June
2002
Goats,
or Scapegoats for Desertification:
Time to Take Another Look at Firewood Demand in Peru
By
Abelardo Rodríguez and Margarita Uhlenbrock
Goats
have been turned into scapegoats when it comes to explaining desertification
in Peru’s northern dry forest, but ICARDA and its national program partners
are trying to set the record straight. Strong demand for firewood and charcoal
is the more likely cause of forest degradation, and alternative livelihood options
for pastoralists and diminished demand for wood are the most reasonable solution.
Water
is the main factor limiting livelihoods in the dry forest of Peru’s north
coast.
To
cut or not to cut; this is the dilemma faced by the inhabitants of the dry forest.
The
tropical dry forest of northwestern Peru, which once covered an area of 20,000
km2, has suffered severe desertification mainly during the last 50 years. While
few disagree that desertification is occurring, there is disagreement on the
relative impact of different human activities and on the measures necessary
to stop desertification.
Many Peruvian officials and some scientists blame desertification on goats,
whose uncontrolled access to the dry forest allows them to feed on young plant
shoots.
Agropastoralist communities in the dry forest have bred goats since the time
of the Spanish conquest and 20% of the Peruvian goat population is raised in
the region. At present there are 25,000 families of agropastoralists in the
dry forest, mainly goat-keepers, typically owning about 40 animals.
Other scientists argue that numbers of animals are still low compared to forage
production rates and that damage is limited by the agropastoralists’ lack
of ability to increase herd size during brief periods of intensive rainfall.
The climatic phenomenon known as ‘El Niño’ causes very high
annual rainfall (2200 mm–3000 mm in two to three months) approximately
every five to eight years, while long-term average annual rainfall is low at
100 mm–400 mm. It is argued that goat-keepers cannot buy extra goats during
years of abundant forage because of lack of credit and because all goat-keepers
wish to keep their goats during this time, rather than sell them. With no livestock
added to the system, the numbers cannot increase fast enough to have an impact
on seedling establishment production during the critical 2–3 month period
after the ‘El Nino’ rains. Only a successive number of years of high
rainfall, during which stocking rates could build up, followed by a dry year
would cause overgrazing, but this happens very infrequently.
To explain why goats and their keepers are blamed for deforestation, it should
be remembered that goat-keepers have a very low social and economic status and
that they have little lobbying capacity with government institutions. In Peru,
goats are associated with poverty, destitution, and traditional practices. Goat-keepers
are not included in forest policy and receive minimal support from the government.
ICARDA has undertaken research in the region to fill some of the gaps in the
knowledge related to this debate. The aim of the research has been to understand
the human–environment interactions that might affect desertification and
to find ways of alleviating poverty and supporting sustainable livelihoods for
this marginalized group of agropastoralists.
One-hundred and sixty families were interviewed, distributed over six localities
over four ecological zones in the region. Information was collected on family
size, household consumption, levels of education, animal ownership, access to
credit, domestic water supplies, access to irrigation, and on household income
derived from agriculture, livestock and cheese production, firewood collection,
and other on- and off-farmactivities.
The estimated per capita income in 2000 was less than US$0.80 per day. The poorest
25% of agropastoralists have a per capita income of US$0.23 per day. Although
almost 95% of families own goats, livelihoods are diverse. In four out of the
six localities, firewood extraction provides more income than livestock and
cheese production. Respondents gave figures for household consumption and for
firewood sold in markets. They reported that 2000 kg/month/household was used
for domestic use, representing 60% of total firewood extraction. This figure
is three-times the domestic firewood consumption rate typical in other similar
parts of the world, and is probably inflated because householders do not want
to admit to over-exploitation of firewood for commercial gain. Because an unknown
proportion of the firewood reported as being for domestic consumption is probably
sold for income, the total rates of extraction need to be considered. Domestic
and commercial extraction combined averages 3400 kg/month/household. Much is
sold to nearby villages, but a significant proportion is consumed as charcoal
in the coastal cities. For instance, the dry forest supplies 34% of the charcoal
consumed in Lima.
Small
ruminants graze in an area being assessed for productivity and forage utilization.
ICARDA and its national program partners are working to reveal the true causes
of desertification and are helping to devise strategies to stop it.
ICARDA’s
research shows that the principal reason for desertification is not goats, but
the overexploitation of the forest for firewood and charcoal. Previous studies
have suggested that agropastoralists are not excessive in their extraction of
firewood, a finding that is drawn into question by this most recent study. This
has important ramifications when it comes to devising strategies to arrest desertification.
If agropastoralists can find alternatives to firewood extraction to supplement
their income, then they might be encouraged to manage the forests more sustainably.
Ironically, goats and goat products might provide their best livelihood alternatives,
and, therefore, the best hope for alleviating further environmental damage.
Generally there is a negative
correlation between income derived from firewood extraction and income derived
from goat production, and a particularly strong negative correlation between
the extraction of firewood and the production of goat cheese. The locations
of Cañas and Pampa Larga have the most cheese production, while they
are also the areas of least firewood extraction.
Proper control of commercial firewood extraction requires more efficient and
better-resourced local regulatory mechanisms and law enforcement authorities.
But, it is unlikely that the extraction of firewood can be controlled by edict
alone.
Aside from finding profitable alternatives to firewood extraction, desertification
might be reduced by reducing the need for firewood for cooking in households
and restaurants. High-effeciency stoves and bio-digester systems need to be
further investigated. At present, because people take their water mainly from
contaminated open wells, large quantities of firewood are used to boil water
to make it safe for drinking. Improved water supplies would reduce firewood
extraction for domestic purposes.
Both agropastoralists and urban consumers of charcoal have an interest in
the preservation of the forest. Awareness campaigns to publicize the link
between deforestation and the charcoal industry might persuade urban dwellers
to buy charcoal from forests managed sustainably. At the same time, agropastoralists
need to be supported in efforts to diversify livelihoods away from firewood
extraction and to preserve forest resources to sustain future livestock and
cheese production. Rather than being part of the problem, goat-keepers can
be part of the solution. They have already developed livelihood strategies
that are alternatives to excessive firewood extraction.
There is often a tendency for marginalized rural groups to be blamed for environmental
degradation, as they have little public voice and their interactions with
the environment are more obvious, compared for instance with an urban consumer
of charcoal. The main culprits of desertification are failure of the market
to reward restraint in firewood extraction, institutional failure to manage
forests sustainably, and lack of livelihood alternatives. Solutions can only
be found by treating goat-keepers as partners in resource management and in
the socioeconomic development of the region. And the sustainable policy decided
upon might well involve goats.
Dr Abelardo Rodríguez,
based in Cairo, Egypt, is former Coordinator of ICARDA’s Latin America
Regional Program, Peru. Margarita Uhlenbrock, is with the Universidad Nacional
Agraria, La Molina, Peru.
Small
ruminants live off the annual and perennial vegetation.
