Land use policies and farming systems

1986 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 286-303 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adolfo Mascarenhas ◽  
L.A. Odero-Ogwel ◽  
Y.F.O. Masakhalia ◽  
Asit K. Biswas
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Land Use Policies

scholarly journals State-led agricultural subsidies drive monoculture cultivar cashew expansion in northern Western Ghats, India

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anushka Rege ◽  
Janice Ser Huay Lee
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Western Ghats ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Agricultural Commodity ◽  
Agricultural Subsidies ◽  
Land Use Policies ◽  
Privately Owned

Agricultural commodity production is an important source of livelihood for farmers but is a major driver of tropical deforestation and biodiversity loss. While the socioecological effects of agricultural commodities such as palm oil, cocoa and coffee have been well studied, the effects for other commodities such as cashew (Anacardium occidentale) have received less attention. Global cultivated area for cashew increased rapidly from 526,250 ha in 1980 to ~5.9 million ha in 2018. India is the world’s second largest cashew producer, with cashew farms often occurring adjacent to ever dwindling cover of remnant forests. To mitigate cashew expansion at the expense of forests, it is necessary to understand land use policies that drive the expansion of cashew cultivation and the land management practices in present-day cashew farm systems. Through semi-structured interviews (n=65) and a literature review on agricultural policies in India, we evaluated the role of state-led land use policies in cashew expansion and characterised present-day cashew farming systems in the Sawantwadi-Dodamarg landscape in a biodiversity hotspot in northern Western Ghats. Agricultural subsidies introduced from 1980 to 1990 encouraged cultivar cashew expansion and influenced land use conversion from rice and privately owned forest to cashew. Farmers grew a mix of common and cultivar cashew but the latter was preferred as they produced high yields over short duration, even though they required agrochemical inputs and are more susceptible to pests and wildlife-induced losses. About 80% of farmers had cashew farms that were planted over forests in the past 30 years and expressed interest to continue forest clearing for cultivar cashew expansion. Although farmers incurred high losses from crop depredation on cultivar cashew, they avoided applying for government-sponsored compensation for these losses and chose to expand cultivar cashew into forested areas. Our study deepens the understanding of how government-led agricultural subsidies drive farmers’ uptake of cashew cultivars, farmers’ practices on cashew management, and how these factors at the state and farm level drive deforestation in this landscape. We recommend further research in cashew farming systems to devise sound conservation planning that is inclusive of stakeholders for the protection of privately owned forests and sustainability standards for the cashew industry.

Effects of Transportation and Land Use Policies on Air Quality

2010 ◽  
Vol 2158 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena C. McDonald-Buller ◽  
Alba Webb ◽  
Kara M. Kockelman ◽  
Bin (Brenda) Zhou
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Land Use Policies

scholarly journals Rural Roads Are Paving the Way for Land-Use Intensification in the Uplands of Laos

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 330
Author(s):  
Jean-Christophe Castella ◽  
Sonnasack Phaipasith
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Rural Roads ◽  
External Resources ◽  
Hybrid Maize ◽  
The Impact

Road expansion has played a prominent role in the agrarian transition that marked the integration of swidden-based farming systems into the market economy in Southeast Asia. Rural roads deeply altered the landscape and livelihood structures by allowing the penetration of boom crops such as hybrid maize in remote territories. In this article, we investigate the impact of rural road developments on livelihoods in northern Laos through a longitudinal study conducted over a period of 15 years in a forest frontier. We studied adaptive management strategies of local stakeholders through the combination of individual surveys, focus group discussions, participatory mapping and remote-sensing approaches. The study revealed the short-term benefits of the maize feeder roads on poverty alleviation and rural development, but also the negative long-term effects on agroecosystem health and agricultural productivity related to unsustainable land use. Lessons learnt about the mechanisms of agricultural intensification helped understanding the constraints faced by external interventions promoting sustainable land management practices. When negotiated by local communities for their own interest, roads may provide livelihood-enhancing opportunities through access to external resources, rather than undermining them.

scholarly journals Does Land-Use Policy Moderate Impacts of Climate Anomalies on LULC Change in Dry-Lands? An Empirical Enquiry into Drivers and Moderators of LULC Change in Southern Ethiopia

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (15) ◽  
pp. 6261
Author(s):  
Misginaw Arficho ◽  
Andreas Thiel
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Adverse Effects ◽  
Natural Resource ◽  
Governance System ◽  
Dry Land ◽  
Lulc Changes ◽  
Climate Anomalies ◽  
Land Use Policies ◽  
Natural Resource Development ◽  
Development Objectives

