scholarly journals Human and wildlife usage of a protected area buffer zone in an area of high immigration

Oryx ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 504-513 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. Bamford ◽  
Daniella Ferrol-Schulte ◽  
Jennifer Wathan

AbstractPopulation growth near protected areas threatens the capacity of such areas for biodiversity conservation. Protected areas may even encourage growth by providing economic benefits that attract migrants. Consequently, understanding the relationships between human demographics and biodiversity is important for conservation. We studied a community-governed Wildlife Management Area bordering the Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania, set up to benefit local people and the subsistence rural economy. Annual population growth in this area is 5%. We used a combination of ecological and socio-economic surveys to determine the causes of this growth and its effect on wildlife in the Wildlife Management Area. One-third of local people interviewed were immigrants to the area. Population growth appeared to be unrelated to the protected area; instead an increasing proportion of immigrants cited readily available land as their reason for moving. Pastoralism was associated with fewer signs of large grazing mammals and elephants Loxodonta africana and agriculture was associated with fewer signs of elephant and buffalo Syncerus caffer but more signs of other ungulates. Few residents were aware of the Wildlife Management Area and few received any benefits from wildlife and therefore had little reason to conserve it. This situation is attributable to poor management of the Wildlife Management Area. Detrimental effects of human activity could spread to the Selous Game Reserve if population growth continues. However, natural resources could benefit residents if properly managed. Interactions between human demographics and protected areas are complex and may be best managed on a case-by-case basis.

Oryx ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 53 (4) ◽  
pp. 732-740 ◽  
Author(s):  
Falko T. Buschke ◽  
Susie Brownlie ◽  
Jeff Manuel

AbstractAichi Biodiversity Target 11 under the Convention on Biological Diversity sets out to conserve at least 17% of terrestrial area by 2020. However, few countries are on track to meet this target and it is uncertain whether developing countries have allocated sufficient resources to expand their protected areas. Biodiversity offsets could resolve this conservation shortfall if developers who affect biodiversity negatively at one locality are made responsible for its protection elsewhere. Here we simulate the use of biodiversity offsetting to expand protected area coverage in South Africa's grassland biome. South Africa's biodiversity offsets policy has been designed specifically to compensate for the residual loss of biodiversity caused by development, by establishing and managing protected areas within the same ecosystem type. We show that it is possible to meet protected area targets using only offsets, while facilitating economic development. However, doing so could slash the current extent of intact habitat by half. These losses could be reduced considerably should the gains in protected areas through offsetting supplement rather than supplant existing government commitments to protected area expansion. Moreover, supplementing existing government commitments would result in comparatively small reductions in potential economic gains, because the marginal economic benefit of transforming habitat decreases as more intact habitat is lost. Therefore, the intended role of biodiversity offsetting in achieving a country's protected area target should be made explicit to fully understand the associated trade-offs between conservation and economic development.


2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 99
Author(s):  
David Mwesigye Tumusiime ◽  
Patrick Byakagaba ◽  
Mnason Tweheyo ◽  
Nelson Turyahabwe

Biodiversity conservation through use of protected areas relies significantly on the attitudes of local adjacent communities. Some studies suggest that attitudes are often shaped by the associated positive and negative externalities and socio-demographic and economic characteristics of local communities living adjacent to protected areas. The current study sought to identify useful predictors of local attitudes towards protected area management. It was conducted at Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda where several interventions in form of benefits to improve local people’s attitudes towards the park have been implemented for the last 30 years. The study examined the extent to which these benefits can influence local people’s attitude towards management of the Protected Area (PA). A household survey was conducted among 190 randomly selected respondents and Generalised Linear Mixed Models (GLMMs) fitted where the dependent variable was a binary “Good” or “otherwise” response to how the respondent considered own relationship with park management. Socio-economic attributes of the respondents were used as control variables. The importance of cost variables (e.g. crop raiding) was also examined. The study found that only direct and material benefits were consistent predictors of a positive attitude towards management. Non-material and indirect benefits as well as the socio-economic factors and costs did not influence the attitude of local communities towards management. It can be concluded that positive attitude towards protected area management is determined by access to direct and material benefits by local communities and not socio-economic factors or costs incurred. Interventions intended to influence local communities to have a positive attitude towards management ought to emphasize direct and material benefits.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (5) ◽  
pp. 65
Author(s):  
Che Bon Ahmad ◽  
Jamalunlaili Abdullah ◽  
Jasmee Jaafar ◽  
Ahamad Nazrin Aris Anuar

It is considerably challenging task to have a buffer zone (BZ) around protected areas (PA) in the urban area due to the conflict of interest between conservation and development. There is a need for ‘win-win situation’. This research is to identify the impact of a potential buffer zone on human and conservation of natural environment which derived from the stakeholders’ understanding. In-depth interviews with stakeholders of the PA and their surroundings were carried out. The findings suggested that a ‘dual purpose’ BZ – environmental conservation and socio-economic benefits are suitable for the FRIM area.Keywords:; Buffer Zone Concept; Protected Areas; Urban Setting; FRIM, MalaysiaISSN: 2398-4287© 2017. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA by e-International Pub lishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open access article under the CC BYNC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elham Sumarga ◽  
Ichsan Suwandhi ◽  
Hairatunnisa HAIRATUNNISA ◽  
Dwi Susilowardani ◽  
Adenna Yuska Nurrahman ◽  
...  

