Drought frequency, conservancies, and pastoral household well-being
Portions of group ranches of northern Kenya communally held by pastoralists have been removed from grazing to support wildlife and encourage tourism and the resources that follow. These community-based conservancies (CBCs) were designed to benefit CBC members through regular payments, potential for...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Resilience Alliance
2024-03-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Society |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol29/iss1/art27 |
| _version_ | 1797234674015141888 |
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| author | Randall B Boone Carolyn K Lesorogol Kathleen A Galvin |
| author_facet | Randall B Boone Carolyn K Lesorogol Kathleen A Galvin |
| author_sort | Randall B Boone |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Portions of group ranches of northern Kenya communally held by pastoralists have been removed from grazing to support wildlife and encourage tourism and the resources that follow. These community-based conservancies (CBCs) were designed to benefit CBC members through regular payments, potential for wages, improved security, etc. We used a coupled-systems simulation approach to quantify potential changes in livestock numbers and pastoral well-being associated with the presence of CBC core and buffer areas, and we did so under the current frequency of droughts and increased frequency associated with climate change. The interannual precipitation coefficient of variation (CV) for our focal CBCs in Samburu County was 22% (706 mm average precipitation). We altered precipitation variability to span from 10% to 60% CV while maintaining the average. Compared to a simulation with observed precipitation and all rangelands available, when herders did not use the CBC core areas and seasonally avoided buffer areas, there was an 11% decline in tropical livestock units supported. More predictable precipitation patterns supported more livestock and improved pastoral well-being. At CVs above 30%, dramatic declines in livestock populations were simulated. When drought was made moderately more frequent (i.e., CV from 22% to 27%) there was a 15% decline in the number of livestock. Members receive a variety of benefits as part of CBC communities, but payments are small for these CBCs, and most households do not receive payments. Our results suggest that, from an economic perspective alone, payments must be raised to make membership of residents in conservancies more tenable. Additional adaptive pathways and perhaps external supports will be needed in the future as the frequency of drought increases and livestock populations decrease. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T16:35:49Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3b5a76497538453780ad518b2c5c5bf4 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1708-3087 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T16:35:49Z |
| publishDate | 2024-03-01 |
| publisher | Resilience Alliance |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Society |
| spelling | doaj.art-3b5a76497538453780ad518b2c5c5bf42024-03-29T16:20:32ZengResilience AllianceEcology and Society1708-30872024-03-012912710.5751/ES-14872-29012714872Drought frequency, conservancies, and pastoral household well-beingRandall B Boone0Carolyn K Lesorogol1Kathleen A Galvin2Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Colorado State UniversityGeorge Warren Brown School of Social Work, Washington University, St. Louis, MissouriDepartment of Anthropology and Geography, Colorado State UniversityPortions of group ranches of northern Kenya communally held by pastoralists have been removed from grazing to support wildlife and encourage tourism and the resources that follow. These community-based conservancies (CBCs) were designed to benefit CBC members through regular payments, potential for wages, improved security, etc. We used a coupled-systems simulation approach to quantify potential changes in livestock numbers and pastoral well-being associated with the presence of CBC core and buffer areas, and we did so under the current frequency of droughts and increased frequency associated with climate change. The interannual precipitation coefficient of variation (CV) for our focal CBCs in Samburu County was 22% (706 mm average precipitation). We altered precipitation variability to span from 10% to 60% CV while maintaining the average. Compared to a simulation with observed precipitation and all rangelands available, when herders did not use the CBC core areas and seasonally avoided buffer areas, there was an 11% decline in tropical livestock units supported. More predictable precipitation patterns supported more livestock and improved pastoral well-being. At CVs above 30%, dramatic declines in livestock populations were simulated. When drought was made moderately more frequent (i.e., CV from 22% to 27%) there was a 15% decline in the number of livestock. Members receive a variety of benefits as part of CBC communities, but payments are small for these CBCs, and most households do not receive payments. Our results suggest that, from an economic perspective alone, payments must be raised to make membership of residents in conservancies more tenable. Additional adaptive pathways and perhaps external supports will be needed in the future as the frequency of drought increases and livestock populations decrease.https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol29/iss1/art27community-based conservanciesdecumadrought frequencykalamal-rangelivestocknkoteiyapastoralismsamburu countysimulationwest gate |
| spellingShingle | Randall B Boone Carolyn K Lesorogol Kathleen A Galvin Drought frequency, conservancies, and pastoral household well-being Ecology and Society community-based conservancies decuma drought frequency kalama l-range livestock nkoteiya pastoralism samburu county simulation west gate |
| title | Drought frequency, conservancies, and pastoral household well-being |
| title_full | Drought frequency, conservancies, and pastoral household well-being |
| title_fullStr | Drought frequency, conservancies, and pastoral household well-being |
| title_full_unstemmed | Drought frequency, conservancies, and pastoral household well-being |
| title_short | Drought frequency, conservancies, and pastoral household well-being |
| title_sort | drought frequency conservancies and pastoral household well being |
| topic | community-based conservancies decuma drought frequency kalama l-range livestock nkoteiya pastoralism samburu county simulation west gate |
| url | https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol29/iss1/art27 |
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