Determinants of crop residue burning practice in the Terai region of Nepal.

Sugat B Bajracharya,Arabinda Mishra,Amina Maharjan,Peddisetty Pardha-Saradhi

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0253939

Sugat B Bajracharya, Arabinda Mishra + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0253939

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Abstract

The open burning of agricultural crop residue is a key environmental issue facing the Hindu Kush Himalaya region, the Indo-Gangetic plain in particular. There is a varying intensity in the incidence of open agricultural burning in this region, and multiple drivers that determine why farmers in this region decide to burn their crop residues. While there have been research studies conducted for other countries in the region, research into the determinants of crop-burning in the Nepalese context is missing. Using primary data from a survey of 388 farming households across three districts of the Nepal Terai―Nawalparasi, Rupandehi and Kapilvastu―applying a recursive bivariate probit model, this study seeks to find out what drives the Nepalese farmers to burn their crop residue instead of using them in a sustainable manner and suggest policy recommendations for mitigation. Our findings show that the major determining factors that influence the farmers’ behavior in Nepal are livestock ownership, combine harvester use and awareness level of the farmers. While the effects of crop residue burning is transboundary in nature, the mitigation measures require to be region specific. Based on the findings, the study proposes raising livestock, using technology like Happy Seeders or upgrade the combine harvesters, raising awareness and changing perception of farmers, and promoting alternative uses of crop residue as viable mitigation measures.

Highlights

The open burning of agricultural crop residue is a key environmental issue facing the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region, the Indo-Gangetic plain (IGP), which straddles parts of northern and eastern India, eastern Pakistan, much of Bangladesh, and the southern plains of Nepal
Large agricultural fires detected by the moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite imaging sensors suggest an increasing prevalence of open crop residue burning in Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Nepal, and Pakistan [1]
It has become the most common method of removing post-harvest residues of crops such as paddy, wheat, and maize in the region. This burning of biomass releases a range of air pollutants that contribute to the deterioration of air quality

Summary

Introduction

The open burning of agricultural crop residue is a key environmental issue facing the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region, the Indo-Gangetic plain (IGP), which straddles parts of northern and eastern India, eastern Pakistan, much of Bangladesh, and the southern plains of Nepal. Large agricultural fires detected by the moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite imaging sensors suggest an increasing prevalence of open crop residue burning in Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Nepal, and Pakistan [1]. In recent years, it has become the most common method of removing post-harvest residues of crops such as paddy, wheat, and maize in the region. It has become the most common method of removing post-harvest residues of crops such as paddy, wheat, and maize in the region This burning of biomass releases a range of air pollutants that contribute to the deterioration of air quality. It releases several pollutants that affect the climate in the longer term, including the greenhouse gases carbon dioxide

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