Farming Systems and Utilization of Environmental Resources in Rural Communities in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka Case Study in “Ritigala”, Anuradhapura District

Abstract

Majority of the world poor is living in rural areas and agriculture is the main source of their income and employment. Rural people utilize environmental resources as consumption goods, input goods, output goods and storage and durable goods. According to Cavendish and Campbell (2007), environmental resources are the resources that are freely provided by the natural processes. Farming systems found in the dry zone of Sri Lanka, which utilize natural resources, have been evolved over years. Due to the paucity of studies published on the relationship between the extraction of environmental resources and the farming systems in Sri Lanka, this study attempts to generate empirical information to fill up the prevailing information gap. A field survey was conducted with a multiple stage sampling (120 interviewers) in three surrounding villages situated in the periphery of “Ritigala” Strict Natural Reserve (SNR), Anuradhapura district. Descriptive analytical methods were used to analyze the data. Three farming systems were identified through the study and the community utilizes a vast number of environmental resources, which belongs to consumption goods, input goods, output goods and storage and durable goods. From the study, it can be concluded that the value and the quantity of environmental resources used has an association with the complexity of the farming system and the geographical location of the village. Value of consumption goods, input goods and durable and storage goods utilized is higher when the farming system is complex. Contribution of environmental goods to annual household income shows a positive relationship with the complexity of farming system. Value of environmental resource used in paddy -vegetable-livestock framing systems recorded the highest value.