Pastoral land use changes in the North Caucasus. Presented by Raisa Gracheva at the "Perth II: Global Change and the World's Mountains" conference in Perth, Scotland in September 2010.

1. Pastoral land use changes
in the North Caucasus
Raisa Gracheva, Elena Belonovskaya
Institute of Geography of RAS, Moscow

2. Projects
International project “Sustainable development of
mountain regions of the Caucasus – Local Agenda 21”
(2004-2006) as a part of Mountain Partnership’s
programs.
Russian-Swiss project IB7310-111103/1
“Sustainable Development of mountain regions for
countries in transition (SMD –T) - An appraisal of
options for sustainable development with case studies
in Caucasus mountain villages (2006-2008) as a part of
SCOPES program supported by SNSF
Programs of Russian Academy of Sciences

3. Mountain grasslands of the Caucasus had
been formed under human impact for
several millennia. Seasonal grazing and
mowing are the important factors of
stability/instability of these ancient
seminatural landscapes, and the variety of
local land use determines ecosystem
diversity to a great extent.

4. 2
1
Case studies: North Caucasus, Russia
1- Republic of North Ossetia-Alania;
2 - Kabardino-Balkarian Republic

5. North Caucasus –
region of traditional
mountain livestock
farming
The established pastoral land use system
generally remained unchanged in Soviet time

6. Questions under
consideration
1991 started the extremely significant political and socio-
economic changes in the former USSR.
During the last 20 post-soviet years the mountain land use
changed, local regulations were disturbed and changing human
impact affects the condition of the pastoral landscapes.
An integrated study of the current land use and its impact on
mountain environment was made.
What are the main social and economic processes which are
responsible for land use changes in transition time?
What are the effects of land use changes on the mountain
pastoral ecosystems?
Opportunity of bringing the results of scientific research to
administrations and local population

7. Mountain pastoral lands are about 5 million ha
in the North Caucasus, extending from
elevations of 3200 – 1900 m a.s.l. in the East
and Central Caucasus, to 3500 – 900 m a.s.l. in
the West Caucasus. They occupy 30-40% of
total area in the eastern Caucasus and over
25% in central and western regions
The established traditional pastoral land use
system generally remained unchanged in Soviet
time and was strongly stratified along altitudinal
belts.

8. Carpet Taraxaco- Meadow Anemone-
Carpet Carici- Geranietum Campanuletum
Colpodietum
Alpine short grass meadows and
carpet-like meadows (3200 – 2500 м)
Summer range (2-3 months/year)

9. Subalpine high-grass meadows (2800-2000m).
High-yield hayfields and fall ranges

10. Meadow steppes (900-2500 m) have both climatic
and anthropogenic origin. These are the most
populated areas used as the summer or year-round
ranges and croplands (terraced slopes)

11. Land use change in the Central-North Caucasus
Traditional system (until 1928)
12
Pastures
Haylands
Croplands
50
38
Kolkhoz system (1959) Today (2009)
10 2
35
37 53 63

12. In reality: current land use of available lands
Pastures
30 Haylands
Croplands
60 10 Abandoned
or underused
0,5
Estimated 60-80% of far alpine ranges are
abandoned or underused in North Ossetia,
50-60% - in Kabardino-Balkaria.

13. Local level
Chronologically, land use changes in the
mountain catchments within forest and
subalpine belts were as follows:
- long-term arable lands (for centuries until
1960s) haylands (1960s to 1990s-2000th)
pastures (the last 15-20 years);
- long-term haylands present free grazing.

14. Former cropland
Croplands occupied ancient terraces and gentle
slopes until 1960th (barley, millet, rye)

15. Terraced slopes are used for free grazing

16. At present arable lands occupy only
small flat plots
Potato fields

17. Main factors of mountain land use
change
Population outflow
Decrease of livestock number
Damage of kolkhoz system, new land legislation,
land conflicts;
Destruction of the state purchase system, problem
of production distribution and transportation.
Unprofitable and hard labour.

