Pastoralism and Rangeland Management on the Tibetan Plateau in ...

are exported in crude form i.e. in the form of roots, bark, seeds, leaves <strong>and</strong>
branches. However, there is no systematic method for medicinal plant collection
in these mountain regions (Hussain 2004).
3.2.2 Issues related to Medicinal <strong>and</strong> Aromatic Plants
Some of the key issues <strong>and</strong> challenges related to medicinal <strong>and</strong> aromatic plants
(MAPs) are lack of authentic <strong>and</strong> scientific data about the actual potential <strong>and</strong>
status of MAPs as threatened, endangered <strong>and</strong> commercial viability, value
chain analysis to find missing links <strong>and</strong> cost to price variations <strong>and</strong> actual
benefits to pastoral communities, patenting <strong>and</strong> intellectual property rights
<strong>and</strong> safeguarding local knowledge <strong>and</strong> rights of local people <strong>and</strong> protection of
indigenous knowledge.
Conservation status of MAP is not known to draw updated red list for management
<strong>and</strong> biological threshold level of different species not understood.
Key plant resources available in wilderness are depleted <strong>and</strong> when farmers are
mobilized for non-profitable cultivation of MAP, there is over-harvesting of
species from the wild. Stable MAP business requires sustainable returns of the
profit <strong>and</strong> sustainable production with limited yearly production fluctuation.
Collection from wild resources always poses inconsistent production. Currently
collection does not match with the productive capacity of the habitat. Species
of high dem<strong>and</strong> are over-harvested <strong>and</strong> low dem<strong>and</strong> under-harvested. Collectors
are competing for early harvesting <strong>and</strong> some time pre-fruiting collection,
if they will wait till the maturity, other will get the chance to harvest. They
mostly uproot the plant even if only flowers or leaves are needed.
Some species are over-harvested to the extent to be declared as threatened
species. These include: Saussurea costus, Valeriana jatamansi, Polygonatum
multiflorum, Angelica glauca, Podophyllum hex<strong>and</strong>rum, Dioscorea deltoidea,
Asparagus adscendense, Geranium wallichianum, Viola odorata, Aconitum spp;
Polygonum amplexicaule, Glycyrrhiza glabra, Ferula asafoetida, Morchella esculenta,
Morchella conica, Ephedra gerardiana, Jurinea macrocephala <strong>and</strong> Paeonia
emodi. (Rahim 2004)
3.3 Gemstone: Mining, cutting <strong>and</strong> polishing
There is a great potential for production of gemstone <strong>and</strong> mineral products
in Gilgit-Baltistan. Major deposits of corundum (ruby <strong>and</strong> sapphire) beryl
(emerald <strong>and</strong> aquamarine), topaz, opal, pegmatite, mica, spinel, pyrite <strong>and</strong>
sedimentary deposits of gold <strong>and</strong> alluvial deposits of ruby are reportedly found
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