmonsoonandwinter season.This also favours growth of benthic organismswhichare important food sources for migrating waterbirds.Habitatfragmentation,particularlyduetoconstructionof flood control embankments, roads and otherinfrastructurehasadverselyaffectedthebiodiversityofriveraswellasfloodplainwetlands.

TherichnessofbiodiversityinKanwarisindicatedby the recorded presence of 44 phytoplankton, 75terrestrialplants,46macrophyte,70 zooplankton,17mollusc,50fishandover200birdspecies(Table27).High avian diversity of Kanwar has been one of itsmostprominentfeatures.Personalrecordsoflocalbirdwatchersindicatethenumberofspeciestobeover200.Thewetlandhassupportedlargenumbersofwaterbirdsinthepast.It isestimatedthataround70,000ducks,cootsandotherwaterbirdswerenettedatthesiteduringthe winters of 1981-82 (Shahi 1982). State ForestDepartmentreport(referredinWWF,1993)mentions

Hydrological and ecological connectivity between the river channel, riparian zone, and floodplains give floodplain wetlands, like Kanwar, high biological diversity and habitat heterogeneity

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135,000 birds being trapped at Kanwar during thewintersof1984-85.Consideringthesevalues,Kanwarhas been designated as an Important Bird Area forcongregatory and threatened birds migrating alongthe Central Asian Flyway and is a potential Ramsarsite. However, recent observations indicate a declinein number of waterbirds visiting Kanwar. KanwarWaterbirdCensusconductedbyMandarNatureClubas a part of Asian Waterbird Census programme forpartsofKanwarindicate2,263numbersof20speciesin1999.Interviewswithlocalcommunitiesconfirmedadecliningtrendinvisitingwaterbirds,especiallysincethereductionininundationregime.

4.3. Socio-economic settingsThe ecological state of Kanwar influences as well isinfluenced by livelihood systems linked directly andindirectly to the wetland. The social, economic andpoliticalcontexts inwhichwetlandecosystemservicesintegrate with livelihood assets provide important insightsfordefiningwise-usestrategies.

The Kanwar wetland complex spans within sixblocksofBegusaraiDistrictandoneblockofSamastipurDistrict (namelyCheria Bariarpur,Naokothi, Bakhri,Garhpura,Chhorahi,Khudabandpur,andHasanpur).The district occupies an important position in agricultural as well as industrial landscape of Bihar.LocatedinthehighlyfertilefloodplainsofRiverGanges,agricultureisthekeyeconomicactivity,accountingfornearly40%of the landuse,and livelihoodsource for89%ofworkingpopulation.

Thewetlandcomplexislocatedinaruralagrarian

setting,andsurroundedby23villages,10ofwhicharelocated within the sanctuary boundary (GoB, 2004).The overall population of these villages as per 2001censuswas125,841.Fishersandfarmersarethemajorgroupsinhabitingthesevillages.Whilefarmersengagemostly in agriculturewithin and outside thewetlandarea, fishers have diversified into a range of activitiesincluding wage labour, small and marginal farmingandrunningpettybusinesses.Marginalfarmers(thosewho cultivate areas less than 1 ha are predominantlysharecroppers) constitute 85% of the farminghouseholds.

Dependenceonwage labour isveryhigh in theregion, as it forms secondary occupation for 35% ofhouseholds, majority being fishers.Table 28 presentsa profile of primary and secondary occupation ofcommunities livingaroundKanwar.Householdswithmembersinservice,largefarmersandbusinessmenhavebetterandhigherassetsascomparedwithmarginalandsmallfarmers,fishersandwagelabourers.Thequalityofhousingwasobservedtoberelatedtoincomes,withthefarmers and small entrepreneurshavingbetterqualityhousingascomparedtoothers.Thecoverageofwaterand sanitation facilities was observed to be very low,withonly18%ofthehouseholdshavingtoiletsand2%separatedrainage.Formostoftheoccupationcategories,lessthanonethirdhousesreportedhavingtoilets,exceptlargefarmers(100%)andsmallbusinessmen(61%).

In terms of assets, ownership of agriculturalland is one of the key factors influencing the overalllivelihood status.Whilenearlyhalfof thehouseholdsowned land (52%), the average area put to farming

table 27: record of Species at kanwar and there conservation Status

SpeciesGroup

No.ofSpecies

RecordDate

Status

CR EN VU NT DD LC NE

Flora Phytoplankton 44 1988-91 44

Plants 121* 1988-91 2 35 84

Fauna Zooplankton 70 1988-91 70

Mollusca 17 1988-91 16 1

Insecta 39 1988-91 6 33

Pisces 35** 1988-91 2 1 28 4

Amphibia 7 1988-91 7

Reptilia 5 1989-90 2 3

Aves 221 2001-13 5 3 5 14 194

CR=CriticallyEndangered;EN=Endangered;VU=Vulnerable;NT=NearThreatened;DD=Datadeficient;LC=LeastConcern;NE=NotEvaluated* Includes 46 macrophytes and 75 terrestrial species** ZSI has reported presence of additional 15 species when the wetland connects to the river during floods, however, no list has been provided

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was highly variable. The large farmers tilled on anaverage 4.58 ha whereas it was 1.32 ha and 0.38 hafor smallandmarginal farmers respectively.Overhalfof thefishers owned agricultural land, tilling0.53haon an average.Trends in ownership of livestockwerealmost similar to those of agricultural land holding.Wage labourers reportedno agricultural landholdingandlessthanonefifthownedlivestock.Averageannualhousehold income ranged between `0.51–`2 lakhs.Large farmers and those engaged in service had thehighestincomes(`1.2–`1.9lakhs),followedbythoseofsmallfarmersandbusiness(`1.03–1.14lakhs).Annualincomesofmarginalfarmersandfishersrangedbetween`0.61–`0.74lakhs.Wagelabourersearnedtheleastofall,averagebeing`51,135.Theoveralladequacyoftheincometomeethouseholdneedswasreportedtobelow,withovertwothirds(68%)oftherespondentsstatingthe current level of income to be insufficient. Foodaccountedfornearlyhalfofthehouseholdexpenditure.

Majority households (68%) reportedsupplementing income from local resources with migration,which is an important strategy for copingwith low incomes and lack of opportunities for domesticemployment,andsincelong,hasbeenapartof livelihood strategy particularly in rural Bihar. Thenumberofpersonswhomigratedformed24%ofadultpopulationand34%oftheoverallworkingpopulation.The proportion of income from migration sources constituted over 40% for the small and marginalfarmersandfishers,whereasrangedbetween15–25%forothercategories.

Trendsinmigrationhaveanapparentrelationshipwith changing land use and productivity of thewetland. In thefifties,fisheriesbased livelihoodswerepredominant,andtheinstancesofmigrationwerevery

limited. Reduction in water levels and concomitantexpansion of agriculture forced the fishers into wagelabour within the expanding farms.With increase inpopulation and better earning opportunities outsidethetrendinmigrationhasbeenincreasing.Expansionofagriculturefarmingwithinthewetlandcomplexhascreatedlocalemploymentopportunitiesforthefarmersaswellasfishers.However,withverylowlandholding,theneed for additional income sources ishigher.Thepreference for wage labour is also attributed to loweducation. Migration is seasonal in nature, mostlyconcentratedduring themonthsofOctober–March(whereincroppingiscompleteandmaintenanceofthecropsisrelativelylesslabourintensive).

