| 题名 | Social and Eco-environmental Risks of Farmland Abandonment in the Mountain Areas of Nepal |
| 作者 | SURESH CHAUDHARY |
| 答辩日期 | 2020 |
| 授予单位 | 中国科学院大学 |
| 授予地点 | 北京 |
| 导师 | 王玉宽 |
| 关键词 | 耕地撂荒 生态环境脆弱性 社会影响 风险评估 可持续土地利用规划 |
| 学位名称 | 博士 |
| 其他题名 | 尼泊尔山区耕地撂荒的社会与生态环境风险研究 |
| 学位专业 | 自然地理学 |
| 英文摘要 | Farmland abandonment has been crucial phenomenon for eco-environmental and socio-cultural landscape changes in Nepal and many mountainous countries of the world. Farmland abandonment endangers the capacity of mountain ecosystems to provide key services as well as leads to variety of process that plays a pivotal role in regional eco-environment security. In this context, the study is conducted to examine social and eco-environmental risks initiated with abandonment of cultivated farmland in the high mountains, Nepalese Himalayas, and their dependence upon controlling factors (bio-physical,socio-economic, climate and neighbourhood). In a more specific, the study was adopted to; (i) examine social risks of farmland abandonment, and major driving factors of farmland abandonment in the local context, (ii) assess abandoned farmland induced eco-environmental vulnerability and associate risks, (iii) identify evaluation index and method for assessment of eco-environmental risk for farmland abandonment potential mountain regions, and further (iv) recommend relevant policy and strategies for sustainable use of existing abandoned farmlands. We involve in-depth studies on farmland abandonment and its eco-environmental responses in mountain areas of Nepal. The Dordi river basin situated (28°8′N – 28°27′N, 84°24′E – 84°42′E) in the Lamjung district, Gandaki province, Western mountain region of Nepal was selected as a case study area.Exhaustive literature search of secondary information on historical, social and economic development for collection and analysis of evidences pertaining directly or indirectly to indicators on status and changes in agricultural farmland was carried out for the study. In addition, the authors apply household surveys, focus group discussions and in-depth key informant interviews to visualize the social landscape and changes therein, thus establishing an existing history of mountain societies, social systems and management practices. Moreover, Google Earth Images and Low Height Remote Sensing Survey (i.e. UAV) are also used to observe geomorphic processes and the modification of the abandoned farmland and its characteristics. Geomorphic damages were mapped at the scale of individual abandoned farms.The Multivariate Linear Regression (MLR) model is run to determine the process of farmland abandonment in the region as well as to identify the major causes of degradation.At first, social risks of farmland abondonment is approached to; (i) determine the driving factors of farmland abandonment; and (ii) discuss the risks on social systems in terms of social networks, relations, practices. The results revealed that farmland abandonment is positively and significantly influenced by the road accessibility, farm distance from residence, household head age, landowner currently living places, ownership of farmland, salary and business, and remittances. Conversely, there were significant byt negative influences of household size. Mountain elevation, market access, farmland productivity, irrigation access and education of household head, access to credit, farm income, livestock income and wage labour activities, did not have significant relationships, although the direction of their relationship to farmland abandonment bears important policy implications in the mountain region. As of farmland abondoment, farmers’ social practices such as (i) an indigenous labor exchange system “Parma”, (ii) a traditionally managed irrigation system, (iii) a drinking water supply system, (iv) social practices, rituals, festive events, (v) an indigenous governance system, practices and some existing infrastructures (schools, banks, health-post, temples and more) are going to disappear throughout the process of abandonment. The decline in individual as well as social participation in land management practices have increased exotic vegetation and soil loss processes, modifying the physical characteristics of abandoned farmlands. Thus, this knowledge is vital for understanding appropriate social processes, natural resources and environmental management (Chapter 6).Second, this study assessed the spatiotemporal degradation of abandoned farmlands in the Dordi river basin, identified the major causes of farmland degradation, assess the eco-environmental vulnerability, and charecterised the eco-environmental risks triggered or exacerbated by the degradation of abandoned farmlands in the high mountain region of Nepal. This section revealed that out of the total