18. Population dynamics: North Ossetia, 110 years
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
97
13
26
39
59
79
89
97
02
06
08
18
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
20
20
20
Total Urban Rural

19. Mountain population dynamics, North Ossetia,
110 years
t 60
h
50
o
u 40
s
30
a
n 20
d
10
s
0
Years
00
13
26
59
79
89
02
06
09
19
19
19
19
19
19
20
20
20

20. Local level: population dynamics, Iraf
district, 1886-2008.
30000
25000
20000
Total
15000
Mountains
10000
5000
0
1886 1926 1959 1979 1989 2008

21. Livestock:
The cattle number decreased up to 5-10 times just after
disintegration of the kolkhoz system, and is slowly
increasing during the last 5 years.
Small cattle number almost disappeared in North
Ossetia.
Example: in a studied mountain village there is 80
sheep instead of former 2000.
Small cattle decreased in a less degree in Kabardino-
Balkaria and Karachaevo-Cherkessia where wool is
traditional source of income.
In Daghestan and Chechen Republic increasing rural
population expands cattle breeding activity however
under neglecting traditional regulations of nature
protection.

22. Mountain livestock dynamics:
Digorian catchment (North Ossetia)
1958 – 2008
Kolkhoz time Post-soviet
10000
9000
8000
7000
6000
Cattle
5000
Small cattle
4000
3000
2000
1000
0
58
60
65
70
75
90
04
08
19
19
19
19
19
19
20
20

23. Changes in the livestock
management system:
Pastures rotation and
communal grazing are
being stopped
A private animal
husbandry abandons
extensive remote high-
mountain grazings and
uses the nearest pastures
and hayfields.
No control over the range
activity is effected.
Population neglects the
traditional environmental
regulations

24. Urgent problems of mountain population. RNO, KBR
Questioning 2006-2008г.
FARM MARKETING 95,8
public transport 59,7
roads 48,6
power 45,8
healthcare 38,9
reequipment 29,2
range quality 23,6
education 19,4
authorities 15,3
waste utilization 13,9
nature protection 6,9
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

25. What are consequences of mountain land
use changes for seminatural pastoral
ecosystems?
Remote grasslands:
Caucasian wild got number is not restored
as yet, mountain livestock number is
decreasing.

26. Release of grazing pressure increases bioproductivity
and strengthens erosion resistance; biodiversity of
meadows can be gradually recovered by plant
successions, however recovery rates for certain
ecosystems are not known well enough.
Field observations show that 20-year disturbance of
grazing regularity destroys the specific assemblage of
alpine and subalpine meadows and leads to ruderal
vegetation expansion.
The most visible and significant natural processes act
upon soil surface: tussocks formation, phytogenic and
zoogenic turbations, cryoturbations and stony
accumulation up to formation of “stone paving”. The
overcoming of these natural phenomena required great
efforts.

27. Forest and bush spread rapidly throughout
abandoned hayfields and pastures:
10-years forest
Tree line raising: much more likely due to socio-
economic, and not to climate changes

28. Remaining hayfields
Anthropogenic meadow steppes and current
reforestation

29. Chronosequence: croplands – haylands –
pasture – bush invasion

30. The nearest pastures and hayfields
Former cropland
Year-round grazing pressure became confined to a smaller
area, within a radius of about 2 km around villages.
Haylands occupy only lower slopes and bottoms of valleys

31. Wide distribution of annual plants with short and fragile
rootage instead of soil-protecting permanent grasses was
recorded during the last 20 years.
Projective cover of nearest grasslands varies from 50-40
to 10-0%% depending on current human impact and past
land use.
In extreme case of current grazing pressure spatial-
temporal changes of vegetation are as follows:
meadow – steppe meadow – meadow steppe – steppe
– eroded barren plots.
Anthropogenic steppes and eroded barren plots occupy
about 15-20 % of the nearest pastoral lands.

32. Land use chronosequence: haymaking and
grazing – current
uncontrolled range
Surface erosion
Surface and gully erosion
Erosion processes strengthened by anthropogenic
impact are usually much faster than soil formation.
It means irreversible loss of fine soil matter

33. Uncontrolled grazing: fresh
surface and gully erosion
35
I
90
II
110
III
140
Buried soils as evidences of past erosion.

34. Change of land owners:
1) can become a prerequisite of land lack and
future land conflicts;
2) much more likely that is
a step to new strategy of
development of mountain
regions
Former hayfield occupied by summer houses

35. Conclusion
- During the last 20 years private land ownership became a
factor of the rest of pastoral ecosystems as well as the catalyst
of degradation.
- Generally, changes of land use augment spatial diversity of
mountain pastoral ecosystems. Current grazing does not
contribute essentially in the pastoral ecosystems conditions;
nevertheless it accelerates degradation of lands overgrazed in
the past.
-Monofunctional economy has no more potential for
development. New strategy of development of mountain
regions is urgent for North Caucasus.
Traditional farming and family tourism and recreation,
supporting each other, would ensure steady income and
maintain ecologically adapted land use and environment
protection.

36. Thank you!