Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

PREDICTORS OF APPLYING SOIL CONSERVATION PRACTICES BY FARMERS AT KURDISTAN TOWNSHIP, IRAN

Shabnam Feizi Khazaei

Abstract

During the last years, natural resources in Iran have suffered severe degradations. For the sustainable and better management of these resources, various policies have been advised, the most promising of which is the management of natural resources through participation of the local people. However, it has proven difficult to involve local people in natural resources management activities. Therefore there is a great need to know the reason for the low level of participation by the local communities. In this regard, the main purpose of this study was investigating the role of Information and Communication Sources (ICS) in the applying soil conservation practices by farmers at Kurdistan Township (Iran). Using Cochran’s sampling formula, 200 farmers were selected as a sample. The main instrument of this study was a questionnaire which its validity was confirmed by a panel of experts and its reliability was established by calculating Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. Results showed that the majority of farmers applied the soil conservation practices in moderate level. The finding of stepwise multiple regression analysis showed that use of ICS (local, national and international sources) explained 62.4 percent of applying soil conservation practices.