Universal Journal of Agricultural Research 5(5): 267-279, 2017 http://www.hrpub.org DOI: 10.13189/ujar.2017.050503 Perception and Indicators of Climate Change, Its Impacts, Available Mitigation Strategies in Rice Growing Communities Adjoining Eastern Arc Mountains Kashenge Sophia1,*, Makoninde Emmanuel2 1Agriculture Research Institute – Dakawa, Tanzania 2Kilimanjaro Agriculture Training Center (KATC), Tanzania *Corresponding Authors: [email protected], [email protected] Copyright©2017 by authors, all rights reserved. Authors agree that this article remains permanently open access under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 International License Abstract Ongoing forest disturbances in the areas Tanzania. According to TFCG [19], Eastern Arc Mountains adjoining the Eastern Arc Mountains in Kilombero District originally encompass 23,700 sq. km and stretch in scattered associated with growing population and farm expansion led mountain blocks from the Taita Hills in southern Kenya to to increasing land degradation and fluctuations of the Udzungwa Mountains in southern Tanzania. The main hydrological supply downstream. This threatens not only mountains, from north to south, are: Taita Hills, North and biodiversity but also irrigated rice productivity. A structured South Pare, West and East Usambara, North and South Interview in conjunction with awareness creation was Nguru, Ukaguru, Uluguru, Rubeho, and Udzungwa. These carried out in seven villages (Chita, Mbingu, Kisegese, series of isolated mountains have been heavily covered by Namawala, Mpofu, Njage and Mofu) to determine level of forests and are recognized as one of 34 globally important understanding among rice growers on the potential of these "hot spots" for forest biodiversity according to Conservation mountains for sustainable water flow downstream and the International [7]. Eastern Arc Forests are the oldest and most ability of farmers to detect and prepare towards impact of biologically diverse forests in the world. Most of the original climate change. A total of 240 respondents (124 men and 116 forests, especially at the more accessible or lower elevations, women) were involved. Results revealed that, the whole have been utilized for agricultural production. The concept of Eastern Arc Mountains and its potential for water mountains are available in 14 Districts of Tanzania: availability in rice productivity as well as level of awareness South/North pare - Same and Mwanga Districts, East and on climate change, its impact, and preparedness reflected West Usambara - Muheza, Lushoto and Korogwe Districts, limited understanding. Awareness creation program was carried out involving 258 farmers (134 males and 124 Nguu – Kilindi District, Nguru – Mvomero District, Uluguru Females). The study recommends a joint Eastern Arc - Morogoro and Mvomero Districts, Ukaguru – Kilosa Mountains conservation multi-stakeholder task force for District, Rubeho - Mpwapwa and Kilosa Districts, preparation of a joint climate change mitigation and Malundwe – Morogoro District, Udzungwa (the largest part) adaptation strategies. Furthermore, the study recommends - Kilombero, Mufindi and Kilolo Districts and Mahenge – in introduction of agro forestry, promoting cocoa production Ulanga District. and introduction of zero grazing among conservation Eastern Arc Mountains also serve as water catchments for measures. urban areas such as Dar es Salaam, Tanga, and Morogoro, Tanzania. For example, Ruvu River comes from Uluguru Keywords Rice, Climate Change, Mitigation, Eastern Mountain; Pangani River partly comes from Pare, West Arc, Kilombero, Uzungwa Scarp Usambara and East Usambara Mountains; Sigi River comes from the East Usambara Mountains; Wami River comes from the Nguru, Ukaguru and Rubeho Mountains and the Great Ruaha and Kilombero Rivers that join the Rufiji come from Udzungwa Mountains. Rufiji, the largest river 1. Introduction basin comprises of four major rivers, namely, the Great Ruaha River (85,554 km2), Kilombero River which crosses 2 1.1. The Eastern Arc Mountains the major part of Kilombero District (40,330 km ), the Luwegu River (25,288 km2) and the Rufiji (lower part of The Eastern Arc Mountains are a chain of mountains that Main River) [8, 14]. All these river basins make great run from the Taita hills of Hills in Kenya to the south-west of contribution to rice productivity. 