Perceptions vulnerability index: A measure of land degradation process in northern irrigated plains of Pakistan

Land Degradation (LD) is the most significant environmental issue in the present world and posing a challenge to the goals of future sustainability. The aims of this study was to measure the agriculture land degradation process in northern irrigated plains of Pakistan by studying the perceptions of the farmers about the different dimensions of agriculture LD with the construction of LD index. For achieving this primary data was collected by proportionate random sampling techniques form 90 sampled farmers through face to face interview survey method by filling a questionnaire. Farmer's perceptions on agriculture LD were measured through the extent of severity scale in terms of LD dimensions and indicators resulted from water, tillage, soil, salinization, and overgrazing. Moderate (0.49) index of water degradation and the changing climatological index were light but the reduction of drainage density of water runoff and slope gradient reduction of soil index was severe. The tillage degradation index value moderate (0.57), overgrazing index (0.32) fall in the severity scale category. Soil structure degradation index was moderate (0.44) followed by salinization degradation of moderate (0.53) index value. The study concludes that the LD existed in the area in all the dimensions and its sub-indicators having different value severity on the measuring scale, which may be overcome by taking different sector-specific adaptive and preventive measures at the farm, institutional and policy level.