Climate and Land Use Change Pressures on Food Production in Social-Ecological Systems: Perceptions from Farmers in Village Tank Cascade Systems of Sri Lanka

Sujith S. Ratnayake (), Michael Reid, Nicolette Larder, Danny Hunter, Md Kamrul Hasan, Punchi B. Dharmasena, Benjamin Kogo, Malalasiri Senavirathna and Champika S. Kariyawasam
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Sujith S. Ratnayake: Department of Geography and Planning, University of New England, Armidale 2351, Australia
Michael Reid: Department of Geography and Planning, University of New England, Armidale 2351, Australia
Nicolette Larder: Department of Geography and Planning, University of New England, Armidale 2351, Australia
Danny Hunter: Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, 00153 Rome, Italy
Md Kamrul Hasan: Agricultural Extension and Rural Development, Patuakhali Science and Technology University, Patuakhali 8602, Bangladesh
Punchi B. Dharmasena: Faculty of Agriculture, Rajarata University of Sri Lanka, Mihintale 50300, Sri Lanka
Benjamin Kogo: School of Environmental and Rural Sciences, University of New England, Armidale 2351, Australia
Malalasiri Senavirathna: Faculty of Humanities, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Colombo 11600, Sri Lanka
Champika S. Kariyawasam: School of Environmental and Rural Sciences, University of New England, Armidale 2351, Australia

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 19, 1-23

Abstract: Climate and land use change pressures are critical to food production in Social-Ecological Systems (SESs). This study assessed farmers’ perceptions of the pressures of climate and land use changes alongside their impacts on food production in Mhahakanumulla Village Tank Cascade System (MVTCS), a SES maintained by traditional agricultural land use systems in the dry zone of Sri Lanka. This study used both rating and ranking scale questions to quantify farmers’ perceptions. The tobit regression model was employed to evaluate how farmer perception was influenced by socio-economic factors. The results showed that most of the farmers had experienced that the climate of the MVTCS area had changed over time, and they perceived variability of rainfall patterns as the most prominent and influential climate change. The increased cost of production, wildlife damage, and land degradation were ranked by the farmers as the most impactful factors of food production due to climate change. The farmers rated deforestation and land clearing as the most influential and impactful changes in land use, while wildlife damage and land degradation ranked as the highest impacts on food production due to land use changes. Among the socio-economic determinants, training and income/profit positively influenced farmer perceptions of the severity of both climate and land use change. The level of farmer’s adaptation to climate change had a negative association with their perception of the severity of climate change. Household size negatively influenced the perceptions of the severity of climate change while positively influencing perceptions of land use change impacts. Among the spatial determinants, farm size and downstream locations of MVTCS positively influenced perceptions of the severity of both climate and land use change. Thus, the effectiveness of adaptation strategies towards climate and land use change pressures depends on how well they are understood by the farmers. The study findings provide helpful insights for formulating localized land use policies and climate change adaptation strategies in these globally important landscapes with a combination of both top-down and bottom-up approaches.

Keywords: climate change; land use change; farmers’ perceptions; perception determinants; Village Tank Cascade Systems (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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