Sustainability index for bamboo utilization: a framework for balancing conservation and livelihood needs

• Rebecca Kramsapi

  Department of Geography, Pandu College, North Eastern Hill University, Shillong, Meghalaya, India

  Author

• Laitpharlang Cajee

  Author

• K . K . Sarma

  Author

Bamboo is a vital natural resource that helps keep the environment healthy and support rural living. Its long-term sustainability however, is becoming unclear due to shifting land-use patterns and market conditions. Base on field surveys and spatial analysis this study develops the Sustainability Index for Bamboo Utilization (SIB) to quantity the environmental, economic, and social aspects of bamboo utilisation in Karbi Anglong district, Assam, India. The index was built using household surveys (n=500), plot-based bamboo inventories, and remote sensing derived land use and land cover data. The indicators reflecting the three sustainability extents were aggregated into composite scores through assessments by respondent on a five-point Likert scale. The results indicate that a composite SIB score of 3.4 suggests that the use of bamboo in the district can be considered as sustainable. The social sustainability indicator scored the highest (3.9), reflecting that bamboo has served well across cultures, in constructions, and community resilience. Bamboo’s soil, water, and carbon functions were reflected in its moderate environmental sustainability (3.4), which was countered by the loss of forests and the decline in biodiversity brought on by plantation expansion. The weakest dimension was economic sustainability (2.9), largely due to the decline in industrial demand following the closer of the Jagiroad/Nagaon Paper Mill, unstable market conditions, and a lack of value addition within the bamboo value chains.

• Rebecca et al