Page 86 - Health, Population and Environment Education 10

soil erosion in hilly region. People must stop overgrazing of cattle. They should take care
of small plants while collecting food and fodder for animals.

c. Excessive Collection of Medicinal Plants
Hilly region consists of various medicinal plants like bojho, dhaturo, asuro, tejpat, tulsi,
etc. Many people have made the profession of collecting medicinal plants and sell them
in market. They randomly collect the medicinal plants. While collecting medicinal plants
they destroy other small plants as well. Random collection of medicinal plants and
destruction of other plants cause decrease in their number. Hence, many of them become
rare. It is most essential that people need to care about small plants while collecting
medicinal plants. It will be wise enough to cultivate medicinal plants in their own land.

d. Excessive Use of Land
Due to increase of population, there is increase
in demand of food. People do deforestation and
extend the cultivable land. They use excessive and
random amount of chemical fertilizers in the name
of increase of production. Even, they cultivate in
slopy areas. This leads towards increase of land
pollution, decrease of soil fertility and occurrence of
natural calamities. Similarly, the run off of chemical
fertilizers causes water pollution. As a result, there is Fig: 17
serious impact on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem.
Many living beings have serious impacts on life cycle and reproduction process. People
should be encouraged for scientific farming, to use compost manure and to control
environmental pollution.

e. Problems of Solid Waste Management
Hilly region has more settlement areas and there is presence of more urban areas as well.
People randomly discharge their wastes here and there in their surroundings. It causes
increase of land pollution, water pollution, increase of insects and germs, spreading
of different types of diseases like diarrhoea, dysentery, typhoid, jaundice, malaria,
tuberculosis, etc. The solid wastes produced in hilly region should be properly managed.
People need to discharge wastes only in the dustbins or containers rather than throwing
here and there. Similarly, bio-degradable wastes like food stuff, animal parts, plant parts
etc. should be converted into compost manure. Similarly, non bio- degradable wastes like
plastics, metal, rubber, glasses etc. should be resued and recycled.

Effects of Ecosystem Degradation in Terai Region and Their Mitigating
Measures
There is increase of population growth, unmanaged urbanization, industrialization,
random conduction of development works, deforestation, excessive use of chemical
fertilizers, etc. in terai region. There is random utilization of forest, water, soil and minerals
in terai region. Random utilization of all of them adversely affects plants, animals,
86 GREEN Health, Population and Environment Education Book-10