Forestry in Bhutan

Forestry in Bhutan

One of Bhutan's significant natural resources in the late twentieth century was its rich forests and natural vegetation. Bhutan's location in the eastern Himalayas, with its subtropical plains and alpine terrain, gives it more rainfall than its neighbors to the west, a factor greatly facilitating forest growth. The forests contain numerous deciduous and evergreen species, ranging from tropical hardwoods to predominantly oak and pine forests.

Forests
Forests are the predominant type of vegetation in Bhutan (over 60% of the territory), a country in the inaccessible part of the Eastern Himalayas, between China and India. They grow to an altitude of 3500-4000 m above sea level. Bhutan's forests are the most important of the preserved East Himalayan forests, are among the 10 places on Earth with the greatest biodiversity. Bhutanese forests are state-owned

Rainforests
Tropical, mostly tropical evergreen mountain forests are spread to a height of 1100 meters. They are mainly semi-deciduous, varying depending on the location of the slope with respect to the countries of the world and altitude from almost evergreen to completely deciduous. The swampy jungle is a very dense thicket of mimosa, banana, palm and bamboo with an abundance of vines and epiphytes. Lowland forests grow at heights of up to 900 m and are multi-tieredforests with the highest biodiversity.

The tropical forest flora of Bhutan is exceptionally rich. The main forest-forming species of the tropical forests of Bhutan are castanopsis and shima (Schima wallichii), types of evergreen oaks (Quercus semecarpifolia, Quercus dilatata, Quercus lanata), Himalayan cinnamon (Cinnamomum tamala). Areas of forest from powerful Shorea (Shorea robusta) are found, phyllanthus (Phyllanthus emblica), cylindrical birch (Betula cylindrostachys), Nepalese alder (Alnus nepalensis) are involved in the impurity.terminalia (Terminalia chebula) and tuna (Toona ciliata). The podocarpus oleandroliforum (Podocarpus neriifolius) is a representative of ancient conifers. Plants such as Licuala peltata palm, forest dates (Phoenix sylvestris), mangoes, tall magnolias, giant bamboo (Melocanna bambusoides), pandanus (Pandanus furcatus) prefer forest edges. Wild banana (Musa balbisiana) and tree ferns form thickets in shaded places.

The tropical forest fauna of Bhutan is very diverse in its composition mammals - Asian elephant, Indian rhinoceros, gaur, an Asian water buffalo, hog deer, clouded leopard, binturong, barasingha, pygmy hog, hispid hare, endemic golden langur and the bear sloth and birds - rhinoceros birds, trogons, are representatives of the Indomalayan fauna. In these forests, snakes, numerous mosquitoes and other blood-sucking insects are found.

Subtropical forests
Subtropical forests grow at altitudes from 900 –1100 to 2000 –2300 m. The most important settlements and agricultural territories are located here.

Subtropical broad-leaved forests are the most common in this zone. Due to the colder climate with seasonal differences, in addition to tropical tree species, subtropical ones are also found, both evergreen and deciduous - oaks, magnolias, maples, chestnuts. There are representatives of moderate species. Along the forests of oak, walnut and lard, a tree-like rhododendron is found. A lot of different orchids.

Subtropical pine forests of pine Roxburgh (Pinus roxburghii) grow at heights of 900-1800 m in the deep dry valleys of the Sankosh, Kuru-Chu, Kulong, Dangme rivers and their tributaries, covering an area of more than 100 hectares. Monsoon climate with a long dry season. Most of the precipitation (1000–1300) comes from the summer monsoon. Biocenosis suffer from tapping trees, felling, burning it for pasture and plantation.

Temperate Forests
At altitudes from 2000 to 3500 m above sea level, temperate forests, deciduous and coniferous are widespread. The main tree species are different types of oaks (of Quercus serrata, of Quercus leucotrichophora, of Quercus griffithii), also found Rhododendron arborescens (to Rhododendron arboreum), birch tsilindrokolosaya (of Betula cylindrostachys) and Betula utilis (of Betula utilis) The most common conifers are pine Himalayan (of Pinus griffithii), fir wonderful (Abies spectabilis), Smith spruce (Picea smithiana), Himalayan cypress (Cupressus torulosa). Along the entire upper border of the forest at an altitude between 3600 m and 4500 m, some rhododendrons and alder birch (Betula alnoides) prevail, wonderful fir, juniper thickets are found.

Deciduous forests
At heights of 2000-2900, broad-leaved forests of the temperate zone are widespread. They are divided into 2 main groups.

Evergreen oak forests are common in dry areas, especially in the dongkhag of Trongs and Mongar. With a decrease in height, maple and castanopsis begin to prevail. With increasing height, forests of Himalayan pine and drought-resistant oaks replace them.
Cool broad-leaved forests grow on humid hills and have more diverse vegetation.

Mixed coniferous-deciduous forests
They occupy a total area of 135 thousand hectares and are formed by oaks and Himalayan pine, at high altitudes mixed with spruce or tsugi.

Coniferous forests
In Bhutan, there are 3 main groups of coniferous forest types.

Pine forests from the Himalayan pine are distributed at altitudes of 1800–3000 m with a temperate climate between the Ha and Paro valleys, the Thimphu dzongkhangin the west and the Bumtang dzongkhangin the center of Bhutan. They occupy an area of more than 128 hectares. The Himalayan pine is capable of rapid spread and, presumably, these forests are secondary, replacing dry oak forests. Oak (Quercus griffithii) and rhododendronare found in impurities.
Mixed coniferous forests occupy most of the subalpine zone (2000-2700 m above sea level), their total area is almost 490 ha. The main forest-forming species are Shipovaya spruce (Picea spinulosa), tsuga and larch. Tsuga prefers more humid slopes compared to spruce. In the bushy understory, rhododendron, bamboo, etc. are represented.
Spruce forests (over 345 ha) grow at heights of 2700–3800 m. Birch and tsugi are found in the admixture. There is a layer of moss and undergrowth from rhododendron, subalpine bamboo, there are primroses and Bryocarpum hamalaicum. A noticeable part of the moisture they need condenses from the air.