Abstract. Sumarga E, Swandhi I, Hairatunnisa, Susilowardani D, Nurrahman AY, Sadida A. 2021. Disturbances-based plan of delineating protected area’s buffer zone: A case study in Masigit Kareumbi Mountain, West Java, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 22: 5115-5122. The harmony between ecosystems and people, particularly those who live around and inside protected areas, is a key factor for the success of ecosystem protection. This subsequently will ensure the maintenance of ecosystem capacity in providing different types of services. Unfortunately, human activities are still commonly linked to different types of disturbances inside protected areas. This study aims to spatially analyze the anthropogenic disturbances inside a protected area, with a case study in Mount Masigit Kareumbi Protected Area, Indonesia. Two types of disturbances, which can be directly and indirectly related to human intervention, are analyzed, i.e., fires and encroachment for agricultural purposes. This study used Maximum Enthropy (MaxEnt) to analyze the risk of forest fire, while the encroachment was analyzed based on a combination of satellite image interpretation and direct field observation. Fire risk modeling performed well with a mean AUC of 0.98, estimating high fire risk (fire probability more than 0.5) distributed in about 109 ha area inside the Mount Masigit Kareumbi Protected Area. This study also identified about 428 ha of forest encroachment inside the protected area. This study further used the spatial information of the disturbances to determine the priority for selecting and designing areas for buffer zone development.


2003 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 334-343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert B. Weladji ◽  
Stein R. Moe ◽  
Pål Vedeld

In recent years, wildlife policies that consider the participation of stakeholders have been promoted. An understanding of the stakeholders' attitudes towards conservation and existing policies are critical in designing new policies or sustainable conservation strategies. This paper examines stakeholders' (local people, park staff and professional hunter guides) attitudes, towards the Bénoué Wildlife Conservation Area (BWCA) and towards Cameroonian wildlife policy. The BWCA encompasses the Bénoué National Park and its surrounding hunting concessions that also include some villages. Both the Park and the hunting concessions are two categories of protected areas. Data were collected using informal interviews and questionnaires administered to 114 households from three communities, 17 park staff and seven professional hunter guides. Local people's attitudes towards protected areas depended on the management category of the particular protected area. Local people were positive towards the existence of the Park, but negative towards the system of hunting concession areas. There was local variation between communities concerning these attitudes. Local people were generally positive to maintaining the present Park area, but preferred a reduction in the size of the hunting concessions. Both Park staff and professional hunter guides expressed concern about present management strategies and the extent of illegal resource exploitation. Despite having poor knowledge of the current Cameroonian wildlife policy, most of the local households expressed support for it, but called for increased local involvement in management, off-take and the harvesting of benefits from both Park and hunting concession activities. The Park staff were sceptical about local participation in this context and saw such endeavours as a threat to a sound biodiversity management scheme. The findings indicate the need to strengthen current wildlife policy, promote the involvement of local people and empower the Park staff, both in terms of resources and in terms of skills in interacting with local people. The revised policy should be designed so as to vary according to the category of protected area and allow site-specific adaptations. Local people must experience reduced incurred costs and increased incomes from the Park. An environmental education programme is recommended to extensively disseminate the policy to user groups in the area.


Land ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher McCarthy ◽  
Hitoshi Shinjo ◽  
Buho Hoshino ◽  
Erdenebuyan Enkhjargal

Indigenous knowledge about biodiversity and conservation is valuable and can be used to sustainably manage protected areas; however, indigenous communities continue to be marginalized due to the belief that their values and behaviors do not align with the overarching mission of conservation. This paper explores the extent of local knowledge and awareness of biodiversity, conservation and protected area management of indigenous communities at Khuvsgol Lake National Park, Mongolia. We investigate current levels of biodiversity awareness and explore perceptions toward conservation values and park management governance. Most respondents had a high awareness of existing biodiversity and held positive attitudes toward nature conservation and protected areas; however, insufficient knowledge of park rules and low levels of trust between local residents and park authorities may undermine conservation objectives in the long run. We identify an unequal share of economic benefits from tourism and preferential treatment toward elite business owners as a source of conflict. Limited information channels and poor communication between local residents and park authorities are also a source for low-level participation in conservation activities. Leveraging the increasing use of information communication technology, such as mobile phones, can serve as a new mechanism for improved information sharing and transparent reporting between local communities, conservationists and protected area authorities.


