Environmental Changes in the Hindu Raj Mountains, Pakistan
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Published:
Oct 8, 2018
Keywords:
Global environmental change Mountain environment Resource degradation Natural resource base Deforestation
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Abstract
Global Environmental Change among the world’s mountains has become a field of interest for researchers and this issue has been widely studied in many parts of the world. This exploratory research aims to study the changes that have occurred and are still occurring in the Hindu Raj Mountains of northern Pakistan, which is an unexplored region with a wide potential for research. To study the changes in various aspects of physical and social setup, five villages/sub-valleys were selected at varying altitudes above mean sea level. Changes in the bio-physical environment were explored using remote sensing technology. It was found that drastic changes have taken place and are still going on in the natural environment as well as the socio-economic setup of the study area since 1970. The population of the study area has increased by manifold resulting in changes in the household and family structure. Moreover, the land use land cover of the study area has changed considerably. Forest cover has decreased drastically with an increase in both the built up and barren land areas.
Article Details
How to Cite
Haq, F., Waseem, L. A., Rahman, F., Ullah, I., Tabassum, I., & Siddiqui, S. (2018). Environmental Changes in the Hindu Raj Mountains, Pakistan. Environment and Natural Resources Journal, 17(1), Page 63–77; DOI: 10.32526/ennrj.17.1.2019.07. Retrieved from https://ph02.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/ennrj/article/view/162167
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Original Research Articles
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37. Templeton SR, Scherr SJ. Population pressure and the micro-economy of land management in hills and mountains of developing countries. Washington, USA: International Food Policy Research Institute; 1997.
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2. Ali T, Shabaz B, Suleri A. Analysis of myths and realities of deforestation in Northwest Pakistan: implications for forestry extension. International Journal of Agriculture and Biology 2006;107:110-8.
3. Allan N. Periodic and daily markets in the highland-lowland interaction systems: Hindukush-Western Himalaya. In: Singh TV, Kaur J, editors. Integrated Mountain Development. New Delhi, India: Himalayan Books; 1985.
4. Allan N. Accessibility and altitudinal zonation models of mountains. Mountain Research and Development 1986;185:194-6.
5. Allan N. Kashgar to Islamabad: the impact of the Karakoram Highway on mountain society and habitat. Scottish Geographical Magazine 1989;105:130-41.
6. Allen JC, Barnes DF. The causes of deforestation in developing countries. Annals of the Association of American Geographers 1985;75(2):163-84.
7. Cook N, Butz D. Narratives of accessibility and social change in Shimshal, Northern Pakistan. Mountain Research and Development 2011;31(1):27-34.
8. Ehlers E. Population growth, resource management and well adapted land-use in the Bagrot/Karakoram. Applied Geography and Development 1996;48:7-28.
9. Ehlers E. Traditional environmental knowledge and consciousness and the problem of sustained agricultural development. Applied Geography and Development 1997;49:79-95.
10. Ehlers E, Kreutzmann H. High mountain ecology and economy potential and constraints. In: Ehlers E, Kreutzmann H, editors. High Mountain Pastoralism in Northern Pakistan. Stuttgart: Erdkundliches Wissen; 2002.
11. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Land degradation in South Asia: its severity, causes and effects upon the people. World Soil Resources Reports No. 78. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; 1994.
12. Fazlur-Rahman. Agro-pastoral economy, property rights and locally formulated resource management mechanisms in Astor valley, northern areas of Pakistan. Pakistan Journal of Geography 2007a;17(1-2):55-75.
13. Fazlur-Rahman. Persistence and Transformation in the Eastern Hindu Kush: A Study of Resource Management Systems in Mehlp Valley, Chitral, North Pakistan. St. Augustin, Germany: Bonner Geographische Abhandlungen 118; 2007b.
14. Flint EP. Changes in land use in South and Southeast Asia from 1880 to 1980: a data base prepared as part of a coordinated research program on carbon fluxes in the tropics. Chemosphere 1994;29(5):1015-62.
