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Mrunal Summary: Forest Survey 2013- Rankings,Mangroves,Agroforestry

[Forest Survey 2013] Types of Forest cover, ResourceSAT, Mangroves, Agroforestry,

Urban forestry & more stupid rankings
1. Prologue
1. Forest Survey Report 2013
2. Limitations of ResourceSAT in forest survey
2. [Act 1] Forest cover & Tree Cover
1. How does India have 21% forest cover?
2. Ranking: Forest covered area
3. Ranking altitude wise
4. Ranking: growth of Forest cover
5. Forest cover: Misc. factoids
6. Tree cover
7. Ranking tree cover
3. [Act 2] Mangroves and Bamboos
1. Ranking: Mangrove States/UT
4. [Act 3] Forest Growth factors
5. [Act 4] Agroforestry
6. [Act 5] Urban forestry
7. [Act 6] Misc. factoids
1. Growing Stock
2. Physiographic zones

Prologue
This summary is not for the faint hearted, because contains truckload of factoids and
rankings.
Only those whove finished static environment, geography and aptitude portion should
proceed further.
As such I was preparing economic survey summary but consider this report to be a fork of
the Economic survey Ch12 on sustainable Development & climate change.
Credit: B.N.S. Viswanath for majority of the compilation.

Forest Survey Report 2013

Who?
Since
when?
latest
report
Egreen
watch

Forest survey of India

1987: using LANDSAT satellite. Since then report every two years.
2013: using IRS-Resourcesat Satellite
Online system to monitor CAMPA activities, doing social audits, tracking progress etc.
(Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority.)

Limitations of ResourceSAT in forest survey

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Mrunal Summary: Forest Survey 2013- Rankings,Mangroves,Agroforestry

for sci-tech type MCQs

1. ResourceSATs LISS-3 sensor cannot record forest cover less than 23.5m
2. It analyses colors: therefore, itll not record young plantations, trees with less chlorophyll
content or poor foliage
3. clouds and shadows obscuring details
4. Lantana and other large weeds also get recorded as forest cover.
5. sugarcane, cotton etc. agriculture crops grown near forest areas. ResourceSAT cannot
differentiate them from trees. Have to send men on field for crossverification.

[Act 1] Forest cover & Tree Cover

Official definition of forest cover?
All lands more than one hectare in area
with a tree canopy of more than 10%,
Both public and private land
even orchards, bamboo and palm
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Mrunal Summary: Forest Survey 2013- Rankings,Mangroves,Agroforestry

How does India have 21% forest cover?

only first 3 counted under Forest cover

classification based on tree canopy
Classes
Tree Canopy
1.Very dense forest
70% or above
2.Moderately Dense Forest (MDF) 40% or above
3.Open Forest (OF)
10% or above
4.Scrub: degraded forest land
Less than 10%
5.Non-forest land
Area not in above classes

% of Total area
2.5
9.5
9
1.5
77.5

Out of them class 1, 2 and 3 = Forest cover.

Therefore, total forest cover=(2.5+9.5+9)=21% of total geographical area. (Exact number
is 21.23%)
In absolute figure: forest cover is ~7lakh sq.km out of total ~33 lakh sqkm area.

Ranking: Forest covered area

Area wise

% wise

1. MP
2. Arunanchal
3. Chhattisgarh

1. Mizoram
2. Lakshadweep
3. A&N

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Mrunal Summary: Forest Survey 2013- Rankings,Mangroves,Agroforestry

4. Maharashtra
5. Odisha

4. Arunanchal
5. Nagaland

Ranking altitude wise

Altitude zone
0-500m
500-1000m
1000-2000m
2000-3000m
3000-4000m
Above 4000 m
total

% of Forest cover found

52.44
28.14
10.96
5.83
2.49
0.14
100%

Numbers not important but interpretation is:

A.
B.
C.
D.

Majority of Indias forest cover is witihin 500m above sea level.

There is hardly any forest cover on altitude above 3000m.
both Correct
None correct

Ranking: growth of Forest cover

Highest increase
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

W.Bengal
Odisha
Kerala
Jharkhand
Bihar

Highest decrease
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Nagaland (bcoz Jhum cycle shortened)

Andhra (bcoz open cast mining)
Madhya Pradesh
Tripura
Manipur

Main reasons for declined forest cover

1.
2.
3.
4.

biotic pressure
shortening of Jhum cycle (Nagaland)
open cast mining (Andhra Pradesh)
Earthquake induced landslides (Sikkim)

overall, forest cover increased between 2011 to 2013.

