Karachi: Infrastructure development, especially road construction, is threatening the habitat of the snow leopard in the Gilgit-Baltistan (SW) region, says a recent study by the World Wildlife Federation (WWF) -Pakistan.
“Rapid infrastructure development, especially roads, can disrupt the movement of big cats and destroy the habitat of the snow leopard (Panthera uncia), which leads to an increase in human-wildlife conflicts in the Gilgit-Baltistan region.
WWF-Pakistan’s major research work is carried out through a project to build an environmentally friendly and sustainable snow leopard transport infrastructure in the Indian Kush Karakoram Himalayan Landscape (BEAST) in Pakistan. This project is supported by Snow Leopards Small Grant (SLSG) initiated by Hucenti Foundation, Amity Foundation, and Center for Nature and Society of Peking University, Tencent Foundation, and Shan Shui Conservation Center.
The study suggests the need for a balance between improving infrastructure development and protecting endangered wildlife such as snow leopards in the region. The report said the G-B region is home to a wide variety of wildlife, including the vulnerable snow leopard. It shows that the construction of linear infrastructure that crosses the landscape has divided the tiger’s habitat. The report found that while linear infrastructure improves national and regional economies, it restricts wildlife movement and threatens predator species such as snow leopards and raptors.
Focusing on the broader topic of road ecology, the research gathers evidence on infrastructure-related threats to species and their habitats in the SW region. It collected data on wildlife-vehicle collisions, analyzed the impact of infrastructure development on human-wildlife impacts, and analyzed land-use changes in snow leopard hotspots over the past 20 years.
According to reports, there are two main roads, the Karakoram Highway (KKH) and the Gilgit-Shandur Road, which share the habitat of the snow leopard. Against the backdrop of growing infrastructure development in the Southeast region, WWF-Pakistan launched the Sustainable Infrastructure Initiative in 2019 to build the capacity of relevant stakeholders, raise awareness and support sustainable and green infrastructure planning and development in the Hindu Kush. Karakoram-Himalaya region (KHK).
Commenting on the study, WWF-Pakistan Director General Hammad Naqi Khan said that infrastructure development projects help boost trade and tourism, but do not focus on environmental and species conservation aspects. He believes that the adverse effects of the project can be avoided through careful planning, sustainable infrastructure and an integrated approach that promotes biodiversity conservation and natural ecosystem protection. “It is important to build on this research and conduct more research on wildlife movements and migration patterns to assess the impact of infrastructure development on wildlife populations in critical habitats,” Khan said.
The report found that large-scale transport infrastructure development and emerging hospitality projects threaten local biodiversity and pristine landscapes in the South-West. The report recommends that protected areas should be banned under current laws governing wildlife, linear development and human threats.
Also, the construction of wildlife corridors and crossings in wildlife habitats can reduce wildlife unemployment on high-traffic roads and reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions. Also, the deployment of research, law enforcement and trail workers in wildlife hotspots can hinder hunting and poaching of snow leopards and other prey species. In addition, active mitigation measures have been proposed to protect local ecology and wildlife in infrastructure-related development projects.
