Abstract
Approaches to the management of protected areas that involve the participation of local communities are now being widely promoted. However, the impacts of such community-based conservation initiatives on local communities remain poorly defined. This research examines the socio-economic impacts of community-based conservation within the Annapurna Conservation Area (ACA), Nepal, through semi-structured interviews and a questionnaire survey with local residents, situated both within and outside the protected area. Results indicate that local communities have received a number of benefits from conservation, including improvements in access to forest resources, improved basic infrastructure such as drinking water, trails and bridges, and improvements in health, sanitation and social services. However, relatively few people (14.9%) within ACA receive direct financial income from tourism. Local communities also experience a number of costs of being involved in conservation, the most significant of which is increased crop damage by wildlife. Eighty-four percent of respondents within ACA have experienced problems of crop damage, accounting for 6% (rice) to 23% (maize) of total production. Depredation of livestock by wildlife is also experienced; mean losses per household being the equivalent of £3.9 (Rs. 479.70) each year. However, 66% of respondents within ACA reported that they had never experienced this problem. These results indicate that the socio-economic benefits of community-based approaches to conservation can outweigh the costs, even though the latter are significant. However, a participatory approach to management of problematic animal species will need to be developed within ACA, if conflicts between local communities and protected area management are to be avoided in future.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abbot J.I.O. and Mace R. (1999). Managing protected woodlands: fuelwood collection and law enforcement in Lake Malawi National Park. Conserv. Biol. 13: 418–421
Adams B. and Hulme D. (1998). Conservation and Communities: Changing Narratives, Policies and Practices in African Conservation. University of Manchester, Manchester, 31
Akama J.S., Lant C.L. and Burnett G.W. (1995). Conflicting attitudes towards state wildlife conservation programmes in Kenya. Society Nat. Resour. 8: 133–144
Bajracharya S.B. (2004). Community Involvement in Conservation: An Assessment of Impacts and Implications in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal. University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland, 314
Bajracharya S.B., Furley P.A. and Newton A.C. 2005. Effectiveness of community involvement in delivering conservation benefits to the Annapurna Conservation AreaNepal. Environ. Conserv. (in press).
Banskota K. and Sharma B. (1995). Tourism for Mountain Community Development: Case Study Report on the Annapurna and Gorkha Regions of Nepal. International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, Kathmandu, 233
Brandon K.E. and Wells M. (1992). Planning for people and parks: design dilemmas. World Develop. 20: 557–576
Chambers R. (1997). Whose Reality Counts? Putting the First Last. Intermediate Technology Publications, London, xx + 297
DNPWC 1996. Annual Progress Report for Fiscal Year 2052–53. Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation/HMG, Kathmandu, Nepal.annexes + 34 pp.