Access toformalbankingandcredit institutionsis low.Banking services are accessed by only 37%ofthe households, despite 63% reporting savings. Localmoneylenderswerethemajorsourceofcredit,accessedby85%ofthehouseholds.Averageoutstandingcreditwas 33%of thehousehold income, and ranged fromaminimumof7%for largefarmersto93%forwagelabourers.

Village Panchayats are the main communityinstitutions existing in the villages around Kanwar.One third of the fishers are members of the fishercooperatives,formedtoenableparticipationinfishinglease in the maun and chaur areas.Not all fishers aremembersofthecooperativeasonlythosewhocaninvestcapitalaregiventherighttostockthewaterbodiesandfish.Similarly,farmercooperativesexisttogainaccesstogovernmentsupportinthecaseoffloodsanddroughts.The farmer groups also act as pressure groups to prevent acquisitionoffarminglandforsanctuarypurposes.Onanoverall, thedegreeoforganizationwas low,withinthevillagesasonly40%hadmembershiptoanyformal

Table 28: Occupation profile of communities living in and around Kanwar

%tototalhouseholds

Primaryandsecondaryoccupation(%)

Agriculture Fishery(CaptureandCulture)

SmallBusiness Service Wagelabour

Farmers 37

Marginal 28 100 2 1 1 39

Small 6 100 0 0 0 20

Large 1 100 0 0 0 0

Fisher 27 8 100 0 0 54

Entrepreneur 2 19 16 100 3 0

Service 6 20 5 0 100 0

Labourer 30 13 9 0 0 100

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orinformalinstitution.Participationoffemalesintheseinstitutionswas further limited,with only 1%of thehouseholds having female members as members toany institution. Implicit within these statistics is theprevailing caste based power structures in the region,withthefishersbelongingtolowersocialstrataintermsofeconomicandpoliticalaffluence.

4.4. Ecosystem ServicesThe wide ranging biological diversity, and linkedbiophysicalandsocialsettingenableKanwartodeliverthe following ecosystem services. Table 29 maps therelationshipbetweenecosystemserviceanditsenablingbiophysical condition and influencing socioeconomicenvironment, as particularly the latter affects benefitsharingandequity.Conditionsandtrendsinecosystemservicesarealsosummarized.

4.4.1. FisheriesConnectivity with the riverine environments andabundanceoffoodmakesKanwaranimportantsourceofcapturefisheries.InthepasttheIndianMajorCarpshave dominated fishery along with feather backs,catfish,murrels and minnows.Ofthe36speciesreportedin thewetland (ZSI,2002)26areof economicvalueand sold in local markets. Besides, Kanwar complexis also a rich sourceof ediblemolluscs.Communitiesaround Kanwar collect four species of mollusks Pila globosa, Bellamya bengalensis, Lamellidens marginalis and L. corrianus asfood.

Fishery forms the livelihood base of around32%ofhouseholds,particularlyofSahnicommunity.The prospect of secure production through culture techniqueshasgraduallyshiftedthefocusoffisherstocollectivefishinginthemaun and chaur areas associated with Kanwar. Majority of the associated maun and chaur areas are leased by the fisher cooperatives fromthestatefisheriesdepartmentforsemiintensiveculturefishingsincelastthreedecades.

4.4.2. Wetland agricultureFloodpulsessupporthighlevelsofnutrientenrichmentand organic matter deposition within floodplains,making them highly productive ecosystems. Asinundationrecedesandmarshesdryaftermonsoon,alargeareaofKanwarisusedforagriculture,supportedbyacombinationoffertilesilt,highsoilmoistureandnutrients. Agriculture forms the primary source oflivelihoods for 31% of the households living aroundtheKanwarwetlandcomplex.Presentlyover2600haofwetlandarea isunder agriculture supported largelybyirrigation.

4.4.3. aquatic vegetation as Food and FodderKanwarisanimportantsourceoffodderandfuelwoodfor theneighboringvillages.Leersia hexandra (Garar),Sacciolepeis myosuroides (Ghass), Eichhornia crassipes (Jalkumbhi) and Commelina bengalensis (Kankuaghass),C. rotoundus(Chichorh),Cyperus iria (Mootha)arethemajorspeciesusedasfodder.DriedSaccharum spontaneum (Kans ghass), Phragmites karka (Narkat)and Cyperus iria are extensively used as fuel wood.Thewetland is a sourceof fuelwood for93%of thehouseholds.

Fruits ofTrapa natans;whole plant ofNelumbo nucifera,flowerofNymphaea nouchali;leavesandstemof Ipomoea aquatica,andundergroundstemofColocasia esculenta (Kacchu) are harvested from the wetlandcomplexandusedasvegetables.Communitiesharvestseveralaquaticplantsforuseasmedicines.Chaur and maunareasareusedforcultivationofmakhana(Euryale ferox).Mostoftheseharvests,barringEuryale ferox,areofverysubsistence level,usuallydonebyolderfisherswhonolongerengageinfishing.

4.4.4. groundwater rechargeGroundwaterdynamicshaveanimportantcontributionin maintenance of wetland regime as well as an ecosystemservicefortheagrarianlivelihoodsprevalent

The ecosystem services of Kanwar include fisheries, wetland agriculture, and groundwater recharge. Agriculture and fishery form the majority of primary source livelihoods for households around the Kanwar wetland complex

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in and around Kanwar. Water balance assessmentsindicate that in a given year, there is a net rechargeof groundwater from theperiodMay–October, andanetdischarge for restof theperiod.AgriculturehasbeenreportedindrymonthsofAprilwithinKanwar,whereas in adjoining areas, land is usually left fallowduetolackofwater.

4.4.5. Flood ControlA key indirect value of Kanwar to the communitiesliving in and around is its ability to buffer extremeevents. The plains of North Bihar are some of mostsusceptibleareas inIndiapronetoflooding,andhaveexperiencedfrequentlossoflifeandpropertyoverthelastseveraldecades.TheKanwarJheel, formsasaucershaped depression in the landscape, accommodatingsurfacerun-offandprovingfloodbuffertocommunitiesliving in and around. However, weak integrationof role of wetlands in flood defence and focus onstructural approaches as embankments has promotedfragmentationofnaturalregimesofthewetlands.

4.4.6. Cultural and recreational valuesThe scenic beauty of Kanwar, until the recent past,hasmade itapopular local recreationsite.Theislandtemple of Jaimangalagarh is associatedwith historicalandreligiousvalues.Severalexcavationsfromtheareahavebeendatedtopre-historicandMughalperiods.ItisalsobelievedthatthesitewasusedbyBuddhistscholarsof Buddha’s times. The temple holds an importantplace in the local culture, with several festivities andcelebrationstakingplacenearlyalltheyearround.Animportantfeaturehereisthepresenceofalargenumberofmonkeys (owing towhich the island is also called“MonkeyIsland”inlocalparlance).

4.5. Sectoral development and Ecosystem Services transformationSustainablemanagementofKanwarhasreceived littleattentionindevelopmentalprogrammingofthestate.Inthefifties,flowsfromBurhiGandakRiverandtheChanhaRiverconstitutedthemajorsourceof inflowsintoKanwar. Ithasbeen reported thatduringfloods,Kanwar received inflows from River Kareha as well.A significant proportion of the wetland remainedinundatedthroughouttheyear.Marshandopenwaterregime provided landscape heterogeneity conducivehabitatsforwaterbirds,fishandotherformsofaquaticbiodiversity.Agriculturewasmostlyconfinedtouplandareas around Manjhaul and Cheria Bariarpur and asinglecropwaspossible.

