Land degradation in the form of soil erosion is one of the major causes for declining ecosystem functions in the northern highlands of Ethiopia including the Eastern Tigray. Hence, different integrated watershed management practices were introduced in the last few years to avert the problem. Currently, most of these practices are phased out. However, the status and challenges of these practices after phase-out are not well documented and required scientific research. On-field measurement from nine sample plots having a size of each 50 m*50 m at 200 m interval was conducted to assess the status and challenges of these practices. Results of the assessment showed that physical soil and water conservation structures were deteriorated by 47–64% after IWM project phased out. The key problems were lack of periodic maintenance, and limited support by biological conservation measures. The study results suggest that Watershed technologies are highly challenged after project phase-out. Hence, integration among the community, government and non-governmental organizations are needed to sustainably manage these resources.
Background Land restoration programs in Tigray, also called integrated watershed management (IWM) practices, were implemented by the government and non–governmental organizations since 1980s. These practices aimed at reversing land degradation processes, environmental rehabilitation, and ensure food security at both community and household levels. Most of the implemented IWM projects are now phased–out. The aim of this study is therefore; therefore, to investigate the impacts of phased–out land restoration programs on vegetation cover changes in Eastern Tigray, Ethiopia. Both Thematic Mapper (TM) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper plus (ETM+) Landsat imageries at 30 meter by 30 meter spatial resolution were used to examine the land use and land cover conditions taking successful and unsuccessful IWM interventions as case studies. Three time periods were used in the change analysis: before IWM implementation (2007), at the time of IWM projects phase-out (2010), and after IWM phase-out (2017). Results The results indicated that for all successful integrated watershed management projects, both the bush/shrub land (19.6 ha) and grassland (8.95 ha) increased during the intervention time for Negash (S-1), Deberewahabit (S-2) and Gemad (S-3) watersheds. However, the bush/shrub land decreased after the integrated watershed management projects phased–out by 9.8 and 11.3 ha for S-1 and S-3 watersheds. At the unsuccessful IWM projects, bush/shrub land increased by 18.21, 11.3 and 9.5 ha during the intervention period, and decreased after project phased–out by 3.92 and 7.2 ha at Debretsion (S-4) and Laelay wukro (S-5) watersheds. Furthermore, cultivated land increased after phased–out in most of the watersheds. Conclusions This study concluded that vegetation cover has been declined in all watersheds after the phased–out period. This may affect significantly the environment in general and livelihood of the community in particular. Therefore, there is a need to provide an emphasis after the implementation of watershed projects and evaluate its impacts regularly.
One of the most detrimental concerns brought on by a changing climate that annually affects many people's lives is drought. Proactive and reactive drought coping and adapting mechanisms enable farmers to be resilient against climate–induced drought and improve the drylands' current disaster preparedness and early warning systems. The aim of this study was to assess proactive and reactive farmers' drought coping strategies at household level in Raya Valley in southern Tigray, Ethiopia. Agro–climatological based 246 households were sampled from the lowlands, midlands and highlands of the study area. The most effective drought coping mechanisms were discovered using a multinomial logit model. The study area had endured mild to extremely severe drought in the last three decades. The association between the various drought severity and household heads were significant (chi2 = 9.861, df = 3, p < 0.05). Proactive drought coping measures included collecting and storing pasture, conserving soil and water, weather prediction information to adjust saving and farming practices. Livestock feeding with roasted cactus cladode, small business loans, livestock selling, productive safety–net program, and food consumption reduction were the major reactive drought coping strategies. The proactive and reactive drought coping strategies identified in this study should be used to improve the existing disaster preparedness and early warning systems in the face of climate and weather extreme related impacts of climate variability and change.
Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the impacts of phased–out land restoration programs on vegetation cover in Eastern Tigray, north Ethiopia. Both the Thematic Mapper (TM) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper plus (ETM+) Landsat imageries at 30 meter by 30 meter spatial resolution was used to examine the land use and land cover conditions of the study area before (2007), during (2010), and after (2017) the phase–out of IWM projects. Results: The results indicated that there is a clear variation between the treated and untreated watersheds in terms of vegetation cover status. It is confirmed that for treated and successfully recovered watersheds both the bush/shrub land (19.6 ha), and grassland (8.95 ha) have been increased. However, it was decreased by 9.8 and 11.3 ha in two watersheds after the project phased–out. Conclusions: The soil and water conservation practices of each watershed have been significantly affected after the phased–out of the IWM projects. An increase to in the bush/shrub lands has been observed in all of the study sites (Adikesho, Deberewahabit and Gemad) by 19.6, 8.95 and 18.9 ha’s during the intervention period.
Drought is one of the most damaging climate–induced threats impacting the lives of many people every year. Proactive and reactive drought coping and adapting mechanisms enable farmers to be resilient against climate induced drought and improve the current disaster preparedness and early warning systems in the drylands. The aim of this study was to assess proactive and reactive farmers’ drought adaptation & coping strategies at household level in Raya valley in southern Tigray, Ethiopia. Agro–climatological based 246 households were sampled from the lowlands, midlands and highlands. Multinomial logit model was used to identify best drought coping strategies. Respondents had mild to extremely severe drought in the last three decades. The association between the various drought severity and household heads were significant (chi2= 9.861, df=3, p < 0.05). Pasture collection and saving, soil and water conservation, and weather prediction information to adjust saving and farming system were proactive drought adaptation and coping strategies. Livestock Feeding with roasted cactus cladode, small business loans, livestock selling, productive safety–net programme, and food consumption reduction were the major reactive drought adaptation and coping strategies. The proactive and reactive drought coping and adaptation strategies identified in this study should be used to improve the current disaster preparedness and early warning systems monitoring and evaluation in the face of climate and weather extreme related impacts of climate variability and change.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.