Dudley N., Gujja B., Jackson B., Jeanrenaud J., Oviedo G., Phillips A., Rosable P., Stolton S. and Wells S. (1999). Challenges for protected areas in 21st century. In: Stolton, S. and Dudley, N. (eds) Partnerships for Protection, pp 3–12. WWF, IUCN and Earthscan Publications Ltd, London, UK
Feldmann F. (1994). Community environmental action: the national policy context. In: Western, D., Wright, M.R. and Strum, S. (eds) Natural Connection: Perspectives in Community-based Conservation, pp 393–402. Island Press, Washington, DC
Fiallo E.A. and Jacobson S.K. (1995). Local communities and protected areas: attitudes of rural residents towards conservation and Machalilla National Park, Ecuador. Environ. Conserv. 22: 241–249
Fortin M.J. and Gagnon C. (1999). An assessment of social impacts of national parks on communities in Quebec, Canada. Environ. Conserv. 26: 200–211
Ghimire K.B. (1997). Conservation and social development: an assessment of Wolong and other reserves in China. In: Ghimire, K.B. and Pimbert, M.P. (eds) Social Change and Conservation, pp 187–213. Earthscan Publications Limited, London
Ghimire K.B. and Pimbert M.P. (1997). Social change and conservation: an overview of issues and concepts. In: Ghimire, K.B. and Pimbert, M.P. (eds) Social Change and Conservation: Environmental Politics and Impacts of National Parks and Protected Areas, pp 1–45. Earthscan Publications Limited, London
Gibson C.C. and Marks S.A. (1995). Transferring rural hunters into conservationists: an assessment of community-based wildlife management in Africa. World Develop. 23: 941–957
Gurung G. (2005). Securing financial sustainability for Annapurna Conservation Area. In: Sharma, U.R. and Yonzon, P.B. (eds) People and Protected Areas in South Asia, pp 86–89. IUCN South Asia and Resources Himalaya Foundation, Kathmandu, Nepal
Gurung C.P. and DeCoursey M.A. (1994). The Annapurna Conservation Area Project: a pioneering example of sustainable tourism?. In: Cater, E. and Lowman, G. (eds) Ecotourism: A Sustainable Option?, pp 177–194. John Wiley and Sons, New York
Hackel J.D. (1998). Community conservation and the future of Africa's wildlife. Conserv. Biol. 13: 726–734
Heinen J.T. (1993). Park people relations in Kosi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, Nepal – a socio-economic analysis. Environ. Conserv. 20: 25–34
Hough J.L. (1988). Obstacles to effective management of conflicts between national parks and surrounding human communities in developing countries. Environ. Conserv. 15: 129–136
Hough J. (1991). Michiru Mountain Conservation Area: integrating conservation with human needs. In: West, P.C. and Brechin, S.R. (eds) Resident Peoples and National Parks: Social Dilemmas and Strategies in International Conservation, pp 130–137. The University of Arizona Press, Tucson
Infield M. and Namara A. (2001). Community attitudes and behaviour towards conservation: an assessment of a community conservation programme in around Lake Mburo National Park, Uganda. Oryx 35: 48–60
Inskipp C. and Inskipp T. 2001. A popular guide to the birds and mammals of the Annapurna Conservation Area. KMTNC-Annapurna Conservation Area Project. Pokhara, Nepal, x+41 pp.
IUCN 1998. Towards Participatory Management of Protected Areas in Asia Region. IUCN.
IUCN 2002. 2002 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCNwww.redlist.org.
IUCN. (2003). Durban Action Plan. In: (eds) The Vth IUCN World Park Congress Available from www.iucn.org/themes/wcpa/wpc2003/, pp. IUCN, Durban, South Africa
Kangwana K. and Mako R.F. (2001). Conservation, livelihoods and the intrinsic value of wildlife: Tarangire National Park, Tanzania. In: Humle, D. and Murphree, M.W. (eds) African Wildlife and Livelihoods: the Promise and Performance of Community Conservation, pp. James Currey Limited, Oxford
Kim E. and Karky B.S. (2001). Water Resource Use in the Annapurna Conservation Area: Assessment of Micro-Hydropower Management in Sikles and Chhomrong. KMTNC-Annapurna Conservation Area Project, PokharaNepal, 34
KMTNC-ACAP. (1997). A new approach in protected area management. KMTNC-Annapurna Conservation Area Project, PokharaNepal, 39
KMTNC-ACAP 1999. Two Years Retrospective Report: 1996/97 & 1997/98. Published Report. KMTNC-Annapurna Conservation Area Project, Pokhara, 30 pp.
*KMTNC-ACAP 2001. Two Years Retrospective Report July 1998–July 2000. Published Report. KMTNC-Annapurna Conservation Area Project, Pokhara, 44 pp.