The study set out to understand drivers of Land-Use Land Cover (LULC) changes in dry-land areas and investigate factors helping mitigate the adverse impacts of climate anomalies on LULC changes. By employing a mixed-methods design, it combined LULC data with socioeconomic and climatic data, to analyze the pattern of LULC changes and its socioeconomic and climatic driving forces along with moderating factors. It was found that rangeland decreased by 764 km2 (13% of total area) between 1986 and 2015. The results from the Seemingly Unrelated time series regression models confirmed preliminary evidence that climate variability, as well as adaptive land-use policies lacking components of sustainability increase the likelihood of degradation and contraction of rangelands. We also found an indication from the qualitative data that a widening power gap between the customary and statutory governance system reinforces unsustainable land use by obscuring the values of the customary land governance system. However, those policies encompassing economic and natural resource development objectives abate adverse effects of climate variability on land degradation and shrinkage of rangelands. The results suggest that a land governance system with natural resource development objectives fitting to the local context could be an effective policy instrument to lessen the adverse effects of climate anomalies on LULC changes. Although this study focused on analyzing the LULC changes and its drivers in dry-land area, the findings may well have a bearing on the formulation and implementation of effective adaptation and sustainable land-use policies.

Is cross-breeding of cattle beneficial for the environment? The case of mixed farming systems in Central Java, Indonesia

2015 ◽  
Vol 57 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
T.S.M. Widi ◽  
H.M.J. Udo ◽  
K. Oldenbroek ◽  
I.G.S. Budisatria ◽  
E. Baliarti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Live Weight ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Cattle Production ◽  
Young Stock ◽  
Cross Breeding ◽  
Central Java ◽  
Feed Production ◽  
Cattle Farms

SummaryCross-breeding with European beef breeds has become a standard approach for the intensification of smallholder cattle production in Indonesia. This study assessed the environmental impact of cross-breeding, in terms of Global Warming Potential (GWP) and land use. We sampled 90 local Ongole and 162 cross-bred (Simmental × Ongole) cattle farms in four study areas. Expressed per kilogram of live weight of young stock produced, GWP (26.9 kg CO2–equivalents) and land use (34.2 m2) of farms with Ongole breeding stock were not significantly different from the GWP (28.9 kg CO2–equivalents) and land use (37.4 m2) of cross-bred farms. Cross-bred young stock grew faster, but in general cross-bred cattle required more feed. In the current smallholder production system, the dominant cross-breeding practice of using Simmental semen on Ongole andF1cross-bred cows does not result in lower greenhouse gas emissions or land use per kilogram of live weight produced compared with farms with Ongole cows. The advantage from the faster growth of cross-breds is counteracted by the higher emissions from feed production for cross-breds.

Dynamics of grazing rights and their impact on mobile cattle herders in Bhutan

2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kuenga Namgay ◽  
Joanne E. Millar ◽  
Rosemary S. Black
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Socioeconomic Impacts ◽  
Land Use Policies ◽  
Land Holdings ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
Future Policy ◽  
Downstream Communities ◽  
The Impact

Seasonal cattle movements have been an important part of the living cultural heritage in Bhutan for centuries. Herders migrate south every winter to graze their cattle on subtropical pastures and to work in orange orchards. They return north to their villages in spring to grow summer crops. However, the practice of transhumant agropastoralism is under increasing pressure on account of changes in land-use policies, climate change and a declining labour force as youth seek alternative livelihoods. This research investigated the impact of changes in land-use policy, with emphasis on the Land Act 2007, on current and future livelihoods of transhumant herders in Bhutan. During in-depth interviews with 24 transhumant herders and nine livestock advisors, and seven focus-group discussions with 64 participants including herders, downstream residents and development agency personnel, perspectives on this issue were gathered. Findings revealed a lack of herder awareness of changes in land-use policies and minimal consultation of herders during policy development. Confusion and uncertainty about the proposed redistribution of grazing rights and restrictions on herd movements have resulted in confusion and resentment and have created conflicts between upstream and downstream communities. Herders with no current alternatives are concerned about their future livelihoods, whereas others are leaving it to their children to decide their future. It is concluded that the motive behind nationalisation of rangeland is noble and timely, but there are flaws in the redistribution plan. Transhumant agropastoralism is already in decline and there is no need to push towards its end through legislation. Transhumant practices could be left to evolve towards what may be their natural end. Sudden stoppage of inter-district transhumance without offering meaningful alternatives to herders could result in negative environmental and socioeconomic impacts. In future, policy development needs to increasingly embrace science and be based on evidence. A genuine participatory process with citizen engagement could avoid the unintended negative impacts likely to be faced by transhumant herders with marginal land holdings, who depend on this production system for their livelihoods.

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