The Effects of Livestock and pasture balance project based on the exploiters' perspectives: the case of central district of Kohgiluyeh County

The sustainable exploitation of natural resources is crucial for providing livelihoods to rural and nomadic communities.In recent years, the indiscriminate exploitation of these resources has led policymakers to adopt guidelines for their sustainable management.One significant factor contributing to rangeland degradation is the imbalance between the number of livestock per hectare and the grazing capacity of the rangeland.Although various livestock balance plans have been implemented across different regions of the country, there has been insufficient study on whether these plans have had acceptable effects or achieved their intended goals.Therefore, the primary aim of this study is to assess the impact of balancing livestock numbers and rangeland carrying capacity from the perspective of ranchers, specifically in the Central District of Kohgiluyeh County. Materials and methods:This study employed a mixed-methods approach.In the qualitative phase, sampling was conducted according to the principles of qualitative research until data saturation was achieved, followed by coding through content analysis.Based on the qualitative data, a structured questionnaire was developed.The face validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by subject matter experts before it was distributed to the study participants.Additionally, data analysis was performed using SPSS version 21 software to categorize the concepts derived from the initial phase. Results:The findings indicated that, from the respondents' perspective, the implementation of the proposed plan had several effects.An analysis of the data collected through content analysis and open coding revealed a total of 63 effects.To categorize these effects and reduce the number of known variables while forming new structures based on the correlations between them, the exploratory factor analysis method was employed.The results of the factor analysis demonstrated that only 39 indicators were extracted from seven categories, accounting for 56.243% of the variance in the variables used in the analysis.Among the categories, the psychosocial-educational factor had the most significant impact, explaining 14.437% of the total variance. Conclusion:In general, it can be concluded that the livestock and pasture balance project in the study area has enhanced the knowledge of exploiters regarding rangeland protection.While it has positively impacted the environment, it has not achieved success in the social and economic domains.It is important to note that factors such as the absence of villagers during the study, the migration of some ranchers, and the severity of conditions in certain areas posed constraints to the research.