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Myagdi:
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Ghodaghodi Tal - Facing
a murky future
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Located
in the Far Western region of Nepal in Kailali district lies an ecologically
significant wetland-Tal. Unlike the wetland of east Koshi Tappu,
little attention has been given to this wetland, which in every way has
parallel attributes to Koshi Tappu and is a proposed Ramsar site.
The size of the wetland is around 10sq km and its elevation ranges from
195m-207m above mean sea level. The wetland covers three VDCs of the Kailali
district. |
The
surrounding area of the wetland consists of forests, scrubs, human settlements
and agricultural fields. Ghodaghodi Tal is collectively composed of nine
different lakes, namely, Ghodaghodi, Ojhuwa, Purbi Ojhuwa, Chaitya,
Baishawa, Sunpokhari, Nakhrodi, Budhi Nakhrodi and Ramphal all of various
sizes separated by marsh land.
As
a whole the wetland is categorized as a fresh Water Lake associated with
marshes that encoMapss various rivers, swamps, marshes, reservoirs, ponds,
flood plains and paddy fields. Of the nine-sister lakes, Ghodaghodi,
which lies adjacent to the East West Highway, is the largest and a concrete
dam regulates its outlet. There are various interesting mythological beliefs
about the name of the lake. Ghodaghodi literally means male and female
horse.
Popular
cosmic belief says a hermit crushed Lord Shiva and Parvati into
a horse. The pair circled around the lake and hence the name Ghodaghodi.
The other belief is that the indigenous Chaudhari people living
around the vicinity of the lake made various animal artifacts but by and
large they made the horse and hence its worship. This act may have led
to the naming of the lake Ghodaghodi. The next story is that the
lake was too large in ancient times and was impossible for a single horse
to make a circle in one day and hence the name was proposed.
Wetlands
are among the most threatened ecosystems of the world and are not an exception
to Nepal. As population pressure, internal migration, and need for agricultural
land intensifies, wetlands get threatened. Wetlands cover 5.5% of the total
land area of Nepal and are the most productive ecosystems. Ghodaghodi Tal
is an important prime habitat for migrating and resident birds.
Around 140
species of different birds are sighted around this wetland, some birds
migrating from as far away as Siberia and Mongolia during the winter season.
Over 10 different species of fish, 3-5 species of reptiles, 11 species
of mammals, 3 different species of amphibious toads and frogs and, one
of the celebrated animals of Nepal, the Marsh Magar find a home in Ghodaghodi
Tal.
The
area also supports a high diversity of flora numbering 248 species. IUCN
has classified the Ghodaghodi Tal into Lacustine, Palustrine and Riverrine
systems. It is an obvious fact that Ghodaghodi Tal has helped maintain
the microclimate of the region and importantly flood mitigation and replenishment
of ground water. Ghodaghodi Tal fulfills the habitat requirements for many
unique species of waterfowl during all phases of growth. Besides its ecological
importance, Ghodaghodi Tal has high socio-economic and cultural value.
Rural
people in several ways use the water body, like fishing, extraction
of plant materials, and recreational purposes. Since the surrounding area
is highly productive, it provides good opportunities for farming and grazing
livestock. Thus the local people find their basic needs like fodder, fuel
wood, wild fruits and vegetables, grazing land, and water from the wetland
for their livelihood and to maintain their households. Besides, the Shiva
temple in the adjoining area of Ghodaghodi Tal signifies the cultural
value of the lake.
Ghodaghodi
Tal is an integral part of the life of the people living around its periphery
who find their basic needs in the wetland. Unfortunately, though people
have a ritual relationship with the wetland, they fail to recognize their
dependency on the wetland and consequently invite ecological problems.
The two major factors responsible for the wetland degradation are anthropogenic
and natural. With regard to anthropogenic factors, migration was seen as
the biggest problem.
Population
pressure has intensified within the last decade as people have migrated
here in large numbers from Surkhet, Dailekh, Baitadi, Asham, Myagdi and
Gulmi in search of better opportunities. Grazing by animals, picking wild
mushrooms, firewood collection, fishing and logging are done in a haphazard
manner. No regulatory measures have been adopted. The greed for higher
productivity has led to the encroachment of the marshy area of the wetland.
