PANAJI
The State Forest Department is leaving no stone unturned to protect biodiversity amidst climate change. From the coming monsoon, the officials will begin real-time mapping of rainfall through their Automatic Weather Stations (AWS), set up across five wildlife sanctuaries. These sanctuaries include the Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary and National Park, Bondla, Cotigao, Mhadei and Netravali.
The AWS installations, which will be operational from June, will be used to monitor weather patterns and assess the impact of climate change on biodiversity. This intensive mapping of rainfall is probably the first of its kind across the Western Ghat region, which spans six states.
Chief Wildlife Warden Saurabh Kumar stated that the department is taking this step to ascertain how climate change affects the sanctuaries’ delicate ecosystems. “We want to be able to track changes in the weather patterns and evaluate their impact on flora and fauna,” he said.
The Forest Department’s proactive approach to mapping rainfall data during the monsoon season is a breath of fresh air. By keeping a watchful eye on the weather and its impact on wildlife sanctuaries, they are going the extra mile to protect the region’s biodiversity.
The stations will help in providing real-time data which will subsequently be used for scientific management of forests and wildlife areas, Kumar added.
The study will further enable the department to have a clear idea of water-deficient areas in the forests and provide invaluable data for resolving problems like the availability of water throughout the year for wildlife/ soil and moisture conservation.
The CCF also explained that weather/ climate data collected over a long period may be used to assess the probability and risk of extreme events like fire danger, pest management, and to compute statistics of the relevant weather events.
The wildfires in Mhadei wildlife sanctuary have been a big lesson for the State even as a joint operation with the armed forces and the State forest and fire officials were able to save the ecosystem from much larger destruction. The police investigation is underway with no culprits found as yet, even as the department has already indicated it could be man-made.
