Lessons from Nepal on Developing a Strategic Plan - World Lake ...

<strong>Lessons</strong> <strong>from</strong> <strong>Nepal</strong> on Developing aStrategic Plan for the Integrated Lake BasinManagementConservation Of Phewa Lake Of Pokhara, <strong>Nepal</strong>Shailendra PokharelAbstractLake Phewa is the master peace of nature that has an addedglamour of water, mountain, forest and snow-filled highmountains at one place. This is the largest lake of Pokharavalley amidst the heart of Pokhara city, and is the source oflivelihoods apparently made out of lake tourism. However,conflicting governance structure built within prevailingpolicy and legal arrangements has victimized Phewa lakeas common property element. Phewa lake environment isdegrading. In the past, national and international supportsparticularly under the JICA, had extended in Pokhara forimproving town improvement including restoration ofPhewa lake environment. Such intervention partly contributedto improve town environment, but failed improvinglake environment.The Phewa remained as a hot-cake issue in national debates.In absence of continuity of such debate, issues of Phewatotally kept shadowed. Further, in absence of consensusamong stakeholders, some intervention like JICA initiativehad to pull out <strong>from</strong> its half-journey of implementation. Itimplies to a condition that the issue of Phewa conservationwould still remain a hot issue and takes time to resolvethem. Establishment of the National Lake ConservationCommittee (NLCDC) - as a national lake governing body- has the history of debate discussed in the past, and is anexcellent response of the government to conserve lakes of<strong>Nepal</strong> including conservation of Phewa for its high tourismvalue. Success of the NLCDC to deal issues of the Phewatherefore depends on the strategy it adopts and implementsit in respect of concerns of diverse stakeholders ofPhewa lake. An appropriate step towards this would bedeveloping a lake conservation forum through consensusin the Pokhara valley empowered to undertake lake conservationactivities in an integrated manner by incorporatingbest learning <strong>from</strong> conservation of lakes like Rupa. For this,the point of departure would be revitalizing Phewa LakeEndowment Fund followed by other recommended actionsunder the environmental study of Phewa lake conservationand its guidelines.IntroductionThe Phewa lake (hereafter called Phewa) is <strong>Nepal</strong>’s secondlargest lakes, and the largest one in heart of Pokhara valley,a swiftly growing city and the second most visited touristplace in <strong>Nepal</strong>. Because of its natural beauty with glaringand magnificent views of Annapurna Himalaya range andwith Fishtail peak-literally called Machhapuchhre - standingvery close by (only 28 km), it is one of the most populartourist destinations in <strong>Nepal</strong>. This lake has formation historyof the tertiary period due to convergence of the IndianPeninsula and Tibetan plateau that resulted into upsurgeof the Annapurna range of the Greater Himalaya whenpreglacial drain system was filled by outwashes drift materialslike limestone, gneiss and quartzite.Phewa is a stream fed dam regulated, semi- natural freshwatersubtropical mountain lake lying at the Pokhara valley(28º 7’-28º 12’N-84º 7’-84º 19’E) that falls on a relativesubsidence zone in between the Greater Himalaya and theMahabharat Range. Administratively, Phewa lake watershedarea is spread over, partially or fully, the jurisdictionof six Village Development Committees (Sarangkot,Kaskikot, Dhikurpokhari, Bhadaure Tamagi, Chapakot andPumdi Bhumdi) and the south western part of PokharaSub-Metropolitan City under Kaski district in mid-westernregion of <strong>Nepal</strong>. The watershed area forms an unique geographicalentity and represents the typical characteristicsof the mountain environment, and has magnificent conjectureoutlook of temperate high mountain in the north andhumid sub-tropical climate of terai in a conical unique valleylandscape of mid-hill Pokhara. The length and widthof its east west oriented watershed is about 17 and 7 km,respectively (Oli 1997), and falls in humid subtropical monsoonregion. It is characterized by moderate temperaturewith mean temperature peak in July-August and minimumin January, heavy monsoon rainfall and distinct seasonalvariations.The lake is a northwest-southeast running valley. The lakelevel varies seasonally depending on the withdrawal ofwater for power generation 1,000 Kilo Watt (KW) and irrigationpurpose and water inflows. It extends about 4 kmnorthwest to southeast and it is about 2 km at its widestand only a 100 meter at its narrowest.The Phewa lake watershed is formed by complex and ruggedridges and spurs and valley bottoms. The hill terrainand valley bottoms stand out as distinct natural features inthe landscape criss-crossed by a number of irregular ridges

