Research

INTRODUCTION

Mangrove forest-dependent communities rely on timber and other non-timber forest products (NTFPs) for subsistence and livelihood needs throughout the world (Huxham et al. 2017). Wood from mangrove forests that are contiguous with human settlements along the coast also serves as a common pool resource that satisfies local energy demands, construction material for building houses and boats, poles for fish enclosures, and a variety of other uses (Walters 2005a, Dahdouh-Guebas et al. 2006, Walters et al. 2008, Badola et al. 2012, Sathya and Sekar 2012). Although mangrove forest use, dependence, and degradation are intricately connected through socioeconomic and cultural processes, studies largely focus on forest loss such as complete canopy removal, while considering only a handful of forest-socio-cultural relations such as firewood extraction (Glaser 2003, Walters 2005b, López-Hoffman et al. 2006, Feka et al. 2011, Cormier-Salem 2017, Queiroz et al. 2017, Thomas et al. 2018). This is important because wood is still a crucial biofuel for many households in Asia that use firewood on a daily basis (Stoner et al. 2021).

In India, a significant proportion of households continue to rely on biomass for some, if not all, of their cooking needs (Kim et al. 2011, Amegah et al. 2014). Although the adoption of cleaner fuels has substantially increased across the country, a large proportion of the population continues to use traditional biomass cookstoves or mud chullahs for their cooking needs. There is still a dearth of statistics on the role of mangrove forests in supplementing this pool, with only a handful of studies that describe the implications of this reliance on forest degradation and potential socioeconomic impacts (Ambastha et al. 2010, Badola et al. 2012, Sathya and Sekar 2012). Much less exists on the heavily gendered differences in mangrove resource use, both marine and forest resource foraging activities, and their implications for mangrove conservation.

Mangrove wood rarely forms the main source of income for poor forest-dependent families, rather it is a resource for household subsistence needs (Walters et al. 2008, Atheull et al. 2009). Although exchange for revenue in local markets can supplement income (Bandaranayake 1998, Scales and Friess 2019), forest protection laws criminalize such exchanges in many parts of the tropics (Roy 2014). In India, much of these forests exist within protected area boundaries where harvesting mangrove wood is illegal, but high poverty rates and the absence of affordable fuel choices perpetuate reliance on forest products. Several factors determine forest exploitation levels: from proximity to access, but socioeconomic factors remain strong determinants for perpetuating dependence (Hauff et al. 2006). The continued reliance may have unintended environmental consequences (accelerated forest degradation, cryptic damage, depletion of local resources), but also have socioeconomic implications (Kowsari and Zerriffi 2011, Scales and Friess 2019, Rasquinha and Mishra 2021, Bošković et al. 2023).

The drudgery associated with fuelwood collection is usually borne by women increasing higher physical burdens and opportunity costs with the time spent collecting firewood. On average, women dedicate about 20 hours per week toward collection of wood-based fuels for household cooking needs (Rehfuess et al. 2006, Jagoe et al. 2020). These social practices and responsibilities can reinforce social norms but also limit women and children from diverting time to education or other income-generating activities (OECD/IEA 2006). In fact, women and children are found to be most vulnerable to the effects of indoor air pollution due to wood burning for cooking and heating purposes (Lim et al. 2013). Apart from being a global health hazard, indoor wood burning is also a global warming threat as the emissions from burning solid fuel release carbon monoxide (CO) and plain soot, also known as black carbon, a short-lived but highly potent climate pollutant (Jeuland and Pattanayak 2012). Thus, fuelwood extraction from mangrove forests and its use indoors for cooking can potentially contribute to climate change and exacerbate socioeconomic impacts.

