Studies on land-use/land cover (LULC) changes through remote sensing techniques represent vital tools for generating rational information for sound decision making on natural resources management. Related to the launching of the firstLandsat satellite in 1973 there is a region of attention on the use of remote sensing techniques as tool for planning the appropriate management in rangelands. This study therefore aimed at mapping LULC changes and identifying the associated changes that have occurred in the Borana rangelands up to 2003 as well as assess pastoralist perceptions on the driving forces. Landsat image scenes of Multispectral Sensor, Thematic Mapper and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus acquired in 1973, 1986 and 2003 were used to investigate LULC changes over time. The analysis of images revealed that woodland cover of the Borana rangelands increased from 11.3% in the 1973 to 49.26% in 2003. However, grassland cover declined from 58 to 32% during the same period. Cultivated areas gradually increased from 2 to 5% but it is lower compared to the woodland cover expansion rate. The decrease of normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) values for 2003 compared to the 1973 is also an evident for the reduction of vegetation. Severe droughts, population increase, poor government policy are among the major drivers of LULC changes in the study area. The implementation of appropriate pastoral land-use policies based on the ecological potential of the region and pastoralists local knowledge have all been suggested for ensuring sustainable management of Borana rangeland and improve the livelihood of pastoralists.
Understanding the socioeconomic and environmental impacts of invasive plant species from the affected communities' perspectives is essential to design and plan sustainable control and prevention strategies. Hence, understanding the socio-economic and environmental impacts in the infested and susceptible areas such as Bale zone is very crucial. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess socio-economic impacts of in lowlands of Bale zone, Southeastern Ethiopia. House hold survey, focus group discussion and key informant interview to understand socio-economic and environmental impacts invasive plant species were used. Statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) (v. 20) was used for data collection. The results showed that a total of 12 invasive plant species were recorded, and of which Parthenium hysterophorus, Xanthium strumarium, Argemone ochroleuca, Ceasalpinia spp, Acacia bussie, Acacia mellifera, Acacia seyal and Acacia tortolis were highly distributed in the study areas. Respondents reported that heavy infestation of invasive plant species were found on the roadsides followed by arable land. The invasive plant species has also certain economic and ecological benefits. The local communities blame the invasive plant species for their negative impacts on biodiversity, degrading ecosystems, livestock and livestock products, crops, animal and human health. The study result showed that the local community utilizes chemical, mechanical and biological methods to reduce and control the impacts even though the percent of households that were trying to control is very low. Community perception showed the invasive plants species infesting grazing lands, crop lands, road sides, frosts and settlement areas. However, much has not been done to alert the local people on the danger of environmental impacts on biodiversity, agriculture and health. The menace of the species is increasing at an alarming rate, thus control methods have to be designed to stop further spreading into Bale Mountain National Parks.Key words: Environmental impacts, invasive alien species, socio-economic impacts, Southeast Ethiopia. INTRODUCTIONGlobalization has brought social and economic benefits to many people, but it has also presented new challenges of which invasive alien species (IAS) are among the most significant. At no time in history has the rate of biological invasion (Mack et al., 2000) or the diversity and volume of these invaders been so high and the consequences so great (Reaser et al., 2007).Ethiopia has a long history in the introduction of alien 674 Afr. J. Agric. Res. plant species, especially those which were found to be productive elsewhere and offered potential economic benefits to the country. In many other countries in the tropics, hundreds of alien plant species have entered Ethiopia intentionally and unintentionally (Abdulahi et al., 2017). In the country, there are many invasive plant species that are posing negative impacts on native biodiversity, agricultural lands, range lands, national parks, water ways, lakes...
Changes in ecosystem functions can be analyzed through changes in land use land cover (LULC) systems. This study was carried out to analyze the LULC changes and perception of local community towards land cover change in the lowlands of Bale, Southeast Ethiopia using remote sensing data, field observations and perception of local people. The results showed that cultivated land, settlement, bush land and bare land expanded by 13.81, 14.30, 12.62 and 22.3% respectively, between 1986 and 2016, whereas wood land, grassland and shrubby grassland declined by 33.82, 24.4 and 3.36% respectively. Local communities' perceptions indicate that climatic, demographic and anthropogenic factors as well as implementation of inappropriate government policy and development interventions were major driving forces of LULC dynamics. Environmental and local livelihoods implications such as rangeland degradation, bush encroachment, soil degradation, livestock loss, biodiversity loss and poverty increase resulted from these changes. Cumulative effects contribute to rangeland degradation and poverty. Therefore, to halt the impact of LULC disturbance and its implication on the likelihood of the pastoralist, appropriate management measures and government policies have to be implemented.
Conflict resolution and peace building mechanisms remain problematic for most societies in Africa including those in Ethiopia, as most of them are trying to imitate western modalities rather than using their own indigenous institutions. Indigenous conflict resolution and management are proven as less complex and time saving, and participating parties in conflict solve their own problems and handle their affairs in a relative ways more acceptable to them. However, the role this important institutions play in solving the disputes is becoming weak with time. In-depth understanding of the conflicts, indigenous conflicts resolution and management mechanisms, and designing holistic strategies and approaches for addressing the conflicts are very crucial. Therefore, this study reviewed indigenous rangeland conflict management and resolution mechanisms in pastoral areas of Ethiopia. Moreover, it attempts to identify the nature, types, causes, and consequences of conflicts. Conflict has devastating consequences on the lives and livelihoods of pastoral society and the economy of the country as whole. Gain over the control of scarce and strategic resources, particularly water and pasture which is further exacerbated by different factors are among the major causes. Alternative conflict resolution mechanisms need to be strengthened and indigenous customary institutions that regulate access and use of resources need to be empowered. The Elder's council should gain legal recognition, and mechanisms are also needed to allow customary institutions to function in harmony with current modern government structures.
Evaluation of woody vegetation changes with distance from a salt crater was conducted in the semi‐arid rangelands of southern Ethiopia. Data on live woody plants were collected over three seasons at 0, 1, 4, 6, 9 and 12 km from the salt crater. The density and diversity of woody plants differed significantly (p < .01) along the distance gradient. Six woody plant families were identified of which Fabaceae and Burseraceae were the dominant families. Acacia drepanolobium, Acacia nilotica, Commiphora africana and Acacia mellifera were among the severely encroaching woody species. There were high proportions of seedlings and saplings recorded closer to the salt crater showing a vigorous recruitment by woody plants. Woody plant encroachment along the 12‐km transect ranged from a low to severe encroachment, which could be translated into poor rangeland condition. Changes in soil characteristics increased grazing pressure and sedentary settlement around the salt crater, and the breakdown of traditional institutions seems to be major contributing factors to these vegetation changes. We suggest that severely encroached areas could be improved through a combination of methods such as bush clearing, prescribed fire, browsing animals and proper grazing management.
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