Fjölrit RALA - 05.12.1999, Page 72

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Desertification in Botswana
uted to intense resource use particularlv during early drought years (Sefe et al. 1996).
Evidence from satellite imagery shows that since the mid-1980s much of the area has
suffered in terms of decreased vegetation cover with increased areas of exposed soil
(Ringrose et al. 1996). The local people have degraded their environment through in-
tensive grazing by livestock and intensive use of the natural vegetation cover for fa-
elwood and other veld products. A survey undertaken by Chanda (1996) reveals the
existence of a crisis in the traditional economy of the area and that the local popula-
tion seems to be keenly aware and have a good sense of its temporal and spatial di-
mension. Human activities, rather than climatic factors, are seen to be at the core of
the desertification process. Some significant features of desertification in the Mid-
Boteti area include (Amtzen et al. 1994, Chanda 1996, Sefe et al. 1996):
• The frequent flood failures of the Boteti river, which seriously affect flood re-
cession cultivation as well as watering of livestock and wildlife.
• Decreasing availability of fresh water.
• Vegetation changes on rangelands, affecting the regrowth potential of trees
and veld-products (including veld-foods).
» Species decline with changes to unpalatable cover.
• Increasing scarcity of faelwood and browse resources.
• The reported crop damage by livestock and wildlife, indicative of land use
conflicts.
• A decrease in the ground water table, mostly affecting livestock and trees.
• Veld supply problems in areas close to settlements, suggesting depletion in
accessible zones over the years.
• Wind-erosion, which blows away the top soil, exposing the underlying cal-
crete layer, and reducing the soil fertility.
In order to survive in the harsh environment with recurrent droughts, the local peo-
ple have traditionally developed several adaptations such as (Amtzen et al. 1994);
• The practice of flood recession (or ‘molapo’) cultivation, which makes use of
the seasonal river flow in an otherwise semi-arid environment.
• Combining molapo and dry-land cultivation to reduce the risk of the outright
crop failure; with the same objective, farmers practice mixed cropping tech-
niques.
• Mobile livestock management strategies, largely determined by available wa-
ter resources.
• Replacement of cattle by goats during droughts.
• Engagement in a combination of agricultural and non-agricultural activities to
reduce vulnerability to the large agricultural risks.
In recent decades, however, many of these adaptations have become less feasible
due to population increase and changing conditions. Extra molapo land is no longer
available, while livestock mobility has been reduced by the demarcation of wildlife
reserves (Amtzen et al. 1994). According to Chanda (1996), a passive and fatalistic
attitude prevails among the local population over environmental degradation because
of their over-dependence on extemal solutions. Chanda (ibid) advocates measures to