Additionally, the role of mangroves in carbon sequestration and climate change mitigation has translated into multiple efforts to integrate blue carbon (carbon stored in mangroves and other coastal ecosystems) considerations into climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies. This includes exploring opportunities for carbon financing, developing methodologies for blue carbon accounting, promoting research on the role of mangroves in carbon sequestration, and increasing the protection and restoration of blue carbon ecosystems. Scale mismatches within blue carbon policy can arise when the management and governance of coastal ecosystems that sequester carbon do not align with the larger scale policies and frameworks related to climate change mitigation. This misalignment can lead to inadequate protection and restoration efforts, hampering the potential benefits of blue carbon ecosystems in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Similarly, scale mismatches can occur in the context of fuelwood harvesting, where local extraction practices and regulations may not align with broader forest management policies. This mismatch can result in the overexploitation of fuelwood resources, leading to deforestation, habitat degradation, and the loss of ecosystem services provided by forests. Furthermore, dependence on traditional cookstoves can also be affected by scale mismatches. For example, local communities reliant on biomass fuel for cooking may face challenges when national or regional energy policies and programs do not adequately address their specific needs. This mismatch can hinder the adoption and dissemination of cleaner and more efficient cooking technologies, perpetuating the reliance on polluting and inefficient cookstoves.

This study focuses on how intersecting relations of gender and social identities influence issues of access in forest landscapes of Bhitarkanika National Park, India. It applies Ribot and Peluso’s (2003) theory of access, including the intersectionality of social structures like gender, tribal affiliations, and regional identities to demonstrate how enmeshing relations of places, people, and environmental histories mediate mangrove forest governance in this region. According to Ribot and Peluso (2003), access is “the ability to benefit from things —including material objects, persons, institutions, and symbols.” They also theorize access as an “ability” to benefit rather than a “right” to benefit, which is to say neither de facto nor de jure rights determine a community’s ability to access natural resources (Ribot and Peluso 2003). In turn, access is influenced by the intersectionality of identities: gender, caste, religion, statehood, knowledge, authority, markets, labor, capital, or technology (Ribot and Peluso 2003). The study identifies the dominating structures in the context of those mechanisms to describe the web of power relations operating in Bhitarkanika to further the discussion on gender, access, and resource dependence while also highlighting inequity issues and power differences dominating the current blue carbon discourse (carbon stored in coastal ecosystems is known as blue carbon). It looks at how regulatory mechanisms of protection interact and influence mangrove forest dependence, fuelwood harvesting, and blue carbon conservation.

METHODS

Study area: Bhitarkanika National Park, India

The Bhitarkanika mangrove-human landscape accommodates about 309 villages located within Rajnagar community development block (CD), in the Kendrapara district in Odisha (Fig. 1). It represents India’s second-most important mangrove forest area after the Sundarbans on the east coast.

Socio-political ecosystem

Mangrove forests have been an integral part of this community, its culture, and religious practices. With time and change in different administrative regimes governing these forests, local communities gradually lost their traditional right over the forest. The district used to be the trade hub of the ancient Kalinga Kingdom encompassing vast estates including the Bhitarkanika forest. The Kanika rulers maintained control despite the change in administrative rule in the state owing to the inaccessibility of this region. The network of meandering creeks and dense mangrove swamps ensured the submission of the Kanika rulers was only nominal in nature. In medieval India, the Mughal emperors divided the region into land-based revenue systems and established administrative units called Parganas. Although the Mughal emperors took over the princely kingdom, the princely chiefs continued to maintain control as Rajas and enjoyed a semi-independent status throughout the different ruling dynasties in the state. During the Mughal rule, the chiefs paid a fixed annual rent to the Mughals forming the zamindari system, placing Kanika under the Aul zamindari. The Marathas and the British followed suit and maintained the status quo to avoid conflict with the chiefs. The local communities continued paying rents to the Kanika rulers, which provided them with control over their rice fields and access to the surrounding mangrove forests. As rents increased, more forest area was converted to agricultural fields.

Today, this land-seascape holds multiple protected areas, each exhibiting varying levels of protection. These include a national park, a wildlife sanctuary, a marine protected area, and a Ramsar wetland site, intertwined within the same protected area network. The mangrove forests of Bhitarkanika were initially declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1975, comprising about 672 sq. km, and later the core zone of 145 sq. km, a national park in 1998. The core zone of the sanctuary that forms the national park is where human activities like the collection of firewood or fishing are prohibited, while the surrounding buffer areas allow community livelihood and development activities like farming, fishing, and tourism.

