Ecosystem services valuation for enhancing conservation and livelihoods in a sacred landscape of the Indian Himalayas

摘要

Sacred species/groves/landscapes have played an important role in conserving biodiversity based on the socio-cultural practices in different parts of the world including India. It has been observed in recent times that these sacred entities are facingdegradation. The current study conducted in Hariyali sacred landscape (HSL) in Garhwal Himalayas is to evaluate and rank the ecosystem services based on people's perceptions so that people can be sensitized about economic, ecological and cultural significance of the landscape. Contingent valuation method (CVM) was used for calculating willingness to pay (WTP) for different ecosystem services. One hundred and forty respondents were grouped into core villagers, nearby villagers and outsiders. The study revealed that local people identified six direct and seven indirect ecosystem services with HSL. The perceived benefits from all ecosystem services were ranked highest by the respondents of nearby villages. However, WTP for conservation of the landscape was lowest by them (nearby villagers). Such discrepancy between the perception and WTP is significantly attributed by the difference in education and rights related to rituals and access to resource use. A careful intervention to integrate the adjoining villages in the rights and ritual related to temple and to evolve a more transparent way to manage the funds generated from religious offerings and Government, may lead to higher participation and WTP for conserving the landscape.