Support to policies for enhancing food securityby bringing in additional areas under agriculturebrought in tremendous pressure on the naturallyfertile floodplain wetlands as Kanwar. Constructionof flood embankments along River BurhiGandak in1954createdasignificantimpedimenttoconnectivityof Kanwar with the rivers. This also coincided withthe period wherein efforts to reclaim the inundatedareas for agriculture gathered pace. A canal systemconnectingmost of thewater bodies aroundKanwarwas constructed that finally drained intoRiverBurhiGandakthrougha12kmlongchannel.Channelizationimpededsedimentdistributioninthewetlandcomplex,and promoted accumulation within Kanwar. Floodssuch as those witnessed in 1987 and 2007 havedepositedhugeamountofsiltinKanwarJheel.

Agriculturehasgraduallyintensifiedwithreducinginundationareas(fromover6000hainthe80sto4100ha in 2010), and traditional varieties giving way tomorewaterdemandingcropsassugarcane.Agriculturehas transformed from small-scale subsistence farmingto permanent multi-cropping system.Presently, theareas under permanent inundation are reduced to small patchesaroundMahalayaandKochalaya.Thewetlandhas turned in toanextensive landscapeof agriculturefields. The wetland biodiversity and aesthetics havebeenadverselyimpacted.

Table 30 captures the landscape transformationduring the period 1976-2010, based on analysis ofremote sensing imageries (Map 4). The left columncontains the class which has changed to a particular categoryasindicatedbytherowheading.Thediagonalelementsrepresentareasthathaveremainedunchanged.Forexampleinthefirstrow,2189.3haofopenwaterarea in 1976 has changed tomarsh in 2010whereasonly569hanowremainsasopenwater.Thetotalareaunderopenwaterin1976was3675.6ha.

4.6. Quantification and Valuation of Ecosystem ServicesTheanalysisofbiophysicalandsocioeconomicsettingsand landscape transformation patterns indicate the significance of inundation regimes inmaintenance ofbiodiversity and ecosystem services values ofKanwar.The variable inundation regime enables a dynamicland use pattern which provides a range of resources as fish,wetland agriculture and vegetation for economicuse.The inundation regimealso influencesvegetationand species exchange with riverine environment.An informal agreement between fishers and farmersenabledthetwogroupstoharvestwetlandresourcesin

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table 29: Ecosystem Services description

Provisioning

Fisheries

Kanwarisacapturefisherysource,whereasassociatedwetlandsareusedforculturefishery.26ofthe36fishspeciesreportedinKanwararesoldinlocalmarkets.

Kanwarcomplexisalsoarichsourceofediblemolluscs.Fourspeciesofmolluscs,namely Pila globosa, Bellamya bengalensis, Lamellidens marginalis and L. corrianus are collected from the wetlandforhouseholdconsumptionaswellaslimitedtrade.

Fisheryformsthelivelihoodbasefor2850fishinghouseholds of Sahni community.

l Connectivitywiththeriverine environment whichenablesexchangeofriverinefishspeciesl Sufficientwaterspreadarea during lean seasonl Adequatelevelofnutrientsandwell-oxygenatedenvironmentl Calciumprecipitationbyemergentmacrophytesprovides conducive condition for molluscs to proliferate.

l CulturefisheryoperationsaremanagedbyFishCooperatives.

l Useofvariableinundationregimeforcapturefisheryisbasedonaninformalunderstandingbetweenfishersandfarmersforconjunctiveuse.Fishersattributetherighttocapturefisheryoverprivatelandstoa1885judgment,whichawardedrightsoffishingtotheSahniscommunityintheentireKanwarareaonpaymentofrenttolandownersl ReducedriverineconnectivityhasledtoreductioninIMCandanincreaseinforageandairbreathingfish.l Rampantuseofsmallmeshsizesfurtherdepressescatchl Culturefishproductionissub-optimalduetolackofappropriatetechnologyinfrastructureandwaterregime.l Functioningofcooperativeisskewedinfavourofmemberswithabilitytoinvestcapital.

Wetland agriculture

Kanwarsupportsproductivewetlandagriculturethatisalignedwithinundationregimes.Traditionallythehighlandareascalledrahiwerecultivatedforoneortwocrops,thenausiorlowlandareasremainedinundated.

Withashifttowardspermanentagriculturesystemsaround2600haofwetlandareaisusedforthreeormorecrops.Cultivationisdonethroughouttheyear,withpaddyisthemajorKharifcrop(June–November),wheatandsugarcaneduringrabi(December–April)andmaizeduringgarma(April–June).has emerged as a platform for farmers to voice their concerns

3200farmersengagedinfarming inside wetland

l Highsoilmoisturel Fertilesiltreceivedfromriverineinundations.

l Landisprivatelyheldandcropping decisions is individuall Sanctuarydeclarationhasimposed restrictions on transfer ofland.KanwarBachaoSangharsh Samitil Policyenvironmentsupportsagriculture

l Agriculturehasintensifiedwithmultiplecroppingcyclesl Waterregimeshavebeenmodifiedtopromoteagriculturel Indigenouscropvarietieshavebeenreplacedwithwaterintensiveonesl Increased groundwater draft for irrigationl Increase in use of fertilisers and pesticides

Aquaticvegetation

Kanwarisanimportantsourceoffodderandfuelwoodfortheneighboringvillages.

DriedSaccharum spontaneum(Kansghass),Phragmites karka (Narkat)and Cyperus iriaareextensivelyusedasfuelwood.

Chaurandmaunareasareusedforcultivationofmakhana(Euryale ferox)

Fruits,flowers,leavesandundergroundstemsofaquaticplantsareharvestedfromthewetlandcomplexandusedasvegetablesbylocalcommunities.Severalaquaticplantsareusedasmedicines.

•3750householdsextractfuelwood•1450householdsharvestplants for fodder•Harvestofaquaticplantsform source of sustenance foroldfishermenwhocannolongerengageinfishing

•Variableinundationregime and high nutrients create enablingconditionsforsubmerged,floatingandemergentvegetation.

•Commercialexploitationisregulated as the area is declared aswildlifesanctuary.

•Proportionofemergent,particularlyPhragmiteskarkahasincreasedovertheyears•Harvestkeepsproliferationincheck

EcosystemServicesDescription Stakeholder Existingbiophysicalenvironmentenabling

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Provisioning

Fisheries

Kanwarisacapturefisherysource,whereasassociatedwetlandsareusedforculturefishery.26ofthe36fishspeciesreportedinKanwararesoldinlocalmarkets.

Kanwarcomplexisalsoarichsourceofediblemolluscs.Fourspeciesofmolluscs,namely Pila globosa, Bellamya bengalensis, Lamellidens marginalis and L. corrianus are collected from the wetlandforhouseholdconsumptionaswellaslimitedtrade.

Fisheryformsthelivelihoodbasefor2850fishinghouseholds of Sahni community.

l Connectivitywiththeriverine environment whichenablesexchangeofriverinefishspeciesl Sufficientwaterspreadarea during lean seasonl Adequatelevelofnutrientsandwell-oxygenatedenvironmentl Calciumprecipitationbyemergentmacrophytesprovides conducive condition for molluscs to proliferate.

l CulturefisheryoperationsaremanagedbyFishCooperatives.

l Useofvariableinundationregimeforcapturefisheryisbasedonaninformalunderstandingbetweenfishersandfarmersforconjunctiveuse.Fishersattributetherighttocapturefisheryoverprivatelandstoa1885judgment,whichawardedrightsoffishingtotheSahniscommunityintheentireKanwarareaonpaymentofrenttolandownersl ReducedriverineconnectivityhasledtoreductioninIMCandanincreaseinforageandairbreathingfish.l Rampantuseofsmallmeshsizesfurtherdepressescatchl Culturefishproductionissub-optimalduetolackofappropriatetechnologyinfrastructureandwaterregime.l Functioningofcooperativeisskewedinfavourofmemberswithabilitytoinvestcapital.

