Survey of eco-sensitive area to be completed in a month

The survey of 45 villages in the district – which have been identified as Ecologically Sensitive Areas (ESA) under the Kasturirangan report on the Western Ghats – will be completed by November-end.

The review of the villages will ensure only those with more than 20 per cent natural forests are declared as sensitive zones, said Deputy Commissioner A.B. Ibrahim at a district level committee meeting to discuss the survey procedures conducted here on Thursday.

“Village-level committees will be set up to conduct verification of the Kasturirangan list. In a week, a preliminary report on the verification of six villages will be taken, after which identification of ESAs of all villages will be done,” he said.

The reports will be placed before the district-level committee, and then sent to the state level committee after approval. This will form the basis of the implementation of the Kasturirangan report, said officials.

Natural landscape

Using a mixture of satellite villages, revenue maps and forest department maps, the Kasturirangan panel had identified villages as being in the ESA.

The villages were identified as having more than 20 per cent “natural landscape”, and the committees will conduct field level inspections to tabulate the exact extent. “If any village is found to have lesser than 20 per cent forests, then it will be excluded from the list,” said Mr. Ibrahim.

“Natural landscape” include shola forests, scrubs, evergreen forests, mangroves, among others; while, “cultural landscape” covers settlements, agriculture, man-made lakes.

Seven villages – including Balpa (20.84 per cent) and Sampaje (20.63 per cent), both in Sullia taluk – were estimated to have lesser than 30 per cent of natural forests, and the survey will determine their status as being protected or not, said officials.

The meeting resolved to form a committee that will be headed by the deputy range forest officer, gram panchayat president, GP member from the particular village, village account, panchayat development officer, agriculture or horticulture officer.

The villages chosen for the trial surveys are: Sampaje, Balpa, Bilinale in Sullia taluk; Charmadi and Rekhya in Belthangady taluk; and Golithattu in Puttur taluk.