Apart from the legally designated protected area boundaries, several policies and regulations interact and dominate the governance of this region influencing access to mangrove forests by local communities. These include local and state maritime policies on coastal fisheries, aquaculture, shipping, and port regulations. The mangroves also receive special attention under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 as designated Marine & Coastal Protected Areas (MCPAs) and the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification under the Environmental Protection Act 1986, which regulates coastal zoning laws and tenure. For instance, according to CRZ zoning laws and court rulings, all shrimp farms around the park are considered illegal. Similarly, motorized vessels/trawlers within 20 kilometers of the state’s shoreline remain off-limits to fishers every year for six months, from November to May to protect the mass nesting sites of the olive ridley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea). During this time, local villagers migrate to other cities for jobs.

The rich biodiversity supported by the flourishing estuarine environment and dense mangroves is also maintained by local stewards through Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMC) and Self-Help Groups (SHGs). Although, these groups are supported through state funds, multi-lateral, and bilateral funding through international partners such as the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) have been integral to the success of forestry and plantation projects across the country. The state and JICA collaborate through loan-assistance programs to support ongoing JFMCs and SHGs to undertake plantation programs across the country (JICA 2017).

These JICA-assisted projects are slowly looking to incorporate and link REDD+ conceptual framing into their ongoing projects and Bhitarkanika is one of the many prioritized regions where JICA-assisted REDD+ projects are planned for implementation (JICA 2017). A state-wide assessment for the adoption of a REDD+ framework to monitor changes in the carbon stock of the area between the Forestry Department and JICA and three pilot Redd+ projects have been envisioned for this area.

Socioeconomic profile

According to the 2011 census, the demographic profile of Rajnagar can be described to be predominantly Hindu (98.12%) followed by Muslim (1.7%), both native Odiyas and Bengali Odiyas (Bengali population settled here from West Bengal and/ Bangladesh), especially in some of the sampled villages. Similarly, people belonging to the Schedule Caste (SC) constitute 12.6% whereas Schedule Tribe (ST) is 1.4% of the total population. The demographics create intriguing dynamics in the region. This study covers 21 villages comprising a mix of ethnicities, caste, and religious identities (Fig. 1). Villages are spatially segregated based on ethnicity and religion, while (Hindu and Muslim) Odiyas form the larger proportion among all social classes, followed by Bengali Odiyas and Adivasi Santhali communities in the sampled villages. Among the sampled villages, three villages were predominantly composed of Bengali Odiya families with all villages showing further spatial segregation based on religion.

People in this region earn their livelihoods by wage labor, which includes both public employment and government-funded social employment plans (such as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee [MNREGA] schemes). Public employment is dominated by the agricultural and aquaculture sector where farms are leased out yearly for labor and profit sharing, tourism-allied jobs, working on sea trawlers, and fish processing and storage facilities. The annual income of the villagers varies across the landscape with fisherfolk working on trawlers and investing in aquaculture farming earning large substantial profits (~1 lakh to 10 lakh INR, equivalent to ~US$1200 to 12000). However, daily wagers that form the bulk of the population, including those involved in small-scale fishing activities, migrant labor, and rice farming, earn an annual income ranging between 20,000 and 1,00,000 INR (~US$250 to 1200).

Mangroves form an integral part of people’s lives in this region with about 40 villages in the sanctuary depending directly on mangroves for their firewood needs. Past studies have estimated that about 85% of the daily firewood needs are extracted from mangroves and about 20% of the village population is engaged in firewood collection (Chadha and Kar 1999). Apart from firewood, people also use mangrove wood for fishing activities such as barricade fishing, small-scale fishing gear like fish traps, and wood for poles (Ravishankar et al. 2004; D. Rasquinha personal observations). Small-scale harvesting for firewood is usually conducted by women in groups and often to supplement the cooking fuel needs of households. Dependence on mangrove firewood is slowly changing because of positive values on the co-benefits of mangrove forests to coastal communities, especially flood protection and policy initiatives (clean fuel subsidies) that discourage dependence. However, use continues in the form of selective harvesting practices. The continued use stems from both the cultural significance of cooking on traditional wood-fired cookstoves and from social conditions that perpetuate reliance on forest resources (Rasquinha 2022).

