Human use and conservation planning in Alpine areas of Northwestern Yunnan, China

Abstract

Alpine areas in northwestern Yunnan, China possess globally significant levels of biodiversity and are important locally for livelihood activities such as livestock grazing and medicinal plant collection. Because local land use has important impacts on alpine conditions and communities have significant capacity to manage alpine resources, we emphasized local collaboration during the initial stages of conservation planning. Our collaboration with local communities investigated how livelihood strategies affect the condition of alpine resources in northwestern Yunnan and how future conservation efforts can be compatible with local livelihoods. We sampled three livestock herding sites, each within a different alpine sub-region, using open-ended interviews and maximum variation sampling. According to interviewees, livestock grazing within the alpine zone currently does not appear to be negatively impacting the availability of forage. Medicinal plant collection, however, is showing unsustainable trends. Tourism is as yet a nascent industry, but is seen as having great potential by those interviewed. It is clear that with increases in population, access to regional markets, and tourism, northwestern Yunnan's rich alpine resources will require careful management. In addition to the data collected, we found that the methodology used may be widely applicable to organizations with limited resources that wish to engage local communities during the formative stages of regional-level conservation planning.

Tree-ring reconstruction of summer temperature for A.D. 1475–2003 in the central Hengduan Mountains, Northwestern Yunnan, China

“…This region is also a world-renowned temperate biodiversity hotspot (Myers et al 2000;Ying 2001), with an astonishing diversity in habitats ranging from warm-temperate, evergreen, broad-leaved to coniferous forest communities (Buntaine et al 2006;Wang et al 2007). As a response to the recent intensified global warming, Baker and Moseley (2007) have observed strong evidence of the retreat of glaciers and evident rise of alpine treeline in northwestern Yunnan, indicating the climatic sensitivity of this region to global climate change (He et al 2003;Zhang et al 2004).…”

Measuring tourist’s water footprint in a mountain destination of Northwest Yunnan, China

“…The growth of tourism has brought substantial economic and social changes to local communities, but also resulted in negative impacts on the local environment (Nyaupane et al 2006;Buntaine et al 2007;Li and Yang 2007).…”

Plant diversity and priority conservation areas of Northwestern Yunnan, China

“…Considerable attention was being focused on specific sites and protected areas, and on forest conservation, generally. Little attention was being focused on the alpine ecosystem, despite it's regional importance for maintaining biodiversity (Yunnan Great Rivers Project Planning Team 2001; Deng and Zhou 2004;this study), increasing threats to its viability (Moseley in preparation;Baker and Moseley 2006), and the significance of alpine systems to people's livelihoods (Salick et al 2004;Buntaine et al 2006). In 2003, TNC started the Alpine Ecosystem Project, a collaboration among community, government and research institutes to focus attention on, understand, and conserve the alpine ecosystem across the YGRP.…”