Willingness to pay for mitigating human-elephant conflict by residents of Nepal

Human-elephant Conflict (HEC) is a significant problem in Nepal, with approximately two-thirds of households being impacted by elephants (Elephas maximus), particularly during the winter. In addition to elephant casualties, more than 10% of the households surveyed have had human casualties (injury or death) during the past 5 years. This study evaluates the economic viability of elephant conservation in Nepal within the context of current and proposed HEC mitigation scenarios. Face-to-face interviews were carried out using a structured questionnaire to elicit the residents’ willingness to pay (WTP) for elephant conservation and HEC mitigation programs using seemingly unrelated regression (SUR). Residents’ WTP was found to be positively related to income and education, and negatively related to damage-related programs. Local stakeholders were willing to pay about 42% more to programs that were economically transparent and improved upon existing management. Residents’ WTP were also greater if they have had previous HEC-related injuries or deaths.


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Elephant Safari launched in western Chitwan

Four community forests located in Chitwan’s western part have introduced elephant safari with an aim to boost tourism.

The elephant safari has been started from Devnagar Post, Chitwan National Park (CNP) Chief Conservation Officer, Ram Chandra Kandel said. Nepal’s cine actor, Rajesh Hamal, and his better half, Madhu Bhattarai, rode on an elephant to announce the launch of the elephant safari on Tuesday.

Hamal said he has been visiting Chitwan’s tourist hotspots for a very long time, but this is the first time elephant safari has been launched in the western part.

The elephant safari has been launched in Navajyoti, Batuli, Dakshinkali and Bandevi buffer zone community forests, according to Barandabhar Consumer Committee Chairman, Dev Raj Sapkota. He added that western Chitwan has a high potential for eco-tourism.

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Captive Elephants Freed From a Life in Chains

In Nepal’s Chitwan National Park and the forests surrounding it, elephants used to be chained for as many as 19 hours a day. The links lay heavy on their ankles, preventing them from moving more than a few inches in any direction and leaving them unable to take shelter from the sun. They stood in their own waste. Some developed arthritis and foot infections.

Even when they were unchained, it was only to work, carrying tourists around on safari or carrying rangers on patrol—work the elephants have been forced to do for generations.

The process of training Asian elephants to carry humans can be brutal, and some captive elephants in Southeast Asia are severely overworked. But since 2014, 83 elephants at camps in around Chitwan National Park have been set free from their chains. Elephant Aid International, a United States-based nonprofit, found success with a new way to contain the elephants: solar-powered electric fences.

This setup lets the elephants engage in some natural behaviors, an important indicator of animal welfare. They can walk and lie down, play and socialize, dust and bathe.

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