The impact of poor farming methods on landscape stability in Bubiita sub-county, Bududa district

Abstract

The study was carried out in Bubiita sub county, Bududa district with an aim of assessing the impact of poor farming methods on landscape stability and focus was on five villages namely Busooto central village, Nanyitsa, Bushimali, Buwanyanga and Bumali village. These areas were chosen because of the high incidences of landscape instabilities manifested in the form of cracks and landslides commonly experienced in these villages. Since the study area was mainly composed of farmers, there was need to focus on the major forms of agricultural practices and how they affect the landscape stability of the area. A cross- sectional descriptive research design was done, and the key stakeholders (key informants) were selected using purposive sampling while simple random sampling was used to obtain information from households and farmers. Data was collected from interviews with key informants, attendance of organized existing community activities in the Sub County, and direct field observations in the villages. Data analysis was done using thematic content analysis where descriptive statistics for example frequencies and percentages were obtained from micro soft excel and then presented using tables and statistical diagrams like pie charts and bar graphs .Concerning people s expectations on landscape stability and instability, there is general agreement that there is need and urgency to restore the degraded landscape through reduction of the causes of the landscape instabilities and that engagement of farmers should be paramount, with good communication for passing on information to them. They are willing to learn and participate when given the knowledge from the government, local leaders and NGOs. There have been no significant efforts towards landscape restoration. Rather individual households are undertaking actions towards conservation or prevention of further degradation of the landscape, with such activities as soil and water conservation through digging trenches and planting of indigenous trees. Key words: Bubiita sub county; Farming methods; Landscape stability; Mount Elgon; Uganda