Wetland agriculture

Kanwarsupportsproductivewetlandagriculturethatisalignedwithinundationregimes.Traditionallythehighlandareascalledrahiwerecultivatedforoneortwocrops,thenausiorlowlandareasremainedinundated.

Withashifttowardspermanentagriculturesystemsaround2600haofwetlandareaisusedforthreeormorecrops.Cultivationisdonethroughouttheyear,withpaddyisthemajorKharifcrop(June–November),wheatandsugarcaneduringrabi(December–April)andmaizeduringgarma(April–June).has emerged as a platform for farmers to voice their concerns

3200farmersengagedinfarming inside wetland

l Highsoilmoisturel Fertilesiltreceivedfromriverineinundations.

l Landisprivatelyheldandcropping decisions is individuall Sanctuarydeclarationhasimposed restrictions on transfer ofland.KanwarBachaoSangharsh Samitil Policyenvironmentsupportsagriculture

l Agriculturehasintensifiedwithmultiplecroppingcyclesl Waterregimeshavebeenmodifiedtopromoteagriculturel Indigenouscropvarietieshavebeenreplacedwithwaterintensiveonesl Increased groundwater draft for irrigationl Increase in use of fertilisers and pesticides

Aquaticvegetation

Kanwarisanimportantsourceoffodderandfuelwoodfortheneighboringvillages.

DriedSaccharum spontaneum(Kansghass),Phragmites karka (Narkat)and Cyperus iriaareextensivelyusedasfuelwood.

Chaurandmaunareasareusedforcultivationofmakhana(Euryale ferox)

Fruits,flowers,leavesandundergroundstemsofaquaticplantsareharvestedfromthewetlandcomplexandusedasvegetablesbylocalcommunities.Severalaquaticplantsareusedasmedicines.

•3750householdsextractfuelwood•1450householdsharvestplants for fodder•Harvestofaquaticplantsform source of sustenance foroldfishermenwhocannolongerengageinfishing

•Variableinundationregime and high nutrients create enablingconditionsforsubmerged,floatingandemergentvegetation.

•Commercialexploitationisregulated as the area is declared aswildlifesanctuary.

•Proportionofemergent,particularlyPhragmiteskarkahasincreasedovertheyears•Harvestkeepsproliferationincheck


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astaggeredmannertherebypreventingconflicts.Landscape transformation has triggered several

changesininundationregimesoftheKanwarwetlandcomplex.Inordertoassesstheassociatedtradeoffs,thefollowingthreescenarioshavebeenconsidered:

Business as Usual (BAU) – Corresponding tothestateofwetlandcomplexinthelastdecade(2000-2014),BAUhasapeakinundationregimeof~20km2.

Permanent agriculture is the predominant land use,andcapturefisheriesarenearlydecimated.Theriverineconnectivity is fragmenteddue to embankments.ThemaunandchaurareasassociatedwithKanwarareusedfor culture fisheries, however the productivity is low,primarilyduetolackofwateravailability.

SEM1 – Relates to a state of Kanwar withinundationregimeasin80swhereinapeakinundation

table 30: landscape transformation matrix

Changeto2010

Changefrom1976

Area(ha) Openwater Marsh Forest/Plantation

Silt/CurrentFallow

Agriculture Total(1976)

Openwater 569.1 2189.3 68.7 311.9 536.6 3675.6

Marsh 26.4 356.3 28.9 218.4 788.8 1418.8

Forest/Plantation

0.9 29.4 3.4 19.1 66.0 118.8

Silt/CurrentFallow

1.7 78.7 17.1 130.9 514.5 742.9

Agriculture 3.8 99.6 19.9 157.1 472.4 752

Total(2010) 601.9 2753.3 138.0 837.5 2378.3 6709

Regulating

Floodcontrol

Kanwarisasaucershapeddepressioninthelandscapefunctioningasabufferforextremefloodeventsforthedownstreamsoutheasternareasfromdamagingbankinundations

Theriskofdamageto23settlements around the complexisreduced

Waterholdingcapacityof wetland

•Siltaccumulationduetohydrologicalregimeandlandusechanges has led to reduced water holdingcapacity.

ModerationofwaterregimesGroundwaterdynamicshaveanimportantcontributioninmaintenanceofwetlandregimeaswellasanecosystemservicefortheagrarianlivelihoodsprevalentinandaroundKanwar.Waterbalanceassessmentsindicatethatinagivenyear,thereisanetrechargeofgroundwaterfromtheperiodMay–October,andanetdischargeforrestoftheperiod.AgriculturehasbeenreportedindrymonthsofAprilwithinKanwar,whereasinadjoiningareas,landisusuallyleftfallowduetolackofwater

RegionaroundKanwar Waterholdingcapacityand geomorphological conditions

Useofgroundwaterisnotregulated.

•Increaseddependenceongroundwaterbyculturefishersaswellasfarmers.•Increasingdepthtogroundwaterlevelshasbeenincreasinginintensivelycultivated areas

Cultural

Recreationalandculturalvalue

ThescenicbeautyofKanwar,untiltherecent,hasmadeitapopularlocalrecreationsite.TheislandtempleofJaimangalagarhisassociatedwithhistoricalvalues.

RegionaroundKanwar;nationalandglobalcommunityatlarge

•Presenceofopenwaterexpanse•Presenceofwaterbirds.

Prohibitionofwildlifehuntinghaspositiveimpactsonwaterbirdhabitats.

•Declineininundationregimeandwetlanddegradationhasreducedtheaesthetic appeal


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upto48km2isachieved.Communitiespracticeamixofcapturefisheriesandagriculture.Culturefisheriesispracticed in limited maun and chaur areas, however,productivityishighonaccountofnaturalrecruitmentfromtheriverandabundantwateravailability.

SEM2 – Relates to state of Kanwar withinundation regimes as in 70s wherein large parts ofwetland complex remain permanently inundated.Capturefisheriesassumearelativelypredominantrolein this state. Permanent agriculture is very limited.Thereisnoculturefisheries.

The three scenarios essentiallydescribe alternatestates towards which wetland management can betargeted. The scenario analysis maps the prevailingbiophysicalcondition ineachof thescenarios intoaneconomic value using existing prices and productiontechnologies.Theanalysisthereforedoesnotintendtocapturetemporalchangesinwelfare,butwelfarechangesatpresent likely to result frommanaging thewetlandtowards an alternate state. Further, for economicanalysis, only capture and culture fisheries, wetlandagriculture, aquatic plants and groundwater recharge

function have been considered due to availability ofdata.2.6.1. Capture FisheryCapturefishery fromKanwarhasbeenassessedbasedon species composition and total annual harvest.Assessments of 2000 indicate presence of 36 speciesbelonging to zoological order of Cypriniformes,Siluriformes,Beloniformes,Channiformes,Perciformesand Mastacembeliformes being abundant in catchthroughout the year. Of these, 26 were identified asbeingofeconomicvalueandsoldinlocalmarkets.