Approach

This study covers research conducted in 21 villages (Fig. 1) over 6 months. The villages were purposively selected based on prior knowledge of firewood use, land tenure issues, and proximity to the forest core area. All research was approved by the University of Georgia’s institutional review board and conducted with permits from the Forest Department.

Questionnaire survey

A structured questionnaire survey was conducted (Table 1) with 170 adult community members, (108 women and 62 men), from the 21 villages (Fig. 1). Individual surveys to capture firewood dependency in the region were also undertaken. The questionnaire was designed to capture gender differences in firewood collection and usage for cooking purposes. Monthly consumption patterns, alternate fuelwood sources, preferred mangrove tree species, and capacity to switch to other sources were also collated. The questionnaire asked about fuelwood consumption patterns, alternate fuelwood sources, preferred mangrove tree species, and capacity to switch to other sources and was designed to capture gender differences in processes of resource access struggles. The data was collated and summarized using descriptive statistics.

Focus groups and participant observations

Focus groups (5–8 participants) were performed to provide context and depth to issues of access and the factors that contribute to forest dependence in this region (Table 1). Interviews were audio recorded if permission was granted and transcribed. Out of 42 interviews, 32 were audio recorded. Interviews that were not recorded were supplemented with observations and extensive field notes. Interview responses were analyzed and coded for themes in MaxQDA (VERBI Software 2022). Themes are concepts that emerge from qualitative data that help explain relationships. These themes were identified by the presence of repetitive concepts, word frequency, word co-occurrence, and keywords in context (Opler 1945, Ryan and Bernard 2003).

Mapping firewood dependence

During data collection, spatial information (GPS points) on firewood use/extraction was also noted and visualized spatially on a map to understand forest interaction areas. A potential hot zone was marked if the interviews, surveys, or field observations recorded forest extraction. The degrees of influence were assumed to be dependent on the number of times extraction was reported for the same region. Field observations were correlated with the closest village location or collectors surveyed about the final destinations whenever possible. Based on this criterion, villages that recorded fewer than 20 responses were marked as Low, between 20 and 50 as Moderate, and greater than 50 as High.

RESULTS

The main findings from this study are summarized in two main themes: the first looks at the relationship of forest resources, specifically fuelwood with gender, and the second how the different mechanisms of access influence this relationship.

Relationship of mangrove fuelwood and gender

Fuelwood dependence

From the interviews and survey results, it was evident that firewood extraction is primarily carried out by women. A gendered response to the use of firewood as a fuel source for cooking was also found. Among the individuals surveyed, 61% agreed versus 39% denied that they used firewood for cooking. Among those who agreed, 89% suggested that women were primarily involved in the collection of firewood. The process of fuelwood harvesting was never a solitary venture but conducted in groups (2–6), comprising women from the same household or different households. They usually coordinated their timings for fuelwood collection with essential household chores (such as cooking and other farming or livestock maintenance activities), and tidal fluctuations. A lump sum amount to obtain passes to collect firewood was paid to the Forest Department. These passes were generally not documented officially, were valid for six months, and cost local communities a maximum of 2000 INR (~US$24). In some villages, fines of 1000 to 2000 INR were imposed if caught trespassing forest boundaries for firewood collection. At such times, these fines also serve as passes for a period of six months permitting collection for that time frame.

The amount of firewood collected varied from household to household and was influenced by a variety of factors. Approximately, 20–300 kg (~25 kg being the average amount conveyed by the majority) were extracted monthly depending on household size, and access to alternative cooking fuels like dung cakes, rice straws, or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cookstoves. On average, a majority of the households used about 25–30 kg per month with a few exceptions (< 5 residents) stating between 100 and 300 kg. These one-off cases of high usage reflected households that did not supplement their fuelwood consumption with alternate sources.

Throughout the region, multiple types of cooking fuel were used: firewood, rice husks, dried coconut palms, dung cakes, and gas cylinders (Fig. 2). The two most common uses of firewood collection involved cooking and heating, a role predominately fulfilled by women in this region. Many of the households interviewed (80%) also owned LPG cylinders but preferred other sources of fuel because of their inability to afford or access a regular supply of a cylinder for their daily needs. The subsidized cost of cylinders was still insufficient to cater to the needs of larger families that required at least two refills every month. Similarly, a continuous supply of cylinders was equally difficult to obtain because of the absence of relevant paperwork and the remoteness of the area.