Lehmkuhl J.F., Upreti R.K. and Sharma U.R. (1988). National parks and local development: grasses and people in Royal Chitwan National Park, Nepal. Environ. Conserv. 15: 143–148
Lewis D.M. and Alpert P. (1997). Trophy hunting and wildlife conservation in Zambia. Conserv. Biol. 11: 59–68
Lusigi W.J. 1982. Future directions for the Afrotropical realm. In: McNeely J.A. and Miller K.R. (eds), The Third World Congress on National Parks and Protected Areas. BaliIndonesia, 1984. Smithsonian Institute Press, Washington, DC, pp. 137–146.
Madhusudan M.D. (2003). Living amidst large wildlife: livestock and crop depredation by large mammals in the interior villages of Bhadra Tiger Reservesouth India. Environ. Manage. 31: 466–475
McNeely J.A. (1995). Partnerships for conservation: an introduction. In: McNeely, J.A. (eds) Expanding Partnerships in Conservation, pp 1–10. Island Press, Washington, DC
Mehta J.N. and Heinen J.T. (2001). Does community-based conservation shape favourable attitudes among locals? An empirical study from Nepal. Environ. Manage. 28: 165–177
Mehta J.N. and Kellert S.R. (1998). Local attitudes toward community-based conservation policy and programmes in Nepal: a case study in the Makalu-Barun Conservation Area. Environ. Conserv. 25: 320–333
Metcalfe S. (1994). The Zimbabwe Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE). In: Western, D. and Wright, R.M. (eds) Natural Connections: Perspectives in Community-based Conservation, pp 161–192. Island Press, Washington, DC
Miah D., Rahman L. and Ashan F. (2001). Assessment of crop damage by wildlife in Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary, Bangladesh. Tigerpaper 28: 22–28
Mishra H. (1982a). Balancing human needs and conservation in Nepal's Royal Chitwan National Park. Ambio 11: 246–251
Mishra H.R. 1982b. A delicate balance: tigers, rhinoceros, tourists and park management vs. the needs of local people in Royal Chitwan National Park, Nepal. In: McNeely J.A. and Miller K.R. (eds), The Third World Congress on National Parks and Protected Areas. BaliIndonesia, 1984. Smithsonian Institute Press, Washington, DC, pp. 197–205.
Murphree M.W. (1994). The role of institutions in community-based conservation. In: Western, D., Wright, R.M. and Strum, S.C. (eds) in Community-based Conservation, pp 403–427. Island Press, Washington, DC
Naughton-Treves L. (1997). Predicting patterns of crop damage by wildlife around Kibale National Park, Uganda. Conserv. Biol. 12: 156–168
Nepal S. (2002). Linking parks and people: Nepal's experience in resolving conflicts in parks and protected areas. Int. J. Sustain. Develop. World Ecol. 9: 75–90
Nepal S.K., Kohler T. and Banzhaf B.R. (2002). Great Himalayas: Tourism and the Dynamics of Changes in Nepal. Swiss Foundation for Alpine Research in collaboration with the Centre for Development and Environment, University of Berne, Zurich, 92
Newmark W.D., Leonard N.L., Sariko H.I. and Gamassa D.G.M. (1993). Conservation attitudes of local people living adjacent to protected areas in Tanzania. Biol. Conserv. 63: 177–183
Osborn F.V. and Parker G.E. (2003). Towards an integrated approach for reducing the conflict between elephants and people: a review of current research. Oryx 37: 80–84
Oviedo G. and Brown J. (1999). Building alliances with indigenous peoples to establish and manage protected areas. In: Stolton, S. and Dudley, N. (eds) Partnerships for Protection, pp 98–108. WWF, IUCN and Earthscan Publications Ltd, London
Parry D. and Campbell B. (1992). Attitudes of rural communities to animal wildlife and its utilisation in Chobe Enclave and Mababe Depression, Bostwana. Environ. Conserv. 19: 245–252
Pearl M.C. (1994). Local initiatives and rewards for biodiversity conservation: Crater Mountain Wildlife Management Area, Papua New Guinea. In: Western, D. and Wright, M.R. (eds) Community-based Conservation, pp 193–214. Island Press, Washington, DC
