The Western Ghats assessment project was completed in September
2011. The final report can be downloaded from the link on the
right. Below are the key results from the project. The Western
Ghats in India is one of the world’s most heavily populated
Biodiversity Hotspots, providing for and supporting 400 million
people through water for drinking, transport, irrigation, and
hydroelectric power, together with food and resources to sustain
livelihoods. However, the pace of growth of the Indian economy
and rates of industrial and urban development are not in tune
with the conservation needs of this freshwater ecosystem and the
remarkably high diversity of species they contain. In most
instances the development planning process does not consider the
ecosystem’s requirements, mainly due to a lack of adequate
information on the distribution and status of freshwater species
and the threats they face. There is also little appreciation of
the value of freshwater ecosystems to the livelihoods of many
people, often the po