The nowhere people

People migrating due to environmental disasters should be accorded ‘refugee’ status in international law

An increasing number of people globally are facing displacement due to droughts, famines, rising sea levels and other natural disasters caused by climate change. This class of migrants has been labelled as ‘environmental refugees’ in popular literature. According to the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, an international body reviewing trends of internal displacement, an estimated 24 million people are being displaced annually by natural disasters since 2008. This crisis will make almost half a billion people worldwide “environmental refugees” by the end of the century.

The UN Refugee Convention (1951) grants certain rights to people fleeing persecution because of race, religion, nationality, affiliation to a particular social group, or political opinion. The rights they are entitled to follow principles of non-discrimination, non-penalisation, and non-refoulement. However, people migrating due to environmental disasters have no such recognition of their ‘refugee’ status in international law, leaving them without any basic rights of rehabilitation and compensation. In September 2015, in the run-up to the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP 21) in Paris, New Zealand reportedly refused a man and his family asylum. Ioane Teitiota from Kiribati, who had sought it on the grounds of being an ‘environmental refugee’, lost his appeal before the New Zealand Supreme Court, which rejected the argument that he faced persecution because of climate change, since no such category is listed under the UN Refugee Convention. He was deported to his native island, which regularly witnesses environmental problems including storm surges, flooding and water contamination.

The Paris let-down

The Paris Agreement presented a unique opportunity to set the record straight by addressing the challenge of increasing environmental refugees. Before the negotiations commenced, numerous demands were made to incorporate ways to tackle climate migration in the final agreement. These included recognising the threat posed by climate change to livelihoods and human safety, and environmental refugees or migrants affected by climate change; providing technical and capacity building support to national and local initiatives tackling such displacement; and developing suitable policies to manage loss and damage by addressing climate change-induced displacement. However, the Paris Agreement falls considerably short of these expectations. While some hail this agreement for alluding to the rights of ‘migrants’ in its Preamble, it is an anaemic attempt at appreciating the gravity of this crisis. There is also little follow-up in the text of the agreement to address this problem.

The agreement, in Paragraph 50 of the Loss and Damage section, creates a task force to build upon existing work and develop recommendations for addressing climate migration. But this is meaningless for two main reasons — first, the recommendations of the task force have no binding authority; and second, no details are provided on its functions, operations, funding and other aspects. This ambiguity further erodes confidence in the realistic capability of this task force to effectively tackle climate migration.

The way forward

Almost one year after the Paris Agreement, its significance in displaying collective political will to take meaningful action against climate change cannot be undermined. However, this should not excuse its deficiencies in addressing a burgeoning population of environmental refugees.

The draft of the Paris Agreement discussed before COP 21 provided for a Climate Change Displacement Coordination Facility. This facility was intended to target organised migration and planned relocation of displaced persons, securing emergency relief, and arranging compensation for those displaced — actions more meaningful than those of the task force in the Paris Agreement. Unfortunately, this coordination facility did not make it to the final text of the agreement, but it may be worthwhile to reconsider its establishment.

While such a coordination facility can provide short-term support to relocate migrants and rehabilitate them in safer regions, a permanent solution requires an international treaty framework that recognises ‘environmental refugees’ and the obligations of nation states in accommodating them within their territories. We are already witnessing a world that is reactionary towards political refugees. Brexit and the election of Donald Trump are two events that testify to the underlying paranoia towards immigrants. Ignoring environmental refugees or their status under international law keeps them in legal limbo and endangers their survival.

This scenario can be averted by either expanding the ambit of the existing UN Refugee Convention to include climate migration, or by creating an independent treaty framework addressing the challenges of climate change-induced migration comprehensively. It is also pertinent to mention that while India, the U.S., and China have all ratified the Paris Agreement, there is little discussion on steps to be taken by the three largest emitters of greenhouse gases. The absence of such discourse is ironic given that the three countries are predicted to suffer tremendously from climate change-induced migration, resulting in large-scale displacement of their own populations. Therefore, it should be in their collective interest to lead efforts on finding an international resolution to this problem before the ensuing harm becomes irreparable.

Ameen Jauhar is a Research Fellow at Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy, New Delhi. Views are personal.

FOREST FIRES

Forest fires are an annual occurrence in Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh. Over 4,500 hectares have been affected in Himachal Pradesh, some 40% more than the 3,185 hectares in Uttarakhand. The latter state has seen 1,470 incidents of fire so far — 803 (affecting 1,413.58 ha) of which were in the Garhwal region, 463 (1,076.21 ha) in Kumaon, and 204 (695.65 ha) in wildlife zones.

Nature of fire

It is very difficult to actually know how the fire started. But at least with the circumstantial evidences it is clear that there was lack of preventive measures and the preparedness was low with a weak action plan.

