Sarah Robinson

Pastoral Tenure in Central Asia: Theme and Variation in the Five Former Soviet Republics

Since 1991, both de facto and de jure pastoral tenure regimes diverged significantly in the five former soviet Central Asian republics (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan). Four of the five republics are currently considering the introduction of pasture codes with both individual and common forms of tenure under discussion. In the light of these debates this chapter examines the evolution of pastoral land tenure and user rights in each of the five republics over the 20 years since independence. Different choices were made by policy makers that have affected two key outcomes: firstly, livestock mobility and secondly, pasture access. The situation in each of the republics is reviewed and some case studies are presented.

Saigas on the brink: Multidisciplinary analysis of the factors influencing mass mortality events

An opportunistic bacterial infection preceded by weather of unusually high humidity and temperature caused mass death of saigas. In 2015, more than 200,000 saiga antelopes died in 3 weeks in central Kazakhstan. The proximate cause of death is confirmed as hemorrhagic septicemia caused by the bacterium Pasteurella multocida type B, based on multiple strands of evidence. Statistical modeling suggests that there was unusually high relative humidity and temperature in the days leading up to the mortality event; temperature and humidity anomalies were also observed in two previous similar events in the same region. The modeled influence of environmental covariates is consistent with known drivers of hemorrhagic septicemia. Given the saiga population’s vulnerability to mass mortality and the likely exacerbation of climate-related and environmental stressors in the future, management of risks to population viability such as poaching and viral livestock disease is urgently needed, as well as robust ongoing veterinary surveillance. A multidisciplinary approach is needed to research mass mortality events under rapid environmental change.

Land Degradation in Central Asia: Evidence, Perception and Policy

The introduction of communism into Central Asia brought agricultural transformation on a massive scale. Irrigation projects, expansion of livestock numbers and ploughing of the northern steppe modified vegetation and soils. Despite initial censorship, in the late Soviet period resources available for the study of land degradation processes were substantial and large scale mapping projects defined uniform criteria for degradation type and severity. Scientists found that degradation of vegetation cover from grazing was widespread, although productivity losses were slight in many areas. Tighter regulation led to stabilization of forest cover. Perhaps the most acute form of degradation was soil salinization, and the related Aral Sea disaster. Independence brought economic crisis: privatization turned salaried workers into subsistence farmers, dependant on local resources for survival. The early years were characterized by ploughing of marginal land in the mountains; abandonment of steppe fields for want of machinery; collapse in livestock inventories; and increasing reliance on wood for fuel. These changes led to a new mixture of degradation and recovery processes. Yet these were poorly documented, as funding for science collapsed and trained personnel migrated or retired. Institutes came to depend on environment-focussed development projects, so incentives to keep degradation on the agenda became strong. Such projects fund little basic science—so most statistics used to justify them were based on data from the 1980s or on more recent national data unaccompanied by documentation of methodology. Some research funding became available through international scientific collaborations, which have improved our understanding of specific processes such as grazing, soil erosion and deforestation. But much of this research is case-study based and cannot be scaled up. Studies at the national or regional scale often involve time-series analysis of remotely sensed vegetation indices. These have revealed responses to climatic factors, but so far have provided only speculative documentation of anthropogenic degradation processes over large areas.

Pastoralists as Optimal Foragers? Reoccupation and Site Selection in the Deserts of Post-Soviet Kazakhstan

This study explores the drivers of site selection amongst livestock owners under conditions of increasing animal numbers following a low point in the 1990s. Our major goal was to understand whether livestock owners are acting as ‘optimal foragers,’ targeting areas of highest forage availability as they colonise previously empty areas. The results presented here suggest that they do not. Initially, distance from home settlement was the dominant determinant of site occupancy, with closer sites occupied earlier regardless of other characteristics. Some owners remained on depleted vegetation for longer than would be predicted under conditions of optimal foraging, indicating that distance-related costs constrained resource matching. In the latter period, increases in livestock wealth encouraged the occupation of distant sites exhibiting higher vegetation density and water quality, but some owners still occupied highly depleted sites. Improved transport and water supply infrastructure are needed if pastoralists are to optimise resource use across the landscape.

Hommes et Troupeaux en Montagne. La question pastorale en Ariège (in French) [People and livestock in the mountains: the pastoral question in Ariège]

Book detailsEychenne, C Hommes et Troupeaux en Montagne. La question pastorale en Ariège. Paris: L’Harmattan; 2006.320 pages, ISBN 2-296-00324-9

Review of Eurasian Steppes. Ecological problems and livelihoods in a changing world, edited by Marinus JA Werger and Marja A van Staalduinen (Springer series: Plant and Vegetation No. 6)

Book detailsWerger, Marinus JA; and van Staalduinen, Marja A (editors) Eurasian Steppes. Ecological Problems and Livelihoods in a Changing World. Dordrecht, Heidelberg, New York, London: Springer; 2012.565 pages, ISBN 978-94-007-3885-0, ISBN 978-94-007-3886-7

Review of pastoral practices in High Asia, edited by Hermann Kreutzmann. (Springer Series: Advances in Asian Human-Environmental Research)

Book detailsKreutzmann, H (editor) Pastoral Practices in High Asia Dordrecht Heidelberg New York London, Springer; 2012.350 pages, ISBN 978-94-007-3845-4, ISBN 978-94-007-3846-1