Community attitudes toward forest conservation programs through collaborative protected area management in Bangladesh

The formulation of conservation policies with options for creating protected areas is significantly influenced by the social factors of the surrounding communities. Therefore, indigenous knowledge, attitudes and perceptions of the local communities need to be explored during the planning and implementation stages of conservation projects. A government-initiated experiment in co-management was conducted in the Rema-Kalenga Wildlife Sanctuary, Bangladesh. This paper analyzes the attitudes toward conservation by members of local communities living in and around the wildlife sanctuary. Training incentives on alternative income-generating (AIG) activities and allotment of agricultural lands were distributed among the Forest User Groups. It is of interest to policy makers and resource managers whether this technique leads to improved attitudes on the part of local people. Although there were different attitudes toward protected areas and conservation, overall, a favorable attitude of the respondents was observed. The opinions of respondents also varied based on factors such as village position, village dependency level on forest resources, ethnicity and gender. Increase in annual income resulting from the augmented skills by trainings on AIG activities and getting agricultural lands leased from the Forest Department contributed significantly to the variation in respondents’ conservation attitudes. It is suggested that eliminating inequity and inequality in incentive distribution, discovering and launching training on more need-based livelihood activities, and liberalizing the restriction of resource extraction from the protected area by fixing the harvesting limit would encourage the community to be more cordially and actively involved in the conservation efforts of the sanctuary.     

Thermo-chemical extraction of fuel oil from waste lubricating grease

This study investigated the recovery of oil from waste grease through the process of thermal degradation in an aqueous solution of potassium hydroxide (KOH) followed by solvent extraction. Waste high temperature metal bearing grease was dissolved in a 15 w/w% KOH solution at 80 °C while being agitated at 2000 rpm using a shear action agitator for a period of 15 min. Two distinct layers were observed after 8 min of settling time. The top layer being of dark brown oil and the bottom layer was a heterogeneous mixture. The two layers were separated by decantation. The bottom layer was cooled down to 45 °C followed by slow addition of toluene (C₇H₈) while agitating at 1200 rpm for 15 min to prevent solids settling and minimise rapid volatilisation of the organic compounds in the mixture. Two distinct layers were also formed, the top homogeneous mixture of light brown oil–toluene mixture and the bottom sludge layer. The solvent was recovered from the oil for re-use by fractional distillation of the homogenous mixture. It was observed that 15 w/w% potassium hydroxide solution can chemically degrade the soap matrix in the grease and extract up to 49 w/w% of the fuel oil when subjected to high shear stress at a temperature of 80 °C. The 26 w/w% extraction of oil in the remaining sludge was obtained by solvent extraction process with mass ratios of sludge to solvent of 2:1. Solvent recovery of 88% by mass was obtained via fractional distillation method. The combined extraction processes brought an overall oil yield of 75 w/w% from the waste grease. The fuel oil obtained from this process has similar properties to paraffin oil and can be blended with other oils as an alternative energy source.     

Integrating livelihoods and conservation in protected areas: understanding the role and stakeholder views on prospects for non-timber forest products,a Bangladesh case study

Protected areas (PAs) represent a key global strategy in biodiversity conservation. In tropical developing countries, the management of PAs is a great challenge as many contain resources on which local communities rely. Collection and trading of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) is a well-established forest-based livelihood strategy, which has been promoted as a potential means for enhanced conservation and improved rural livelihoods in recent years, even though the sustainability or ecological implications have rarely been tested. We conducted an exploratory survey to understand the role and stakeholder views on conservation prospects and perceived ecological feasibility of NTFPs and harvesting schemes in a northeastern PA of Bangladesh, namely the Satchari National Park. Households (n?=?101) were interviewed from three different forest dependency categories, adopting a stratified random sampling approach and using a semi-structured questionnaire. The study identified 13 locally important NTFPs, with five being critically important to supporting local livelihoods. Our study suggests that collection, processing and trading in NTFPs constitutes the primary occupation for about 18% of local inhabitants and account for an estimated 19% of their cash annual income. The household consensus on issues relating to NTFPs and their prospective role in conservation was surprisingly high, with 48% of respondents believing that promotion of NTFPs in the PA could have positive conservation value. The majority (71%) of households also had some understanding of the ecological implications of NTFP harvesting, sustainability (53%) and possible management and monitoring regimes (100%). With little known about their real application in the field, our study suggests further investigations are required to understand the ecological compatibility of traditional NTFP harvesting patterns and management.     

