A rangeland management pattern based on functional classification in the northern tibetan region of china
2014
Liu, X. Y. | Liang, T. G. | Guo, Z. G. | Long, R. J.
Rangeland degradation not only affects animal production but also threatens ecological quality throughout the world. In this study, a functional classification index (FCIᵢ) for rangelands was designed to determine the management pattern of different sub‐rangeland vegetation types this index combines the productive value (GPᵢ), ecological services value (GEᵢ), ecological sensitivity (ESIᵢ) and seasonal grazing importance (SGIᵢ) of each rangeland subtype and can be used for coordinating the relationships between animal production and ecological conservation. On the basis of the FCIᵢ of each rangeland subtype, the northern Tibetan rangelands were classified into a conservation sector, mixed sector and production sector. The conservation sector covering 0·47 million ha accounted for 13·9 per cent of the total rangeland area, and this had significant ecological and social values but was of low productivity. In the conservation sector, grazing should be forbidden so that degraded rangelands can be restored. The mixed sector covered 2·16 million ha, 63·9 per cent of the total rangeland area, and offered multiple benefits, in which increasing the number of head of livestock for sale would improve the income of local herders. A 0·75 million ha production sector accounted for 22·2 per cent of the total rangeland area and was applied to maximise economic benefits by establishing modern pasture systems to increase the income of local herders and thus partly offset the losses arising from the conservation sector. This study suggested that the area of the three functional sectors should be adjusted at appropriate times according to the changes in productivity and ecological values of each rangeland subtype.
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