Sustainable soil management practices. A key to combat soil desertification in the hills of Nepal
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/WJSTSD-07-2014-0015 |
| Date | 05 January 2015 |
| Pages | 13-24 |
| Published date | 05 January 2015 |
| Author | Shiva Kumar Shrestha |
| Subject Matter | Public policy & environmental management,Environmental technology & innovation |
Sustainable soil management
practices
A key to combat soil desertification
in the hills of Nepal
Shiva Kumar Shrestha
Sustainable Soil Management Programme, Lalitpur, Nepal
Abstract
Purpose –Temporary and permanent decline in the productive capacity of the land due to natural
and human-induced activities such as soil erosion, changing cropping practices and less use of organic
matter (OM) has been the greatest challenge faced by mankind in recent years, particularly in the hills
and mountains of Nepal. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to examine the effectiveness of sustainable
soil management practices to mitigate desertification process in the hills of Nepal.
Design/methodology/approach –Promotion of sustainable soil management (SSM) practices through
a decentralised agriculture extension approach by involving all the stakeholders in a participatory way.
Findings –SSM practices mainly: OM management, fodder and forage promotion, increased biomass
production systems, integrated plant nutrition systems, and bioengineering for soil and water conser vation
are identified as the most appropriate and relevant technologies in mitigating the desertification process
without deteriorating land quality, particularly conserving the top-soils effectively and efficiently in the
hills and mountains of the country.
Research limitations/implications –This research is focus on the overall effect of SSM practices
due to time and budget constraints. There is scope for doing research on the different aspects
of SSM practices and the extent of their effect on different soil parameters (chemical, biological and
physical).
Practical implications –SSM interventions clearly indicated that there is significant impact in
increasing soil fertility, conserving fertile top-soils and mitigating physical, chemical and biologic
desertification processes. These are possible through maintaining and improving the soil organic
matter, which is the most important indicator for soil health. SSM practices have resulted in an increase
of up to 30 per cent in crop yield compared to yields without SSM practices. This might be due to the
improvement in SOC which improves soil texture, increases nutrient supply from organic source and
conserves water quality, thus, improving soil quality.
Social implications –This has created awareness among farmers. Hence, farmers are mitigating pH
through increased use of organic manures, where there is less availability of agriculture lime and they
are far from road access.
Originality/value –SSM practices significantly contributes to combat soil desertification in the hills
of Nepal.
Keywords Sustainable development, Desertification, Best practice in promotion of technologies,
Soil erosion, Top-soils, Sustainable soil management practices
Paper type General review
Background
Desertification is a dynamic process of “land degradation in arid, semi-arid and
sub-humid areas resulting from various factors including climatic variations and human
World Journal of Science,
Technology and Sustainable
Development
Vol. 12 No. 1, 2015
pp. 13-24
©Emerald Group Publis hing Limited
2042-5945
DOI 10.1108/WJSTSD-07-2014-0015
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/2042-5945.htm
The author is grateful to the SSMP team and to HELVETAS Nepal and SDC for support towards
the participation in the conference. The author is indebted to the World Association for
Sustainable Development (WASD) for selecting the paper and for giving an opportunity to
participate in the conference.
13
Sustainable soil
management
practices
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