Forest cover growth: type wise
Type
Sq.km in 2013
1.Very dense forest
+31 increased
2.Moderately Dense Forest (MDF) -2000 decreased
3.Open Forest (OF)
+8000 increased

pure forest

Forest classification: species wise

mixed forest

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single tree species is dominant Two or more tree species intermingled in the same canopy .
Area wise, Forest type ranking: Mixed forest >> Sal >> Lowland hardwood >> Teak >> Teak
with misc.
Forest cover: Misc. factoids
States /UT have above 33% area under forest cover
States /UT have above 75% area under forest cover

15
8
Hill
districts
Tribal
district
North
East

40% of their Area under forest cover.

Hill districts means all districts of Arunanchal Pradesh, Himachal, Manipur,
Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura and Uttarakhand
40% of their Area under forest cover
8% of Indias geographical area but 25% of Indias forest covers.
North East is also one of the 18 biodiversity hotspots of world

Forest area
Includes
Doesnt include
wetlands, rivers, riverbeds, creeks in the mangroves, plantations on community lands, road side,
snow-covered areas, glaciers, alpine pastures, cold railways and canals, Eucalyptus, rubber, tea
deserts, grasslands of sholas, etc
and coffee plantations, etc

Tree cover
Indias National Forest Policy 1988 wants to have 33% of India under forest and tree cover.
mind the words: forest cover + tree cover.
Whats the difference?
Forest cover
All lands more than one hectare in area,
>10% tree canopy
satellite can easily measure it.
~7lakh sq.km
21.23% of Indian land

Tree Cover
below 1 ht. area under trees. (especially surrounding
villages and woodlands)
need satellite + manual field verification
~91,000 sq.km
2.78% of Indian land

Therefore, total cover =21.23+2.78 = 24.01% of India under forest and tree cover.

Ranking tree cover

Mind the words: tree cover and not forest cover
Among 14 physiographic regions
1. West Coast
2. Central highland
3. East Deccan

Areawise

%wise

1. Maharashtra
2. Gujarat

1. Lakshadweep
2. Goa

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.
Lowest tree cover in Eastern Himalayas

3. Rajasthan
4. J&K

3. Chandigarh
4. Diu Daman

[Act 2] Mangroves and Bamboos

Mangrove is a salt tolerant plant.
grows in tropical and sub-tropical inter-tidal region
rainfall between 1000-3000 mm
Temperature ranging between 26-35oC.
Mangrove adaptations
pneumatophores Aerial roots above ground. Plant can breathe air in waterlogged soil
buttress roots
Root grows from directly stem, above ground, to support the tree.
below water/land.They uphold the mangrove against tides, strong winds and
stilt roots
tropical storms.
Instead of germinating externally from a seed, Mangroves reproduce via buds
Vivipary
(embryos). Refer to following chart:

Ranking: Mangrove States/UT

Mangrove Areawise ranking Red balloons: bottom 5, Blue squares: top 5

Area wise rank

within that,largest in__.

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1. West Bengal

South 24 Paragana

2. Gujarat

Kutch

3. A&N Islands

Andaman

4. Andhra Pradesh

East Godawari

5. Odisha

Kendrapara

6. Maharashtra

Raigarh

7. Tamil Nadu

Nagapattinam

8. Goa

North Goa

9. Kerala

Kannur

10. Karnataka

Udipi

11. Puducherry

Yanam

12. Daman & Diu

total

4627.63

Mangrove area: Misc. factoids

Mangrove=~0.15% of Indias geographical area
India has ~3% of worlds mangrove forests

India

Sundarban (WB) 50% of Indias mangrove forests

34 sq.km

Decreased in 2013
Reason: better satellite data, higher accuracy in counting.

Highest increase Gujarat

overall
decreased Mangrove cover (2013, compared to 2011)

Bamboos
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Bamboo belongs to the grass family Poaceae ( Gramineae )

Therefore, Bamboo is a non wood forest resource.
India has 125 indigenous, 11 exotic species of bamboo.
in terms of Bamboo diversity rank: (1) China, (2) India
Bambo is fast growing, wide spread, renewable, versatile, low cost natural resource.
Therefore, known as poor man s timber .

[Act 3] Forest Growth factors

#1: Forest fire
Period: 3rd week of Feb to 1st week of May
Most vulnerable

Least vulnerable

Dry deciduous forests

1. Evergreen
2. semi-evergreen
3. montane temperate forests

Forest survey divides districts into three categories: highly, moderately and low vulnerable
districts
Ranking: highest forest fire vulnerability: Madhya Pradesh (24 districts), Maharashtra
(18), Andhra Pradesh (15)

Forest fire: why bad?