surveyed abondoned farmlands, 92% were already completely irreversibly damaged. The damages started with the disruption of terraces and bulging processes that occurred within the year after abandonment. This degradation induced diverse hazardous processes, such as landslides, debris flows, rock falls, the formation of gullies, soil erosion and the development of sinkholes, which increase the negative effects of on both land resources and plant succession. In fact, farmland abandonment does not automatically lead to plant colonization because geomorphic damage is intensified prior to colonization. Therefore, land management is required for plant colonization as well as other efforts to reduce degradation-induced eco-environmental risk. This study thus could help land planners and environmentalists in the development of suitable guidelines (pre- or post-abandonment) plans, programmes and legislation to effectively address the problem of abandoned farmlands (Chapter 7).Third, we identified risk evaluation index, evaluated an eco-environmental risk for Dordi river basin of Nepal, and developed a risk-based land use planning framework for mitigating the impact of risk and for enhancing sustainable management practices. Topographic factors as elevation, slope, geological formation, soil typology, rainfall pattern, landuse/cover, normalised difference vegetation index, and socio-economic condition such as distance to settlement; road network and river/stream were indicated as major acting factors for eco-environmental risks in the farmland abandonment potential mountain region. We employed multi-criteria analytic hierarchy process (AHP) to assign risk weightage to geophysical and socio-demographic factors, and performed spatial superposition analysis in the Model Builder of a Geographic Information System to produce eco-environmental risk map, which was subjected to reliability check against existing eco-environmental conditions by ground truthing and using statistical models. The result shows that 22.36% basin area belongs to high level of risk. The very high, extreme high, moderate and low zones accounted 17.38%, 7.93%, 28.49% and 23.81% respectively. High level of eco-environmental risk occurs mostly in north and northwest, but appears in patches in the south as well, whereas the level of moderate risk is concentrated in the southern parts of the river basin. All the land use types, notably, forest, grassland, shrub land and cultivated farmland, are currently under stress, which generally increases with elevation towards the north but is also concentrated along the road network and river buffer zones where human interference with nature is the maximum. The risk map and the framework are expected to provide information and scientific evidence-base for formulating and reasonable development strategies and guidelines for consensus-based utilization and protection of eco-environmental resources in the river basin. As an awareness raising tool, it also can activate social processes enabling communities to design for and mitigate the consequences of hazardous events (Chapter 8).Finally, this study provided some recommendations, challenges and policy messages for the adoption of current farmland abandonment issues and development in Nepal (Chapter 9). Over the mountaineous region of Nepal, the existing abandoned farmland can be introduced for low cost practices such as a source of cash crops or as a sources of medicinal herbs. Although, there are some challenges like (i) technical - farm ownership, size, distribution, and poor access to accessibilities and other source (agricultural inputs, markets and transportation, (ii) environmental (intensive soil erosion, landslide and debris flows), (iii) socio-economic challenges (poverty, labour shortages, literacy and cultural barriers) to revive again as a farmlands. Thus, the study proposes some policy messages (e.g. institutional arrangements, integration and mainstreaming, finance, and implement capacity in the mountain) for building a proactive abandonment farmland management system based on environmental risk prevention and reduction. Such a system will meet the basic needs of social and economic development and the ecoenvironment, and will support the intrinsic requirements for construction and implementation of mountain development plan for promoting eco-environmental civilization system. |
| 语种 | 英语 |
| 页码 | 249 |
| 内容类型 | 学位论文 |
| 源URL | [http://ir.imde.ac.cn/handle/131551/55023]  |
| 专题 | 成都山地灾害与环境研究所_山区发展研究中心 |
| 作者单位 | 中国科学院成都山地灾害与环境研究所 |
| 推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714 | SURESH CHAUDHARY. Social and Eco-environmental Risks of Farmland Abandonment in the Mountain Areas of Nepal[D]. 北京. 中国科学院大学. 2020. |
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