- Nepal’s Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli recently made remarks downplaying the significance of conservation efforts, suggesting reduced targets for tiger populations and forest cover, contradicting international commitments and national priorities.
- The comments come on the heels of the government introducing measures allowing large-scale infrastructure, including hydropower projects and hotels, in previously protected areas, raising concerns among conservationists, lawyers and Indigenous communities.
- The Supreme Court is reviewing a petition against these proposed changes, with a final ruling pending due to delays in court proceedings.
KATHMANDU — Nepal has too many tigers and too much forest, according to the country’s leader.
The offhand remarks by Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli at a Dec. 26 event in Kathmandu on climate change sent shockwaves through Nepal’s conservation community. In one of the few countries on Earth where conservation efforts have made material gains, the head of the government was suggesting, in a delivery reminiscent of a stand-up comedy routine, that they should be toned back.
Nepal famously tripled its tiger population between 2010 and 2022, to 355 of the big cats. But according to Oli, the country only needs around 150 as the country can’t go on increasing tiger numbers at the cost of human lives.
Similarly, Nepal’s forest cover today stands at 44%, nearly double what it was in 1992, thanks to long-running efforts by conservationists and communities. Yet for Oli, the ideal number should be 30%.
Oli’s comments echo similar remarks made by his predecessor, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, and his ministers. For conservationists, they undermine hard-fought achievements that have been instrumental in protecting biodiversity, fighting climate change and, above all, providing income-earning opportunities to rural communities. They indicate Nepal’s conservation sector faces increasing pressure from politicians to overlook ecological sustainability in the name of “development” — a rhetoric backed by government measures to open up protected areas for commercial infrastructure such as hydropower stations and hotels.
Throughout 2024, Mongabay reported on this shift in the government’s attitude toward conservation and its implications. Here’s a selection of our coverage:
Conservation ‘setback’ looms as Nepal opens protected areas to hydropower projects
In January, we reported on the government’s new plans to allow development of large-scale hydropower plants within previously restricted areas. According to the new “Construction of Physical Infrastructure Inside Protected Areas” procedures officially approved on Jan. 4, hydropower developers may now build projects entirely within protected areas, release minimal water during the dry season, and acquire land more easily.
Before the procedures were approved, only small hydropower plants to meet the energy needs of local communities were allowed inside protected areas. Conservationists, lawyers and Indigenous communities have opposed the change, calling it legally flawed and warning that it threatens conservation achievements in the face of climate change. More than two dozen conservationists submitted feedback during the policy’s public consultation phase, but these weren’t addressed.
Nepal mulls policy shift to allow hotels back into tiger strongholds
In March, we reported that Nepal’s Ministry of Forest and Environment was working on new regulations to permit hotels to operate within national parks like Chitwan. The decision followed the closure of seven hotels in Chitwan National Park in 2009 due to ecological concerns and alleged involvement in poaching, with the last of them shutting down in 2012.
The regulations ended up not being issued, with the government deciding to pursue legislation instead to back up its cause.
Nepal govt bypasses parliament to allow commercial projects in protected areas
In April, Nepal’s government issued a controversial ordinance bypassing parliament to enable foreign investment in various sectors, including protected areas. The ordinance coincided with Nepal’s Investment Summit, facilitating projects like cable car lines and hotels within national parks. Critics expressed concern over the potential long-term consequences, questioning the impact on conservation efforts and local communities.
When parliament resumed its session, it duly passed the new changes into law.
Nepal court rules protected areas and forests off-limits for land distribution
In May, Nepal’s Supreme Court told the government it can’t distribute land in national parks and forest areas to landless individuals. The court, responding to a petition over the government’s plans to distribute land to the landless, said such a move would be against the spirit of the Constitution as well as prevailing laws.
Land ownership in Nepal has historically been concentrated among the powerful, leaving marginalized communities without land titles — a key grievance during the country’s Maoist-led rebellion from 1996-2006. The Forest Act and other regulations prevent the use of forest and public lands for settlement, complicating the government’s efforts to provide land to the landless without violating conservation laws.
Nepal’s top court to rule next month on law allowing development in protected areas
In November, we reported that the Constitutional Bench of Nepal’s Supreme Court completed hearings on a petition challenging changes to conservation laws and permitting infrastructure development in protected areas. Although the ruling was expected by Dec. 20, it has been delayed as the chief justice, who heads the Constitutional Bench, was absent on the day the ruling was due. No new date for the ruling has been set yet.
Banner Image:A Bengal tiger in the Khata Forest in Nepal. Image courtesy of WWF-Nepal.
Related Article:
https://news.mongabay.com/2023/07/critics-decry-nepal-ministers-terrible-idea-of-sport-hunting-tigers/
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