2011; Bui et al. 2013). The Black Thai farmers in Muong Lum grow paddy rice,
while the Hmong farmers mostly grow upland rice, and in addition, farmers keep
livestock for their own consumption and grow maize for sale. The possibility of
growing higher value crops is limited because of the inaccessibility of the
commune.
The Chieng Khoi sub-catchment, on the other hand, is located nearer to the
district center of Yen Chau. The sub-catchment is situated in a rift valley (called a
graben), which can be divided into a northern and a southern part. The northern part
has a lower altitude (400–545 m.a.s.l.) and is characterized by steep hills and a
valley which is used for agriculture, with soils (Alisols and Luvisols) derived from
cretaceous red beds and alluvial deposits (Clemens et al. 2010). The southern part is
extremely steep, rising up to 975 m.a.s.l., and is made up of limestone rock and
covered with primary forest (ibid.).
Farmers in Chieng Khoi grow paddy rice intensively for their own consumption,
using large amounts of fertilizers and pesticides. To generate cash income, they
practice the mono-cropping of maize on the mountain slopes surrounding the village,
and to intensify this maize production they have adopted high yielding maize
varieties, use mineral fertilizers and plow their sloping fields with buffalos. Some
of the fields are already eroded so badly that maize cultivation is no longer possible.
Where soil fertility is low, farmers prefer planting cassava, which is frequently
intercropped with maize. Farmers were previously given user rights over their
paddy land and sloping land for a period of 20 years, as specified in a so-called
‘red-book’, plus were given individual user rights over the nearby forest land for a
period of 50 years. Livestock are an important source of food as well as cash income,
plus households raise fish in ponds, and keep cattle, pigs, ducks and chickens.
1.3 Drivers of Land Use Change in the Mountainous Areas
of Southeast Asia
The intensification of agriculture in mountainous areas and its integration into
input and output markets has largely been driven by four interrelated processes:
economic development, policy change, new technologies and population growth,
each of which is described in the following section.
Thailand since the early 1980s and Vietnam since the late 1980s have been
through rapid economic development, driven largely by export oriented
manufacturing, but also by export oriented agriculture. In both countries, this economic growth has led to a significant reduction in poverty and a concomitant increase
in the purchasing power of the population (see Kakwani and Krongkaew 2000 for
Thailand; Minot and Baulch 2005 for Vietnam).
1 Although urban centers and lowland areas have been at the center of this development, it has had profound impacts on
1 Kakwani and Krongkaew (2000) estimated that poverty in Thailand had fallen to 32.6 % in 1988
and 11.4 % by 1996.
12
P. Schreinemachers et al.
while the Hmong farmers mostly grow upland rice, and in addition, farmers keep
livestock for their own consumption and grow maize for sale. The possibility of
growing higher value crops is limited because of the inaccessibility of the
commune.
The Chieng Khoi sub-catchment, on the other hand, is located nearer to the
district center of Yen Chau. The sub-catchment is situated in a rift valley (called a
graben), which can be divided into a northern and a southern part. The northern part
has a lower altitude (400–545 m.a.s.l.) and is characterized by steep hills and a
valley which is used for agriculture, with soils (Alisols and Luvisols) derived from
cretaceous red beds and alluvial deposits (Clemens et al. 2010). The southern part is
extremely steep, rising up to 975 m.a.s.l., and is made up of limestone rock and
covered with primary forest (ibid.).
Farmers in Chieng Khoi grow paddy rice intensively for their own consumption,
using large amounts of fertilizers and pesticides. To generate cash income, they
practice the mono-cropping of maize on the mountain slopes surrounding the village,
and to intensify this maize production they have adopted high yielding maize
varieties, use mineral fertilizers and plow their sloping fields with buffalos. Some
of the fields are already eroded so badly that maize cultivation is no longer possible.
Where soil fertility is low, farmers prefer planting cassava, which is frequently
intercropped with maize. Farmers were previously given user rights over their
paddy land and sloping land for a period of 20 years, as specified in a so-called
‘red-book’, plus were given individual user rights over the nearby forest land for a
period of 50 years. Livestock are an important source of food as well as cash income,
plus households raise fish in ponds, and keep cattle, pigs, ducks and chickens.
1.3 Drivers of Land Use Change in the Mountainous Areas
of Southeast Asia
The intensification of agriculture in mountainous areas and its integration into
input and output markets has largely been driven by four interrelated processes:
economic development, policy change, new technologies and population growth,
each of which is described in the following section.
Thailand since the early 1980s and Vietnam since the late 1980s have been
through rapid economic development, driven largely by export oriented
manufacturing, but also by export oriented agriculture. In both countries, this economic growth has led to a significant reduction in poverty and a concomitant increase
in the purchasing power of the population (see Kakwani and Krongkaew 2000 for
Thailand; Minot and Baulch 2005 for Vietnam).
1 Although urban centers and lowland areas have been at the center of this development, it has had profound impacts on
1 Kakwani and Krongkaew (2000) estimated that poverty in Thailand had fallen to 32.6 % in 1988
and 11.4 % by 1996.
12
P. Schreinemachers et al.