15. Gautam AP, Webb EL, Shivakoti GP, Zoebisch MA. Land use dynamics and landscape change pattern in a mountain watershed in Nepal. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 2003;99(1-3):83-96.
16. Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (GoKPK). Land cover Atlas of Pakistan. Peshawar: Pakistan Forest Institute; 2014.
17. Goode W. World Revolution and Family Patterns. New York, USA: Free Press; 1963.
18. Government of North West Frontier Province (GoNWFP). Land use survey of North West Frontier Province Part I. Peshawar, Pakistan: Peshawar and Malakand Division; 1975.
19. Government of Pakistan (GoP). District Census Report of Dir District, 1972. Islamabad: Population census organization of Pakistan; 1972.
20. Government of Pakistan (GoP). District Census Report of Dir District, 1981. Islamabad: Population census organization of Pakistan; 1981.
21. Government of Pakistan (GoP). District Census Report of Dir Lower District, 1998. Islamabad: Population census organization of Pakistan; 2002.
22. Gracheva R, Kohle RT, Tadelbauer J, Meessen H. Population dynamics, changes in land management, and the future of mountain areas in Northern Caucasus: The example of North Ossetia. Erdkundi 2012;66(3):179-219.
23. Grotzbach E. Mobility of labor in high mountains and socio-economic integration of peripheral areas. Mountain Research and Development 1984;4(3):229-35.
24. Harrison P. The Third Revolution: Environment, Population and a Sustainable World. London and New York: Tauris and Co. Ltd; 1992.
25. Jodha NS. Mountain commons: changing space and status at community levels in the Himalayas. Journal of Mountain Science 2007;4(2):124-35.
26. Jodha NS, Banskota M, Partap T. Strategies for the Sustainable Development of Mountain Agriculture: An Overview. India: Oxford and IBH; 1992.
27. Keilman N. The threat of small households. Nature 2003;421:489-90.
28. Knight KW, Rosa EA. Household dynamics and fuel wood consumption in developing countries: a cross-national analysis. Population and Environment 2012;33(4):365-78.
29. Kreutzmann H. The Karakoram Highway. Modern Asian Studies 1991;25:711-36.
30. Kreutzmann H. Development processes in the Hunza Valley, a case study from the Karakoram Mountains. Pakistan Journal of Geography 1992;1:1-17.
31. Kreutzmann H. Challenge and response in the Karakoram: socioeconomic transformation in Hunza, Northern areas, Pakistan. Mountain Research and Development 1993;13(1):19-39.
32. Liu J, Daily G, Ehrlich P, Luck G. Effects of household dynamics on resource consumption and biodiversity. Nature 2003;421:530-3.
33. Rahman F, Haq F, Tabassum I, Ullah I. Socio-economic drivers of deforestation in Roghani Valley, Hindu-Raj Mountains, Northern Pakistan. Journal of Mountain Science 2014;11:167-79.
34. Repetto R. Soil loss and population pressure on Java. Ambio 1986;15(1):14-8.
35. Sati PV. Population and sustainability issues in mountains: a case for the Uttaranchal Himalaya. ENVIS Bulletin 2009;14(2):1-8.
36. Somanathan E. Deforestation, Property Rights and Incentives in Central Himalaya. Economic and Political Weekly 1991;26(4):37-46.
37. Templeton SR, Scherr SJ. Population pressure and the micro-economy of land management in hills and mountains of developing countries. Washington, USA: International Food Policy Research Institute; 1997.
38. Uhlig H, Kreutzmann H. Persistence and change in high mountain agricultural systems. Mountain Research and Development 1995;15(3):199-212.
39. United Nations. The Determinants and Consequences of Population Trends: New Summary of Findings on Interaction of Demographic, Economic and Social Factors. Population Studies, Vol. I. New York, USA: United Nations; 1973.
40. United Nations. Population, environment and development. The concise report. New York, USA: United Nations; 2001.
41. Verdon M. Rethinking Households. London: Routledge; 1998.
42. World Bank. World Development Report 1992: Development and the Environment. New York: Oxford University Press; 1992.