Identification of Suitable Land for Livestock Production Using GIS-Based Multicriteria Decision Analysis and Remote Sensing in the Bale Lowlands, Ethiopia

Identification of Suitable Land for Livestock Production Using GIS-Based Multicriteria Decision Analysis and Remote Sensing in the Bale Lowlands, Ethiopia Abel Balew Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Woldia University, North Wollo, Ethiopia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8920-9315 Behailu Legese Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Madda Walabu University, Robe, Ethiopia https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7901-3645 Derara Kunbushu Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Madda Walabu University, Robe, Ethiopia Worku Nega Department of Land Administration and Surveying, Debre Markos University, Debre Markos, Ethiopia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9774-5337 Wubshet Alebel Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Woldia University, North Wollo, Ethiopia Abebe Kerbesh Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Woldia University, North Wollo, Ethiopia Md. Mijanur Rahman Founder and CEO Study Hacks (Institute of GIS & Remote Sensing), Department of Geography & Environment, Jagannath University, Dhaka, Bangladesh https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8571-611X Daniel I. Rubenstein

Rangeland resources of the Bale lowlands have been degraded due to climate change, human factors, lack of sufficient environmental and rangeland policies, disaster mitigation strategies, and good management. The study identified suitable rangeland for cattle, sheep, goat, and camel production in the Bale lowlands using GIS-Based Multicriteria Decision Analysis and remote sensing techniques. Land-use and land-cover, rainfall, water accessibility, slope, and soil types were used for the suitability analysis. The study showed that an area of 4112, 16311, 6643, and 9820 km2 was highly suitable for cattle, sheep, goats, and camels, respectively. The results of the study also indicated that an area of 40099, 30925, 41981, and 36802 km2 was moderately suitable for cattle, sheep, goats, and camels, respectively. In addition, an area of 7644, 4671, 3630, and 5632 km2 was marginally suitable for cattle, sheep, goats, and camels, respectively. On the other hand, an area of 399 and 346 km2 was not suitable for cattle and sheep, respectively. The study is important for improving livestock production and mitigating the impacts of traditional livestock mobility on local communities. The study can also provide insights for government authorities to formulate environmental and rangeland policies to identify rangeland types and separate the rangeland for each livestock category.
10 3 2022 1 17 9585552 9585552 Madda Walabu University 501100020864 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 10.1155/2022/9585552 https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2022/9585552/ http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2022/9585552.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2022/9585552.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2022/9585552.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2022/9585552.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2022/9585552.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2022/9585552.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2022/9585552.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2022/9585552.xml National Range and Pasture Handbook NRCS 1997 Range and Animal Sciences and Resources Management V. R. Squires 1 2010 People in Rangelands: Their Role and Influence on Rangeland Utilization and Sustainable Management Restoring Disturbed Landscapes: Putting Principles into Practice Tongway 2010 10.1016/S1002-0160(10)60023-9 The Journal of Global Resources H. Arjjumend 4 18 2018 Ecosystem services of forest ecosystem in Nech Sar National Park, Ethiopia: identifying the challenges and conservation measures Rangeland Systems Processes D. D. Briske 2017 10.1007/978-3-319-46709-2 10.1186/s13717-019-0199-z Environmental Monitoring and Assessment B. Legese 193 2021 10.1007/s10661-021-09222-8 Land-use and land-cover change in the lowlands of bale zone, ethiopia: its driving factors and impacts of rangeland dynamics in livestock mobility 10.3390/land7010002 10.1186/s13570-017-0090-4 Applied Geography C. Liao 86 2017 10.1016/j.apgeog.2017.07.003 Complexity in the spatial utilization of rangelands: pastoral mobility in the Horn of Africa Innovative Satellite Solutions to Ethiopia’s Drought PCI 2016 10.1016/j.rama.2018.07.016 Ecology of African Pastoralist Societies K. Homewood 2008 Savannas of Our Birth: People, Wildlife, and Change in East Africa R. S. Reid 2012 10.1525/9780520954076 10.1186/s13570-019-0150-z An Integrated Assessment of Resource Use Strategies In the Borana Pastoral System of Southern Ethiopia H. Tedecha 2015 10.1186/s13717-016-0049-1 10.1016/j.biocon.2012.07.026 10.1007/s12080-012-0169-x 10.1177/0309133314524429 10.1007/s12517-013-0840-6 Ethiopian Veterinary Journal A. Bizuwork 10 41 2006 Application of geographic information systems (GIS) for the classification of production systems and determination of grazing pressure in uplands of the Awash River Basin, Ethiopia 10.1007/s10708-020-10284-3 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.08.169 10.1007/bf03325953 Georisk: Assessment and Management of Risk for Engineered Systems and Geohazards L. G. Santhosh 12 3 234 2018 Landfill site selection based on reliability concepts using the DRASTIC method and AHP integrated with GIS—a case study of Bengaluru city, India Oromia Water Works Design and Supervision Enterprise A. Ebro 2009 Rangeland suitability evaluation for livestock production in laga- wata/laga- sura, dawa and rift valley sub-basins of the borana zone of oromia, southern Ethiopia LemmessaF.Rangeland Suitability Analysis for Livestock Production Using GIS and Remote Sensing: The Case of Yabello Woreda, Southern, Ethiopia2011Addis Ababa, EthiopiaAddis Ababa UniversityMaster Thesis Natural Resources Research E. Gavili 1 89 2011 Determine water resources accessibility for sheep grazing by GIS technology (Case study: feraidun Shahr rangeland in Isfahan Province). J. Appl. RS GIS Technology Glob. J. Sci. Front. Res. H Environ. Earth Sci., B. K. Terfa 15 2015 Rangeland suitability evaluation for livestock production using remote sensing and GIS techniques in dire district, southern Ethiopia GIS and Multicriteria Decision Analysis J. Malczewski 1999 10.3390/su11174530 10.1007/s11356-019-05064-7 Advances in Life Science and Technology A. Asresie 29 79 2015 The contribution of livestock sector in Ethiopian economy 10.2989/10220119.2020.1861096 Journal of Range and Desert Research E. Alizadeh 18 353 2011 Range suitability classification for goats using GIS: case study: ghareaghach watershed- semirom. Iran Livestock Research for Rural Development F. Amiri 21 68 2009 A model for classification of range suitability for sheep grazing in semiarid regions of Iran 10.1007/s42452-019-1500-6 10.1016/j.indic.2019.100010 10.1016/j.ejor.2018.07.005 10.1111/j.1365-2028.2007.00832.x 10.1023/a:1008106625096