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The Human Dimension in Natural Resource Conservation: A Sahelian Example from Niger

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 August 2009

John E. Newby  and
John F. Grettenberger
John E. Newby
Affiliation:
Boîte Postale 10933, Niamey, Republic of Niger
John F. Grettenberger
Affiliation:
Box 734, Stevenson, Washington 98648, USA.
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Extract

The Republic of Niger is establishing a vast national nature reserve in the Aïr Massif and Ténéré Desert. With its 77,360 km2, the reserve will cover a wide variety of arid-land habitats. Both rainfall and vegetation are sparse, but the area harbours a varied fauna that includes a number of threatened species. The Twareg inhabitants of the reserve subsist by raising livestock, by irrigating small gardens, and by caravanning. Their day-to-day existence relies heavily on natural resources, and their continued existence will depend on the conservation of those resources. Drought, desertification, and abusive use, are all responsible for the deterioration of those resources.

Although highly necessary, the rational management of the area's natural resources will conflict with current landuse practices. Examples of where this happens are presented, and some proposals are put forward for their solution. Ideally, a flexible management system needs to be elaborated that will satisfy both the aspirations of the zone's managers and the immediate needs of its residents. The Authors hope that work in Niger will find its application elsewhere in the Sahel, and meanwhile emphasize the need to reconcile conservation with development.

Type
Main Papers
Information
Environmental Conservation , Volume 13 , Issue 3 , Autumn 1986 , pp. 249 - 256
Copyright
Copyright © Foundation for Environmental Conservation 1986

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References

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