5.5.4.4. Role of Community Participation and Public Policy
Community participation in decisionmaking and management, along with public
policy, can be a favorable and critical issue in implementing some adaptation
options. This could result in better management of rangelands (Pringle, 1995;
Allen-Diaz, 1996; Thwaites et al., 1998), thereby probably meeting conservation
objectives (Pringle, 1995). Decisions to be made might include:
- Determinations about appropriate stocking rates, which might require discussion
and negotiations among stakeholders, especially because stocking rates might
be more social than technically oriented (Abel, 1997)
- Choosing some agroforestry practices that fulfil local needs, especially
because many communities rely on fuelwood (Benjaminsen 1993)
- Diversification, since some communities could get or have already gotten
involved in tourism as a way of highlighting some of the unique flora, fauna,
and landscape features, thereby conserving the systems, reducing some of the
impacts, and obtaining cash (Hofstede, 1995).
In dealing with options for reducing the consequences of land degradation in
the future, public policy may have a crucial role (Hess and Holechek, 1995),
especially because decisions at the landscape level (which are likely to include
many different land tenures) are going to be increasingly important. Policies
could be developed to address multiple pressures and, over the long term, to
encompass sustainable land management and could include investments by governments
to improve rangeland status (Morton et al., 1995; Pickup, 1998).
5.5.5. Vulnerabilities and Sensitivity to Climate Change
For the future of rangelands, it is important to reduce the vulnerability of
these systems to climate change. This is likely to be achieved by considering
social and economic factors that determine land use by human populations (Allen-Diaz,
1996). Soil stability and thus maintenance of water and nutrient cycles are
essential in reducing the risk of desertification. Any changes in these processes
could make rangelands particularly vulnerable to climate change. Land degradation
is a nonlinear process with thresholds that make these systems sensitive and
vulnerable (Puigdefabregas, 1998). Prevention of land degradation might be a
cheaper option than restoration, which can be costly (Puigdefabregas, 1998).
Some studies suggest that changes in rainfall pattern may make some vegetation
types within rangelands more vulnerable (e.g., Miombo woodlands—Fuller
and Prince, 1996) if growing periods could not shift or if these growing periods
coincide with insect outbreak.
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