Forest dependence for firewood was also spatially recorded to understand which areas showed a high mangrove dependence (Fig. 3). Using information obtained through the focus group discussions and field observations, the number of times firewood extraction/use was observed or reported was mapped. Fuelwood extraction was dependent on several factors such as tidal fluctuations, and the presence of fences, with irregular and unpredictable extraction trails. The villages that showed high use of firewood were predominately composed of areas with clearly marked forest trails for fuelwood collection, an operational permit system, and good relations with on-ground forest staff. The map provides insights into how forest dependence has changed in this region. Although forest reliance has decreased compared to historical levels (see fuelwood consumption map from Ambastha et al. 2010), fuelwood dependence still continues in forest pockets with varying levels of access. Historically, boat networks formed the main route of transport across the forest, but extraction was observed to be concentrated across forest edges with ready access to roads, and less along creeks or rivers where boat routes were prevalent and required more formal permissions for entry. The hotspot map also provides information on where conservation or restoration efforts can be targeted, especially if developing co-governance strategies with forest-reliant communities.

Species preference, and consumption patterns

Although participants named several species used for fuelwood, NTFP use (Table 2) was practically non-existent in current use patterns. Table 2 provides a list of mangrove timber and NFTPs reported from previous studies (Pattanaik et al. 2008, Ambastha et al. 2010, Hussain and Badola 2010) in the area and those that are currently used today (based on information collated from our interviews). Participants (90%) confirmed that dependence on mangrove species for fuelwood has drastically declined, and therefore often supplemented with alternative biomass sources. Such alternative fuel use was especially important during the monsoon season when access to forest was limited or impossible because of continuous flooding but also because of the absence of reliable storage or other infrastructure to keep wood dry and usable. The gradual decline of fuelwood dependence is also closely connected with improved forest quality. Surveys also revealed the preference of some species over others as fuelwood, because of better calorific value or the presence of thinner stems that made it easier to harvest and burn the wood. The complete absence of previously reported uses for NTFPs was also prevalent across responses. It was surprising that no one reported on NTFP use, even though earlier studies had reported it in this area (Pattanaik et al. 2008, Ambastha et al. 2010, Hussain and Badola 2010).

Responses also highlighted the cognizance of forest regeneration and recovery processes especially among women. Women recognized that the collection of firewood does not necessarily equate to the practices of cutting timber. The former accommodates the growth and recovery of forests over the destruction of the ecosystem. As one of the participants highlighted, “We typically gather dried stems; however, if they’re not accessible, we gather small stems from two of the four trees. On the subsequent occasion, we’ll gather from the remaining two trees.” Another striking difference between men and women was based on forest quality issues where men acknowledged that forest quality has improved over the years because of less dependence, whereas women repeatedly highlighted how the quality of fuelwood of specific mangrove species was better in the past.

Past and current uses of mangroves

Table 2 provides a list of mangrove timber and NFTPs reported from previous studies (Pattanaik et al. 2008, Ambastha et al. 2010, Hussain and Badola 2010) in the area and those that are currently used today (based on information collated from our interviews). Several mangrove products are not in use today. These also include those used in the past for medicinal purposes. A decline in past uses was evident across a range of products, with the only predominant use being fuelwood. This decline signals a change in the traditional knowledge systems of villagers as well as a change in mangrove-human relationships. It is most likely the result of the restrictive legislation on mangroves that is based on prohibitions rather than regulated use. Some studies demonstrate a similar loss of perceived mangrove values with subsequent legal restrictions on resources, indicating how access plays a crucial role in forest-people relationships (Moreira dos Santos and Lana 2017).