Forest fires as Natural Event

As a natural event Forest fire in Uttrakhand is a common phenomenon during the summer season. It is so mainly due to the presence of Chir pine trees. These trees heavily shed the highly inflammable dry Chir pine needles which acts like a fuel for combustion.

As a natural event wildfires are sometimes a natural process, and help forests by promoting flowering, branching and seedling establishment. fires that are limited to the surface may help in the natural regeneration of forests. The heating of the soil may result in helpful microbial activity, and hasten decaying processes that are useful for the vegetation.

Forest fires are a natural phenomenon and are bound to happen periodically. Some of the contributing factors are, built up of highly inflammable Chir Pine dead leaves, poor hydrological health, increasing impact of temperature increases, increasing pressure on the forests due to increasing human activity in the vicinity and repeated drought conditions.

Read more @ Causes, Answers and related questions...

Slow slip events can trigger earthquakes

One permanent GPS station at the center of the 

Guerrero seismic gap, overlooking Acapulco bay 

(ACAP). Credit: NathalieCotte / CNRS.

In subduction zones, where one tectonic plate slides beneath another, slow, imperceptible slip, known as ‘slow earthquakes’ or ‘slow slip events’, can trigger powerful quakes a little further away. This has just been shown by researchers from CNRS, Université Grenoble Alpes and IRD, in collaboration with colleagues at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Their paper is published in the journal Nature Geoscience on 3 october 2016.
Discovered twenty years ago, slow earthquakes are imperceptible slip events that last several weeks or months, do not generate seismic waves and cause no damage. However, they can release as much energy as a magnitude 7.5 earthquake. Understanding such slow slip events and their relationship to ordinary earthquakes is therefore of fundamental importance in better assessing seismic risk. Now, researchers have for the first time shown that a slow slip event can trigger a conventional earthquake. Researchers at the Institut des Sciences de la Terre (CNRS/Université Grenoble Alpes/IRD/Université Savoie Mont Blanc/IFSTTAR), together with colleagues from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, have shown that the magnitude 7.3 quake that struck Papanoa on 18 April 2014 was caused by a slow slip event that had begun two months earlier in the region of Acapulco in the Mexican state of Guerrero.
The geophysicists who made the discovery have been working for many years in this coastal region, where the oceanic Cocos plate slides beneath the North American plate. This phenomenon, known as subduction, is usually accompanied by earthquakes, since rather than sliding past each other seamlessly, the two plates deform and build up energy which is then released, causing the quakes. However, the area under study has not experienced any major quakes since 1912, and is thus known as a ‘seismic gap’. In addition, the installation of permanent GPS stations from 1997 onwards made it possible to detect slow earthquakes: although the Cocos and North American plates are converging at a speed of 5-6 cm/yr, every four years the gap zone experiences six-month-long periods when slip occurs in the opposite direction, with displacements reaching 15 cm.
By studying the GPS data, the researchers showed that, in the Guerrero seismic gap, slow slip events release part of the accumulated strain, making a major earthquake less likely. However, the slow slip event initiated in February 2014 transferred strain to a neighboring, seismogenic region, triggering a magnitude 7.3 earthquake on 18 April 2014 near the town of Papanoa.
This study enhances understanding of the relationship between slow slip events and conventional earthquakes in a subduction zone. The research has major societal implications, since around 20 million people would be directly affected by the devastating impact of a major earthquake on Mexico’s Pacific seaboard. The study shows that there is a greater risk of earthquakes during slow slip episodes. More generally, it highlights the importance of studying deformation signals in the days and weeks preceding major quakes. Consolidating networks of permanent GPS stations, as well as developing GPS networks on the seabed in the vicinity of areas where earthquakes initiate, will in the future make for increasingly accurate detection of the characteristics of slow slip events that may precede ordinary quakes.

A window on Earth’s first life forms: finding more stromatolites

Stromatolites at Hamelin Pool, WA

Stromatolites have been discovered beyond the well-researched south-east corner of Hamelin Pool, in Shark Bay Western Australia, according to a researcher from Bush Heritage.
Erica Suosaari donned a wetsuit and spent three years being dragged behind a boat to investigate the entire pool for the first time.
She found stromatolites around almost the entire 135km margin.
“Stromatolites are a big deal,” says Erica.
“They are remnants of the oldest known life form. These structures dominate the fossil record for more than 80 per cent of the Earth’s history. The microbes that built them produced the oxygen that made animal life possible on earth,” she says.
“They represent a huge leap in our understanding of the diversity of modern and ancient life at the site. They effectively offer us a window into early life on Earth.”
Hamelin Pool is a World Heritage Area based partly on the fact that it is home to the largest and most diverse modern assemblage of stromatolites on the planet.
Stromatolites are the remains of living mats of bacteria that trap and bind surrounding sediments or precipitated carbonate cements, leaving behind a rock fabric that causes the structure to grow vertically.
And the bacteria that formed those ancient structures are the reason we’re alive. Their busy photosynthesis for the first few billion years of Earth’s history produced the oxygen that made animal life possible.
They were first discovered in the 1950s but, until now, research on the ancient structures has been concentrated in the south-eastern region of the bay.
Erica was determined to look further and investigated the entire pool for the first time.
She discovered distinct ‘provinces,’ where each has a different and distinct assemblage of stromatolite forms – a result of depth gradient and local environmental pressures.
She estimates there are 100 million stromatolites at the site, including fossils similar to those that existed long before modern times.