emerge on lakes around the world (Borre et al., 2001). Inthis context, major environmental threats of Lake Phewaof <strong>Nepal</strong>, a least developed country, indicated as followsindicate some similarity and differences:Conflicting Legal Issues: By nature, lakes are interfacesof land, water and forests that represent complex ecosystem,but management of these lakes in <strong>Nepal</strong> remainsseriously divided as it falls within the jurisdiction of differentgovernment authorities. Lake subject is narrowlyorganized along defined sectoral lines under existinglegal provisions like Aquatic Animal Protection Act 1961(amended first in1999); Forest Act 1993 (amended in 2001);National Park and Wildlife Conservation Act; Forest Act1993 (amended in 2001); Soil and Watershed ConservationAct 1982; Water Resources Act 1992; Electricity Act 1992;Environment Protection Act 1996. Further, Local SelfGovernance Act (1999) empowers local governmentlike District Development Committees (DDCs), VillageDevelopment Committees (VDCs), Municipal Authorities,and Metropolitan Authorities towards conservation andsustainable development. Under this Act, promoting socioeconomicdevelopment, natural resources managementand conservation become sole responsibility of these localbodies at their levels (Oli 1997).Municipality Act (1991) empowers Pokhara Sub-Metropolyfor managing garbage collection and disposal, and pollutioncontrol <strong>from</strong> the lake shore, and building norms, rules,regulations and taking punitive actions against defaulters.Town Development Act (1988) empowers the TownDevelopment Committee to enforce land use and buildingregulations, and implements physical developmentplans and programs, and also has the authority to takepunitive action against those who ignore the regulations,and violate the norms and standards set by the committee.Since six VDCs apart <strong>from</strong> the Pokhara Municipalitytouches the boundary of the lake, Phewa lake is subjectedto the Committees authority derived <strong>from</strong> Act of 1991.Since DDC is the main coordinating agency for all VDCsin the district, Kaski DDC also has authority over Phewalake deriving <strong>from</strong> the Act of 1991. Phewa watershed issubjected to the Forest Act, Soil and Water ConservationAct, Water Resources Act, and both the DDDC/VDC Acts,Municipality Act, Town Development Act, Aquatic LifeAct, 1961, thus each agency operating under their ownlegal mandate and do caring a little of others. This situationis continuous and is one of the major causes for environmentalnoncompliance and poor legal enforcement in thewatershed. This has resulted in the development of uncontrolledurbanization and inconsistent land use in the Phewalakeshore area resulting it as ‘a tragedy of commons’.Reclamation & Encroachment: With an extent of growingurbanization multiplied with undefined and officially nondemarcatedshoreline, there has been a significant reductionin lake morphometry. Within a short period of 1981-2001,5.8 km 2 of lake area of 1981 now has been reduced to 4.4km 2 by 2001. Such illustration is seen distinct in lake-head,once completely submerged now surfaced as alluvial plain,due to heavy sediment load carried by Harpan Khola.Initially, such areas were illegally encroached for agricultureand settlements subsequently legalized by cadastralsurvey of 1975. Further, roads and poorly constructed smallhouses along shoreline east of dam in Baidam are intense,and areas along Phirke Khola that also drains water in thelake, has been extensively used for building constructionincluding government buildings, such as Municipal GuestHouse, Armed Police Office and their Quarters, as well assquatter settlements.In the past, certain efforts to define shoreline were madethat prescribed sets of government standards to regulateurban development along shoreline, but a physical collapseof Phewa dam occurred in 1974 that drained outmuch of lake water causing lake area shrinking to a smallerarea. Such collapse exposed out the land due to recedingof shoreline, later illegally encroached by adjoining landowners.This problem was further cropped up after theadvent of Democracy Movement-1989. Already set government’snorms were either not respected or neglected thatsubsequently resulted into irregular and uneven erectionof numerous sub-standard buildings and hotels alonglake shoreline particularly in the southwestern part of lake(except Raniban), in Anadu and the area to Simle and evenbeyond. Adverse impacts of such phenomenon has beenConservation Of Phewa Lake Of Pokhara, <strong>Nepal</strong>3