Mechanisms of access

Social identities, relation, and history

According to the theory of access, the right to benefit (from the use, production, extraction, or consumption of a resource) and the ability to benefit are not the same thing. Although people have de jure rights to access forests, all do not possess the ability to benefit equally, which may stem from social conflicts arising because of caste, regional identity, and religion. One interviewee shared, “There are Bengali, Muslim, Odia, Christian, and Adivasis here. Not everyone likes each other. Everyone keeps an eye on what the other is doing and that’s why people get fined easily or get in trouble with the forest department.”

Conversations between forest committee members of different villages also revealed the lack of information or knowledge on accessing subsidies to clean energy fuels and discrepancies between the ability to continue using clean energy sources for firewood even after securing the connection. They emphasized how unsteady income flow prevented them from continuing a steady LPG supply. Similarly, climate-induced changes in shorelines (coastal erosion that has wiped out villages) have resulted in many villages being relocated to other villages. Resettling and finding a grounding in a new village does not always work smoothly. A relocated interviewee highlighted the changing people-forest connections, reminiscing about old times and emphasizing that extraction may or may not stem from care anymore: “We are still waiting for papers for the relocation. They have not given us papers. We depend on the forest for fish, crabs, and wood but if we go to the jungle, we will be fined or jailed, so people go secretly.”

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

From the responses gathered it was evident that current dependence stems from economic but also cultural conditions, concentrated more among marginalized communities. Several studies document similar findings that reiterate how poor and vulnerable coastal communities are submerged in a web of social conditions that prevent them from adopting mechanisms that change their reliance on forests for subsistence (Glaser 2003, Moreira dos Santos and Lana 2017). Similarly, this study also found a disconnect between past and current uses of mangrove forests with a stark decline in small-scale mangrove exploitation practices such as firewood extraction. This can be attributed to changes in social conditions through the adoption of profit-generating practices like aquaculture, or positive values toward regulating services such as protection from storms and conservation policies that have discouraged the extraction and use of natural resources. Similarly, studies conducted in other parts of the world (Moreira dos Santos and Lana 2017) also highlight how historical dependence is dwindling among mangrove local communities. For example, Moreira dos Santos and Lana (2017) show the non-existence of firewood and tannin extraction, use, and sale of Brazilian mangroves because of the introduction of technological innovations. Mangrove as an insect repellant is practically invisible today, and bamboo poles have replaced the need for cutting down mangrove wood for house construction purposes.

Although mangrove forest dependence has declined over the years, a large proportion of the interviewees documented the use of mangrove wood for cooking and heating needs. This draws lightly on how mangrove wood continues to remain a source of subsistence that complements other fuel sources. This is to say that almost all interviewees used multiple fuels for their needs, suggesting fuel stacking (use of multiple fuel sources for cooking combinations within the same household) to be prevalent in all households. A strong reliance on traditional fuels like mangrove wood for certain activities in addition to adopting fuel choices was the observed norm.

Overall, these choices are influenced by a variety of factors, the lack of energy access being a crucial component, but also who can access the benefits of a complete switch to non-traditional biomass fuels for cooking or heating. The latter brings us to the discussion on “mechanisms of access” (Ribot and Peluso 2003:155) and what conditions perpetuate the continued reliance on forest resources.

The ability to access: social conditions, choices, and norms

Ribot and Peluso (2003) theorize various structural and relational mechanisms that facilitate rights-based and/or illicit mechanisms of access. They shape how benefits are gained, controlled, maintained, or even excluded. To illustrate, the right to extract wood from mangrove forests can be determined through both rights-based or illicit modes by controlling who or how access to mangrove wood is obtained, or how access to cleaner energy fuels, or the lack thereof, could be governed by income disparities, poverty, or any knowledge about policies that influence clean energy adoption and access. Similarly, conditions that prevent the adoption and continued use of cleaner energy sources can also be embedded in structural or relational mechanisms. They include technology, capital, markets, labor, knowledge, authority, identities, and social relations as some of the structural and relational mechanisms that influence access.

The responses illuminate both illicit and rights-based mechanisms wherein access to the protected mangrove forest and access to clean energy adoption is controlled. People’s access to forests is controlled by de jure rights that makes it illegal to extract timber or non-timber forest products. So, their means of access are governed largely through de facto mechanisms that are both illicit and de jure in nature. They obtain permits to extract firewood but also use their fines for trespassing as passes to enter the forests. Those who can obtain permits are members of village committees with active relations to people in positions of power or part of social networks that enhance the ready availability of these permits. However, households from marginalized communities depend on their social networks to escape fines (go in groups or avoid going during patrols) or pay the fine if caught considering the costs are still lower than switching to LPG.

