Prospects of private forestry around urban centres-A study in upland Nepal

A substantial proportion of the population in the area concerned depends on fuel-wood as its major source of fuel. As a result, forests around towns-as in the case of Upper Pokhara Valley-are undergoing degradation. Private forestry could be an attractive option to control or even to reverse this process. Besides providing employment and income opportunities to farmers, this would help to alleviate pressure on commonland forests and control erosion. Steep slope gradients, combined with moderate precipitation and temperature, have made the area studied most suitable for tree- and bush-crops, including assorted varieties of fruit-crops and fuel-wood trees. The financial analysis of fuel-wood plantation vis-a-vis traditional cropping systems revealed the former to be more profitable in kharbari and infertile bari areas. Fuel-wood plantation on khet and fertile bari was both financially and socially unfeasible. Results of the financial analysis were confirmed by farmers’ approval of the idea of growing fuel-wood trees on kharbari and infertile bari. While an extensive-scale fuel-wood plantation would depend on the availability of gainful nonfarming employment opportunities, there is some prospect of utilizing uncultivated and infertile lands immediately for that purpose. In this endeavour, it is necessary to provide some basic support services and facilities, including provision of tools for pitting, extension service, and establishment of village nurseries for supply of the necessary tree-seedlings. Extension agents associated with both GOs and NGOs could play a significant role in motivating villagers to adopt a commercial fuel-wood tree-plantation and in mediating entangled issues. Besides clarification of the issue of ownership of private forests, amendment of the Private Forestry Code, and consolidation of the community forestry programme, are other measures required for the promotion of private forestry in Nepal.