TheImprovement ofTropical and Subtropical Rangelands

THE EOONOMIO OONTEXT 69
evaluation. These factors are described in more detail in chapters ..
andS.
Location of the project and access to markets both for sale
of products and for purchase of necessary supplies is another key
consideration for determining feasibility. The location, climate, land,
and water supply factors are often fixed. It is impo8llible, or at least
difficult and often costly, to modify these factors. Water supply
can sometimes be augmented by drilling wells or creating storage;
however, the ecological consequences must be considered.
Human resources are the most difficult to &lII8SII. Most projects
rely on organizations of putoralists. Important questions to address
are the following: Will the existing organizations be used, or will
a new organization be established? What should be the size of the
organization? How complex will be the functional specialization
and what type of membership (inclusive versus exclusive, voluntary
versus forced) is expected?
A new organization can only be established at a cost. Because of
low population densities associated with arid rangeland, communi·
cation between members is difficult. Difficulties in decision making,
therefore, increase as group size increases. For the same reason (lack
of opportunity to communicate), there are limits to functional specialization.
Sanford (1983) emphasizes that the "costs" of project organization
are often underestimated if not overlooked altogether. A first
step to the evaluation of human resources is a good understanding of
the existing social organization.
nata Needs and Soorcel
Data required for cost and benefit evaluation, frequently called
"input-output" data, include: herbage or animal production or possi.
ble alternatives; physical quantities ofinputs used, whether a product
is produced or purchased; prices for inputs; and prices for output to
be sold.
The principal sources of physical input-output data for projects
may include well-trained professionals with technical expertise in the
area, data from other projects of a similar type and under similar
conditions, people from the locality with good knowledge of the area
and what might be expected, and data from controlled experiments.
Preliminary experiments are very important sources of data for