Implementation effects of incentive policies on Tanzanian wetland ecosystems

Abstract

Incentive conservation policies are acknowledged to reduce the degradation of natural resources for improved ecosystem services worldwide. However, there have been few studies conducted on the contribution of development programs using such policies in wetlands of local importance. This paper examined the implementation effects of an incentive-based Wetlands Friendly Investments (WFI) strategy in the Ndembera Valley, Tanzania. Data were collected using a survey of 208 households and in-depth interviews, supplemented by Landsat 8 imagery and topographical maps. ERDAS Imagine 15 was used to process land cover changes and water flow using the TREND software. The results indicated: (i) all major wetlands areas had declined; (ii) the differences in land cover (t = −.418, df = 8, p = .687) and water flow (t = −.418, df = 8, p = .9) before and after introduction of the strategy were not significant; (iii) weak correlation was observed between rainfall and water flow (r = .37); and (iv) land conversion was the main driver for the decline in cover. These findings represent a failure of the WFI incentives to improve the ecological effects of wetland cover and water flow. This suggests that application of the strategy alone was not sufficient for substantial improvement of the desired short-term cover and flow effect. Integrating land use and livelihood into incentive policies can improve WFI incentive implementation practices for sustainable land conservation in the study area. The multi-method approach used minimized human behavior-response limitations, therefore it can be replicated elsewhere.