Capture fishery in Kanwar has been adverselyaffected due to habitat fragmentation and reducedconnectivity with riverine environment. Active fishbreeding areas as Mahalaya and Kochalaya havebeenaffectedduetodecline inwaterdepthaswellascolonization by emergent macrophytes (Phragmites karka). Major carp breeding grounds as Channahanaladhar, Boharadhar, Sahara naladhar and Guhabarimouthhavesiltedup.

Analysis of catch composition based on CIFRIrecordsindicateagradualincreaseinairbreathingspecies

Regulating

Floodcontrol

Kanwarisasaucershapeddepressioninthelandscapefunctioningasabufferforextremefloodeventsforthedownstreamsoutheasternareasfromdamagingbankinundations

Theriskofdamageto23settlements around the complexisreduced

Waterholdingcapacityof wetland

•Siltaccumulationduetohydrologicalregimeandlandusechanges has led to reduced water holdingcapacity.

ModerationofwaterregimesGroundwaterdynamicshaveanimportantcontributioninmaintenanceofwetlandregimeaswellasanecosystemservicefortheagrarianlivelihoodsprevalentinandaroundKanwar.Waterbalanceassessmentsindicatethatinagivenyear,thereisanetrechargeofgroundwaterfromtheperiodMay–October,andanetdischargeforrestoftheperiod.AgriculturehasbeenreportedindrymonthsofAprilwithinKanwar,whereasinadjoiningareas,landisusuallyleftfallowduetolackofwater

RegionaroundKanwar Waterholdingcapacityand geomorphological conditions

Useofgroundwaterisnotregulated.

•Increaseddependenceongroundwaterbyculturefishersaswellasfarmers.•Increasingdepthtogroundwaterlevelshasbeenincreasinginintensivelycultivated areas

Cultural

Recreationalandculturalvalue

ThescenicbeautyofKanwar,untiltherecent,hasmadeitapopularlocalrecreationsite.TheislandtempleofJaimangalagarhisassociatedwithhistoricalvalues.

RegionaroundKanwar;nationalandglobalcommunityatlarge

•Presenceofopenwaterexpanse•Presenceofwaterbirds.

Prohibitionofwildlifehuntinghaspositiveimpactsonwaterbirdhabitats.

•Declineininundationregimeandwetlanddegradationhasreducedtheaesthetic appeal


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(Clarias batrachus, Heteropneustes fossilis, Amphionous cuchia, Anabas testudineus); catfishes (Wallago attu, Mystus sp.)andforagefishes.Fishesabundantlyreportedandharvestedduring1970sand1980,e.g.Labeo gonius (Khursa)andNotopterus notopterus(Bhuna)areseldomfound. These trends have also been validated by thefishersduringfield survey.Temporal trends in speciescompositionofcatchfromKanwarderivedfromCIFRIrecordsispresentedinTable31.

Catch statistics from Kanwar are notmaintained. For the present study, catch estimates ofKusheshwarsthan have been used (Jha and Chandra,1997),whichisawetlandlocatedinsimilarecologicalsettingbuthaslimitedhydrologicalfragmentation.Thederivedcatchperunitareahavebeenmultipliedwith

averageannual inundationareaobtainedfromremotesensingdataofKanwar.

Sincefishisamarketedcommodity,marketpricemethod has been used to derive the value of capturefishery of Kanwar. The species composition availablefrom the records of CIFRI have been used to derivegroupspecificcatch.SpeciescompositionforscenariosSEM1 and SEM2 have been assumed to be similar.Existingmarket prices atMajhaul have been used toestimate the catch value, as almost entire fish catchis traded locally.To arrive at net value, the annuallydepreciated capital value of fishing implements havebeendeducted.Asperhouseholdsurvey,thetotalvalueoffishingimplementswasestimatedtobe`8,044perfisherhouseholdwhichaggregates to`22.925million

Map 4: Change in land use and inundation regimes

Table 31: Trends in percent composition of fish catch in Kanwar Jheel

IMC Minorcarp Catfish Feather-back Murrels/Airbreathing

Minnows

1981 21 24 12.5 13 6.5 27.5

1985 15 20.5 15 14 10.5 33

1990 9 19.5 18 14 11.5 41.5

1995 7 12 19 11.5 17.5 53

2000 5 7.5 14 10 20.5 56.5

2005 2.5 8.5 16.5 7.5 24.5 61

2011 1 6.5 16.5 6.5 29.5 67.5

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forthetotalfisherhouseholds.Theannualdepreciatedvalue at 5% is estimated to be `1.146 million. It isassumed that the existing fishing implements canprovide the capture fisheries harvest in all scenarios.The estimated gross and net annual value from capture fisheriesissummarizedinTable32.

4.6.2. Culture FisheryKanwarJheelissurroundedbyanumberofmaun and chaurareaswhichareusedforextensivetosemi-extensiveculturefishery.TheseareasarewithinthejurisdictionofStateDepartmentofAnimalHusbandryandFisheriesandgovernedaspertheprovisionsofBiharFishJalkarManagementAct(2006).TheDepartmentleasesfishingrightsinthesewaterbodiestofishcooperativesocietiescurrently for a period of 7 years at a time. Presently,fishinginwaterbodiesaroundKanwarhasbeenleasedtofourfishercooperatives.

AmixofIndianMajorCarps(Labeo rohita, Catla catla, Cirrhinus mrigala)andExoticcarps(Hypophthal michthys molitrix, Ctenopharyngodon idella, Cyprinus carpio and Hypophthal michthys nobilis) are used forstocking.The culture operation begin with the onsetof monsoon (July) and continues till late monsoon(October) with the stocking of fry, fingerling andadvance fingerling, sometime mixed together or inphasedmanner(stockingof fryofLabeo rohita, Catla catla, followedwithfingerlingofHypophthal michthys molitrix, Ctenopharyngodon idella and advanced fingerling of Cirrhinus mrigala, Cyprinus carpio and Hypophthal michthys nobilis). In general around 2000-3000 of advanced fingerlings (approximately eachweighingupto100gm)isstockedinanacreofmaun and chaur.

The harvesting is done by using drag netswhichusually start from lateFebruary toApril.Eachcooperative has its own mechanism for selling the harvestandrevenuesharing,however,islargelylinkedtotheabilityofindividualmemberstoinvestcapitalforcultureoperationsandpaymentof lease.Asignificantproportionoffishersmainlyseekemploymentaswage

labourinculturefisheriesoperation.Culture fisheries operations around Kanwar is

renderedinefficientduetoanumberofbiophysicalandsocioeconomic factors.AssessmentbyCIFRI in2008indicated that the current production levels in the maun and chaur areas (265 kg/ha) were significantly lowerthan the potential production of 1,500-2,000 kg/haprovided all ecological conditions aremet (Sinha andJha,2008).

ProductionforBAUscenariohasbeenestimatedbased on culture fisheries area (provided by StateDepartmentofFisheries) andproductivity as assessedby CIFRI. For SEM1, production corresponding toMajhaul maun with a productivity of 750 kgs / ha(derived from interviews with fisher cooperatives)has been taken. For SEM2, a productivity of 1200kgs /hahasbeen taken.Grossvalueoffishyieldhasbeen estimated based on existing market prices ofIndianMajor and Exotic Carps.To arrive at the netvalue, annual operation costs and lease value havebeen deducted. Data from Majhaul Maun indicated that during a year,`10,789 / ha is incurred as costs(including leasevalue spreadover7years,fingerlings,pond preparation, and labour for the entire durationof operation cycle). For scenarios SEM1 and SEM2,costs have been assumed to increase in proportionwith productivity. The gross and net value added byculturefisheriesinthewetlandcomplexispresentedin Table33.

