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Evaluating sustainability of community endeavours in an I ndian floodplain wetland using multi‐criteria decision analysis
Author(s) -
Datta Debajit,
Kumar Ghosh Proshanta
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
singapore journal of tropical geography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.538
H-Index - 42
eISSN - 1467-9493
pISSN - 0129-7619
DOI - 10.1111/sjtg.12092
Subject(s) - wetland , livelihood , sustainability , environmental resource management , context (archaeology) , environmental planning , business , citizen journalism , floodplain , wetland conservation , agriculture , geography , ecology , political science , environmental science , cartography , archaeology , law , biology
The floodplain wetlands of G anga‐ I chamati interfluves in I ndia have become severely degraded due to incessant, unsustainable utilization practices and lack of community awareness. In spite of the wetlands being the prime source of livelihood for millions, no comprehensive management strategy to accommodate the diverse aspirations and priorities of different users has been implemented for the wetlands to date. In this paper, the authors applied a framework of criteria and indicators to evaluate the status of sustainability achieved by community endeavours in one such wetland. The priorities, consumption patterns and contributions towards wetland conservation of major user groups functioning in that area were assessed by the framework developed through participatory multi‐criteria decision analysis. Results show the deteriorating status of the wetland at present regarding biodiversity conservation and livelihood generation. Fishing activities were identified as the dominant utilization option here followed by agriculture. The paper further explored the preferred alternative utilization strategies for achieving sustainability. Effectiveness of the developed framework in evaluating the extent of sustainability achieved in community endeavours was also highlighted in this context.