Abstract
Internationally, evidence-based assessments of the sustainability of cultivation in seasonal wetlands are lacking despite such areas, including dambos in southern Africa, providing key areas for cultivation. The Striking a Balance project, which supported multiple use, including cultivation, of dambos, was undertaken in Zambia and Malawi between 2006 and 2008. Using the baseline WET-SustainableUse assessments made in 2008 in four of these dambos, the procedures were repeated in 2019 to explore the ecological sustainability of current use based on the concept of Thresholds of Potential Concern (TPC). This concept was applied to the five components of ecological health, namely hydrology, geomorphology, soil organic matter, nutrient retention and vegetation composition. In all four dambos, despite ten years of multiple use including cultivation, the change in ecological health between 2008 and 2019 was generally small, and overall, the ecological health of the four dambos has largely been maintained. However, there are some concerns, particularly with respect to vegetation composition, which had fallen below the TPC for two of the dambos. The methods used and the findings appear to have wider application in Africa for long-term monitoring the ecological health of seasonal wetlands and determining the ecological bounds for wetland cultivation.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data Availability
The data for the assessment included in the study is given as supplementary material.
References
Acres BD, Rains AB, King RB, Lawton RM, Mitchell AJB, Rackham LJ (1985) African dambos: their distribution, characteristics and use. In: Thomas M F and Goudie a S (eds.) Dambos: small channelless valleys in the tropics. Zeitschrift für Geomorphologie, Supplement 52:147–169
Beuel S, Alvarez M, Amler E, Behn K, Kotze D, Kreye C, Leemhuis C, Wagner K, Willy DK, Ziegler S, Becker M (2016) A rapid assessment of anthropogenic disturbances in east African wetlands. Ecological Indicators 67:684–692
Davidson NC (2014) How much wetland has the world lost? Long-term and recent trends in global wetland area. Marine and Freshwater Research 65:934–941
Dixon A, Carrie R (2015) Creating local institutional arrangements for sustainable wetland socio-ecological systems: lessons from the ‘striking a balance’ project in Malawi, international journal of Sustainable Development & World Ecology,https://doi.org/10.1080/13504509.2015.1107861
Dixon M, Loh JR, Davidson NC, Beltrame C, Freeman R, Walpole M (2016) Tracking global change in ecosystem area: the wetland extent trends index. Biological Conservation 193:27–35
Finlayson CM, Davies GT, Moomaw WR, Chmura GL, Natali SM, Perry JE, Roulet N, Sutton-Grier AE (2019) The second warning to humanity – providing a context for wetland management and policy. Wetlands 39:1–5
Kotze DC (2009) An assessment of the ecological sustainability of the use of three dambos in the Mpika Distrcit, Zambia. Unpublished report submitted to Wetland Action and Wetland International, Wageningen
Kotze DC (2010) WET-SustainableUse: a system for assessing the sustainability of wetland use. WRC report no. TT 438/09. Water Research Commission, Pretoria
Kotze DC (2011) The application of a framework for assessing ecological condition and sustainability of use to three wetlands in Malawi. Wetlands Ecology and Management 19:507–520
Kotze DC (2013) Assessing the ecological sustainability of wetland cultivation: experiences from Malawi and Zambia. In: Wood a, Dixon a, and McCartney (eds.) wetland management and sustainable livelihoods in Africa. Earthscan, London
Kotze D, Wood A (2019) An assessment of the sustainability of use of selected dambos in the Mpika District, Zambia and Kasungu District, Malawi. Unpublished report submitted to Self Help Africa, Dublin, Ireland
Kotze DC, Walters DJ, Nxele IZ (2008) A baseline description of the ecological state and sustainability of use of three selected dambos in the Kasungu District, Malawi. Unpublished report submitted to Wetland Action and Wetland International, Wageningen
Macfarlane DM, Kotze DC, Ellery WN, Walters D, Koopman V, Goodman P, Goge M (2009) WET-health: a technique for rapidly assessing wetland health. WRC report no. TT 340/08. Water Research Commission, Pretoria
Marambanyika T, Beckedahl H, Ngetar NS, Dube T (2016) Assessing the environmental sustainability of cultivation systems in wetlands using the WET-health framework in Zimbabwe. Physical Geography 38:62–82. https://doi.org/10.1080/02723646.2016.1251751
Mbewe A (2007) Maintaining seasonal wetlands and their livelihood contributions in central southern Africa: PRA report for Chimu project Mpika District, Zambia. Unpublished report submitted to the Wetlands and Poverty Reduction Project of Wetlands International, Wageningen
Mbewe A, Sampa J (2018) Wider impacts of wetland innovation in northern Zambia. Unpublished research report
McCartney MP, Masiyandima M, Houghton-Carr HA (2005) Working wetlands: classifying wetland potential for agriculture. Research report 90. International water management institute (IWMI), Colombo
McCartney MP, Neal C (1999) Water flow pathways and water balance within a headwater catchment containing a dambo: inferences drawn from hydrochemical investigations. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences 3:581–591
McElwee G, Wood A (2017) Wetland entrepreneurs: diversity in diversification in Zambian farming. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development. https://doi-org.libaccess.hud.ac.uk/10.1108/JSBED-03-2017-0089
Miller RW, Gardiner DT (1998) Soils in our environment, 8th edn. Prentice Hall, New Jersey
Msukwa CAPS (2007) Baseline PRA report for wetland demonstration sites, Simlemba sustainable rural livelihoods project, Kasungu District, Malawi. Report submitted to the Wetlands and Poverty Reduction Project of Wetlands International, Wageningen