This act has a direct impact upon the aquatic and terrestrial dwellers.
Leaching of chemical fertilizers, insecticides into the water body will
invite serious threats to the existence of the lake. The next problem is
nature induced or due to natural factors. Various degrees of landslides
occur periodically in the most fragile Churiya hills.
Unfortunately
the Churiya region happens to be the catchment area of the wetland
and consequently the silt is drained into the wetland decreasing its size
and productivity each year. The soil in the surrounding area is sandy and
loosely arranged. This means heavy silt deposits in the water body during
the monsoon. Encroachment of Cititium species into the waterlogged area
of the wetland is the next problem. These species grow in clumps and accelerate
the process of eutrophication in the wetland. Heavy organic matter production
inside the lake due to the decomposition of aquatic plants has elaborated
the problem of Biological oxygen demand and dissolved oxygen. According
to the locals there has been a remarkable decrease in the fish population
within the last decade. The concrete reason is the siltation problem accompanied
by the higher biological oxygen demand due to higher decomposition.
The
potential danger is eutrophication of the lake due to over organic production
and siltation. Enforcing aspirant conservation measures is hard as the
poverty-stricken people around the wetland question their survival. People
around the wetland have seen, observed and played in the wetland for their
livelihood. A complex relationship of people with the biophysical aspects
of the lake exists. To achieve a common ground the government must explore
a core of sustainable utilization of resources understanding the philosophy
of life of the people living in the vicinity of this wetland. Very limited
investigations have been carried out about the Ghodaghodi Tal. However
IUCN and the British Embassy have taken keen interest in the development
of this wetland.
At the local level, the District Forest Office has started
the fencing off of the Ghodaghodi Tal area. But isolating the wetland from
the existing community will only invite illegal encroachment. A sustainable
use of resources should be addressed to impose effective conservation,
after all people are the masters of their resources and have customary
rights to the resources at their disposal.
Although it has been proposed,
the government has yet to designate the area as a Ramsar site. If
the present trend of negligence continues, Ghodaghodi Tal will become history,
that too in a short span. The wonderful gift of nature will only exist
inside the pages of books. We have no legislative provisions for the conservation
of wetlands, although Nepal has agreed upon various conventions aiming
at integrating the conservation in a global context.
top
| Nepal
officially declared three more wetland areas in the country as being fit
to make it to the coveted Ramsar Site. The three wetlands are: Ghodaghodi
Tal area of Kailali district, Jagadishpur reservoir area of Kapilvastu
district; and Beesh Hazaar Tal area of Chitwan district.
The
first-ever wetland convention took place in 1971 in the Iranian city of
Ramsar. Nepal too began marking the Day from the same year after ratifying
the Ramsar Convention in 1987. Nepal has yet to fulfill certain
obligations that come with being a signatory. The authorities concerned
are yet to properly manage the 240 wetlands in the country, of which 163
are in Terai alone. According to wetland experts, there are many things
that Nepal has yet to do to fulfill its responsibility as a signatory to
the Convention.
The
historic Ramsar Convention recognises 42 wetland types divided into marine,
coastal, inland and human-made. Nepal has inland and riverine types of
wetland, in the form of lakes, including ox-bow lakes, ponds, reservoirs,
river floodplains, marshes and rice paddies.
Wetlands
occupy five per cent of Nepal's total landmass. There are 193 species
of wetland-dependent birds, including 11 globally threatened species, in
Nepal. Nepal's wetlands also provide refuge to 10 endemic amphibians
and one endemic reptile, eight endemic fish species, and 11 species of
endangered aquatic plants, including seven endemic species. They
are also home to the one-horned rhinoceros, Bengal tigers, Asiatic elephants,
fishing cat, gharial, and mugger crocodiles, turtles and gigantic dolphins.
Wetlands
are an important contributor to the global ecosystem. |
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