The impact of hydroelectric project development on the ethnobotany of the Alaknanda river basin of Western Himalaya, India

Background: This study focuses on the ethnoflora used by local communities in the Alaknanda river basin of Uttarakhand state in Western Himalaya, India. The objectives of the study were to collect ethnobotanical information, to assess the impact of hydropower projects on ethnoflora and to suggest conservation and management measures for the protection of ethnoflora. Material and Methods: A well-designed questionnaire based survey was conducted in the ten villages of the study area to collect ethnobotanical information. The conservation status of plants was also evaluated following the IUCN Red list, the Red Data Book of Indian Plants and the CITES criteria. Results: A total of 136 plant species belonging to 61 families and 112 genera were used by local communities for various ethnobotanical purposes. The majority of plant species were used for medicinal purposes (96 spp.), followed by fodder (46 spp.), wild edibles (31 spp.), fuel (29 spp.), timber (17 spp.), fish poison (9 spp.), agriculture implements (6 spp.), fibre (6 spp.), religious use (6 spp.) and handicraft (1 sp.). For the preparation of herbal medicine, rural people of the region use different parts of medicinal plants such as the whole plant (20%) followed by roots/rhizomes/tubers (20%), leaf (18%), fruit (10%), seed (9%), bark (9%), stem (6%), flowers (6%) and resin (2%). Conclusions: Development of hydropower projects will influence the diversity and distribution of ethnoflora in the region. Therefore, for the conservation of the ethnoflora of the area, conservation and management measures have been suggested.