noticed on shortage of drinking water, roads, drainagesystem, depletion of wildlife habitats, spoilt amenities aswell as trickled down tourism around Phewa by noise andwater pollution, narrow trails and pathways and sewagedisposals. Unsightliness has also been augmented.Sedimentation: Physical shape and size of Phewa is degradingbecause of sedimentation and land encroachment alonglakeshore. Sediment comprising silt, sand and gravel aretransported in the lake by Harpan Khola, and sediments inthe form of urban garbage are also being transported in thelake by Seti Canal, Bulanudi and Phirke Khola. Seti Canal,Bulaundi and Phirke Khola also transport silt and sand insmall quantities whose annual cumulative effect is huge.It is estimated that during the period of 1990-’94, annualsiltation rte has a range of about 175,000-225,000 m 3 . At thisrate the terminal silt trap portion will be separated <strong>from</strong> themain lake by next 20-25 years and the lake proper will be“dead” by next 135-175 years, assuming loss of 80% watervolume (DSC, 1994). A time series map analysis indicate adecrease in area <strong>from</strong> 10 km 2 (1956/57), to 5.5 km 2 (‘76) and4.4 km 2 (‘98). There has been more than 50% reduction inarea within a time frame of 5 decades (JICA/SILT, 2002).Lake Phewa is polluted due to high internal loading ofsediments (SAIC, 1992).Lake Water Pollution: Despite having picturesque outlook,Phewa has been experiencing marked changes in itsenvironmental quality over the past years, due to extremewater pollution caused by sewerage, solid wastes, clotheswashing, agricultural run-off and sediments. Table 2 brieflypresents the physical and chemical features of Phewa lake.Cultural eutrophication is considered major parameter forwater quality management in Phewa. Since managementintervention against pollution control are not in effect,density of E-colii (39-123 units/100 ml), regular disposal ofsolid waste (125 mt) and of soaps and detergents (> 100 kg)per day seems continue to cultivate in lake.Threats to Biodiversity: Phewa is well recognized as animperative wetlands habitat of nationally and internationallysignificant aquatic biodiversity. Peripheral areas of thislake in Rani Ban and Pumdi Bhumdi forests areas are giftsfor bird lovers and researchers. The Panchase hill representsbiodiversity hotspots of wildlife and rare plants of midmountainregion of <strong>Nepal</strong>. However, existing threats posedby human activities and invaders such as water hyacinth,and exotic carp fish species have caused loss of aquaticbiodiversity especially of wild rice and native fish species.It indicates laxity in management such as control throughutilization of invasive species, and this in turn poses anadverse impact on the ecosystem health of the lake.Promotion of Ecotourism: Lake Phewa environ, famed asone of the most beautiful place on earth is touristically significant.It represents a hotspot for ecotourism promotion.However, development of tourism has been unplannedand spontaneous. Growing urbanization and unplannedtourism development activities around the lake in absenceof inadequate infrastructural facilities have depressinglyaffected the lake’s recreational values (Banskota andSharma, 1998).Eco-zoning of Lake Shoreline: The effects of non-pointsources such as agricultural run off are found to be greaterthan those of point sources of pollution such as laundryareas in Lake Phewa (Rana, 1990). As per conservationguideline, 10-30m strip of land along the lake shoreline andnext 90m is recommended for buffer zone and controlleddevelopment zone with horticultural/agro forestry activitiesrespectively (IUCN, 1995b). In practice, it needs fullimplementation. Restructuring of the littoral zone providesa balanced approach to lake restoration and multiple usesof the lake, thereby integrating management practices withplanning (Engel, 1987).Inadequate Institutional Capability: Institutional inefficiencyin terms of inadequate cooperation and coordinationamong stakeholders has hindered effort on sustainablemanagement of