Palearctic animals live in temperate forests - macaques, tigers, leopards, gorals, serou, Himalayan bear, fox, deer and others.

Forest resources
The total stock of wood in the forests of Bhutan is more than 640 million m 3, of which 1.2 million m 3 can be cut annually. The planned logging amounts to about 450 thousand m 3, and peasants use more than 1 million m 3 for firewood. The state traditionally allows peasants to use the forest to meet their vital needs for fuel, building materials, for grazing, collecting non-timber forest products. In rural areas, the forest provides 90% of household fuel. Food forest resources are vital in the event of crop failure. Peasants use 164 species of plants for their needs, including: mushrooms - 22 species, wild fruits - 6 species, 8 species for the preparation of drinks, for other food products - 15 species, 16 types of medicinal plants, 14 species for home use.

About 100 thousand trees are cut down annually in Bhutan. In addition, the forest areas are used for the extraction of minerals and other needs of the country's development, forests are dying in fires. All this leads to an annual loss of 1000 acres of forest. The growing needs of people for forest resources require measures to maintain the sustainable existence of forests. To ensure the existence of forests while maintaining the ability to use forest resources, it is necessary to study their current state and trends. For the latest information about the use of land in Bhutan provides project planning of land use (Land Use Planning Projekt), the most important form of land use in Bhutan are forest land. Assessing the number and size of forests, timber stocks, as well as factors affecting their change, is quite complicated due to the lack of comparable data.

Conservation
The small population and the general absence of overdevelopment in Bhutan contributed to forest preservation. Because of the terrain, the more accessible forests had been overcut whereas remote forests remained largely in their natural state. A progressive government-sponsored forestry conservation policy strove to balance revenue needs with ecological considerations, water management, and soil preservation. Success in managing its forest resources had long been critical to the local environment and economy and also affected downstream floodplains in India and Bangladesh.

The Department of Forests and Park Services was established in 1952 as the Department of Forestry to oversee conservation and exploitation of the country's significant forestry resources. After an initial decade of development, forestry resource exploitation increased with the start of the First Development Plan in 1961. Uncontrolled felling of trees in the 1970s by private companies in logging areas and by rural populations along roads and in main valleys stripped hillsides and caused serious erosion. Tsheri cultivation, forest fires, and overgrazing also contributed to the degradation of the forestry resource.

In 1971 the Forestry School was established at Kalikhola in southern Bhutan. It was moved to Taba in the northern Thimphu Valley in 1977. The school provided basic instruction in forestry and forest management and trained foresters and Forest Guards.

In 1981 some 33,000 km², or between 70 and 74 percent of the land, were forested, but in 1991 foreign estimates indicated a shrinking forest of only 60 to 64 percent of the land. Even more conservative estimates indicated that closer to 50 percent of Bhutan's territory still was forested in the late 1980s, and about 15 percent of GDP was produced through the nation's important forest industry.

According to UN statistics, in the decade between 1978 and 1987 Bhutan harvested an average of nearly 3.2 million cubic meters of roundwood and produced 5,000 cubic meters of sawn wood per year. Of this total, nearly 80 percent was for commercial use (paper pulp, veneers, plywood, particle board, and firewood), and the remainder was for housing construction and public works.

Conscientious Forestry
Before hydroelectric power and other modern energy sources were available, wood was the almost exclusive source of fuel for heating, cooking, and lighting. The provision of electricity, as well as better regulation of fuelwood collectors and more aggressive reforestation projects, was seen in the 1980s as a key factor in forest conservation. Because affordable electricity was not available throughout the country, the government established fuelwood plantations near villages to accommodate daily needs and to promote forest conservation.

Recognizing the potential value of its forestry resource, Bhutan became increasingly conscientious about forestry management in the 1970s. Starting in 1977, the World Wildlife Fund began supporting Bhutan's forest management through organizing forest ranger training programs, supplying funds for forest boundary demarcation, building guard posts, and constructing a patrol road for what was later to be designated the Royal Manas National Park. Bhutan rejected World Bank aid to build a major dam on the Manas Chhu in 1986 that would have flooded this major conservation area on the southern Bhutan-India border. By 1989 Bhutan had developed nine other forest and wildlife preserves, also mostly along the southern border with India.

Banning & Standards
In the face of increasing denuded hillsides, private logging was banned, and strict standards for public-sector logging operations were established in 1979. Farmers were warned against burning off forests to clear land for tsheri cultivation, and Forest Guards were trained in increasing numbers to help preserve the valuable resources. Surveying, demarcation, conservation, and management plans for harvesting forest products were part of the Fifth Development Plan's focus on forestry preservation. Wildlife sanctuaries also were developed.

One of the immediate results of forestry sector regulation was a sharp decrease in revenues since the late 1970s. In 1991 the government, with assistance from UNDP and the World Wildlife Fund, established a trust fund for environmental conservation. Initially in the amount of US$20 million, the UNDP-administered fund was aimed at producing up to US$1 million per year for training in forestry and ecology, surveying forests, reviewing and implementing management plans for protected areas, and supporting government environmental offices, public awareness programs, and integrated conservation and development programs.