CAUSES OF FOREST FIRES, MANMADE EVENT

Flames engulf a forest near Badkot in Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand. The State has been under a dry spell this year with either scanty or no rainfall in most areas. Photo: Virender Singh Negi

Wildfires are an annual occurrence in Uttarakhand, though they have been bigger and more widespread in 2016. The fire season usually begins from mid-February and lasts until mid-June, when the rains arrive. In 2016, the fires started early — the first incident was reported on February 2. In Himachal, the first fire was reported on April 7. Their frequency and intensity increased after April 25, the day the state saw 80 incidents of fire.

Forest under fire in Uttarakhand's Barkot region. Photo: Virender Negi

Causes of forest fires

More than 95% of wildfires in India were man-made,

1.       People instigate forest fires by burning dry chir leaves.

2.       Villagers burn leaves and grass in order to get better growth of grass the following year.

3.       Forest dwellers burn the needles of the chir pine, which form a slippery carpet on the ground.

4.       In the Terai region, honey collectors start fires to drive away bees.

5.       Utter failure of human institutions at several levels, such as, built up a highly inflammable Chir-pine dead leaves in a forest prone area and diversion of water for unsustainable tourism activities despite the foreseeable danger of forest fire.

6.       The diversion of spring water for human uses gradually decreased the moisture content of the forest floor which in turn makes it more susceptible to catch fire. This unsustainable nature of increasing tourism in the state adds to the adversity.

7.       The residents of Uttrakhand villages migrate on a mass scale in search of better economic opportunities. These villages that would previously check the buildup of highly inflammable Chir pine were absent to perform necessary preventive and remedial functions.

IMPACT

The fire which was bound to occur in the Chir pine forests also spread the to the undisturbed and remote oak forests which shelters several species of birds and animals, is essential for their survival and breeding and such unpredictable wildfire can even lead to local extinction of species.

Moreover oak forests are very important for the local villages, as their dead leaves are used as compost for terrace farming; it also provides fodder for milk producing cattle which is an important source of animal protein. Its loss could be devastating for the local village economy. This is strongly indicative of failure of human institutions at different levels.

The real losses however, are ecological and social — those of biodiversity, timber, soil moisture and nutrients, etc., besides the environmental impact of heavy smoke rising from the fires.

Management

1.       Replacement of Chir pine trees with others suitable trees to be carried out scientifically.

2.       Selective felling of Chir pine and gradual replacement.

3.       Villagers those are not willing to stay back could be provided with appropriate incentives such as development of lucrative forest based industries.

4.       Effective mass utilization of pine needles with the help of technological and industrial support could create employment opportunities for villagers and simultaneously solve the problem.

5.       Use the traditional method of “beating the fire down” with green branches..

6.       Use of Mi-17s flying sorties to dump water picked from the Bhimtal lake and the Srinagar, Garhwal, reservoir over the affected areas of Kumaon and Garhwal.

7.       Banning people from carrying matchboxes to forests.

8.       Awareness campaigns.

9.       More modern systems of fire monitoring alongside traditional methods like maintaining fire lines, so there is a clearing between two forests to prevent the fire from spreading from one to the other.

10.    Greater interaction between villagers and the Forest Department for bridging information utilization hiatus, and research extension hiatus.   

In Himachal too, “fire beating” and clearing of “fire lines” is under way.

11.    Adoption of “counter fire” with forest officials starting fires from the opposite end of a forest to check the flames at a defined boundary.

Government response

The post fire scenario does was met with a typical knee-jerk reaction by the Government and with a little luck by rainfall. The government is also proposed mass cutting of Chir pine forest (a knee-jerk reaction) as it is the so-called “culprit” for the forest fire. While it is imperative to note that, other than the general virtues of a natural forest, Chir pine forests are unique. Chir pine trees are not harmful they instead have a lot of benefits such as Turpentine oil, Rosin, handicraft, aesthetics, curing respiratory problems and they perform vital ecological services as well. Mass deforestation of Chir pain would adversely affect Uttrakhand’s ecology and the glaciers and consequently India.

