Case study 3: Xilingol grassland, Inner Mongolia.

Abstract

Xilingol in Nei Menggu, China, has undergone major land degradation and parts have become desert within the past few decades. The dynamic pulse of stocking rate on the spatio-temporal patterns of grassland degradation was altered and this was a key contributing factor, along with large-scale rangeland conversion to cropland and rising populations of people and their livestock. The respective roles of traditional nomadic and sedentary grazing in the land use history of Xilingol grassland was examined in the light of drastic land use changes and a dramatic increase of human population since 1950. The major social economic factors driving grassland degradation during the past 50 years were explored and put forward practical approaches for improving the current practices of grassland management based on the theoretical framework of adaptive ecosystem management and sustainability science.