Sustainability assessment of camel breeding: The case of northwestern rangelands in Iran

IF 4.7 2区环境科学与生态学 Q2 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Development Pub Date : 2025-05-25 DOI:10.1016/j.envdev.2025.101251

Morteza Mofidi-Chelan , Iman Haghiyan , Esmaeil Sheidai-Karkaj , Mahdiyeh Banihasan , Vigilijus Jukna , Rando Värnik , Hossein Azadi

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Abstract

This study examines the viability of the traditional rangeland-based camel breeding over the long term in Khorkhor village, Iran, emphasizing social, economic, and environmental factors. From 2018 to 2019, data was collected using the sustainability barometer methodology, which included structured questionnaires, interviews, and field observations. The findings show variable levels of sustainability across dimensions: excellent social health (80 %) but lower social justice (43 %), efficient economic processes (64 %), poor economic justice (17 %), and strong environmental health (72 %), but insufficient grazing management (29 %). Social sustainability ranked highest (62 %), while environmental sustainability was ranked lowest (42 %). The economic elements had the highest influence on overall sustainability (R = 0.748), followed by the social and environmental aspects. Notably, there was no significant relationship between economic and environmental variables. The study emphasizes the importance of interventions that address economic and environmental constraints, improve farmer knowledge, and shift to semi-traditional and semi-industrial livestock systems for long-term rangeland management. These findings help to understand how sustainable (environmentally friendly and long-lasting) traditional methods of breeding camels are. Also, these findings could lead to suggestions for changes in breeding camels. The study also emphasizes balancing economic, social, and environmental factors for sustainable rangeland management in similar situations.

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骆驼养殖的可持续性评估：以伊朗西北部牧场为例

本研究考察了伊朗Khorkhor村传统牧场骆驼养殖的长期可行性，强调了社会、经济和环境因素。从2018年到2019年，采用可持续发展晴雨表方法收集数据，包括结构化问卷调查、访谈和实地观察。研究结果显示，各维度的可持续性水平各不相同：良好的社会健康（80%），但较低的社会公正（43%），有效的经济过程（64%），较差的经济公正（17%），良好的环境健康（72%），但不足的放牧管理（29%）。社会可持续性排名最高（62%），而环境可持续性排名最低（42%）。经济因素对整体可持续性的影响最大（R = 0.748），其次是社会和环境因素。值得注意的是，经济和环境变量之间没有显著的关系。该研究强调了采取干预措施解决经济和环境制约因素、提高农民知识以及转向半传统和半工业化畜牧业系统以进行长期牧场管理的重要性。这些发现有助于了解传统的骆驼饲养方法的可持续性（环境友好和持久）。此外，这些发现可能会对改变骆驼的繁殖方式提出建议。该研究还强调了在类似情况下平衡可持续牧场管理的经济、社会和环境因素。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Environmental Development Social Sciences-Geography, Planning and Development

CiteScore

8.40

自引率

1.90%

发文量

审稿时长

74 days

期刊介绍： Environmental Development provides a future oriented, pro-active, authoritative source of information and learning for researchers, postgraduate students, policymakers, and managers, and bridges the gap between fundamental research and the application in management and policy practices. It stimulates the exchange and coupling of traditional scientific knowledge on the environment, with the experiential knowledge among decision makers and other stakeholders and also connects natural sciences and social and behavioral sciences. Environmental Development includes and promotes scientific work from the non-western world, and also strengthens the collaboration between the developed and developing world. Further it links environmental research to broader issues of economic and social-cultural developments, and is intended to shorten the delays between research and publication, while ensuring thorough peer review. Environmental Development also creates a forum for transnational communication, discussion and global action. Environmental Development is open to a broad range of disciplines and authors. The journal welcomes, in particular, contributions from a younger generation of researchers, and papers expanding the frontiers of environmental sciences, pointing at new directions and innovative answers. All submissions to Environmental Development are reviewed using the general criteria of quality, originality, precision, importance of topic and insights, clarity of exposition, which are in keeping with the journal''s aims and scope.