Conclusion

Though Uttrakhand forest fire was a natural event, it was certainly human factors which made its occurrence more favorable. Post fire management shall play a crucial part in restoring the forest; however, biodiversity once lost cannot be restored. This could be taken as a lesson to focus more on prevention rather than cure.

Importance of local wisdom in combating forest fire

What is Local Wisdom

Local wisdom is a body of knowledge which has evolved with the life experiences of people.

Before the advent of capitalism, growth of nationalism and globalization, there were small communities which used to take care of their natural and cultural heritage. These communities constitute a group of people who share similar hopes and goals who has a sense of unity and maintain a stable identity in the face of rapid societal change.

However with the growth of globalization, these communities are now heavily influenced by the so called “modern” ideas of the western countries which gave them a sense of backwardness about themselves. The result- abandonment of their valuable heritage- local wisdom.

The rural communities in India which originally led a holistic life which put much emphasis on community building by working as a team, respecting elders and working with the nature have however been undergoing significant changes steadily. These communities are replacing their local wisdom with western ideas of technology, individualism, consumerism, production centric work, etc due to which they have started to identify themselves as backward, rural and poor. This thought proved to be quite costly in Uttrakhand.

The issue of removal of pine needles from the forests could not be addressed due to an indirect issue of mass migration. The villager’s unwillingness to stay in the village could not be ensure due to which there was a lack of man power to carry out essential procedures which could have prevented the fire. The villages are not willing to stay back due to economic concerns.

The communities which were initially self-sufficient in managing their resources, facing natural calamities, community recreation and issues with the gradual weathering away of their heritage are becoming more and more dependent on the Government to solve their day-to-day problems. These communities, which were initially assets to India, are now totally dependent on the Government to solve their problems.

Uttrakhand, which has historically seen NGOs and civil society groups perform strong advocacy role such as, Chipko movement as weathering away. Today such organizations have lost their loyalty to several donor funded projects. Some of them have even accepted project terms according to which they effectively lose their critical and questioning voice.

Also, the National Policy for Forest Fire presently focuses on international technology transfer and international training program. In the present plan the flow of information and technology is mainly from top to bottom, i.e. from the Government and allied agencies to the rural areas. Technology, which is the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes, must flow both ways. However, sadly the local wisdom, i.e. the local knowledge gained from living in balance with nature is ignored. Local knowledge can be both abstract and concrete. But its importance lies in the fact that it is derived from the practical experiences of life events. The national policy to tackle forest fire could have been more effective has it been inclusive of the local wisdom.

Uttrakhand which is losing its heritage of state-people partnership and local wisdom must revive it, spread it and replicate it- that is the obvious conclusion.

Questions

1.      Although the forest fires destroy a large area, they are called natural events. What makes them natural events and beneficial. Discuss

2.      Forest fires are as much natural as man made. In this light, discuss its causes.

3.      The disruption of culture and natural livehood was the main factor responsible for Uttarakhand forest fires. Analyse the statement with its concurrent impact.

4.      The management of forest fires must be by preserving local sentiments and knowledge as well as by conjunctive use of modern techniques.

5.      In view of the nature of the causes of forest fires, the government's response must focus on forestry management and heritage management rather than on knee jerk reaction.

6.      What do you understand by local wisdom in the light of forest fires and to what extant local wisdoms can be helpful in solving the problems of fires in sustainable manner. 

FOREST FIRES

Forest fires are an annual occurrence in Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh. Over 4,500 hectares have been affected in Himachal Pradesh, some 40% more than the 3,185 hectares in Uttarakhand. The latter state has seen 1,470 incidents of fire so far — 803 (affecting 1,413.58 ha) of which were in the Garhwal region, 463 (1,076.21 ha) in Kumaon, and 204 (695.65 ha) in wildlife zones.

Nature of fire

It is very difficult to actually know how the fire started. But at least with the circumstantial evidences it is clear that there was lack of preventive measures and the preparedness was low with a weak action plan.

Forest fires as Natural Event

As a natural event Forest fire in Uttrakhand is a common phenomenon during the summer season. It is so mainly due to the presence of Chir pine trees. These trees heavily shed the highly inflammable dry Chir pine needles which acts like a fuel for combustion.

As a natural event wildfires are sometimes a natural process, and help forests by promoting flowering, branching and seedling establishment. fires that are limited to the surface may help in the natural regeneration of forests. The heating of the soil may result in helpful microbial activity, and hasten decaying processes that are useful for the vegetation.

Forest fires are a natural phenomenon and are bound to happen periodically. Some of the contributing factors are, built up of highly inflammable Chir Pine dead leaves, poor hydrological health, increasing impact of temperature increases, increasing pressure on the forests due to increasing human activity in the vicinity and repeated drought conditions.