Potential of rehabilitation of degraded rangelands of Balochistan
Potential of rehabilitation of degraded rangelands of Balochistan
Javed Afzal, Abdul Sattar Alvi and Sarwat Naz Mirza
ABSTRACT
Balochistan, being the largest province of
Pakistan area wise, constitutes 44% of total land
mass of the country. It is characterised with fickle
and unreliable rainfall, skeletal soil which induces
high rate of albedo, and desiccating winds which
all in combination, adversely affect the plant built-up. Adding to the woes, whatever meager plant
cover is available that is also depleting rapidly.
The depletion is being caused mainly by an
absolute lack of grazing management by the flock
owners and by the extraction of shrubs and bushes
for fuel. Valuable grasses like Washta/Hadden
(Stipa pennata), and Granang/Rangai (Enneapogon
persicum) have almost vanished. These were the
important palatable perennial grasses representing
the climax of range ecosystem in highland
Balochistan. Now, these have been replaced by
Saba/Kaj (Chrysopogon aucheri), a sub-climax
stage in deterioration of the original cover
(Johnston and Hussain, 1963). However, for
practical purposes, Chrysopogon may be
considered the best cover presently attainable.
Because of low forage production, the health of
livestock that makes use of this vegetation is also
impaired and they are sold at low prices.
Consequently, the livestock producer does not get
adequate economic return. So, the rangelands are
a valuable natural resource and need to be
managed properly to get sustained maximum
forage and ensure plant cover to halt soil erosion
and further loss of primary productivity.
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June 1993
Vol. 43, Iss. 2
