Environmental and Social Management Plan for Phibsoo Wildlife Sanctuary

The Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP) for Phibsoo Wildlife Sanctuary (PWS) outlines mitigation strategies for infrastructure and conservation activities planned for 2020 under the Bhutan for Life (BFL) project. The plan addresses potential risks such as noise, air pollution, waste generation, and human-wildlife conflict associated with the construction of a range office, waterhole restoration, and river bank protection. It mandates strict adherence to both Royal Government of Bhutan laws and WWF's Social Safeguards Integrated Policies and Procedures, with the latter prevailing in cases of discrepancy regarding community consultation and compensation for non-title land holders.

• The Phibsoo Wildlife Sanctuary (PWS) is the smallest protected area in Bhutan, covering 269 Km2, and serves as the country's only natural habitat for spotted deer (Chital) and wild Sal and agar wood forest.
• Planned activities for 2020 include the construction of a Range Office at Shariphu (USD 65,000), maintenance of existing offices (USD 7,500), waterhole improvement (USD 4,761), lowland grassland restoration (USD 11,000), combined zonation (USD 49,500), and river bank protection at Phibsoo and Nichula (USD 50,057).
• The construction of the Range Office is expected to cause noise and air pollution, as well as potential conflicts between workers and local communities over the distribution of water from a source located 6 km from the site.
• Waterhole restoration activities carry a risk of increasing poaching because these sites become hotspots where animals gather, necessitating increased patrolling by park authorities.
• River bank protection projects at Phibsoo and Nichula aim to prevent erosion of prime grasslands and protect a forestry office and 30 households, respectively, though they risk contaminating water and disturbing natural habitats.
• The project adopts a hierarchy of safeguards where WWF’s Social Safeguards Integrated Policies and Procedures (SIPP) prevail over Royal Government of Bhutan (RGoB) legislation in cases of discrepancy, particularly regarding the eligibility of non-title land holders for compensation and the requirement for extensive community consultations.

APA

WWF International (2020). Environmental and Social Management Plan for Phibsoo Wildlife Sanctuary. https://files.worldwildlife.org/wwfcmsprod/files/Publication/file/2sklk5f12q_PWS_ESMP.pdf

Chicago

WWF International. Environmental and Social Management Plan for Phibsoo Wildlife Sanctuary. 2020. https://files.worldwildlife.org/wwfcmsprod/files/Publication/file/2sklk5f12q_PWS_ESMP.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=WWF International |title=Environmental and Social Management Plan for Phibsoo Wildlife Sanctuary |date=2020 |url=https://files.worldwildlife.org/wwfcmsprod/files/Publication/file/2sklk5f12q_PWS_ESMP.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wwfinternational2020environmental, author = {{WWF International}}, title = {{Environmental and Social Management Plan for Phibsoo Wildlife Sanctuary}}, institution = {WWF International}, year = {2020}, url = {https://files.worldwildlife.org/wwfcmsprod/files/Publication/file/2sklk5f12q_PWS_ESMP.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }