Research and Training Strategies for Goat Production Systems in ...

of degradation are appropriate under which conditions?
These rhetorical questions serve to illustrate the point that it is hard to measure degradation
and hence sustainability. Equating evidence of degradation to unsustainable land use is the
common approach but should be treated with caution. There is insufficient agreement on
measuring either and until robust, universally accepted and measurable definitions are
found it is probably unwise to make statements about sustainability (or the lack of it) in
communal areas.
It is clear from this study that all is not as bad as it appears in the communal rangelands.
However, it is not the intention to create the impression that all is well, because some areas
are indeed in a poor or degraded condition. This may indicate that in some instances the
ecosystems could be gradually deteriorating. However, the data presented here may
contribute to preventing people from making sweeping and often unfounded statements
about systems which are healthier than we perceive them to be, although they may not
always be aesthetically pleasing. It does appear that a number of holy cows may have bitten
(the communal rangeland?) dust.
The social responsibility of sustainable resource use by rural land users needs no apology
or explanation. All users of the natural resources of the country share it with previous,
present and future generations and do not have exclusive rights to it. The challenge to
scientists is to determine the sustainability of communal land use and, if necessary, then to
develop sustainable community-friendly land use options.
Acknowledgements
The Foundation for Research Development and UK Royal Society for funding and
Wellington Sibanga, Mweli Nyanga and Dumi Pepe for technical support.
References
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Acocks, J.P.H., 1975. Veld types of South Africa. Memoirs of the Botanical Survey of
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Behnke, R.H, Scoones, I. and Kerven, C.(eds), 1993. Range ecology at disequilibrium.
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