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What factors determine carrying capacity? A case study from pastoral T ibet
Author(s) -
Nyima Yonten
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
area
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.958
H-Index - 82
eISSN - 1475-4762
pISSN - 0004-0894
DOI - 10.1111/area.12137
Subject(s) - rangeland , carrying capacity , pastoralism , rangeland management , environmental resource management , ecosystem , business , geography , economics , ecology , agroforestry , environmental science , forestry , livestock , biology
Through a case study from P elgon County, T ibet Autonomous Region in C hina, this paper aims to enrich the existing literature on why and how applying carrying capacity to rangeland management may not be feasible even though it is claimed to be a scientific approach. The application of carrying capacity to rangeland management based on equilibrium assumptions has been the very essence of state policy on range management and pastoralism in C hina. Even if the concept of carrying capacity is relevant to rangeland management depending on rangeland ecosystems, a meaningful application depends on how carrying capacity is determined. This case study reveals that the determination of carrying capacity in practice has more to do with political and economic factors than with ecological factors.