The dependency of rural livelihood on forest resources in Northern Pakistan’s Chaprote Valley

Abstract

Overexploitation of forest resources continues to pose a severe threat to the environment in Chaprote Valley, Northern Pakistan. Therefore, this study investigates the main determinants of household dependency on forest resources for livelihoods in Chaprote Valley. We collected data randomly from 193 household heads through semi-structured questionnaires. To investigate the dependence of rural households on forest resources, we employed a Logistic regression model. The findings reveal that household’s education level, household size, livestock income and agriculture income significantly affect the dependency of households on forest resources, while other variables seem to be insignificant. The share of forest income to the total household income was 32%, while off-farm income, agriculture income and livestock income were 44%, 13% and 9% respectively. Among all forest products, firewood contributes more to forest income with a share of 47%. Moreover, the study found that an increase in household head’s education, livestock income, agriculture income, off-farm income and own landholding will result in reducing forest dependency. The study concludes that alternate sources of energy, modern agricultural methods, access to higher education, and public awareness about biodiversity are essential for creating a balance between forest dependency and biodiversity conservation.