Snow leopard habitat at risk from infrastructure projects: WWF

GILGIT: Infrastructure development projects, particularly the construction of roads, are posing severe threats to the habitats of snow leopards in Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B), disrupting their movement and escalating human-wildlife conflicts, a new study by WWF-Pakistan has revealed.

The research, conducted under the project titled “Building Ecological and Sustainable Transport/Linear Infrastructure for Snow Leopards in the Hindu Kush Karakoram Himalaya Landscape” (BEAST), highlighted the adverse effects of rapid infrastructure growth on the region’s wildlife. The report covered two major roads — Karakoram Highway (KKH) and Gilgit-Shandur Road — which bisect Snow leopard habitat.

Focusing on the broader road ecology theme, the study gathered evidence on infrastructure-related threats to snow leopards and their habitat in the G-B region. It collected data on wildlife-vehicle collisions, investigated the impact of increasing infrastructure on human-wildlife interaction, and analysed land use changes in known snow leopard hotspots over the past twenty years.

The study, supported by various international foundations through the “With Snow Leopards Small Grant” (SLSG), points out that the expansion of linear infrastructure like roads has fragmented the once continuous habitat of Snow leopards. The report revealed that the prey species of the Snow leopard such as Himalayan ibex and domestic livestock are also killed due to heavy traffic on the highways.

Read more: WATCH: Leopard spotted in Murree

WWF-Pakistan’s report underscores the need to strike a balance between boosting infrastructure development and with conservation of threatened wildlife such as Snow leopards in the region. The report stated that Gilgit Baltistan is home to diverse wildlife including vulnerable snow leopards. The report found that although linear infrastructure improves national and regional economies, it restricts wildlife movement and poses a threat to the snow leopards and their prey species such as ungulates.

WWF-PakistanDirector General Hammad Naqi Khan emphasized that while infrastructure projects boost trade and tourism, their environmental and conservation impacts cannot be ignored. “Proper planning and the adoption of sustainable infrastructure are essential to mitigate the detrimental effects on biodiversity,” Khan stated.

The report indicated that large-scale transport infrastructure development and burgeoning hospitality projects have posed a threat to the local biodiversity and pristine landscape in GB. The report proposed that following the current laws regulating wildlife, linear development, and human encroachment should be prohibited in the protected areas.

The WWF-Pakistan report also recommended that the construction of wildlife corridors and crossings in potential wildlife habitats could help minimize the access of wildlife to high-traffic roads and could reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions. It also suggested that the deployment of devoted law enforcement and traffic personnel along wildlife hotspots can help thwart the hunting and poaching of Snow leopards and its prey species. The report also suggested that infrastructure-related development projects should take proactive mitigation steps to safeguard the native ecology and wild species.

With fewer than 7,000 snow leopards left globally, and an estimated 200 to 420 in Pakistan’s northern mountain ranges, the need for integrated conservation efforts is more pressing than ever, the report concludes.