FACTORS AFFECTING LAND USE CHANGE AND ITS IMPACTS IN THE EASTERN HILLS OF NEPAL

Abstract

Factors Affecting Land Use Change and Its Impacts in the Eastern Hills of Nepal. The objective of this paper is to explore factors causing change in land use and land cover categories in the Eastern Hills of Nepal’s during the past 24 years between 1986 and 2010. The paper draws data and information from three different map sources —land resource mapping project 1986, toposheet 1996 and Landsat imagery 2010. In addition, the mapping data being generated were verified in the field through using observation, reality check approach and consultation workshops held at different places in the Eastern Hills of Nepal. The study area comprises four contagious hill districts such as Bhojpur, Dhankuta, Sankhuwasabha, and Terhathum.

A significant change has occurred particularly in two major categories of land use and land cover in the Eastern Hills of Nepal over the past two and half decades. While forest land increased consistently over the past 24 years, cultivated land area increased during the years 1986-1996 but decreased between 1996 and 2010. In agriculture, patches of abandoned agricultural land have also been observed in areas away from road facility in the recent years due to out-migration of youths. Intensification of agriculture practice was found along and around roads, wherein traditional subsistence cereals crops have been replaced with commercial vegetables and high value crops such as large cardamom, ginger, seeds and fruits.

Three major factors comprising community forestry program, construction of roads, and introduction of improved agriculture development programs have contributed to internal trading between major land use and land cover categories. Further, these changes have offered benefits like nature conservation, internal and international trade of local products, and better living conditions of local communities. These development efforts should be kept in mind for policy measures in regard to conservation and development management of land use and land cover categories in other areas of Nepal.