4.6.3. Wetland agricultureChanges in inundation regimes over the years havebrought about significant changes in farming systemswithin Kanwar. Till early seventies, agriculture waslimited only to areas around major villages such asManjhaul, Cheria-Bariarpur and Karor. Upland areasinwetlandlocallycalledrahi were used for cultivation duringdryseason.Milletswerethemajorcrops.Farmproductivity was low and most of the agriculturalproducewasconsumedbythefarmer’sfamily.

table 32: Economic value of kanwar jheel capture fisheries

Scenario Catch GrossValue(`Million)atcurrent prices

NetValue(`Million)atcurrent prices

BAU 50MT 6.767 5.621

SEM1 230MT 34.874 33.728

SEM2 360MT 54.585 53.439

Table 33: Economic value of fish yield from culture sources in kanwar complex

Scenario Yield(MT)

GrossValue(`Million)atcurrent prices

NetValue(`Million)atcurrent prices

BAU 76.82 10.601 7.473

SEM1 217.42 30.004 21.153

SEM2 347.88 48.007 33.844

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As the areas under permanent inundation receded, more and more areas were brought intopermanent farming. High yielding varieties of wheatand maize were introduced, with major expansionhappening during 1970s and 1980s. At present theimpetus is on cultivation of crops such as mustard and sugarcane for which markets are available.Cultivation of sugarcane has intensified all aroundthewetlandperipheryparticularlyontheeasternside.Farminghasshiftedfromasubsistencerainfedsystemto that with groundwater irrigation dependent. Theexpansion and intensification of agriculture withinthewetlandcomplexisentirelybasedongroundwaterextractions.

For the scenario analysis, production estimateshavebeenderivedfortwomajorcrops,namelywheatand rice (Table 34). Productivity has been estimatedfrom primary data collected from 47 farmers andparticipatoryappraisalsin8villages.Cropspecificareashavebeenderivedfromcroparearatios(obtainedfromhouseholdsurvey)andwetlandareausedforagriculturebased on remote sensing imageries. Economic valueshave been derived from existing Minimum SupportPrices(Table35).

4.6.4. aquatic vegetation for human useThe ability of Kanwar to provide aquatic vegetationforhumanuseiscloselyrelatedtoinundationregime.The deeper parts as Mahalaya and Kochalaya haveextensivebedsoflotus(Nelumbo nucifera)andSinghada(Trapa natans), harvested during the months of JulytoOctober.The harvest of these species has howeverdeclinedconsiderablyintherecenttimes,andismostlydone for subsistence, usually by older fisherswhonolonger engage in fishing.Decrease in inundation has

reducedtheavailabilityoffodderspeciessuchasLeersia hexandra(Garar)whichalsousedtoprovidefoodandshelter for animals and many water birds. Decreasedsoil moisture conditions have also affected otherfodder species growingwildly inwet conditions suchas Commelina benghalensis(Kankuaghass)asSacciolepis myosuroides (Ghass),Cyperus rotundus (Chichorh)andC. iria(Mootha).

As inundation regimes have shrunk, availabilityoffuelwoodfromKanwarhasincreased.Thehouseholddependence on fuelwood from the wetland has remained highthoughthelevelofdependencyhasdecreasedfrom1970s till now. There has been only minor variationin energy source pattern.Wood remains the primaryenergy source even in the present times. The accessto clean energy sources remains low, with only 6%householdsusingLPGastheprimarysourceofenergyforcooking.Inthepresentscenarioaswell,around24%ofthehouseholdsextractfuelwoodfromKanwar.Therestoffuelwoodrequirementismetnowadaysthroughmarketandavailablefarmrefuse.

For scenario analysis, quantity and value offuelwood has been estimated. Annual harvest offuelwood from Kanwar for three scenarios has beenestimated from primary surveys of 481 households.Data on percentage households using fuelwood fromKanwar has been used to derive total annual harvestpertainingtothethreescenarios.

4.6.5. groundwater rechargeThegroundwater recharge functionprimarilybenefitsfarming within as well as around the wetland. Thedecline in inundation area has been reported to leadtodecrease ingroundwater levels,whichsubsequentlyaffectstheoverallfarmeconomicsbyincreasedcostofpumping.

Economic value of groundwater recharge hasbeen derived from agriculture production functionforwheatcropwhichisthemaindryseasoncropandrequires irrigation.Withadecline in inundationarea,the decrease in groundwater recharge has manifested

table 34: Economic value of produce from wetland agriculture in kanwar complex

Scenario Totalarea (ha)

GrossValue(`Million)at current

prices

NetValue(` Million)at

current prices

BAU Wheat 1850 62.328 31.090

Rice 770

SEM1 Wheat 1550 51.330 40.800

Rice 600

SEM2 Wheat 21.780 18.425

Rice 450

table 35: Economic value of produce from wetland agriculture in kanwar complex

Scenario Fuelwoodharvest(MT)

EconomicValue(`Million)

BAU 540 1.012

SEM1 8075 15.140

SEM2 4840 9.075

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in decrease in average water level in the villages around Kanwar from6.48mbgl in 1970s to 6.93mbgl in1980and9.15mbglatpresent.

Weassumepricetakingbehaviorinthefarmers,andthatthereexistsaninversedemandcurveforcropoutput Q. It is also assumed that the reduction ingroundwater level leads to adverse impact on household welfare,throughanincreasepumpingcost.TheimpactofchangeingroundwaterlevelsisreflectedthroughanimpactonwaterinputW.Foranon-marginalchangeinnaturallyrechargedgroundwater,thewelfarechangecan be estimated as the resulting change in value ofproductionlesstheincreaseinpumpingcost.Itisalsoassumedthatthefarmerssupplytothesamemarketsandsource the inputs from the samemarket, and therebyface the sameproduction and cost relationships.Thisalso permits aggregation of welfare effects of changeingroundwaterlevelsfortheindividualfarmer,acrossall farmers around the wetland. A single productionfunction forwheat is assumed to be prevalent in theregion.

The following production function has beenspecifiedforasinglehousehold:

Q=f(L,F,W)logQ=α + β2 logL + β2logF+β3logW+C

Wherein,Y= annual crop output (in kgs.), L =totallabour(persondays)employed;F=totalfertilizer

table 36: Crop production function

Variable Log-linear

Log(labour) 0.471(5.321)**

Log(fertilizer) 0.367(3.735)**

Log(Water) -0.147(-1.273)

Constant 0.084(0.389)

AdjustedR2 0.644

F–Statistic 24.51**

Numberofobservations 40

table 38: Ecosystem bundles outcomes

EcosystemService Indicator ScenarioOutcome

BAU SEM1 SEM2

CaptureFisheries AnnualCatch(MT) 50 230 360

EconomicValueatcurrentprices(`Million) 5.621 33.728 53.439

CultureFisheries AnnualCatch(MT) 76.82 217.42 347.88


Wetland agriculture TotalProduce(qtl)


Aquaticplantsforhuman use

Harvest(MT) 540 8075 4840


Groundwaterrecharge

LossineconomicvalueduetoreducedgroundwaterlevelascomparedwithBAU(`Million)

1.504 9.658

Floodcontrol Low Medium High

Culturalandrecreational value

Low High

Valueasbiodiversityhabitat

Low High High

table 37: Economic value of groundwater recharge function

Scenario Changeingroundwater

depth as compared to

BAU(inmbgl)

Valuelostduetoreduced

Groundwaterlevels

(`Million)

SEM1 -0.35 `1.504

SEM2 -2.67 `9.658

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application (kgs.); W = water level (below groundlevelinmeters)andbeingtheresidualterm.OrdinaryLeast Squares Regression estimates using logarithmictransformationwerefoundtohavethebestfitondataon input and output parameters collected from 40respondents.Theregressioncoefficientsarereportedintable36.

