Farming Practices Impact on Environmental Degradation by Communities Living Around North Pare Mountains, Tanzania

Abstract

Environmental degradation has been one of the major concerns in the 21st century globally. The study on the assessment of farming practices that influence environmental degradation along the slopes of North Pare Mountains was done in Mwanga District-Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania. Specific objectives of the study were to identify and examine: various farming technologies used by the communities and to examine: farmer’s perception on environmental degradation. A cross-sectional research design was used. The survey population consisted of small hold farmers from four randomly selected villages. A sample size of 120 respondents was drawn from a total population of 22 670 farmers. From the 120 randomly selected small hold farmers. Data were collected using questionnaire and focus group discussion (FGD) guided by a checklist. Six Village Executive Officers (VEOs) and five Agricultural Extension Officers were also interviewed by the researchers to cross-check with what farmers reported. Farming practices found to influence environmental degradation included cultivating small size of farm land, cutting all trees, poor applied simple tools in preparing land, practicing mono cropping and poor farming practices within the hills, overgrazing and bush-fires. The study recommends community environmental education to be backed by by-laws and campaigns. Service institutions should start using substitution energy resources other than fuel wood.