Explained: What Are Eco-Sensitive Zones And What Are The Recent Protests Around It

Farmers in Kerala continue to demonstrate against the Supreme Court's recent directive to create 1-km Eco-Sensitive Zones surrounding all protected areas, wildlife sanctuaries, and national parks throughout multiple high ranges of the state.

Fear of farmers losing their livelihood is the root of the widespread unrest that has affected districts like Idukki, Kottayam, Pathanamthitta, and Wayanad. The state administration, opposition parties, and the Catholic Church have all expressed support for the unrest.

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The Union government announced on June 18—nearly two weeks after the court order—that it would speak with the Kerala government and submit an affidavit to the Supreme Court regarding the situation.

What are Eco-Sensitive Zones?

Within 10 kilometers of protected areas, national parks, and wildlife sanctuaries are places known as eco-sensitive zones or ecologically fragile areas. According to the Environment Protection Act of 1986, ESZs are declared by the MoEFCC (Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change), Government of India. Even areas wider than 10 km can be included in the eco-sensitive zone in cases when there are sensitive corridors, connectedness, and biologically significant patches that are essential for landscape linkage. The primary goal is to limit the detrimental effects of certain activities on the delicate ecosystem surrounding National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries.

Activities allowed in ESZs

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Prohibited activities: Commercial mining, sawmills, industries causing pollution (air, water, soil, noise, etc), the establishment of major hydroelectric projects (HEP), commercial use of wood, Tourism activities like hot-air balloons over the National Park, discharge of effluents or any solid waste or production of hazardous substances.

Regulated activities: Felling of trees, the establishment of hotels and resorts, commercial use of natural water, erection of electrical cables, drastic change of agriculture system, e.g. adoption of heavy technology, pesticides, etc, widening of roads.

Permitted activities: Ongoing agricultural or horticultural practices, rainwater harvesting, organic farming, use of renewable energy sources, and adoption of green technology for all activities.

Why are Eco-Sensitive Zones created?

According to the guidelines published by the Environment Ministry on February 9, 2011, ESZs are made to operate as "shock absorbers" for protected areas in order to lessen the detrimental effects that some surrounding human activities may have on the "fragile ecosystems." These regions also serve as a transition between those places that need more protection and those that need less protection.

The guidelines also declare that the ESZs are not intended to interfere with nearby residents' daily lives but rather to protect protected places and "refine the environment around them."

To do this, in addition to regulated activities like cutting trees, the guidelines include activities that are forbidden in an ESZ, including commercial mining, sawmills, commercial wood use, etc. Nevertheless, there are activities that are approved, like continued horticultural or agricultural techniques, harvesting rainwater, and organic farming, among others.

Why is it in the news recently?

On June 3, a three-judge Supreme Court panel heard a PIL that first aimed to protect forest lands in Tamil Nadu's Nilgiris but was later expanded to include the entire nation.

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According to Live Law, the court ordered all states to have a mandatory 1-km ESZ from the delineated boundaries of any protected forest land, national park, and animal sanctuary while praising the 2011 rules as "reasonable" in its ruling.

Additionally, it was declared that mining and new permanent structures would not be allowed inside the ESZ. According to the court, the enlarged boundary shall take precedence if the present ESZ exceeds the 1-km buffer zone or if any statutory instrument specifies a higher limit.

Why did this ignite protests?

In response to the Supreme court's orders, protests broke out throughout Kerala's highlands. Farmers' groups and political parties have been calling for the exclusion of all human settlements from the ESZ judegment due to the dense human population surrounding the notified protected areas.

The head of the Kerala Independent Farmers' Association (KIFA), Alex Ozhukayil, asserted that the court's ruling will negatively affect farmers' ability to support their families.

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He explained, “The total extent of the wildlife sanctuaries in Kerala is eight lakh acres. If one km of ESZ is demarcated from their boundaries, around 4 lakh acres of human settlements, including farmlands, would come within that purview. This is a matter of sheer survival of lakhs of people.”

In recent weeks, both the Congress-led United Democratic Fund and the incumbent Left Democratic Front have called for strikes in the districts of Idukki and Wayanad to protest the 1-km rule. The Kerala state government has suggested that the projected uniform 1-km ESZ area for some national parks, such as the Thattekad Bird Sanctuary, be lowered to an ESZ spanning from zero to one kilometer in the eastern and south-eastern part of the national park.

This was due to the fact that the villagers living in the crowded communities in these locations thought the ESZ would limit their ability to engage in agriculture and related activities.

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