Similarly, although LPG is widely preferred to solid fuels for its cleanliness and ease of handling (Patra 2015), in many cases, high fuel costs, the lack of paperwork to access subsidies, and lack of supply at times especially during monsoons or storms can limit use. Households may also be hesitant to cook fuel-intensive meals like rice or thick curries to ration gas (Wang 2014), and traditional preferences for wood-cooked meals. Fuel stacking becomes part of social conditions in rural India.

Social conditions also determine choices that are more often dealt with by women rather than men. Women play a crucial role within decentralized energy systems, as part of various tasks, including fetching fuel, fodder, and water for homes, preparing food for their families, as well as engaging in micro-enterprises like basket making or selling dried fish. The choice to enter the forest, or substitute with alternate sources of readily available fuel (rice husks, cow dung cakes, etc.) to compensate for the lack of capital or to switch to LPG is ultimately determined by women. Gender roles and inequalities impose differential costs on family members. For example, collecting traditional fuels is a physically draining task that may take anywhere from 2 to 20 or more hours per week, which could alternatively be spent on childcare, self-care, education, and other self-improvement activities, or income-generating activities. Therefore, they bear the brunt of the majority of adverse impacts stemming from fuel collection, transportation, and indoor air pollution that arise because of the utilization of solid fuels (Clancy et al. 2003). Moreover, the continuous migration of male members to cities for jobs has resulted in greater responsibilities on women in terms of managing finances while also tending to farm labor, cattle care, and limited agency in household decision making. Fuelwood dependence was also shown to lower blue carbon storage in areas harvested for fuelwood than in non-harvested areas (Rasquinha and Mishra 2021). However, selective harvesting practices such as sparing larger diameter trees were evident in harvested plots, showing evidence that women (primary fuelwood collectors) practiced sustainable harvesting. The decision to switch to cost-effective choices such as foraging for firewood or maintaining forest regeneration processes to minimize forest degradation is ultimately a burden borne by women, thus, feminizing forest relations. The concept of decision making also highlights how the “feminization of forest-relations” (Fig. 4) may be a double-edged sword, influencing access to forest resources, as well as alternatives to forest resources considering the limited agency in decision making in patriarchal societies. Figure 4 provides a summary of each mechanism highlighting how forest-relations become feminized, from understanding forest regeneration processes or questions about forest access or alternatives to reduce dependence.

Consolidating, with increasing income and prosperity, people gradually advance up the energy ladder (Kowsari and Zerriffi 2011). The energy ladder represents the relationship between poverty reduction and energy with traditional fuels (woodfuels, dung, and crop residues) at the bottom rung, whereas more advanced or modern fuels like gas and electricity are at the top. The switch to more modern fuel sources comes with positive health effects, reduced atmospheric emissions, and improved forest cover (Yevich and Logan 2003). However, the switch is not only determined by income and price of fuels but also by tradition, social expectation, and availability (Barnes et al. 2005).

Roy (2014) highlights how ill-defined property rights regimes in the Sundarban mangrove forests create social conflicts that further marginalize mangrove-dependent communities. He argues that the top-down allocation of permits that provide access to forest resources has increased the incidence of overharvesting. To achieve better conservation measures, both local human communities, as well as state forest departments, should share responsibilities, control, and benefits over forest management decisions. In contrast, but on a similar note, Beitl (2012) demonstrates how the demarcation of clear rights can also marginalize communities (independent cockle collectors). In this study, she critically examines the impact of changing policies in Ecuador that result in concomitant issues of access. As a community-based conservation strategy, several custodias, i.e., 10-year community-managed areas, were established and granted to “traditional user groups” after several years of social conflicts with shrimp farmers. Consequently, the establishment of custodias led to the further marginalization of independent cockle collectors, which also depended on mangrove resources but lacked any relevant legal backing. Both these studies illuminate how power manifests through institutional mechanisms and de jure policies that can influence sustainable resource use (Ribot 1998, Ribot and Peluso 2003, Beitl 2012, Roy 2014). They also demonstrate how these power dynamics further marginalize forest-dependent communities.

