MGNREGA - CLIMATE CHANGE

Dr. N. Sai Bhaskar Reddy, CEO, GEO http://e-geo.org

Center for Climate Change and Environment Advisory (CCCEA)Dr. MCR HRD Institute of AP

8TH July 2011

MGNREGA for Water Management as a Response to Climate Change

Climate Change will put

additional stress in rural areas

The primary objective of the act is poverty alleviation, a further objective is stated “...as creation of durable assets and strengthening the livelihoods base of the rural poor...”

NREGA links two of the most critical problems of our times: namely, extreme poverty and climate change.

The linkage is forged through environmental services which are provided by rural households when they engage in works under NREGA.

The livelihoods of the rural poor are directly dependent on environmental resources — land, water, forests — and are vulnerable to weather and climate variability — as water stress increases, groundwater levels recede, soil fertility declines and forest habitats disappear.

Climate change will only exacerbate the vulnerabilities of the rural poor. As climate-sensitive, natural ecosystems deteriorate, subsistence will slip further out of reach. India’s rural poor, who have least contributed to it, will pay some of the problem’s heaviest tolls.

NREGA ObjectivesPrimary Supplementing employment opportunities(Additional not substituted)Auxiliary Eco-restoration & regeneration of natural

resource base for sustainable rural livelihoodProcess Outcomes Strengthening grass root processes of

democracy Infusing transparency & accountability in rural governance

Vulnerability of poor in rural areasLivelihoods of rural poor based on natural resources -

Land, Water, Biodiversity, Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Fisheries, Forest Produce

Two-thirds of households derive income directly from natural sources

Natural resources are threatened by stresses Biotic & Abiotic

Climate Change -- an additional stressPoor are most vulnerable to Climate ChangePoor are first and worst affected – least contributed to itAgriculture & natural resource based livelihoods at

immediate risk Rural poor do not have resources to cope

Nature of Works

Water based

• » Water conservation • » Water harvesting• » Micro and minor irrigation works• » Provision of irrigation facilities• » Desilting of tanks• » Renovation of traditional water bodies• » Flood control and protection works

Land based

• » Land development

Forest/ Agro--Forestry

• » Afforestation• » Horticulture

Infrastructure

• » Rural roads

Water Conservati

on- 51% of the

works undertaken- Water

Conservation and Water Harvesting

- Renovation of Traditional Water

Bodies- Micro Irrigational

Works- Drought Proofing

Afforestation- 14% of the

works undertaken- AP and MP

leading in the forefront in these

activities

Rural Connectivity

- 17% of total works undertaken- UP, MP and Bihar

leading in the number of works

undertaken

CARBON SEQUESTRATION – BIOCHAR OPTIONS

Or

In slide sharehttp://www.slideshare.net/saibhaskar/agriculture-crisis-and-biochar-saibhaskar2

SL framework: Determinants of adaptive capacity

Livelihood resources

Examples

Human Knowledge of climate risks, conservation agriculture skills

Social Women’s savings and loans groups, farmer-based organizations

Physical Irrigation infrastructure, seed and grain storage facilities

Natural Reliable water source, productive land

Financial Micro-insurance, diversified income sources

Policies, institutions and power structures

Defined and prioritised under the act, works can significantly change the environment through rejuvenation of the natural resource base. Water conservation, land development and afforestation through NREGA can provide local services such as ground-water recharge, enhanced soil fertility and increased biomass. These, in turn, can generate global benefits such as adaptation to and mitigation of climate change and biodiversity conservation.

Of the 2.7 million works being undertaken in over 600 districts, nearly 80 per cent are water, land and forestry-related. These not only provide local environmental services, they have the potential to yield co-benefits of adaptation and mitigation to global climate change; the former through rejuvenation of the livelihood base and thereby strengthening resilience of rural communities, the latter through enhanced carbon sequestration in agricultural soils, pasturelands and woody perennials.

NREGA works with programmes of agriculture and allied sectors are leading to enhanced yields. With the scope of works under NREGA expanded to include lands of small and marginal farmers, it is possible to significantly enhance the irrigation potential in rainfed areas and drought-proof small-holder agriculture, leading to sustainable, higher yields.

Conservation technologies — stress-tolerant, climate-resilient varieties of seeds, drip irrigation, zero-tillage, raised-bed planting, laser-levelling, Systems of Rice Intensification (SRI), can build adaptive capacities to cope with increasing water stress, providing “more crop per drop”.

Similarly, strengthening land development practices such as land levelling, conservation bench terracing, contour and graded bunding, and pasture development prevent soil erosion and loss of organic matter. Reclamation of wastelands and degraded lands together with afforestation, horticulture plantation and agro-forestry have the potential to sequester carbon both above and below ground, thereby contributing to carbon mitigation.

Thank You….

Ref: http://...Mainly presentations of Dr. Rita Sharma