Dang, June 1: A community forest users’ group here has helped control forest fires by producing organic fertilizer from waste materials in the forest area.
Even though fires have broken out in other forests during the dry season, there has been no fire in the Ajambari Community Forest area located in Lamahi Municipality-5 of Dang, thanks to the initiative of the forest users committee to collect the waste and dry leaves from the forest to produce organic manure.
This work has been supported after the forest user group from last year started producing organic fertilizers by utilizing the grass and leaves that would otherwise go to waste in the forest area.
Pawan Sharma Rijal, the community forest users’ committee chairperson, said that the committee has devised a way of utilizing the dried fallen leaves and undergrowth in the community forest for production of manure and linking it with income generation.
“We are engaged in the production of organic fertilizer by making good use of the leaves and twigs that go to waste in the forest area. This has also helped in controlling the wildfires that occur in the forest during dry seasons,” Rijal explained how organic fertilizer production has started linking it with income to make the forest management sustainable.
Although there have been wildfires in other forests during the dry season, they have not occurred in the Ajambari Community Forest. As a result, the useful resources of the forest have been effectively utilized, and it has helped in controlling wildfires and increasing income. Since the forest users’ group has started producing organic fertilizers, seven local individuals have got employment.
The Community Forest Study Centre provided tools to the forest users’ committee for organic fertilizer production under the forest management-based programme, supporting the committee to produce organic fertilizer.
According to Rijal, the locals have been provided jobs for producing organic fertilizer by collecting dry leaves and cow dung from the forest. The community forest users’ committee sells this organic manure to local farmers.