1. Destroys humus, nitrogen and other nutrient elements= soil fertility declined= regeneration
difficult.
2. Destroys grass= less infiltration of water = more runoff of water=regeneration difficult.
3. As such cattle grazing is considered a threat to forest cover, but controlled grazing reduces
grass density and thereby reduces forest fire risk.

#2: Forest regeneration

Process of replacing old crop/trees with younger ones.
either via natural or artificial methods
Assertion
Reason
Correct
Answer

Grazing reduction, lopping and plantation can help in forest regeneration.

These activities influences carbon storage through changes in tree biomas both
above and below ground.
both right, R explains A

#3: Soil depth

Assertion
Reason
Correct
Answer

Soil depth is an important factor for forest growth

Soil holds necessary space, nutrients and water required for plant growth and
stability
both right, R explains A

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Soil depth: more factoids

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

climate and topography affect soil depth

Hills have less soil depth than valleys.
Black cotton soil= deepest sedentary soil
Alluvial soil = deepest secondary soil.
Rockiness is related to soil depth. Where rockiness is more, the soil depth is less.
Therefore, in rocky soils, crop density is less and vegetation is sparse.

#4: Humus
Assertion
Humus is regarded as the life blood of soil mass.
Reason
Humus improves the physical and chemical properties of soil
Correct Answer both right, R explains A
Humus=decomposed organic matter in soil.
Includes both plant and animal litter, tissues.
appearance: amorphous, brownish black

[Act 4] Agroforestry
Agroforestry = inclusion of perennial trees within farm.
States with max. agroforestry area: Maharashtra > Gujarat > Rajasthan
Benefits of Agroforestry
1. Bio-fertilizer trees enrich soil and helping in land regeneration.
2. They provide nutrient recycling, increase organic matter.
3. They provide fruits, fodder, medicines, non-timber forest produce and shelter.
Steps by Government
Planning commission report: we can bring 3 crore people out of Poverty, by implementing
Agroforestry in rainfed areas.
Therefore, Government spends sizable fund on agroforestry- under MNREGA, watershed
Management, Green India mission, horticulture mission etc.
Following emphasized on agro forestry
1952 National Forest Policy
1988 National Forest Policy
2000 National Agriculture Policy
2001 Task Force on Greening India
2002 National Bamboo Mission 2002
2007 National Policy on Farmers

[Act 5] Urban forestry

Population projections
2013: Top 5
2050: Top 5
1. China
2. India

1. India
2. China

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3. USA
4. Indonesia
5. Brazil

3. Nigeria
4. USA
5. Indonesia

By 2050: India will have the largest population of world.

Ranking: states with maximum urban population- Maharashtra >UP > TN>..>(lowest)
Sikkim

Urban forestry benefits

1. In India, Urbanization is synonymous with slums, transport congestion, poor sanitation and
airpollution.
2. Urban trees can directly meet basic needs including food, fuel, fodder and timber products
for poor
3. They improve air quality, energy savings, noise abettment, conversation of soil and water
4. Ranking: states with max. urban trees: Taminadu > Maharashtra > Karnataka > Kerala

[Act 6] Misc. factoids

Growing Stock
It is the volume of all living trees in a given area, above than a certain diameter at breast
height.
Growing stock measured in m3.
Benefit of finding Growing stock?
1. provides information on existing wood resources
2. We can estimate the amount of carbon contained in the area.
3. REDD+ mechanism requires India to keep this record under National Forest Monitoring
System (NFMS)

Ranking as per Growing stock

(cost benefit bad for MCQ, but putting it for public record)
Total Growing Stock of wood in the country ~ 5600 m3
Max GS within forest areas is found in Western Himalayas > East Deccan > Eastern
Himalayas
Highest GS in forest area Sal>Teak>Pine>Laurel
Highest GS in Trees Outside Forests (TOF) : Mango, Neem, Coconut, Palm
Highest GS among states, UTKHND > Arunanchal Pradesh > CHHTSGRH > HP
Highest GS in TOF J&K > MH > GJ > AP

Physiographic zones
India is divided into 14 physiographic zones based on altitude, location, soil, precipitation,
temperature, etc
1. Western Himalayas

2. Eastern Himalayas

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3. North East

4. Northern Plains

5. Eastern Plains

6. Western Plains

7. Central Highlands

8. North Deccan

9. East Deccan

10. South Deccan

11. Western Ghats

12. Eastern Ghats

13. West Coast

14. East Coast

URL to article: http://mrunal.org/2014/08/forest-survey-2013-resourcesat-mangrovesagroforestry-urban-forestry-ranking.html

Posted By Mrunal On 08/08/2014 @ 20:59 In the category Economy

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