Effects of sustainable land management interventions on selected soil properties in Geda watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia

Terefe, Hailu; Argaw, Mekuria; Tamene, Lulseged; Mekonnen, Kindu; Recha, John W.M.; Solomon, Dawit

doi:10.1186/s13717-020-0216-2

Cited by 30 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…In spite of the effort to implement conservation measures, the persistent land degradation issue in the farming systems attracted the attention of many researchers and have raised to top policymakers in recent years. Some of the many studies included assessment of the effect of SWC on discharge and sediment yield 25,28 and ddeterminants for adoption of physical SWC measures. 29 In Ethiopia, a large proportion of the human population depends almost entirely on natural resources for their livelihoods that brought about an increasing competing demand for usage, development, and sustainable management of land resources.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Changes in Land-Use Management Practices on Soil Physicochemical Properties in Kabe Watershed, Ethiopia

Assefa

Elias

Soromessa

et al. 2020

Air, Soil and Water Research

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Change in land-use management practices such as cultivation of steep slopes, overgrazing, and no or limited fallow periods, and slope position affects the quality of soils. As a result, assessing soil physicochemical properties and subsequent implications on soil fertility is essential for understanding the influence of agro-ecosystem revolution on agricultural soil quality and efficiency. In this research, we assessed the effect of land-use management practices on selected soil properties under varying terrain slopes and with and without soil conservation measures in a highly disturbed landscape in the northern part of Ethiopia in 2016. Based on the result, for all slope positions considered—namely, lower (1%-15%), middle (15%-30%), and upper (30%-45% and above)—with and without soil conservation, soil moisture content, porosity, silt, and clay proportions were lower in the cultivated land compared with grazing and forestland-use units. Conversely, soil bulk density and the sand fraction were higher in the cultivated land than grazing and forestland units, relatively. Observing changes in a terrain slope position, sand content of forest, grazing, and cultivated land units increased from lower to upper slope position whereas silt and clay fraction generally showed a decreasing trend from lower to an upper slope positions. In all slope positions with and without conservation practice, cation exchange capacity, exchangeable K+, Ca2+, and Mg2+ showed a significant increase from cultivated land to grazing and then forestland. The mean value of pH and electrical conductivity of cultivated lands with and without soil conservation were significantly low in all slope categories. Summarizing the analysis of variance for selected soil chemical properties with different slope positions, except available phosphorous, all chemical properties considered in this study are statistically significant ( P < .05). In summary, the result confirmed that soil properties were strongly influenced by terrain slope, land use, and changes in management practice. Consequently, to conserve soil resources, policymakers need to implement appropriate land conservation strategies based on land-use structure and slope variation.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Changes in Land-Use Management Practices on Soil Physicochemical Properties in Kabe Watershed, Ethiopia

Assefa

Elias

Soromessa

et al. 2020

Air, Soil and Water Research

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“…Management options that reduce land degradation also reduce CO 2 concentration in space by capturing through photosynthesis and storing it in plants and soils in the form of biomass (Tesfay et al 2019). Thus, SLM interventions such as improved soil and water conservation methods, the introduction of multi-purpose trees, area closure, and grazing managements were introduced in Geda watershed in the central highlands of Ethiopia, since 2012 (Mekonnen 2018;Terefe et al 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Geda watershed is characterized by a mixed croplivestock farming system where more lands are allocated for crops and grazing with fewer plots for eucalyptus plantation (Terefe et al 2020). The mixed crop-livestock system is a common practice in the tropics and is a dominant farming typology in Ethiopia (Thornton and Herrero 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Geda watershed, free grazing on crop and grazing lands is a common practice following the main season crop harvest until the landscape is covered by the next season crops (Terefe et al 2020). Free grazing practices remove crop residues and all organic resources which need to be decomposed to enrich the soil (Gebremedhin et al 2001;FAO 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In view of improving ecosystem services and building climate resilience landscape, various SLM interventions were introduced at Geda watershed in 2012 (Terefe et al 2020). SLM practices include construction of soil and/or stone bunds, terraces, trenches, check dams, percolating pits, planting of tree lucerne at highly degraded plots, combinations of structural and vegetative measures, and most importantly prohibition of free grazing (Ebabu et al 2019;Terefe et al 2020). Since the installation of the SLM practices in Geda watershed, evidences were generated on erosion, runoff, and sediment suspension and crop yields (Mekonnen 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sustainable land management interventions lead to carbon sequestration in plant biomass and soil in a mixed crop-livestock system: the case of Geda watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia

et al. 2020

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Background: Sustainable land management interventions were introduced in Geda watershed in 2012 to reduce soil erosion, improve water infiltration, and increase plant-carbon inputs into the soil. This study explored the impact of the interventions on biomass production, carbon stock, and carbon sequestration. Stratified sampling was employed in the main and the dry seasons in the treated and untreated sub-watersheds that are found adjacent to each other. Above-and below-ground plant biomass, soil bulk density and organic carbon in 0-15-and 15-30-cm depths, and soil moisture content in 0-20-and 20-40-cm depths were collected from the crop, grazing, and tree lucerne plots. All analyses were performed based on standard procedures. Results: Plant biomass production, carbon stock, and carbon sequestration varied highly significantly (P ≤ 0.001) among sub-watersheds, landscape positions, and land uses. Higher mean values were observed for treated subwatershed, lower landscape position, and tree lucerne plot. The higher mean values in the lower landscape position of the treated sub-watershed were due to tree lucerne plantation. Similarly, topsoil (0-15 cm) carbon stock was statistically higher (P ≤ 0.001) in the treated sub-watershed and at tree lucerne plot (P ≤ 0.05). In addition, carbon stock by sub-surface soil (15-30 cm) was significantly higher (P ≤ 0.001) in the treated sub-watershed under crop and grazing lands but the higher value was in cropland and in the upper position. This could be due to the decomposition of organic materials from biomasses of crops and biological supporting measures (tree lucerne and Phalaris) facilitated by tillage. Six years of sustainable land management interventions led to the sequestration of 12.25, 7.77, and 13.5 Mg C ha −1 under cropland, tree lucerne, and grazing plots, respectively. Conclusion: Sustainable land management interventions revealed auspicious ecological impacts in Geda watershed in terms of improving plant biomass production, carbon stock, and correspondingly capturing higher carbon dioxide equivalent taking untreated sub-watershed as a baseline. Prohibition of free grazing was the key element of the intervention to reduce biomass export and increase carbon sequestration in the treated sub-watershed. Thus, sustaining tree lucerne plants as a conservation measure and the prohibition of free grazing practices are principally essential.

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Gender gap in perspectives of the impacts of degradation and restoration on ecosystem services in Ethiopia

Mponela

Aynekulu

Ebrahim³

et al. 2023

Land Degrad Dev

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The importance of land restoration has garnered increasing attention on the global stage through large‐scale initiatives such as the Bonn Challenge. However, policies and strategies are often gender‐blind and designed in compliance with entrenched social hierarchies, exacerbating pre‐existing social inequalities that affect restoration initiatives. The challenge of developing gender‐responsive policies and initiatives is accentuated by a persistent lack of sex‐disaggregated data concerning men's and women's differing perceptions and experiences. This study aims to help fill this gap by capturing the differences in men and women's perceptions of ecosystem services before and after restoration interventions in Ethiopia. Towards that end, in October 2021, we collected data from fifty‐nine (59) paired husband‐wife households and six gender‐segregated focus group discussions in two regions of Ethiopia: Amhara and Southern Nations, and Nationalities and Peoples (SNNP). Kendall's concordance analysis established a strong degree of disagreement between men's and women's ratings of restoration outcomes for most indicators. Men attributed degradation to landscape conditions and natural forces, while women considered the lack of appropriate restoration strategies as a precursor for accelerated degradation. The study also reveals that men tended to benefit more than women from enhanced ecosystem services post‐restoration, with increased labour and land management burdens often falling on the shoulders of women. Based on these findings, we argue that including men's and women's perspectives from the earliest planning phases of restoration initiatives is essential to ensure greater equity in benefit‐sharing, mitigate trade‐offs for women, and build more nuanced, just and successful approaches to restoration.

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Effects of sustainable land management interventions on selected soil properties in Geda watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia

Cited by 30 publications

References 25 publications

Effect of Changes in Land-Use Management Practices on Soil Physicochemical Properties in Kabe Watershed, Ethiopia

Effect of Changes in Land-Use Management Practices on Soil Physicochemical Properties in Kabe Watershed, Ethiopia

Sustainable land management interventions lead to carbon sequestration in plant biomass and soil in a mixed crop-livestock system: the case of Geda watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia

Gender gap in perspectives of the impacts of degradation and restoration on ecosystem services in Ethiopia

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