The forest department, in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee, has developed a portable machine to make briquettes from pine needles, a major source of forest fires in the state. Forestry officials are contacting engineers to finalize the plan.
According to the Forest Research Institute (LINI), pine trees occupy 26.07% of the forest cover of 24,295 sq. km. However, most of the trees are located at an altitude of more than 1000 m above sea level, and the cover rate is 95.49%. According to FRI, pine trees are a leading cause of ground fires because discarded flammable needles can ignite and also prevent regeneration.
Previous attempts by the forestry department to support local logging and pine needle use have been unsuccessful. But officials still haven’t given up hope.
“We planned to develop a portable machine that can produce briquettes. If IIT Roorkee succeeds in this, then we can transfer them to local van panchayats. This, in turn, will help by involving local people in the collection of coniferous trees. Help them create a livelihood. “said Jai Raj, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF), Head of Forest (HoFF).
This year, over 613 hectares of forest land has been destroyed due to forest fires, with an estimated revenue loss of over Rs 10.57 lakh. In 2017, the damage amounted to 1245 hectares, and in 2016 – 4434 hectares.
Briquettes are compressed blocks of coal used as a fuelwood substitute. Traditional briquette machines are large and require regular maintenance. Officials are trying to develop a smaller version that doesn’t have to deal with the hassle of glue and other raw materials.
Briquette production is not new here. In 1988-89, few companies took the initiative to process needles into briquettes, but transportation costs made the business unprofitable. Chief Minister T.S. Rawat, after taking charge of the state, announced that even the collection of needles was a problem as the needles were light in weight and could be sold locally for as little as Re 1 per kilogram. The companies also pay Re 1 to the respective van panchayats and 10 paise to the government as royalty.
Within three years, these companies were forced to close due to losses. According to forestry officials, two companies are still converting needles into biogas, but other than Almora, private stakeholders have not expanded their activities.
“We are in talks with IIT Roorkee for this project. We are equally concerned about the problem caused by needles and a solution can be found soon,” said Kapil Joshi, chief conservator of forests, Forest Training Institute (FTI), Haldwani.
Nikhi Sharma is chief correspondent in Dehradun. She has been with Hindustan Times since 2008. Her area of expertise is wildlife and environment. She also covers politics, health and education. …check details
Post time: Jan-29-2024