By Yildiz Aumeeruddy-Thomas
In the remote pastures of the high Himalayas, medicinal plants grow in
abundance. But their survival may be threatened if harvesting is not
regulated and the healthcare needs of local communities are not properly
met.
Dolpo, Nepal: Tucked away in the Himalayan range of Dhaulagiri, the
high pastures of Dolpo near the Tibetan border are home to many of the
most popular aromatic and medicinal plants used by practitioners of
traditional medicine. But their very popularity means that such plants are
now under threat, despite the remoteness of the area and the restrictions
in the 3,555km2 Shey Phoksundo National Park that limit their collection.
The fact is that the park has insufficient manpower to enforce the rules
on collecting medicinal plants, while the building of two airstrips around
Dolpo has allowed greater access to the region for plant traders, whose
business is mainly with India.
In addition, the park itself is home to some 3,000 people whose health
depends almost entirely on amchis, practitioners of ancient Tibetan
medicine. Six thousand more people live in proposed buffer zones on the
southern boundary of the park and they are mostly Hindus, relying on
what is known as Ayurvedic medicine.
Given this significant local demand, the Nepal office of WWF-World Wide
Fund For Nature and the Nepal Department of National Parks and Wildlife
Conservation are running a joint project to determine how the people of
Dolpo value and use plants, particularly medicinal ones. The programme is
part of the People and Plants initiative - organized by WWF, UNESCO
and the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, in the United Kingdom - to study
the role of plants in traditional societies with a view to conserving
threatened species.
Two local amchis are taking part in the project at Dolpo, with a view to
encouraging people to reach agreements with the national park
authorities on the sustainable management of plant resources. The
scheme began with a survey that recorded 279 species of economically
valuable plants in the area, of which no fewer than 205 are used in
traditional medicine. Twelve types were identified as being commonly
traded, with official records showing that 50 tons are exported annually
- although that is almost certainly underestimating the trade.
Already, some of the slopes around the park show signs of
over-harvesting and commercial collection inside the park itself is
increasing. Even the abundant jatamansi (Nardostachys grandiflora) plant
could eventually disappear because of its high market value, its slow
growth, and the destructive method of its collection, which involves
pulling up the whole plant.
The People and Plants project is beginning a number of small field
experiments this year to determine the effects of various levels of
harvesting on selected species of medicinal plants. It is hoped that
general guidelines on intensity of harvesting and other management
techniques will emerge. But it is clear that the plants cannot be managed
effectively without full cooperation from local communities, which have
extensive knowledge of their distribution, abundance, ecology and
methods of harvesting.
One possible solution is for the park authorities to confer certain rights
and responsibilities relating to medicinal plants on particular communities,
so that people see it as being in their own interest to conserve them. It
may be possible to prevent destructive harvesting by outsiders if it is
clearly understood that the livelihoods of local people will be safeguarded
and these valuable resources will be protected.
At the same time, studies are under way to improve the health of the
Dolpo communities. While the amchis will continue to play a dominant role,
they face many difficulties. Many lack training, access to medical texts
and the ability to obtain medicinal materials not available locally. Most
serious, perhaps, is the fact that traditionally amchis are not paid for their
services, which leaves them with severe problems in supporting
themselves financially.
So the project aims to provide assistance by drawing up a blueprint for
the sustainable management of medicinal plants and by supporting the
work of the local amchis, all 45 of whom attended a planning meeting in
the area in June. Among other things, it has been suggested that the
amchis should provide village women with some medical knowledge so
that they can play a role in the primary health care of their own families.
Conservation of threatened plant species may be the primary aim of the
project, but it is clear that little can be achieved unless the medical needs
of local communities are also given priority.
*Yildiz Aumeeruddy-Thomas is Regional Coordinator of the People and
Plants Asia Himalayas Programme based in Montpellier, France.