268 Perception and Indicators of Climate Change, Its Impacts, Available Mitigation Strategies in Rice Growing Communities Adjoining Eastern Arc Mountains Table 1. Location and areas of Eastern Arc Mountains but also irrigated rice productivity, therefore causing Forest Altitudinal Distance % loss of destabilization of the community surrounding the mountains Site Area range of from the forest [13]. Furthermore, the extreme climate events including 2 (Km ) forest coast cover flooding, heavy rainfall, droughts, heat wave and cold Taita Hills 3 1500-2140 165 98 stream are also on rise and are some of consequences of North Pare 25 130-2113 220 50 climate change [13, 15]. South Pare 211.1 820-2463 150 73 Rice growing communities need to recognize the West 220 1200-2200 100 84 Usambara relationship between climate at the Eastern Arc Mountains East and their rice growing environment as useful ecosystem. 450 130-1506 50 57 Usambara Climate change impacts affect the ecosystem services that Nguu 140.42 1000-2250 150 - communities are largely dependent upon, threatening Nguru 328.35 400-2000 150 82 development and economic stability [1, 3]. Adaptation to Ukaguru 155.38 1500-2250 220 90 climate change requires that farmers using natural resource Rubeho 654 520-2050 300 37 and traditional techniques of agricultural production first to Uluguru 291 1200-1275 180 65 appreciate the existence of resources they are using and Malunwe Hill 4.5 1200-1275 270 - notice that the climate has altered, and therefore the Mahenge 5 460-1040 300 89 alterations are anticipated on the resources they are using Udzungwa 1017 300-2580 300 76 Source: Burgess et al., 2000 [16]. The level of information and knowledge on climate change impacts in several sectors of Tanzania is exceedingly patchy. Therefore, the aim of the project was to guarantee 1.2. Rice Production in Kilombero Basin that rice production is sustainable, with minimal negative More than 80% of the population in Kilombero District environmental impact, and copying with climate change. involved in Agriculture sector and Agriculture is their major Furthermore, the study tried to assess the level of source of income and food. Rice is the major crop grown for understanding of the potentials of Eastern Arc Nature both cash and food followed by sugar cane as a cash crop. Reserves in relation to sustainable water flow for rice Other major food crops include maize, sweet potatoes, production taking into account the ability of irrigated rice cassava, banana, legume, vegetables, fruits and coconuts. farmers in major rivers basins to detect climate change, to Cocoa, sesame and sunflower are also grown for cash in ascertain the increased vulnerability through nature reserve small areas. The district is divided into three major disturbances, and finally, understand the use of Indigenous agro-ecological zones: eastern zone which has 28 villages Technical Knowledge (ITK) in climate change detection and lies along the part of Eastern Arc Mountains (the Udzungwa) responses. and it is good for sugar cane and paddy production; the central zone which has 20 villages experienced flooding sometimes and it is good for paddy production and some 2. Methodology livestock are kept. The western zone has 33 villages which are very potential for paddy, maize, banana and livestock The study was conducted in selected seven villages production. located in five wards of Kilombero District, Morogoro Kilombero is one of the major rice producing districts in region as indicated in Figure 1a &1b. These villages adjoin Tanzania and largely depend on climate-sensitive sectors, Kilombero na Uzugwa scarp nature reserve. The villages and such as rain-fed and irrigated agriculture; its fragile Eastern their respective wards in brackets are: Chita (Chita), Mbingu Arc Mountain ecosystems, dramatic topography and and Mpofu (Mbingu), Njage (Mchombe), Kisegese and population pressure make the district more prone to extreme Namawala (Idete), Mofu (Mofu) (Figure 2). Selection of the effects of climate change [13]. Higher temperatures and studied villages was purposeful because of their closeness to changes in precipitation patterns disrupt production systems Eastern Arc Mountains which geographically favours in many ways such as changes in hydrological flow. The agriculture particularly rice production in the area. The study hydrological values of these mountains for irrigated rice employed a cross-sectional research design where both productivity are currently imperative and need to be highly primary and secondary data were collected. Primary data recognized by the respective rice growing communities involved both quantitative and qualitative data. The study adjacent to the mountains and further downstream. Ongoing sample was obtained by using simple random sampling forest disturbances, exploitation of natural resources technique from a sampling frame of rice farmers from the associated with growing population and farm expansion villages adjacent to Udzungwa Mountains. Moreover, key have led to increasing pollution, fluctuations of hydrological informants involved purposive selected village leaders,