Channels of access and blue carbon

A series of variables involved at different scales dominating the channels of access are described in Figure 5. Of relevance to this study are the costs of forfeiting environmental benefits such as firewood dependence and the resulting gain to the blue carbon pool, and climate mitigation protection, or loss to livelihood subsistence. But also, who benefits, at which scale, and who has access to these benefits?

Policies imposing exclusion at the local community level are drafted, and regulated at global, national, and regional (state and local) levels. These may include conserving blue carbon stocks to contribute to the climate mitigation goals of states, countries, and global corporations. It may also include fortress measures of governing forested areas through the demarcation of national parks, reserves, or private parks. All these policies at higher scales operate with the assumption that exclusion empowers communities through compensation mechanisms. However, at lower scales, exclusion becomes the norm, and compensation mechanisms are governed by rules that are controlled through different mechanisms (mechanisms of access like gender, social class, regional identity, and history) or diverted to maintenance costs.

A closer look at the evolution of policies subsidizing cleaner fuel access and adoption in India highlights a stronger focus on economic factors rather than regional or social-cultural factors (Gould and Urpelainen 2018). Since 2009, the government has issued several policies toward domestic cooking energy choices for poorer rural sections of the country (Table 3).

Our interviewees, however, demonstrated mediocre to low levels of awareness toward the presence of government policies and schemes for accessing cleaner sources of fuel for cooking. About 10% of interviewees were not aware of different policies (e.g., Pradhan Mantri Ujwala Yojana [PMUY] scheme) or its benefits. Those that were knowledgeable reiterated that one-time connections do not help in the continued supply of such services. Many had cylinders but did not use them regularly because the cost of continued access was not feasible. Instead, they adopted a pragmatic approach of relying on a combination of fuels and stove options that helped them navigate the shortage or unavailability of alternative sources. An example of a mud stove is shown in Figure 6. Although subsidies are intended to improve access to cleaner fuel sources for the poor and marginalized, it is rare that typically granted subsidies reach the poorest income groups.

An even higher proportion of Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) households (marginalized caste groups) rely on such fuel sources than other social categories. Only about 2% of the rural population uses non-solid fuel sources, and less than 1% have adopted LPG sources for use. Similarly, female-headed households, especially those belonging to the SC and ST show a larger proportion of households using solid fuels like biomass, coal, lignite, and charcoal for cooking across both rural and urban areas (Manjula and Gopi 2017).

Similarly, benefits are not always straightforward. For example, fuelwood has large opportunity costs in terms of collection time, effort, or labor devoted by women that ultimately varies with distance, density of fuelwood/forest patches, and accessibility to forest resources. Therefore, switching to improved cooking technologies or renewable sources that also come with substantial financial and opportunity costs, may seem like the intuitive choice but unless provided with continuous access to subsidies may end up being confined to the relatively wealthy. Alternative fuel sources like dung cakes or producing fuelwood in woodlots on farms, also require access to land (and land rights) and cattle. Similarly, dung also forms an important source of fertilizer, therefore using it as fuelwood may result in reduced soil fertility.

In conclusion, using access to understand people-forest relations provides new insights into how intersectional identities influence resource access as well as highlights the disconnect between well-meaning conservation and socioeconomic policies and ground realities. This study shows that although clean cooking fuels have positive impacts and are well-acknowledged and even used regularly in the forest surrounding households, solid fuels remain a crucial aspect of local choices. The benefits depend on place-based policies but also extend to space heating needs, especially in areas where electricity is scarce, the ability to provide low-cost meals for large families, and saving for rainy days, especially during fuel shortages (for example, the recent pandemic-induced lockdown and supply shortages to rural areas). Fuel stacking (by women) is an outcome of rational decision making, given on-the-ground realities. It also highlights that the design and implementation of mangrove conservation policies need to run hand in hand with socioeconomic empowerment acknowledging the differential impact on marginalized social classes.

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