Draft CMP HH - the Department of Environment

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Coastal and Wetland Biodiversity Management Project BGD/99/G31 Hakaluki Haor Draft Conservation Management Plan 4.2 Global Significance and Threatened Species The freshwater swamp forest (Barringtonia acutangula, Pongamia pinnata, and Crataeva nurvala) is the native vegetation of much of the region and indeed of much of Bangladesh. It has disappeared from the country except for the small patches remaining in the Northeast Region of which Hakaluki is a part. The swamp forests have now been seriously degraded with only a few patches surviving. The scrub is restricted near the slopes at the village highlands. The list of plants recorded from Hakaluki Haor includes threatened aquatic plants. The most important species that are locally and regionally threatened are Rosa clinophylla (guji kanta), Oryza rufipogon and Euryale ferox which have been threatened by over-harvesting for fuel-wood. Rosa clinophylla is an important wild relative of cultivated roses. , while Oryza rufifogon is a wild relative of the deepwater rice variety and is widely sought by plant breeders for developing diseaseresistant rice varieties and flood-tolerant roses. The wetland supports a number of ‘life-support plants’ that are used by local people when crop foods are scarce. One example includes Asparagus racemosus which is important for its medicinal values; the plant grows in winter in bushy areas around the beels, but has now become scarce as a result of over-exploitation. Insert as appendix updated table which lists the life support plants of Hakaluki Haor and their uses from project document. The Hakaluki Haor ecosystem supports one reptile, 11 birds, and two mammal species listed as vulnerable and endangered categories in the IUCN red data book. It also supports six reptiles, four birds and two mammals listed under CITES schedule I and one amphibian, four reptiles, three birds and four mammals shown under CITES schedule II. Insert updated table of threatened wildlife species. While Hakaluki Haor was once known as a “fishmine”, its fish stocks are now increasingly threatened. Nandina (Labeo nandina), Angrot (Labeo angra), Pangus (Pangasius pangasius), Mahashol (Tor tor) and Sarputi (Puntius sarana) are all endemic to the region and nearly extinct, and Catla (Catla catla) and Mrigel (Cirhinus mrigala) are threatened (NERP, 1994 a,b,c). 4.3 Threats and Pressures The Hakaluki Haor ecosystem is subject to a variety of threats and pressures. These are summarised as follows: • Loss of reedland and swamp forest areas due to conversion for agriculture and the removal trees for building and firewood • Reduction in surface area and depth of mother fisheries and other aquatic habitats (beels) due to sedimentation, drainage and river diversion for irrigation. Sedimentation is largely a result of logging in India in the watersheds of the rivers that feed Hakaluki Haor • Degradation of reedland and grassland habitats due to overgrazing within the Haor • Degradation of aquatic habitat due to agro-chemical (herbicides and pesticides) pollution from tea estates • Loss of reproductive capacity of fishery due to inappropriate and unsustainable fishing practices including the use of illegal nets and poison • Unsustainable levels of fuelwood collection Prepared by UNOPS Consultant Mr. Sulma Warne August/ September 2005 for Project BGD/99/G31 7
• Over-harvesting of amphibians, including turtles and frogs Coastal and Wetland Biodiversity Management Project BGD/99/G31 Hakaluki Haor Draft Conservation Management Plan • Reduced bird populations due to hunting. • Loss of genetic diversity due to increasingly intensive tillage of highyield varieties (HYV) of rice • Bird hunting • Private sector businesses such as the operations of brick kilns and saw mills Pressure on the Hakaluki Haor ecosystem is further exacerbated by factors such as: • No legally instituted protection measures for ecologically critical areas • No effective management authority at field-level • Limited participation by local communities in resource use decisionmaking • Inadequate information on status and functioning of critical ecosystems • No integrated management planning for ecologically critical areas • Limited opportunities for alternative sustainable livelihoods • Lack of alternative sources of fuelwood and fodder • Limited public awareness of environmental issues • Lack of technical knowledge and capacity • Poor enforcement of fisheries and wildlife protection acts Include other threats and pressures as identified through the PAPD/ Community Mobilisation process. 4.4 Key Stakeholders There are a wide number of groups who are in some way either directly or indirectly dependent upon the services and benefits provided by Hakaluki Haor. It is recognised that the involvement of these groups in implementing this Plan will be a key feature of its success. The most important and relevant of these stakeholder groups have been identified as follows: • Farmers • Fishermen • Fishing lease holders • Boat operators • Sand miners • Grass and aquatic vegetation collectors • Fishing gear traders • Cattle grazers • Duck rearers • Government Agencies • Union Chairmen • Schools • Private Business Include other stakeholder groups as identified through the PAPD/ Community Mobilisation process. Prepared by UNOPS Consultant Mr. Sulma Warne August/ September 2005 for Project BGD/99/G31 8
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