Impact of land degradation on crop production in the dry zone of Myanmar | |
| Author | Kyawt Kay Khaing Tun |
| Call Number | AIT Diss. no.NR-16-04 |
| Subject(s) | Land degradation--Myanmar Agriculture--Productivity--Myanmar |
| Note | A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Natural Resources Management, School of Environment, Resources and Development |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Series Statement | Dissertation;no. NR-16-04 |
| Abstract | Declining production potential due to increasing land degradation is a serious concern for sustainable agriculture nowadays. It has been threatening the rural people of a country mostly dependent on agriculture for their livelihoods for decades. Agricultural development in Myanmar is hindered by many factors of which land degradation is the major one threatening the overall sustainability of agricultural production in the country. Soil degradation is much more serious in tropics than in temperate areas since tropical soils are more prone to degradation because of their inherent properties and the prevalent climatic conditions. The area selected for the study is Dry Zone, which is a semi-arid region and one of the two cores areas of the country and the other being the deltaic region. The area is also considered as one of the fragile areas of Myanmar. Land degradation was found a major environmental issue posing threat to sustainable livelihoods, due to multiple reasons, among which original vulnerability and hot weather conditions were more prominent. The study assessed soil erosion severity using Geographic Information Systems, and identified types and reasons of degradation and its impact on crop production. Inner Dry Zone was found severely degraded with the soil loss rate of >12 t ha–1 yr–1. The soil loss map showed that 31 percent of the area is under severe erosion hazard and eight percent of the area increased from 2000 to 2012. Major types of land degradation were physical and chemical soil degradations, and the main reasons for all types of degradations identified by farmers were found to be adverse climatic conditions, prone soil to degradation and sleep slope of the area. Associated yield reduction that leads towards great uncertainties in agricultural productivity was found more in highly degraded area than in less degraded area. The observed crop yields of monsoon rice, groundnut, sesame and cotton in the highly degraded area were 3–12 times lower compared with the yields of these crops grown in less degraded area. The impact of land degradation on crop production was dependent on the severity of degradation. Livelihoods of the farmers in the high-degraded area were affected by crop yield reduction, increased cultivation cost and increased uncultivable land area. No approach of integrated soil and water conservation program in the study area. Therefore, there is the need to bridge the gap between appropriate conservation technologies and the existing conservation knowledge, attitude and practices of farmers. This suggests that the supportive policy strategies need to be implemented to educate farmers and to strengthen extension services for sustainable land management in the Dry Zone of Myanmar. |
| Year | 2016 |
| Corresponding Series Added Entry | Asian Institute of Technology. Dissertation;no. NR-16-04 |
| Type | Dissertation |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Department of Development and Sustainability (DDS) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Natural Resources Management (NRM) |
| Chairperson(s) | Shrestha, Rajendra Prasad; |
| Examination Committee(s) | Grumguhel, Clemens ;Datta. Avishek; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Ministry of Foreign Affair (Norway); |
| Degree | Thesis (Ph.D) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2016 |