the lake resources. There is no specificauthority responsible for the conservation and managementof Lake Phewa (Banskota and Sharma, 1998) implying“tragedy of commons”.Table 2. Physico-chemical features of Phewa (June 2003)Parameter Unit Surface 3m 5m 10mTemperature 0°C 27.4 27.0 25.5 24.0PH 9.3 8.9 8.4 7.8Dissolve oxygen mg/lt 5.28 3.25 2.03 4.06Phenolophthalein alkalinity mg/lt A A A ATotal hardness mg/lt 77.2 88.4 77.4 77.2Free CO2 mg/lt A 1.956 1.672 0.88Chloride mg/lt 12.19 29.21 26.00 31.48Secchi disc transparency cm 177Clast size and pebblesOblate and platy4 <strong>Lessons</strong> <strong>from</strong> <strong>Nepal</strong> on Developing a Strategic Plan for the Integrated Lake Basin Management

Strategies And Actions UndertakenPolicy and Legal ProvisionsStrategies and Policies Development: In <strong>Nepal</strong>, governmenthas made efforts to address lake conservation throughpolicy integration in the development process. Theseinclude - the National Conservation Strategy (NCS), 1987;the <strong>Nepal</strong> Environment Policy and Action Plan (NEPAP)1993; the <strong>Nepal</strong> Biodiversity Strategy (NBS), 2002; andWater Resource Strategy (WRS) 2002. Under NBS, wetlandshas place as a distinct ecosystem and recommends forwetlands policy. Consequently, National Wetlands Policyemerged out in 2003 with aims to put the conservation andmanagement aspects of wetlands conservation within theframework of broader environmental management. This isthe only one policy arrangement responding direct to wetlandsand lakes.Legal Provisions: No specific legal instruments thataddress lake issues are in place in <strong>Nepal</strong>. However, thereexist some legal instruments that protect some of the wetlandsflora and fauna across the country (inside and outsideprotected areas). Some major legal instruments arethe National Parks and Wildlife Protection Act (NPWPA)- 1973 (amended 4 times) for fauna, the Forest Act - 1993for flora, and the Aquatic Animals Protection Act - 1961 forsome specific aquatic species. Under NPWCA, 39 speciesof fauna (i.e., 27 species of mammals, 9 species of birds and3 species of reptiles) are nationally protected.Conservation Action Plans and Guidelines: Recognizingthe values of Phewa, many efforts have been made after1995 for its conservation and management. Potential causesthat degraded the Phewa lake water quality were identified.As an implementation of the National ConservationStrategy Plan, IUCN <strong>Nepal</strong> with HMGN/NPC developedGuidelines for Phewa Lake Conservation in 1995, and alsoprepared Phewa Lake Conservation Action Plan (1997).This plan has prescribed action areas under 10 strategicdirections. They are: defining lake area and its managementresponsibility; reviewing and preparing uniform legalframework for lake and watershed management; reviewingexisting land use plan of Pokhara (revise, amend andupdate land use strategy for the Pokhara valley); reviewingmunicipal infrastructure status and realigning Pame roadwhere necessary; controlling lake pollution (developmentof an effective solid waste collection and disposal system);designing and executing landscaping and beautificationschemes at strategic locations; formulating and executingtourism development strategy; encouraging conservationof biodiversity; encouraging horticulture, silviculture,aquaculture and improved animal husbandry; and encouragingwatershed management to reduce soil erosion andsedimentation.Pokhara Town Development Plan: For the regulatedgrowth of Pokhara, in 1973 Physical DevelopmentPlan was prepared. This was adopted by His Majesty’sConservation Of Phewa Lake Of Pokhara, <strong>Nepal</strong>Government of <strong>Nepal</strong>. Consequently, Pokhara TownDevelopment Committee was established under Town PlanImplementation Act 1972 for implementing the plan. Therehas been a significant impact after the implementation ofdevelopment plan particularly in the construction of buildings,roads and other infrastructures, however the majorissues of Phewa conservation still remained not addressedto this date.InstitutionsThe National Planning Commission (NPC) has been establishedto facilitate inter-sectoral coordination particularlyin developing nation’s five year development plan. In suchplanning, lakes/wetlands component often emerge out asone of the cross-sectoral priorities particularly in demonstrating<strong>Nepal</strong>’s commitment towards implementation ofinternational conventions like the CBD, Ramsar and CITES.The MoFSC is responsible for lake