4.7. distributional ImpactsThe scenario analysis indicates the likely trends inecosystem services as management is targeted formaintainingbusinessasusual to restoration to1980’sconditionsor to1970sconditions.Thenetchange ineconomic value over baseline for various ecosystemservices is indicated inFigure28.Theanalysis clearlyindicates that maintaining BAU is an inefficientargument,andinvolvessignificantopportunitycostsinterms of lost values if restoration of inundation regime isnottargeted.GiventheroleofKanwarinsustainingeconomyof communities living aroundKanwar, it isimportant to assess the trends in terms of implications for livelihoods of different stakeholder groups. Inparticular,thelikelylivelihoodoutcomesforfisherandfarmergroupswillinfluencethedegreeofengagementandlocalsupportthatcanbeexpectedforrestoration.For this purpose, data on occupational structure andinformation from participatory appraisals was usedto construct a stakeholder segmented distribution ofeconomic values. Figure 29 presents the net changesineconomicvalues in scenarioSEM2with respect toBAUasbaseline.Theanalysisassumesnooccupationaltransformation across scenarios and no change in production or consumption technologies. It can beinferred that the fishers are the group likely to gainthemost throughrejuvenationofcaptureandculturefisheries sources, albeit with a loss in agriculturalproductionvalue.Thecostsofinaction(ofnotrestoringthewetlandtowardsSEM2)arethehighestforfishers,

whereas, for the farmers, the current scenario worksbetter.

Restoration of wetland complex towards SEM2can be interpreted as a partial attempt to restorelivelihoodsforthefishers.Theshrinkageofinundationregimes has led to near complete decimation of capture fisheries,whichwasthemainstayoflivelihoodsofthefisher community. While the culture fisheries haveevolved in the maun and chaur areas around wetland complex,notallfishershavebeenable to switchovertothislivelihoodoptionprimarilyduetohighcapitalrequirements.Theincreaseinwetlandagriculturehaveaccrued to those who own land, and in proportionof land ownership.The benefit per household to themarginal farmers and fishers has been the least onaccount of lowland-holding. Losses from reducedgroundwaterrechargearerelatedtolandholding.

The political economy of ecological restorationisalsolinkedtothepreferencesforecosystemservicesbundles.Aqualitativepreferenceanalysiswasthereforeconducted to elucidate community preferences forvarious restoration scenarios. Following three villageclusters representing the existing geomorphological,ecological and livelihood setup around the wetland complexwereconsideredforanalysis:

Cluster 1 – comprises villages located onmarginallyelevatedareasalongthesouthwestmarginofwetland(CheriaBariarpur,Karor,Manjhaul).Extensiveshrinkage in inundation regimehas been experiencedin this region, leading to a predominance of farmingactivity. The region also has better infrastructure(marketsandroads)ascomparedtoothertwo.

Cluster 2 – comprises villages along northernandeasternmarginsofthewetlandcomplex(Kanousi,Narayanpiper and Kumbhi). Wage labourers are the

Figure 29: Stakeholder disaggregated change in economic values of ecosystem services over scenario SEM2

Cha

nge

ine

cono

mic

val

ue

over

SEM

2( `

Mill

ion)

20.0010.00

0(10.00)(20.00)(30.00)(40.00)(50.00)(60.00)

CaptureFisheries CultureFisheriesWetlandAgricultureFuelwood Groundwaterrecharge

Agriculture Farmer(Large)

Agriculture Farmer(Small)

Fisher

AgricultureFarmer(Marginal)

Figure 28: Change in economic values of ecosystem services over scenario SEM2

Cha

nge

ine

cono

mic

val

ue

over

SEM

2( `

Mill

ion)

20.0010.00

0(10.00)(20.00)(30.00)(40.00)(50.00)(60.00)

Capturefishery

Culturefishery

Wetland agriculture Ground

water recharge

Fuelwood

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predominant stakeholder group in the region. Thevillages are located in closeproximityofpermanentlyinundatedareasofwetlandcomplex,andhaverelativelyhigherabundanceofgroundwater.

Cluster 3 – comprises villages located in thedownstream reaches (Akaha and Bagras) and areinhabited by small and marginal farmers and wagelabourers. Being located at the outlet, communitiesroutinelyexperiencefloods,whichareperceivedtohavetohaveincreasedduetolossinfloodbufferingcapacityofKanwar.

Communities in cluster 1 have indicated ahigher preference for SEM2 (49%), followed bySEM1(40%)andBAU(11%).Movingtowardstheirpreferred regime, a significant increase in fisheries,floodbufferingcapacityandhabitatvalueisperceived,which exceeds the decline in value of Kanwar forwetland agriculture. Being a community comprisingcapture fishers and small farmers, the preference forrestorationoffisheriesisapparentinFigure30.

For Cluster 2, which is a mix of farmers andwage labourers, there is an overall preference forBAU (43%), followed by SEM1 (31%) and SEM2(26%). Moving from BAU towards SEM1 andSEM2,thecommunitiesindicateadeclineinwetland

agriculture, for a relatively lesser increase infisheriesand groundwater recharge. Though an increase inrecreationalvaluesinperceived,thegainsdonotstandtocompensateforlossesinwetlandagriculture.Beingpredominantlyacommunityoffarmers,withrelativelybetteravailabilityofwaterandhighcropproductivity,the preference for BAU is self-evident.WithinCluster 3, the communities distinctly preferenceSEM 2 (91%). Moving to their preferred regime,the communities indicate preference for increase in flood buffering capacity, groundwater recharge andfisheriesovervalueofKanwarforwetlandagriculture.Bettermentofbiodiversityhabitatisalsopreferred.

Thedistributionalanalysisofecosystemservicesvalues indicates that ecological restoration is not a value neutral proposition.With changes in externalenvironment including production technologies and employmentopportunities,peoplehaveadaptedtothechanginglanduseconditions.Whilethedownstreamcommunities prefer restoration to maximuminundation, communities living in the southwesternmargins prefer a moderate increase in inundation regimetoasituationasin80s.Communitieslocatedon the upstream segment benefit from the currentstate,andtherebyprefernochange.

The distributional analysis of ecosystem services values indicates that ecological restoration is not a value neutral proposition. With changes in external environment, people have adapted to the changing land use conditions

Figure 30: Ecosystem services preferences of communities in different parts of wetland complex

AP AP AP

WA WA WA

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4.8. Strategies for Integrated ManagementKanwarneedstobemanagedforitsmultipleecosystemservices and biodiversity values. Developmentalprogramming till date has focused on enhancing production values of wetlands, specifically wetlandagriculture, at the cost of other provisioning services(particularlyfisheries),regulatingservices(groundwaterrecharge and flood buffering) and cultural services.Suchamanagementhasresultedinsignificantimpactsonbiodiversityhabitatvaluesaswell.

