There is a sound basis for assuming that watershed degradation does not have to be an inevitable consequence of using sloping land for agriculture. Small holders can engage in farming and management of natural forest resources in both a productive and resource-conserving manner. Awareness of this has focused attention on evolving demand-driven, community-based approaches to watershed resource management, in which those who occupy the land actively participate in management and sustainable utilization of their local watershed resources for multiple purposes. A look at current prescriptions for more sustainable farming systems in Asian watersheds reveals an enormous variability in conditions, and consequently a high degree of technical uncertainty about the effectiveness of the solutions proposed. The problems are not solved by simple recipes. Often, the issues need to be tackled at a scale bigger than the individual household, cooperatively at the community level.
Publication year
2000
Authors
Language
English
Keywords
deforestation, fires, land tenure, national parks