Pimbert M.P. and Pretty J.N. (1997). Parks, people and professionals: putting ‘participation’ protected-area management. In: Ghimire, K. and Pimbert, M.P. (eds) Social Change and Conservation, pp 297–330. Earthscan Publication Limited, UK
Punch K.F. (1998). Introduction to Social Research: Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches. SAGE Publications, London, xv + 319
Rao K.S., Maikhuri R.K., Nautiyal S. and Saxena K.G. (2002a). Crop damage and livestock depredation by wildlife: a case study from Nanda Devi Biosphere ReserveIndia. J. Environ. Manage. 66: 317–327
Rao M., Rabinowitz A. and Khaing S.T. (2002b). Status review of the protected area system in Myanmarwith recommendations for conservation. Conserv. Biol. 16: 360–368
Sah J.P. and Heinen J.T. (2001). Wetland resource use and conservation attitudes among indigenous and migrant peoples in Ghodaghodi Lake area, Nepal. Environ. Conserv. 28: 345–356
Salafsky N. and Wollenberg E. (2000). Linking livelihood and conservation: a conceptual framework and scale for assessing the integration of human needs and biodiversity. World Develop. 28: 1421–1438
Sekhar N.U. (1998). Crop and livestock depredation caused by wild animals in protected areas: the case of Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan, India. Environ. Conserv. 25: 160–171
Sharma U.R. (1990). An overview of park–people interactions in Royal Chitwan National Park, Nepal. Landscape Urban Plan. 19: 133–144
Sharma U.R. and Wells M.P. (1996). Nepal. In: Lutz, E. and Caldecott, J. (eds) Decentralisation and Biodiversity Conservation, pp 65–76. The World Bank, New York
Sherpa M.N., Coburn B. and Gurung C.P. (1986). Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal: Operational Plan. King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation and World Wildlife Fund, Kathmandu, xiii+Annexes+74
Songorwa A.L., Buhrs T. and Hughey K.F.D. (2000). Community-based wildlife management in Africa: a critical assessment of the literature. Nat. Resour. J. 40: 603–643
Spergel B. (1997). Compensation and substitute programmes. In: Borrini-Feyerbend, G. (eds) Seeking Social Sustainability in Conservation, pp 91–93. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland
(1999). Partnerships for Protection. UK Earthscan Publication Ltd, London, xvii + 283
Straede S. and Helles F. (2000). Park–people conflict resolution in Royal Chitwan National Park, Nepal: buying time at high cost?. Environ. Conserv. 27: 368–381
Studsrod J.E. and Wegge P. (1995). Park–people relationships: the case of damage caused by park animals around the Royal Bardia National Park, Nepal. Environ. Conserv. 22: 133–142
Terborgh J. and Schaik C.V. (2002). Why the world needs parks. In: Terborgh, J., Schaik, C.V., Davenport, L. and Rao, M. (eds) Making Parks Work: Strategies for Preserving Tropical Nature, pp 3–14. Island Press, Washington
UNDP. (2002). Nepal Human Development Report 2001: Poverty Reduction and Governance. UNDP, Kathmandu, xii+154
Wainwright C. and Wehrmeyer W. (1998). Success in integrating conservation and development? a study from Zambia. World Develop. 26: 933–944
Weladji R.B. and Tchamba M.N. (2003). Conflict between people and protected areas within the Benoue Wildlife Conservation Areanorth Cameroon. Oryx 37: 72–79
Wells M. and Brandon K. (1992). People and Parks: Linking Protected Area Management with Local Communities. World Bank, World Wildlife Fund and USAID, Washington, DC, xii+98
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bajracharya, S.B., Furley, P.A. & Newton, A.C. Impacts of Community-based Conservation on Local Communities in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal. Biodivers Conserv 15, 2765–2786 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-005-1343-x
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-005-1343-x