The government of India is encouraging the private sector to participate in conservation, especially to increase forest and tree cover. In fact, 86% of the funding in conservation is from the public sector, therefore offering a great opportunity and scope for investment and CSR projects (Shalini Dhyani). There are various ways that businesses can increase their forest and tree cover that can also help with Net Zero commitments. Agroforestry may be the best option, if the company already has agricultural land. Companies can increase tree cover around their premises if land is available which is both good for the environment and for human health. Companies can implement projects for the protection of forests, ecosystem restoration, and afforestation. Though it is important that a company is not protecting already protected areas in their commitments. These steps can lead to the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions that cna be calculated through models and predictions.
A lot of companies have CSR initiatives around conservation, from planting trees, and mangrove protection to wildlife conservation. One of the most popular conservation projects in India has been Project Tiger. Project Tiger was launched in 1973 by the Government of India in partnership with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to increase the population of the Bengal Tiger. The work is headed by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) in partnership with various state governments and NGOs. Tigers are top predators and essential in the food chain therefore keeping the balance in nature. WWF works on tiger habits conservation to help stabilise the population. Project Tiger has been largely successful since its inception by increasing the tiger population from 1,411 in 2006 to 2,967 in 2018. Protecting a magnificent species like the Bengal Tiger would not have been possible without the various CSR projects such as the Save Our Tigers project by Aircel in 2008. Project Tiger is a massive project in India, where there have been contributions from individuals to major projects by companies like Aircel.
There are other CSR projects that conserve other species and other habits too. The Muthoot Groups runs a project to reduce human-elephant conflict, Sony India Limited is conserving the red panda and snow leopard, Tata Chemicals is protecting the Asian lion, Tata Housing has an endangered species conservation project, and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) is conserving the Eastern Swamp Deer. Godrej Industries has been running a very interesting project to conserve mangroves in Mumbai. Since the 1940s, Godrej Industries started to conserve the mangrove ecosystem in Vikhroli near the Thane creek after it purchased land, namely Industrial Garden Township, which is surrounded by mangroves. Mangroves are a great ecosystem as they provide protection against storms, are an indicator species, and protect a lot of species like butterfly, fish, crab and prawn. The Godrej Foundation work on Mangrove conservation is one of a kind and one the most successful conservation efforts by an industry, a great project to model after. These are some examples of private sector investment in conservation through projects. There are various ways to conserve forests and ecosystems in India, offering a great opportunity for investment and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
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