The use of fire in Northeast Luzon (Philippines): Conflicting views of local people, scientists and government officials

Wetensch. publicatieInstitute of Environmental Science

Risk assessment of pesticide usage by smallholder farmers in the Cagayan Valley (Philippines)

A significant increase in pesticide use has increased concerns about potentially adverse effects on human health and the environment, particularly in countries where regulations are not strictly implemented and farmers’ knowledge of safe handling procedures is often inadequate. This paper assesses the potential risk of pesticide use by smallholder farmers in the Cagayan Valley, North-East Luzon, the Philippines, by examining pesticide usage, application methods, pesticide drift and health effects among farmers with different levels of income and market access. About 104 farmers growing rice and corn were interviewed and spray drift and exposure of operators was measured when 22 rice farmers sprayed with water using their knapsack equipment. Twenty different pesticides freely sold in stores or markets were encountered in the study, 9 of which are classified as ‘highly hazardous’ or ‘moderately hazardous’ and at least 6 as restricted use pesticides. Farmers mostly at risk had the highest income and largest farms. By walking through crops, farmers’ legs were most seriously exposed to pesticide deposition. The experimental results agreed with farmers’ affirmative response to questions about their suffering various symptoms of poisoning. Estimates of pesticide concentrations in watercourses exposed to drift suggest that aquatic species will suffer adverse effects up to at least 2.0 m from field borders. Hazard quotients suggest that pesticide application rates are not toxic to honeybees exposed to drift up to 1.5 m from sprayed fields. Approval of pesticides needs to distinguish between restricted and general use pesticides. Recommendations are made for controlling pesticide use and its impacts, modifying the integrated pest management programme and redesigning pesticide policies

Exploring the Agroforestry Adoption Gap: Financial and Socioeconomics of Litchi-Based Agroforestry by Smallholders in Rajshahi (Bangladesh)

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Exploring the agroforestry adoption gap: financial and socioeconomics of litchi-based agroforestry by smallholders in Rajshahi (Bangladesh)

This paper takes a multistrata agroforestry system, based on Litchi chinensis and widely practised in North Bangladesh, as a case study to address the common problem of lack of adoption in agroforestry. Although the financial cost-benefit analysis of agroforestry systems may show clear-cut profitability, these systems are often hardly adopted by farmers. Our data clearly show this pattern. Net present values and returns to labor of agroforestry were five times higher than those of alternative (annual) crops, and yet the adoption rate remained very low, even though an agroforestry project had been carried out in the study area and agroforestry had positive cultural value. Common economic reasoning is that in such cases, adoption is hampered by capacity constraints of the farmers. Our data allow to argue, however, that not the capacities but rather the motivations of the farmers are key, in spite of the financial characteristics of the system. This is caused by the underlying institutional structures, that are highly unconducive to agroforestry. We conclude that action for agroforestry should focus first of all to get supportive institutions (rules and organisations) in place before focusing on trees and projects, if needed at all

Upland farming in perspective : an essay on motivations and the role of government

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