Musasa T, Marambanyika T (2020) Threats to sustainable utilization of wetland resources in ZIMBABWE: a review. Wetlands Ecology and Management 28:681–696
Ndiyoi M, Sampa J, Thawe P, Wood A (2009) Striking a balance: maintaining seasonal dambo wetlands in Malawi and Zambia. In: Mundy P. (ed.) Planting trees to eat fish. Field experiences in wetlands and poverty reduction. Wageningen, Wetlands International, pp. 27–39
Nyamadzawo G, Wuta M, Nyamangara J, Nyamugafata P, Chirinda N (2015) Optimizing dambo (seasonal wetland) cultivation for climate change adaptation and sustainable crop production in the smallholder farming areas of Zimbabwe. Int J Agric Sust 13:23–39
Nyirenda M A (2008) Biodiversity assessment report for three Mpika wetlands of SAB. Report submitted to Wetland Action
Rebelo L-M, McCartney MP, Finlayson CM (2010) Wetlands of sub-Saharan Africa: distribution an contribution of agriculture to livelihoods. Wetlands Ecology and Management 18:557–572
Randall G W, and Goss M J (2001) Nitrate losses to surface water through subsurface, tile drainage. In: Follet R F, Hatfield J L (eds.) Nitrogen in the environment: sources, problems, and management. Elsevier
Rogers KH, Biggs H (1999) Integrating indicators, endpoints and value systems in strategic management of the rivers of the Kruger National Park. Freshwater Biology 41:439–451
Sampa J (2008) Striking a balance: maintaining seasonal wetlands and their livelihood contributions in central southern Africa. Sustainable dambo cultivation. Report submitted to Wetland Action
Six J, Feller C, Denef K, Ogle SM, de Moraes S, Albrecht A (2002) Soil organic matter, biota and aggregation in temperate and tropical soils – effects of no-tillage. Agronomie 22:755–775
Strømgaard P (1984) Field studies of land use under chitemene shifting cultivation, Zambia. Geografisk Tidsskrift 84:78–85
Thieme ML, Abell R, Staissny MLJ, Skelton P, Lehner B, Teugls GG, Toham AK, Burgse N, Olson D (2005) Freshwater ecoregions of Africa and Madagascar: a conservation assessment. Island Press, Washington, D C
Tilman D, Downing JA (1994) Biodiversity and stability in grasslands. Nature 367:363–365
Trapnell CG (1953) The soils, vegetation and agriculture of north-eastern Rhodesia. Lusaka, Government Printer
von der Heyden CJ (2004) The hydrology and hydrogeology of dambos: a review. Progress in Physical Geography 28:544–564
Whitlow R (1989) A review of dambo gullying in south-central Africa. Zambezia XVI:123–150
Wood A (2008) Striking a balance: maintaining seasonal wetlands & their livelihood contributions in central southern Africa. FINAL TECHNICAL REPORT. Unpublished report submitted by Wetland Action to Wetlands International, Wageningen, The Netherlands
Wood A, McElwee G (2020) Innovation in Zambia’s wetland farming as a stimulus to rural entrepreneurship. In: Dobson S (ed) Enterprising Africa. Routeledge, Abingdon
Wood A P, van Halsema G E (2008) Scoping agriculture – wetland interactions: towards a sustainable multiple-response strategy. FAO water reports, 33. FAO, food and agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome, Italy
Wood A, Thawe P (2013) Catchments and wetlands: a functional landscape approach to sustainable use of seasonal wetlands in Central Malawi. In: Wood a, Dixon a, and McCartney (eds.) wetland management and sustainable livelihoods in Africa. Earthscan, London
Acknowledgments
Self Help Africa are gratefully acknowledged for funding this research. Orla Kilcullen of Self Help Africa, Dublin, Ireland, is thanked for her willingness and vision in supporting the study and her contribution to its overall administration. Albert Mate, Self Help Africa, Lusaka, Zambia and Peter Soko, Self Help Africa, Lilongwe, Malawi, Jonas Sampa, Wetland Action, Mpika, Zambia, and Patrick Thawe, Natural Resources Management Consultant, Lilongwe, Malawi, are thanked for facilitating the logistics of the field assessments and for liaison with local farmers, as well as for contributing valuable perspectives during the field assessments. Paul Wagstaff, Self Help Africa, Dublin, Ireland, is thanked for reviewing the initial sustainability assessment report of the four sites and contributing very valuable feedback. Above all, we would like to thank the members of the four communities who engaged in the field surveys and discussions. The authors would also like to acknowledge the very helpful comments from two reviewers of the first draft of this manuscript.
Funding
Funding for this research was provided by Self Help Africa.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
DCK co-designed the research, collected the field data and led the writing of the manuscript, and APW co-designed the research, assisted with field data collection and writing of the manuscript.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of Interest
No conflicts of interest/competing interests are known.
Ethics Approval
No ethics approval was required as the research was not involving humans and/or animals.
Consent to participate
No consent to participate were required as the research was not involving humans.
Consent for Publication
Consent for publication was obtained from the funding organization.
Code Availability
Not applicable, as there was no software application or custom code development.
Additional information
Publisher’s Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Supplementary Information
ESM 1
(DOCX 65.2 kb)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kotze, D.C., Wood, A.P. Assessing the Long-Term Ecological Sustainability of Dambo Cultivation in Southern Africa: Ten-Year Case Studies from Zambia and Malawi. Wetlands 41, 21 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-021-01399-5
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-021-01399-5