A consultation on the ‘Impact of Climate Change in the Nilgiris’ was organised by the Human Rights Law Network (HRLN) here recently.
The event was attended by lawyers, activists, community based organisations as well as other stakeholders who are at the forefront of conserving and restoring the Nilgiris ecosystem, a release from the organisers said.
Arun Kasi from the HRLN said Mac Mohan from Save Coimbatore Wetlands, N. Mohanraj, a Nilgiris-based conservationist, Godwin Vasanth Bosco, a restoration ecologist from “Upstream Ecology”, J.R. Mani and Northay Kuttan, two tribal residents of the Nilgiris, and Dr. Raees Muhammad, from the Aathi Thamilar Thoilalargal Peravai attended the event.
They spoke on the impact of climate change on wetlands, its impact on rainfall and water resources, the role played by urbanisation and tourism in climate change as well as other issues including food security and agriculture.
The organisers said the 5,520 sq.km. Nilgiris Biosphere Reserve – a biodiversity hotspot, was mostly preserved until around two centuries ago, when colonial settlers first managed to set foot into the district. Ever since then, large-scale destruction of native habitats had accelerated, leading to a highly-disturbed habitat facing several serious threats.
“Shola forests and grasslands have evolved to lock-in moisture and release it slowly, ensuring that the major rivers such as the Moyar and Bhavani continue to flow even during the summer. To conserve and restore ecosystems, it is important to understand the complex but fascinating connections around them,” the release said.
The HRLN said iconic wildlife such as the Nilgiri tahr, the State animal, was at risk of extinction due to habitat loss that could result from climate change. The HRLN would be consolidating a list of issues related to the impacts of climate change in the Nilgiris and legal strategies that could be undertaken to find solutions to the issues.