2001 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 160-166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew J. Walpole ◽  
Harold J. Goodwin

Ensuring local support for protected areas is increasingly viewed as an important element of biodiversity conservation. This is often predicated on the provision of benefits from protected areas, and a common means of providing such benefits is tourism development. However, the relationship between receipt of tourism benefits and support for conservation has not been explored. This study examined local attitudes towards protected area tourism and the effects of tourism benefits on local support for Komodo National Park, Indonesia. Komodo National Park is a flagship for tourism in a region where protected areas are becoming increasingly visited and where local support for conservation has not been investigated. Results of a questionnaire survey revealed positive attitudes towards tourism and high support for conservation (93.7%), as well as a recognition that tourism is dependent upon the existence of the park. Positive attitudes towards tourism were positively related to the receipt of economic benefits, and to support for conservation. However, a positive relationship between receipt of tourism benefits and support for conservation was not identified, suggesting that benefits from protected area conservation make no difference to local support for conservation. Local people recognized distributional inequalities in tourism benefits, and the most common complaints were of local inflation and tourist dress code. To fully identify the impacts of protected area tourism, long-term studies of local attitudes alongside traditional economic and ecological assessments are recommended.


2015 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 423-436 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Brandful Cobbinah

Purpose – Local support is fundamental in natural resources management (NRM). However, recent studies indicate that NRM in protected areas in developing countries is often faced with local resistance due to its impacts on livelihoods. The purpose of this paper is to examine local attitudes – positive and negative responses – towards NRM in protected areas and implications of NRM benefits on local support for conservation of protected areas. Design/methodology/approach – A quantitative research method was used for this study. Structured questionnaire survey was administered to 310 respondents across four case study communities – Abrafo, Mesomagor, Adadientem and Nuamakrom – around the Kakum Conservation Area (KCA), Ghana. χ2 test and logistic regression were used to analyse the data with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software. Findings – Findings showed positive attitudes towards NRM in protected areas (85.9 per cent) and high support for conservation of KCA (86.5 per cent). Respondents recognised the importance of the KCA in managing natural resources especially forest and water resources. Positive attitudes towards conservation of KCA were largely influenced by receipt of socio-economic benefits from the KCA, in terms of employment, income and involvement in KCA management. However, those excluded from socio-economic benefits from the KCA also expressed positive attitudes towards conservation, suggesting that support for NRM transcends socio-economic benefits. On the other hand, local people recognised the challenges associated with NRM in protected areas such as increased farm raids by wildlife, loss of access to timber and non-timber forest products. Originality/value – This paper has revealed that although socio-economic benefits from NRM in protected areas influence local people’s support for conservation, local knowledge of the environmental benefits is equally important. The depth of local knowledge of NRM in the KCA is dependent on educational status and level of involvement of respondents in the KCA in terms of employment, and the effectiveness of educational campaigns by the park officials. Therefore, in the absence of clear development programmes from government and park officials to educate and involve local people in NRM, it appears the conservation objective upon which NRM in protected areas are designed may not be realised.


2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (26) ◽  
pp. 51-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher N. Burgoyne ◽  
Clare J. Kelso

Abstract Restricting access to wilderness and wildlife resources is a contested topic in a time when developing nations are seeking to increase quality of life for their citizens. A case in point is the Mkuze Game Reserve which encompasses rich biodiversity and is surrounded by under-resourced rural communities. A history of exclusion from land and resources has left local residents feeling negative about western conservation ideals. Perceptions of protected areas and conservation objectives are important if management authorities are to affect a meaningful buy-in to conservation and sustainable resource use among local residents. In this paper, part of a larger mixed-methods study, we set out to explore the perceptions three rural communities have of 1) local land-cover and livelihood change and 2) the socio-economic benefits expected and derived from living adjacent to Mkuze Game Reserve, a publicly administered protected area in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. People living around the reserve felt they receive few benefits from living near to a protected area. Management countered that they are not well funded enough to provide much development support. In addition to this, the community sees a contrast between this lack of benefit sharing and the successful benefit sharing experienced by a neighbouring community which borders a private reserve. This has added to their negative view of the way Mkuze Game Reserve management has been engaging with communities. Effective engagement with communities and understanding their expectations will be important for strengthening conservation initiatives and community engagement objectives in the area.


2020 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 194008292097175
Author(s):  
Bridget Bwalya Umar ◽  
Julius Kapembwa

This study examines views on economic benefits, local participation in wildlife management and conservation ethic among 267 residents of three chiefdoms in Mambwe district, Eastern Zambia. Results show that 68% of the residents who live in the Lupande Game Management Area are not in any way involved in community wildlife management. For those involved, the main reason advanced for participating was economic benefit (79%). Only a small minority of 17% of the residents participated due to motivations to conserve wildlife. Human-wildlife conflicts induced by wild animal crop raiding, property destruction, and loss of human life, and perceived low or non-existent economic benefits seemingly precluded the development of a conservation ethic among residents. The local chiefs asserted wildlife ownership, lamented low wildlife benefits and justified its illegal uptake. Proponents of community conservation projects could encourage pro conservation attitudes among residents by addressing human-wildlife conflicts and raising awareness on intrinsic values of wildlife.


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