WILD LIFE – A NATURAL RESOURCE

Natural Resources include the forests, range lands, marine and inland fisheries; and Biodiversity, Agriculture is the common land use practice. The sustainability of these resources (the ability to maintain these indefinitely) is dependent firstly on production factors including climatic and edaphic, and secondly on judicious utilization.
The utilization of natural resources is beneficial provided it does not exceed sustainable yield levels.
The principles of sustained yield management are universally understood and practised. But these have grossly been ignored especially where Biodiversity is concerned. Pakistan is rich in biological resources but most of the country’s ecosystems are degraded and its rare wildlife species are threatened with extinction.
These resources can however, be improved and utilized both for sustenance and for commercial purposes.

Success in the use biological resources depends on:

1. Harvesting and cropping at sustainable levels in the short and long term.
2. Benefits accruing to the local residents living in the vicinity of biological resources, managed through community participation.
3. Maintenance of biodiversity through the management of Protected Areas including National Parks, Wildlife Sanctuaries and Game Reserves.
4. Protection of ecosystems and habitats.

An important pre-requisite, however, is the effective protection of natural resources. Legal enforcement needs to be strengthened. Legislation needs to be rationalized through the involvement of persons “likely to be affected by the law in the process of law making by making the law realistic, by increasing conservation education, and enlisting public support to encourage a sense of civic pride in the country’s natural heritage, and by improving administrative and judicial capabilities.
Wildlife populations are maintained in a natural balance in natural habitats through a complex food web. Carrying capacity levels are the governing factor. Population levels beyond the carrying capacity levels are controlled by the predators and if predators are not present, the populations could face the consequences of malnutrition, dwarfism and diseases. The predators target the members of the population which are the weakest, oldest, youngest or diseased. In the absence of predators survival depends mainly on improving the efficiency of feed conversion or on the adoption of aggressive behavior towards other members of the species entering into a competition for limited food supplies. This upsets the natural balance.
Man is the single most important factor in the control of wildlife population. Naturally he should simulate a predator and harvest the weakest, oldest or the youngest members of the population. But this is not always desirable. Oldest individuals are also liked by the trophy hunters, whereas they would not like the weakest. They have, however, lived their utility as Reproducing individuals and due to old age and weakness are no longer able to participate in reproduction activities. The young animals and the females must live for the benefit of the population as they would produce and the populations would increase. Hunting in a population would, however, have some pre-requisites; i.e. the population levels should be beyond the carrying capacity levels. Thus to improve the population levels, the basic requirement would be the improvement in habitat conditions to increase carry capacity levels. This would involve the proper evaluation of the habitat, of the factors affecting the population levels, and adopting mitigatory measures. Habitat maintenance and a population level not beyond the carrying capacity levels is an assurance of the conservation of biodiversity.
So far regulatory hunting is not being practiced in Pakistan. But there is an immense potential and a similar pressure on the wildlife resources for sport hunting and for commercial utilization for furs, feathers, and skins for clothing, shoes, handbags and decorations. There is also a high demand for the pet trade, for zoological gardens, medical experiments, and product testing. These areas of interest have not yet been fully exploited. Illegal trade in the sphere has not been controlled and the extent not exactly monitored.
The extent of dependence of the local residents on biological resources has also not been fully realized. Wildlife sector being controlled by the Government has failed to achieve the objects related to conservation. The experience gained in different countries of the world has shown that a community-based management approach would be the best means to sustain ably utilize the Resource.
A private enterprise entrusted with the management of biological resources on a commercial scale would be different than the one where a larger number of stake holders would be involved in the management of the Resource. To encourage wild animal populations, the local communities would have to sacrifice their right to hunt wild animals, reduce or re-designate domestic livestock use, setting aside ranges and water holes for the exclusive use of wild animals, and provide habitat improvement measures.
Such sacrifices are to be compensated, and the benefits gained through the utilization of wildlife harvests must be shared with the local communities. Such benefits could be in the form of subsistence for food; traditional animal uses; by products furs, skins or trophies, for cash sales both opportunistically or through well established marketing channels; or for the fees obtained by permitting others to hunt, and in the process earning income though the provision of guides and service facilities.
Communities/and or private individuals can also be involved in Game Farming and Game Ranching. The game (or even the fancy or pet animals) can be raised in captivity for a different and variable clientele both for meat and for zoological Gardens or for private collections. Game could also be harvested through the sale of permits to hunt in an area where the captive wildlife were released in the wild to provide quality shooting, the income earned from such sources could be utilized for community uplift programmes.
Such a venture could take an even better turn when the network of Protected Areas (PAs) could be established within the country. PAs including National Parks, Wildlife Sanctuaries and Game Reserves, established with a view to conserving the Bio-diversity provide ample opportunities for their use as the sites of special interest and for the tourist trade. Such trades are, however, beneficial for the local communities in that they get the direct benefits from the visitors.
· Enforce existing legislation strictly in support of ecosystem protection and wildlife conservation, and support it with appropriate, higher penalties.
· Introduce new legislation to protect habitats in the wider countryside, protect particular species, and ensure that CITES is implemented.
· Prepare management plans for all the main ecosystems and nature conservation areas, in particular national parks and game reserves, and prepare Nature Conservation Reviews.
· Introduce a degree of institutional rationalization to avoid conflicts between timber and wildlife objectives, and between the professionals charged with achieving them – forestry and wildlife staff.