conservation under its4 constituent departments like Environment Division; theDNPWC; DoF; and DSCWM. Environment ProtectionCouncil (EPC) established in 1992 under the Ministry ofPopulation and Environment (MoPE) now the Ministry ofEnvironment, Science and Technology (MoEST) works onissues of pollution control, enforcement and monitoringof environmental standards, and environmental impactassessments. The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives(MoAC) considers promotion of aquaculture one of itsmain activities. The ministry has a unit on agro-biodiversity,which is promoting conservation of wild varieties andwild relatives of rice plant.The Ministry of Local Development has various DDCs,VDCs, Municipalities and Metropolitan Authoritiesempowered to manage natural heritage that covers forest,rivers, wetlands etc. Similarly, section 93 and 96 of the SelfGovernance Act empower municipalities for the conservationof environment, forests, natural heritage, ancient monument,irrigation, soil conservation, wetland managementetc. Many of these institutions are also engaged in managingseveral village ponds and lakes either in isolation orthrough community participation.Boat Club is a professional organization run by boat operator.This club has contributed Nrs. 50,000 into the PhewEndowment Trust Fund with an objective of taking stake torestore lake environment of the Phewa. The club members arealso involved in manual removal of weeds <strong>from</strong> the lake.NLCDC has been established in 2007. This committee aimsto coordinate the national and international bodies, andimplement wetlands restoration programs that maximizeincentives to target beneficiaries since, the committee hasa short development history, and conservation of Phewremains its lead concern by nature.Pokhara Environment Improvement Project: A major steptaken towards conserving Phewa was under the SecondTourism Infrastructure Development Project (STIDP)5

assisted by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Underthis project, ADB had provided project preparation technicalassistance in 1995. Following to the recommendationsof this study, the ADB provided grant and loan assistancein the name of Pokhara Environment Improvement Projectunder the STIDP for sanitation awareness education,improvement of sanitation facilities, improvement of urbanroads, improvement of urban drainage and constructionof sanitary landfill site of Pokhara city. Pokhara Sub-Metropolis executed this project and accomplished worksin July 2003.Environmental Conservation of Phewa Lake: In July 2001an understanding was reached between GOJ/JICA <strong>Nepal</strong>and HMG/MoPE for implementing the DevelopmentStudy on the Environmental Conservation of Phewa Lake.Following to this study, on its recommendation, the PhewaLake Environmental Awareness and Capacity BuildingProject was launched by JICA <strong>Nepal</strong> and Pokhara Sub-Metropolis was an executing agency. This project has completedin March 2007.Lake Phewa Endowment Trust: As recommendation madeby IUCN under Phewa Lake Conservation Action Plan(1997), Pokhara Sub-Metropolis successfully mobilizedPokhara based institutions and individuals for the formationof Phewa Lake Conservation Endowment Trust in1998. As a result, 11-member Phewa Lake ConservationCommittee 1 was established to restore the bio-physicalenvironmental quality of Phewa with adoption of sustainablefinancing mechanism. As a contributor, IUCN <strong>Nepal</strong>initially provided US $ 10,000 and other ten institutionincluding Kaski DDC and Pokhara Sub-Metropoly eachcontributed NRs 50,000 to this endowment trust nowreached to NRs 1.3 million. Such collaborative fund-sharingpractice was the first started after several environmentalstudies of Phewa lake conservation, but its momentumbusted down due to widespread Democracy Movement of1989 shortly followed by a long period of political strife i.e.,the Maoist movement.Phewa Lake Beach Establishment Initiative: A volunteerorganization called the Phewa Beach and EnvironmentConservation Committee (PBECC) had initiate a NRs 3 millionproject to establish 300 feet long and 60 feet wide Phewa beachalong shoreline on the western bank beside Basundhara Park.PBECC had functional dialogue with Pokhara Valley TownDevelopment Committee and hotel owners, and had startedsome excavation work. Further, attempts to piles on tons ofsand and edge wall construction to avoid sand spilling alongshoreline were made to facilitate beach lovers for sunbathing,1This