Integratedmanagementneedstobeguidedbyadesiredbiophysicalstateandlinkedecosystemservicesand biodiversity values. The current analysis hasconsideredthreesuchscenarios.Theeconomicanalysisindicates that there are significant costs of inactionassociatedwith not restoring the inundation regimes.Theopportunitycostsaresignificantlyhigherwhenaninundationscenariocorrespondingto70sisconsidered.

An analysis of scenario outcomes would beincomplete without consideration of their technical feasibilityandassociatedcosts.Fromthecurrentanalysisofwetlandfeatures,restorationofSEM1scenariowouldrequirestructuralinterventionforregulatingoutflows,and enhanced hydrological connectivity within thewetlandcomplex.There isalsoaneedto improvethewaterholdingcapacityofthecomplexthroughselectivedesilting of peripheral areas and maun and chaurareas.RestorationofinundationasinSEM2islikelytorequirerealignment of river embankments and connectingriver flows through channels. There are implicationsfor structural stability of the existing flood controlstructuresonBurhiGandak.ForrestoringwetlandtoaSEM1scenario,aball-parkestimateof`1,500millionhas been estimated over a period of five years,whichwouldincludeinvestmentsinrestoringwaterregimes,strengthening institutional arrangements, biodiversityconservation and improvement of livelihoods. ForSEM2scenario,thecostsarelikelytobeatleasttwotimesthecurrentestimate,andwouldrequirereclamationoflandforconstructionofnewchannels.

Analysis ofdistributional consequenceshoweverhighlights political complexities associated with

restorationchoices.Communitieshaveadaptedtothetransformed bundle of ecosystem services. There is asection of communities which prefers maintenance of the current state of wetland, which would permitagriculture values. Biophysical and hydrologicalassessments indicate that with increasing groundwater extraction, the water levels are expected to furtherdecline leading to increased irrigation costs. Left onits own, these costs would crowd out the gains fromagriculture.

Consideringinformationfromecosystemservicesassessmentandbiophysicalassessment,themanagementshouldintendtoachieveaSEM1scenario,asitislikelytoincreasehabitatquality,improvecapacityofwetlandtomoderate hydrological regimes, and support fisherlivelihoods.Thewetlandmaybemanagedonazoningprinciple to accommodate production values alongwith conservationvalues.

A core area, to be inundated almost aroundthe year may be managed for capture fisheries andmaintenanceofwaterbirdandfishhabitats.Thebufferzone,whichincludesmaun and chaur areas surrounding Kanwar, are tobemanagedas sustainableproductionsystems of culture based fishery and cultivation ofaquatic plants. The land use in the entire complexneedstoberegulatedtopreventanyadverseimpactonecosystemcomponentsandprocesses.

An important intervention would be createinstitutional arrangements forbalancingcross sectoralinterests, and include community perspectives onwetland management. The Government of Bihar hasrecently constituted Bihar Wetland DevelopmentAuthority as the nodal policy and planning body forconservationandmanagementofwetlandsofthestate.Onthesaidlines,itisproposedtoconsiderconstitutionof Kanwar Management Authority as a unifiedinstitutional mechanism for integrated management ofKanwar and associatedmaun and chaur areas.Theexisting regulatory regimes would also need to bereviewed to encourage stakeholder led management with due consideration of compatibility of land andwaterusepracticeswithwetlandregime.

The economic analysis indicates that there are significant costs of inaction associated with not restoring the inundation regimes. When an indundation scenario corresponding to the 70s is considered, the opportunity costs become significantly higher

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ANOVA AnalysisofVarianceBAU BusinessasusualBOD BiochemicalOxygenDemandBNHS BombayNaturalHistorySocietyCAFL ChilikaAquaticFarmsLimitedCADA CommonAreaDevelopmentAuthorityCBO CommunityBasedOrganizationCDA ChilikaDevelopmentAuthorityCFCCS Chilika Fishermen Central Cooperative

SocietyLimitedCFCMS Central Fishers Cooperative Marketing

SocietyCIFRI CentralInlandFisheriesResearchInstituteCPCB CentralPollutionControlBoardDO DissolvedOxygenES EcosystemServicesESRSPF Environmental Social Reformation and

SangaiProtectionForumFRMP FisheriesResourceManagementPlanGm GramGoB GovernmentofBiharGOI GovernmentofIndiaHaHectareHH HouseholdHRU HydrologicalResponseUnitIFCD IrrigationandFloodControlDepartmentIMC IndianMajorCarpsITCM IndividualTravelCostMethodJICA JapanInternationalCooperationAgencyKm KilometreKg KilogramKLNP KeibulLamjaoNationalParkLDA LoktakDevelopmentAuthorityLPG LiquefiedPetroleumGasMAMSL MetersAboveMeanSeaLevelMBGL MeterBelowGroundLevelMCM MillionCubicMetersmg/l milligram per litreMoEFCC Ministry of Environment, Forests and

ClimateChangeMSY MaximumSustainableYieldMT MetricTonsMU MillionunitsNGO NonGovernmentalOrganizationNHPC NationalHydroelectricPowerCorporationNSE Nash-SutcliffeEfficiency

PFCS PrimaryFishermenCooperativeSocietiesPWD PublicWorksDepartmentSDWRML Sustainable Development and Water

ResourceManagementofLoktaklakeSEM SustainableEcosystemManagementSSMPSS SriSriMahavirPakshiSurakshyaSamitiSTAP ShortTermActionPlanSWAT SoilandWaterAssessmentToolTA TechnicalAssistanceTEEB The Economics of Ecosystems and

BiodiversityTII The Economics of Ecosystems and

BiodiversityIndiaInitiativeUS$ UnitedStatesDollarUT UnionTerritoryWAPCOS WaterandPowerConsultancyServicesWISA Wetlands International South AsiaWTP WillingnesstoPayWWF WorldWideFundforNatureZSI ZoologicalSurveyofIndia

Acronyms

THE ECONOMICS Of ECOSYSTEMS AND bIODIvERSITY INDIA INITIATIvE CONSERvATION AND SuSTAINAblE MANAgEMENT Of INlAND WETlANDS


Ministry of Environment, Forestand Climate ChangeGovernment of India

Supported byMinistry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of IndiaIndira Paryavaran Bhawan, Jor Bagh RoadNew Delhi 110003 Indiawww.envfor.nic.in

Indo-German Biodiversity ProgrammeGIZ IndiaA-2/18, Safdarjung EnclaveNew Delhi 110029 Indiawww.indo-germanbiodiversity.com

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04THE ECONOMICS OF ECOSYSTEMS AND BIODIVERSITY-INDIA INITIATIVE

India a biodiversity hotspotIndia is one of the megadiverse countries in the world. It faces unique circumstances as well as challenges in the conservation of its rich biological heritage. With only 2.4% of the world’s geographical area, her 1.2 billion people coexist with over 47,000 species of plants and 91,000 species of animals. Several among them are the keystone and charismatic species. In addition, the country supports up to one-sixth of the world’s livestock population. The rapid growth of her vibrant economy, as well as conserving natural capital, are both essential to maintaining ecosystem services that support human well-being and prosperity.

To demonstrate her empathy, love and reverence for all forms of life, India has set aside 4.89% of the geographical space as Protected Areas Network. India believes in “वसधव कटमबकम” i.e. “the world is one family”.

Draft Report

THE ECONOMICS OF ECOSYSTEMS AND BIODIVERSITY-INDIA ... · Biodiversity for Conservation and Sustainable Management of Inland Wetlands Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change

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