The concept of green grabbing is gaining attention as large-scale environmental projects, intended for sustainability and climate action, are leading to the displacement of indigenous and local communities. The recent opposition to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-funded Assam Solar Park highlights the growing tensions between clean energy expansion and land rights issues.
What is Green Grabbing?
🌱 Definition: Green grabbing refers to the appropriation of land and natural resources under the pretext of environmental conservation and sustainability projects. While such initiatives aim to tackle climate change, they often come at the cost of local communities' rights and livelihoods.
🌍 Examples of Green Grabbing:
Carbon offset projects that take over traditional agricultural lands.
Biodiversity reserves that restrict indigenous people's access to ancestral lands.
Afforestation initiatives that replace native forests with commercial tree plantations.
Renewable energy projects (solar farms, wind farms) that displace rural populations.
Case Study: Assam Solar Park
⚡Project: ADB-funded solar energy project in Assam.
🚧Issue: Opposition from local communities due to land displacement.
🌾Impact: Loss of agricultural land, threat to livelihoods, and erosion of traditional knowledge systems that contribute to agrobiodiversity.
Challenges Posed by Green Grabbing
🔹 Land Rights Violations: Indigenous and rural communities often have informal land rights, making them vulnerable to displacement.
🔹 Food Security Risks: Loss of farmland affects agriculture, grazing, and fishing—key sources of nutrition and income for local populations.
🔹 Cultural Erosion: Displacement leads to the loss of indigenous practices, traditions, and ecological knowledge.
🔹 Questionable Environmental Benefits: Some projects fail to deliver genuine ecological benefits, such as monoculture plantations being labeled as reforestation.
Way Forward
✅ Community Participation: Indigenous and local populations must be consulted before implementing projects.
✅ Land Rights Protection: Governments should strengthen land tenure security for vulnerable communities.
✅ Sustainable Models: Renewable energy and conservation efforts should align with local livelihoods rather than displacing them.
✅ Transparency and Accountability: Environmental projects must undergo independent assessments to ensure genuine ecological and social benefits.
UPSC Prelims Question
With reference to Green Grabbing, consider the following statements:
It refers to the large-scale acquisition of land exclusively for afforestation projects.
Green grabbing often results in the displacement of indigenous communities.
The phenomenon is linked to projects such as biodiversity conservation, carbon offsetting, and clean energy expansion.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2, and 3
UPSC Mains Question
Q. Discuss the concept of Green Grabbing and its impact on indigenous communities. How can environmental sustainability be balanced with social justice?
(GS Paper 3 – Environment & Ecology)
#GreenGrabbing #EnvironmentalJustice #Sustainability #LandRights #ClimateAction #RenewableEnergy #UPSC
Answer: (b) 2 and 3 only
Explanation:
Statement 1 is incorrect: Green grabbing is not limited to afforestation projects; it also includes renewable energy, carbon offsetting, and biodiversity conservation projects.
Statement 2 is correct: Green grabbing displaces indigenous and local communities.
Statement 3 is correct: It is linked to various environmental initiatives like carbon credits, biodiversity parks, and clean energy projects.
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