committee has following composition: Chair role- Pokhara Sub-Metropolis, member secretary - PokharaValley Town Development Committee, and members- DDC Kaski, Phewa Boat Club, Ward-6 of Pokhara Sub-Metropolis, Lake Line City, Lake Club, FNCC Kaski, RatnaDarabar, Hima Griha and Rani Mandir.playing and walking. Though appreciable, the PBECC’s plancould not be fully materialized.Outcomes Of The ActionsImprovement in Physical Infrastructure Development:JICA <strong>Nepal</strong> has helped Pokhara Sub-Metropolis for the successfulconstruction of sanitary landfill site with leachateand seepage treatment facility, equipped sub-metropolisand trained its manpower for seepage and solid waste managementand prepared local people for sanitation throughawareness education. No impacts study has been carriedout after such JICA assistance; hence change in water qualityrequires further exploration.Enhanced Knowledge: A key outcome of the previouswork has a milestone result on the development of informationand knowledge about lake conservation in <strong>Nepal</strong>including the over 20 environmental studies of Phewalake environment conservation. Development of PhewaLake Conservation Action Plan (1997) has become a strongintegrated framework for the overall development of thePokhara and conservation of Phewa is center for this.Strengthened Capacities: JICA <strong>Nepal</strong> entrusted project hashelped generating government personnel and local communitiesfor the cause of lake conservation of the Pokharavalley including Phewa lake one of them. As a result, communityand local institution including media have beenupraising community voices for the integrated conservationof Phewa lake in <strong>Nepal</strong>.Recently, the National Lake Conservation Committee hasbeen providing support for the conduct of few interimactivities for Phewa lake conservation like manual subtractionof water hyacinths; park establishment; foot-trailpromotion; and diversion of Phirke Khola. The long-terminitiatives are yet to be launched with the review of itsexisting conservation action plan followed by actions in thepresent context of upcoming governing structure - federalism.The committee is also involved in the preparation ofdesignating it under the Ramsar List.<strong>Lessons</strong> Learnt And Ways Ahead• Phewa lake is the most priority conservation wetlandsoutside PAs in <strong>Nepal</strong>. IUCN prepared Phewa LakeConservation Action Plans has identified 10 actionareas. Implementation of this plan may yield positiveresults but this requires building consensus amongstakeholders including GOs, INGOs, academic institution,local clubs and academic institution. NLCDC hasbeen emerged as sole a government institution for thecause of sustainable conservation of lakes in <strong>Nepal</strong>, thiscommittee should prepare itself as a consortium for allwhere people and institution could discuss, breed ideasand come up with actions agenda for conserving lakesincluding Phewa in <strong>Nepal</strong>. For this, this, committeeshould equip its strength in terms of financial, technicaland managerial roles.6 <strong>Lessons</strong> <strong>from</strong> <strong>Nepal</strong> on Developing a Strategic Plan for the Integrated Lake Basin Management

• Major problems of the Phewa are shoreline encroachment,water pollution and sedimentation. Hence, basicstrategy for conservation of Phewa includes: extendits life span, maintain its cleanliness and promote it asan attractive tourist destination. To achieve this target,<strong>from</strong> current polluted status, there exists a need of anintegrated and holistic approach along with sharing ofresponsibilities and benefits among the stakeholders.• Any focus given to the conservation of the Phewa lakeneeds great efforts to integrate “hard ware” and “software” components exemplified by construction ofdiversion canal to mitigate problem of water pollution,constructed wetlands to check sediment load, conservationof threatened species and habitats e.g. wild riceand fish spawn site and institutional strengthening. Forthis, basics for management of lakes includes: watershedapproach, intersectional coordination, stakeholders’involvement and effective institutional arrangementfor implementation/ monitoring (Borre et al.,2001). Sustenance of economic development projectsis not meaningful in absence of active involvement ofpeople (Banskota and Sharma, 1998).