Academic literature on the topic 'Soils vulnerability index'

Abstract The concept of resilience has gained momentum during the current climate change era. Resilience is said to be the measure of the amount of change the system can undergo while still retaining the same controls on function and structure. Taking into account the effects of changing climate, the term resilience has been used to assess the vulnerability of social-ecological systems. Most agroecosystem studies have focused on dryland ecosystems and this prompted the need to shift concern on to mountainous ecosystems whose susceptibility to climate change is not adequately addressed. This chapter assesses the resilience of maize-coffee-banana agroecosystems on the southern slope of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Also, it assesses agronomic practices and the social-economic status of farmers and computes a social-ecological vulnerability index for the ecosystem. The study depicts variation of agronomic practices with altitude due to microclimatic differences, terrain and soil characteristics that determine the type of crops and their farming system which have both positive and negative implications. Climatic shocks (e.g. drought frequency, floods and below average rains) were found to have an impact on agricultural yield. Social-economic indicators (e.g. the number of household dependants, social safety nets, off-farm contribution, possession of land title, usage of wood for cooking energy and access to extension services) have also shown a significant influence on household vulnerability to changing climate which may later affect the agroecosystem productivity as these parameters are associated with the natural environment. Indicators chosen for the vulnerability index depict slight variations of vulnerability altitude wise, except for the mid-lower zone which appears to be more vulnerable.

AbstractForests play a vital role in combating climate change and mitigating its effects. In the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH), they are an important source of livelihood for the region’s growing population. With forest degradation and deforestation increasing, it has become all the more necessary to have a reliable climate resilient forest management system. At present, lack of precise information on forest degradation and the impacts of climate change on forest ecosystems hinder the conservation, planning and management of forest ecosystems in Nepal. We attempt to tackle this issue in collaboration with Department of Forests and Soil Conservation (DoFSC), Nepal, by providing scientific and reliable data on vulnerability of forests to anthropogenic factors and climate change using geospatial tools and techniques. We introduced a two-way multitier approach in Nepal to support the identification and implementation of adaptation and management strategies with special focus on forest ecosystems. It aims to reduce the vulnerability of forests to climate change and the degradation of forest ecosystems due to anthropogenic drivers. We used multispectral satellite datasets, data on climate trends and projections, and published data on extraction of forest resources in the study area. We then used data mining to quantify the influence of temperature and precipitation on functioning of forests by using MODIS data of net primary productivity, leaf area index, evapotranspiration and climatic trends and projections data. Finally, we overlayed the forest degradation map on forest climate sensitivity map to identify the hotspots of degradation and sensitivity needing immediate attention. These hotspots are defined as “adaptation footprints”, which help decision makers to prioritize their activities within their district. Most of the forest ecosystems in mid-western and far-western Nepal are highly sensitive to observed and predicted impacts of climate change, which need immediate prioritization and management. The products of this study are accessible through a web-based decision support tool, which will help decision makers at district and province level to prioritize the activities of forest management.