Studies on Climate Changes and Natural Resources Management: Findings and Lessons Learned from West Sumatera, Indonesia

Abstract

"This paper exposes some empirical facts of the regional changes of climatic variability in West Sumatera, Indonesia and presents such identification of its impacts on natural resources and agricultural activities in the region. This study chose the case site in the surrounding Singkarak Lake as the rain-shadow region in West Sumatra. This PEER-USAID-sponsored study found that there are significant changes of seasonal pattern of rainfall in this region during the last 30-40 years. The area in the eastern part of Singkarak relatively has become drier than in the western part Singkarak. Results from the vulnerability analysis shows that the villages in the eastern side of the Lake became much more vulnerable compared with the villages in the western side. Approximately more than 500 ha of upland paddy (rain-fed paddy) in the eastern region Singkarak is already over 30 years are not reprocessed, and many people are now working on dry-land crops and rubber plantation, or even work in non-agriculture jobs or migrate to the cities. Paddy farmers in this region are facing difficulties to set up their planting schedule. Significant impacts are also occurred in the onion farm in the western side of the Lake, where the fluctuation of production during the rainy season is becoming relatively high or more risky. From those identification studies, it can be concluded that the effects of global climate change has affected the regularity of the local climate in this area of study and then influence the natural resources condition and agricultural activities. Such empirical researches are still being conducted in order to develop such adaptive agricultural management models, integrated catchment management model as well as the study on the behavioral changes of farmers in this affected region of climate change."