US announces $30 million Nepal conservation plan

The United States announced on Tuesday the launch of a $30 million programme to combat the severe threat climate change is posing to the people and the diverse wildlife of Nepal. The five-year Hariyo Ban programme, funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), will aim to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by one million tonnes, improve the management of 50,000 hectares of forest and pay local communities to protect endangered animals. "This ambitious project recognises that forests are the true wealth of Nepal as forests not only support the livelihoods of millions of people and provide a safe haven for endangered species but also are vital to combat the impacts of climate change," said Hariyo Ban chief Judy Oglethorpe. Nepal is facing increasingly frequent forest fires, floods and landslides while the retreat of ice in the Himalayas has increased the risk of glacier lake floods which threaten downstream communities and wildlife. More than 1.9 million people are at high risk from climate change in the landlocked Himalayan nation, Hariyo Ban says, while a further 10 million are increasingly at risk. "Nepal, being a Himalayan country, is one of the most climate-vulnerable countries in the world and the government of Nepal welcomes the efforts being made by Hariyo Ban," said Deependra Bahadur Kshetry, vice-chairman of the government's National Planning Commission. Hariyo Ban -- which uses the Nepali phrase for "green forests" -- will work towards reducing deforestation while conserving the Terai southern plains and the Chitwan-Annapurna Landscape, a biologically important region containing snow leopards, red pandas and musk deer. The Terai -- often referred to as the rice bowl of Nepal -- is home to tigers, rhinos and elephants as well as a population of about 6.7 million people from several ethnic groups. Hariyo Ban is a coalition of four leading conservation organisations in Nepal including the WWF and the Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere.