Studies of Climatic and Human Impacts and Their Relationship on a Mountain Slope above Salme in the Himalayan Middle Mountains, Nepal

Smadja, Joëlle

doi:10.2307/3673745

Cited by 22 publications

(10 citation statements)

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“…Ives (2004) further highlighted the positive impact on geomorphic processes due to modification of hillslopes for agricultural use through terrace construction and runoff management by local farmers mobilizing a massive labor force. Smadja (1992), in her study of the Middle Mountains of Nepal, also concluded that intensive cultivation of mountain slopes with extensive maintenance ensures retention of a high degree of stability, while de-intensification leads to poorer maintenance and thus to slope instability.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Abandonment of Agricultural Land and Its Consequences

Khanal¹,

Watanabe²

2006

Mountain Research and Development

198

107

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Abandonment of Agricultural Land and Its Consequences

Khanal¹,

Watanabe²

2006

Mountain Research and Development

198

107

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“…While specialists in soil mechanics were confounded by the soundness of indigenous cultivation techniques and landslide management (Smadja 1992), Farming Systems Research in Nepal furthered appreciation of Himalayan villagers" risk-spreading practices of vertical agriculture and pastoralism, and their interest in incorporating new varieties into complexly evolving cropping regimes. Studies of local agronomic history demonstrated the ability of even relatively remote communities to intensify and diversify agronomically (Blamont 1986).…”

Section: Indigenous Knowledge In Development In Nepalmentioning

confidence: 99%

Indigenous Views on the Terms of Participation in the Development of Biodiversity Conservation in Nepal

Campbell¹

2019

Investigating Local Knowledge

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“…Data on short-term (annual to decadal) erosion rates were assembled from previously published measurements of soil loss from plots (Gardner and Gerrard, 2001, quantification of sediment transported by streams (Brasington and Richards, 2000), and mapping of the distribution and volumes of landslides, slumps, and debris flows over multiple years (Gerrard and Gardner, 1999, 2000. The methods used in these previously published studies are summarized briefly here.…”

Section: Short-term Erosion Ratesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mass wasting fluxes were measured during 1991, 1992, and 1993 by identifying, mapping, and measuring all slope failures over this time period (Gerrard and Gardner, 1999, 2000. Most failures were either slumps or debris slides.…”

Section: Short-term Erosion Ratesmentioning

confidence: 99%

High natural erosion rates are the backdrop for present-day soil erosion in the agricultural Middle Hills of Nepal

et al. 2015

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Abstract. Although agriculturally accelerated soil erosion is implicated in the unsustainable environmental degradation of mountain environments, such as in the Himalaya, the effects of land use can be challenging to quantify in many mountain settings because of the high and variable natural background rates of erosion. In this study, we present new long-term denudation rates, derived from cosmogenic 10Be analysis of quartz in river sediment from the Likhu Khola, a small agricultural river basin in the Middle Hills of central Nepal. Calculated long-term denudation rates, which reflect background natural erosion processes over 1000+ years prior to agricultural intensification, are similar to present-day sediment yields and to soil loss rates from terraces that are well maintained. Similarity in short- and long-term catchment-wide erosion rates for the Likhu is consistent with data from elsewhere in the Nepal Middle Hills but contrasts with the very large increases in short-term erosion rates seen in agricultural catchments in other steep mountain settings. Our results suggest that the large sediment fluxes exported from the Likhu and other Middle Hills rivers in the Himalaya are derived in large part from natural processes, rather than from soil erosion as a result of agricultural activity. Catchment-scale erosional fluxes may be similar over short and long timescales if both are dominated by mass wasting sources such as gullies, landslides, and debris flows (e.g., as is evident in the landslide-dominated Khudi Khola of the Nepal High Himalaya, based on compiled data). As a consequence, simple comparison of catchment-scale fluxes will not necessarily pinpoint land use effects on soils where these are only a small part of the total erosion budget, unless rates of mass wasting are also considered. Estimates of the mass wasting contribution to erosion in the Likhu imply catchment-averaged soil production rates on the order of ~ 0.25–0.35 mm yr−1, though rates of mass wasting are poorly constrained. The deficit between our best estimates for soil production rates and measurements of soil loss rates supports conclusions from previous studies that terraced agriculture in the Likhu may not be associated with a large systematic soil deficit, at least when terraces are well maintained, but that poorly managed terraces, forest, and scrubland may lead to rapid depletion of soil resources.

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Studies of Climatic and Human Impacts and Their Relationship on a Mountain Slope above Salme in the Himalayan Middle Mountains, Nepal

Cited by 22 publications

References 0 publications

Abandonment of Agricultural Land and Its Consequences

Abandonment of Agricultural Land and Its Consequences

Indigenous Views on the Terms of Participation in the Development of Biodiversity Conservation in Nepal

High natural erosion rates are the backdrop for present-day soil erosion in the agricultural Middle Hills of Nepal

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