Jagdispur Lake

Introduction:

Jagdishpur Reservoir is a Ramsar site in southern Nepal. Established in August 2003 it covers an area of 225 ha (560 acres) in Jahadi Village Development Committee of Kapilvastu District at an altitude of 197 m (646 ft). The reservoir was constructed in the early 1970s for irrigation purposes, is fed by the Banganga River in the Churia hills catchment area and is surrounded by cultivated land and a few smaller lakes serving as a buffer zone for bird movement. It is the largest reservoir in the country and an important wetland site. The maximum water depth varies between 2 m (6.6 ft) in the dry season and 7 m (23 ft) in the monsoon season. The Jagdishpur Reservoir is listed on the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance, as defined by the Ramsar Convention mainly on the basis of migratory waterbirds and threatened mammals found in the area.

Even after the declaration of the lake as a Ramsar Site, communication and coordination between the line agencies of the government have been lacking. This has resulted great difficulties in maintaining site’s importance as a Ramsar Site. There is no one management plan agreed by all parties to conserve and manage the lake. More surveys and continuous monitoring mechanism should be established to find out the changes in the Ramsar site because of human induced activities and natural process. Since 2007 BCN has been actively involved in wetland biodiversity conservation and sustainable livelihood benefit at Jagdishpur.

Values of Jagdishpur Lake to Local Communities:

The lake is under the management authority of Department of irrigation. Nearly 2000 people live in the immediate vicinity of the lake within 500m radius. The majority of people living in the area are from Tharu, Yadav and Muslim communities. There are also hill tribes eg. Brahmin, Chhetris, Gurungs, Magars and others. Most villagers that live in the adjacent area are poor farmers. Current uses of the reservoir by the local people include fishing, grazing, fuel wood and fodder collection, domestic use (e.g. laundry, bathing), harvesting of wetland products, recreation (e.g. picnic, boating) and supply of water for irrigation in 6,200 ha of surrounding cultivated land. Its surroundings are mainly used for farming. The reservoir dyke is used as a road especially during monsoon when the site is flooded lower down. Feeder and outlet canals are used for swimming by the local people and their livestock.

Conservation Issues:

Threats and problems to the site include hunting, disturbance, deposition of aquatic macrophytes, water pollution from agricultural chemicals (fertilizers and pesticides), and invasive alien species such as Eichhornia crassipes, Mikania micrantha and other aquatic macrophytes (particularly of lotus, water nymph and hornwort), water hyacinth etc. Since 2007, the lake was given on contract for 10 years for commercial fish farming. Recently the fish farming has been extended to the entire lake area. Fish farming practice is mainly done with exotic carp species which grow fast and have better economic value than the local varieties. At least 10 boats are in the lake for fishing purpose and 19 people have been employed by the fish farmers. The way fish farming is done with exotic species, using long nets with fine mesh, and continuous disturbance by the boats and fishermen all throughout the lake, the value of the site as Ramsar has been severely affected. Initial observations indicate that there may be already decline in bird populations.

Recent studies have shown that the lake can act as an important staging point for many waterbirds on north south migration. Unfortunately both the birds and the lake are vulnerable and mismanaged. Many birds that rest and roost at Jagdishpur lake go out to cultivated lands for feeding and other activities hence a human bird conflict also exists.

There is also a clear need for more consultation, communication and coordination between the major stakeholders in the area: Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC), the administrative authority for Ramsar Sites, Department of Irrigation (DoI), the management authority, Department of Forest, the department that can work to administer Ramsar Site on behalf of the DNPWC, Water Users’ Committee, a legal entity recognized by the DoI for the purpose of irrigation.

Fauna:

The silt and nutrients deposited in the reservoir favor the growth of reed beds, which provide shelter for several endangered species. The habitat of the reservoir and its surroundings is important for resident, wintering and migrating wetland birds, comprising 45 different bird species. Five of these are globally threatened species. The surrounding cultivated land also provides habitat for a large numbers of birds. Some of the notable species documented in the area include:

      Asian openbill (Anastomus oscitans)

      Black-shouldered kite (Elanus axillaris)

      Egyptian vulture (Neophron percnopterus), a globally threatened species

      Greater spotted eagle (Clanga clanga), a globally threatened species

      Indian spotted eagle (Clanga hastata), a globally threatened species

      Lesser adjutant (Leptoptilos javanicus), a globally threatened species

      Long-tailed shrike (Lanius schach tricolor)

      Oriental darter (Anhinga melanogaster)

      Pied kingfisher (Ceryle rudis)

      Red-wattled lapwing (Vanellus indicus)

      Ruddy kingfisher (Halcyon coromanda)

      Sarus crane (Grus antigone), a globally threatened species

      Slender-billed vulture (Gyps tenuirostris), a globally threatened species

      Smooth-coated otter (Lutrogale perspicillata), a globally threatened species

      White-rumped vulture (Gyps bengalensis), a globally threatened species

      Woolly-necked stork (Ciconia episcopus), a globally threatened species

Also 18 species of fish, nine of herpetofauna and six mammalian species have been documented in and around the reservoir.