• Lakes are environmentally sensitive and integrated part ofa watershed lying at lowest level is vulnerable to sedimentationand pollution. This implies conservation of lake needcoverage in watershed and ecosystem basis. This emphasizeon systemic approach (Jorgensen and Vollenweider,1989). On account of high sensitivity and importance ofthe lake area, it has been proposed to declare “Phewa Lakewatershed conservation area” (IUCN, 1995b), however, ithas not been implemented yet.• Local community can be motivated to integrate incomegeneration and nature conservation such as through tea,coffee plantation in erosion prone hilly areas which isdemonstrated in the conservation of the Rupa lake. Aseconomic development governs environmental conservation,promotion of income generating activities holdssubstantial importance in relation to effectively implementingenvironmental plans into action (Shrestha,1999). Current cage fish culture, boating, hotel ad restaurantsbusiness could provide more incentives tolocal communities and business society with proper anintegration of sustainable income generation schemewith the conservation of Phewa.• Pokhara valley is enriched with many lakes in additionto Phewa. Other lakes are Begnas, Rupa, Maidi,Khaste, Dipang, Neureni, and Kamal Pokhari lyingwithin a couple hours of traveling distance. Hence,wisdom interlinking conservation of Phewa with otherthese lakes is important that require setting a strategicdirection envisioning Phewa lake conservation not inisolation.Conservation Of Phewa Lake Of Pokhara, <strong>Nepal</strong>• A long period time has been passed after the developmentof Phewa Lake Conservation Plans (1997) and,Phewa Lake Conservation Guidelines (1995). A newfederalism structure also has recently been emerged in<strong>Nepal</strong>. Hence, there is a great need of improvement inthe Plans and Guidelines under new governance - federalism.Further, current silent state of endowment trustmechanism of Phewa conservation should be revivedas well as be operational.• Criss-crossed and rugged hills of the <strong>Nepal</strong>ese geographyare very specific to nature and function of lakeswith densely populated demography backgroundaround them elsewhere in <strong>Nepal</strong>. It implies on thesustenance of lakes that depends on complex dynamicsposed by watersheds, rivers and lake basins. In thiscontext, Integrated Lake Basin Management (ILBM) arecent management prescription guided under ‘WorldLake Vision’ could be an appropriate for the sustainableconservation of the Phewa lake. For this, wisdomis to establish functional linkages with the InternationalLake Environment Committee, which is an innovatorand architecture of ILBM development. Such functionallinkage would help <strong>Nepal</strong> building its technical andmanagerial capacities towards sustainable functioningof lakes in <strong>Nepal</strong>.ConclusionThe Phewa probably is the most important lake that hashigh gravity in terms of lake tourism. Phewa does not providethe first hand opportunity to attract tourists, but has2 nd option to promote tourism by having an advantage oftransit venue for tourists trekking other parts of the countrymaking Pokhar a transit. However, lake encroachment andsedimentation followed by water pollution would remainvibrant threats that need immediate strategy to address.Conservation of Phewa should not be seen in isolation sincethe Pokhara valley has other eight lakes of diverse natureand values. Conservation of Phewa has been discussed indifferent fora though successful implementation of outcomesof such discussion never resulted into affirmativeresults. Such case also happened in a support of JICA whichpulled out its project to improve environment condition ofthe Pokhara town including improvement of the Phewalake. What had happened before are a part of history, nowsole management responsibility of the Phewa ultimatelygoes to action agenda of the NLCDC. Phewa lake needsto integrate some of the issues related to urban and othersof rural setting. Hence, a comprehensive effort should beasserted so tourism value of Phewa be always placed at topfollowed by other conservation incentives directly payingto local livelihoods provided that stake of all partners arewell respected in the management of Phewa lake. NLCDCis aiming to initiate a study towards designating all lakesof the Pokhara valley in the Ramsar list. If this initiativematerializes well may help opening a new avenue for management,though one should be careful of not curtailing theaccess of beneficiaries over the best use of lake resources.7

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