PARENT SESSION
Poster Session 19: Biodiversity
Wednesday, August 10, 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM, Exhibit Hall 220 A-E, Level 2, Palais des congrès de Montréal
Natural and Agro-biodiversity in Three Hill Regions of South India.
Aiama, Deviah*,1, Narasimhan, D.2, Robertson, Raleigh1, Saravanan, P.2, vanLoon, Gary 1, 1 School of Environmental Studies, Kingston, Ontario, Canada2 Department of Botany, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
ABSTRACT- We will report on a study of the agricultural services provided by biodiversity in three hill areas of the Eastern and Western Ghats in South India. These areas support a mixed topography of forest and cultivated land, the latter occupied by scattered small human settlements. The principal crops include rice, a variety of millets, banana and other horticultural crops. In the Kolli Hills, parts of which are well served by road access that connects the communities to major urban centres in the adjacent plains of Tamil Nadu, tapioca has been introduced as a cash crop that is used as an industrial feedstock. This is in contrast to the situation in Karandha and Perumallai Hills, which are more remote and therefore have retained a more traditional cropping system. The environmental and socioeconomic implications of these various agricultural management strategies indicate that greater agrobiodiversity is observed in the remote areas. This is accompanied by reduced pesticide use, and fewer problems associated with soil loss by erosion in the sloping lands. Of special significance is the widespread practice of mixed cropping where up to ten species are grown together in a single area. This practice uses no chemical inputs, but the human labour involved is extensive. Where it is practiced, tapioca cultivation is more lucrative and is favoured by the community as it is carried out under contract that includes supply of planting materials, upfront payments, and marketing of the produce. In spite of these perceived advantages, there is little evidence that this leads to substantial socio-economic benefit and there are clear adverse environmental consequences of the practice. We will also describe aspects of the mutual interactions between natural forest and farm, and how these affect agricultural management and productivity
Key words: biodiversity, agriculture, India, forest