Trees for Biodiversity

Why trees?
“Sedimentation and siltation of reservoirs is a matter of vital concern in all water bodies” (Compendium of silting of reservoirs in India, April 2015). Optimal management of water resources is the prime necessity of our time, owing to the growing population and development. To check surface run-off and sediment flow to water bodies, plantation of the right tree species can be an efficient solution, enhancing biodiversity habitats and the forest products that can be utilised by locals. Vegetation and plant debris slow surface runoff, preventing sediment and sediment-bound contaminants from entering surface water. Once in the soil, contaminants can be immobilized and transformed by soil microbes or taken up by vegetation. Groundwater flowing through the root zone is also filtered by these processes. Additionally, trees can trap windblown dust before it enters stream and lakes’ (United States Department of Agriculture). Thus, the plantation of the right local tree species with the help of our planting partner, UEF, along the catchment of the Manjalar helps in improving the water quality with a check on reservoir siltation with enhanced carbon sequestration potential.

Social Impact
Plantation of valued tree trees among the identified sites will enhance the biodiversity of the region. Local livelihoods are mostly dependent on forest resources such as fruit, fodder, gum, honey, biomass, fuelwood, etc. The local economy comprising of families living below the poverty line will improve over time. The selected area is inhabited mostly by the Palaiyar community. They are traditional nomadic hunter-gatherers, honey hunters, and foragers. The Palaiyar community livelihood subsists on trades of forest products, food cultivation, and beekeeping. Some work intermittently as wage labourers, mostly on plantations. (Culture and lifestyle of Paliyan tribes, Social Research Journal, K Shenbaham). Locals show a high dependency on forest resources. They collect Jamun, amla, neem, tamarind, wild-honey, and fish.

Coconut, maize, paddy, sugarcane, and mango are major cash crops in the region. Increasing incidences of crop depredation from wild animals like wild boar, monkey, bison, deer cause major damages to this sensitive local economy. Additionally, implementing the project would be able to create about 3,000 rural workdays, supplementing to sensitive local economy reaching out to nearly 200 households mainly living below the poverty line. The project would also create awareness and involve the community directly in conservation action taking sustainable developmental pathways.

Adoption Status:

• 
  Common Name
  Mahua or Mahwa Tree
  
  Botanical Name
  Madhuca longifolia
• 
  Common Name
  Shisham or Sheeshami
  
  Botanical Name
  Dalbergia sissoo Roxb. ex DC.
• 
  Common Name
  Arjuna
  
  Botanical Name
  Terminalia Arjuna
• 
  Common Name
  Neem
  
  Botanical Name
  Azadirachta indica
• 
  Common Name
  Karanj
  
  Botanical Name
  Pongamia pinnata
• 
  Common Name
  Seemathangadi
  
  Botanical Name
  Cassia siamea
• 
  Common Name
  Jamun
  
  Botanical Name
  Syzygium cumini
• 
  Common Name
  Bamboo
  
  Botanical Name
  Bambusa vulgaris
• 
  Common Name
  Custard Apple
  
  Botanical Name
  Annona squamosa
• 
  Common Name
  Salwood
  
  Botanical Name
  Adenanthera pavonina
• 
  Common Name
  Garmada
  
  Botanical Name
  Cassia fistula
• 
  Common Name
  Indigo
  
  Botanical Name
  Wrightia tinctoria
• 
  Common Name
  Gulmohar
  
  Botanical Name
  Delonix regia
• 
  Common Name
  Khair
  
  Botanical Name
  Acacia catechu
• 
  Common Name
  Kino
  
  Botanical Name
  Pterocarpus marsupium
• 
  Common Name
  Katmauli
  
  Botanical Name
  Bauhinia racemosa
• 
  Common Name
  Indian Elm
  
  Botanical Name
  Holoptelea integrifolia
• 
  Common Name
  Bel
  
  Botanical Name
  Aegle marmelos
• 
  Common Name
  Acacia
  
  Botanical Name
  Acacia auriculiformis
• 
  Common Name
  Copper Pod
  
  Botanical Name
  Peltophorum ferrugineum
• 
  Common Name
  Maulsari
  
  Botanical Name
  Mimusops elengi
• 
  Common Name
  Saona
  
  Botanical Name
  Lagerstroemia indica
• 
  Common Name
  Calabash
  
  Botanical Name
  Crescentia cujete
• 
  Common Name
  Wood Apple
  
  Botanical Name
  Feronia limonia
• 
  Common Name
  Piangani
  
  Botanical Name
  Dalgia Paniculata
• 
  Common Name
  White Babul
  
  Botanical Name
  Acacia Leucophloea
• 
  Common Name
  Krishna Siris
  
  Botanical Name
  Albizia amara
• 
  Common Name
  Behada
  
  Botanical Name
  Terminalia bellirica