Role of non-timber forest products in sustaining forest-based livelihoods and rural households' resilience capacity in and around protected area: a Bangladesh study†

People in the developing world derive a significant part of their livelihoods from various forest products, particularly non-timber forest products (NTFPs). This article attempts to explore the contribution of NTFPs in sustaining forest-based rural livelihood in and around a protected area (PA) of Bangladesh, and their potential role in enhancing households' resilience capacity. Based on empirical investigation, our study revealed that local communities gather a substantial amount of NTFPs from national park despite the official restrictions. Twenty seven percent households (HHs) of the area received at least some cash benefit from the collection, processing and selling of NTFPs, and NTFPs contribute to HHs' primary, supplementary and emergency sources of income. NTFPs also constituted an estimated 19% of HHs' net annual income, and were the primary occupation for about 18% of the HHs. HHs' dependency on nearby forests for various NTFPs varied vis-à-vis their socio-economic condition, as well as with their location from the park. Based on our case study, the article also offers some clues for improving the situation in PA.     

Potable groundwater quality in some villages of Haryana, India: focus on fluoride

The fluoride concentration in ground water was determined in ten villages of Rohtak district of Haryana state (India). The fluoride concentration in the underground water of these villages varied from 0.034-2.09 mg/l. Various other water quality parameters, viz., pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved salts, total hardness, total alkalinity sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, carbonate, bicarbonate, chloride and sulfate were also measured. A systematic calculation of correlation coefficients among different physicochemical parameters indicated considerable variations among the analyzed samples with respect to their chemical composition. Majority of the samples do not comply with Indian as well as WHO standards for most of the water quality parameters measured. Overall water quality was found unsatisfactory for drinking purposes. Fluoride content was higher than permissible limit in 50% samples.     

Removal of congo red dye from water using carbon slurry waste

A cheaper adsorbent has been prepared from carbon slurry waste obtained from National Fertilizer Limited (NFL), Panipat and investigated for the removal of congo red, an anionic dye. Its adsorption on prepared carbonaceous adsorbent was studied as a function of contact time, concentration and temperature. The results have shown that carbonaceous adsorbent adsorbs dye to a sufficient extent (272 mg g^-1). A comparative study of adsorption results with those obtained on activated charcoal shows that the carbonaceous adsorbent is ~95% efficient as compared to activated charcoal. Thus, it can be fruitfully used for the removal of dyes from wastewaters.This work has been presented at the National Symposium on Biochemical Sciences: Health and Environmental Aspects (BSHEA—2003), Agra, India (2003).     

A review on electrocoagulation process for the removal of emerging contaminants: theory,fundamentals, and applications

Electrocoagulation (EC) is an excellent and promising technology in wastewater treatment, as it combines the benefits of coagulation, flotation, and electrochemistry. During the last decade, extensive researches have focused on removal of emerging contaminants by using electrocoagualtion, due to its several advantages like compactness, cost-effectiveness, efficiency, low sludge production, and eco-friendness. Emerging contaminants (ECs) are micropollutants found in trace amounts that discharging into conventional wastewater treatment (WWT) plants entering surface waters and imposing a high threat to human and aquatic life. Various studies reveal that about 90% of emerging contaminants are disposed unscientifically into water bodies, creating problems to public health and environment. The studies on removal of emerging contaminants from wastewater are by global researchers are critically reviewed. The core findings proved that still more research required into optimization of parameters, system design, and economic feasibility to explore the potential of EC combined systems. This review has introduced an innovative collection of current knowledge on electro-coagulation for the removal of emerging contaminants.

Graphical abstract