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Traditional water bodies and ecosystem services: Empirical evidence from West Bengal, India

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  • Koushik Chowdhury
  • Bhagirath Behera

Abstract

Traditional water harvesting systems are multi‐functional in nature and provide a variety of ecosystem services that contribute to the overall wellbeing of local people. This study aims to identify and analyze the factors influencing the variations in the level of awareness across households residing around three selected traditional water bodies in the Indian state of West Bengal. Ordinary least square (OLS) regression models have been used to identify and analyze the determinants of household perception on ecosystem services from tank water bodies. Results show that while a majority of households have strong perceptions on the provisioning and cultural ecosystem services of the tanks, the household perceptions on regulating and supporting services of the tank is found to be relatively weak. Households belonging to lower caste and poor are likely to be more dependent on ecosystem services from tanks than upper caste and rich households, and hence they have better perceptions of provisioning ecosystem services. Households’ awareness about provisioning ecosystem services is negatively related to their level of education and wealth. It is observed that household awareness about regulating and supporting ecosystem services is positively associated with the level of education of the households, ownership of tube well and private tanks. While it is essential to consider household perception on all the ecosystem services for sustainable use and management of traditional water harvesting systems, incorporating the local norms, customs and preferences in policy design are critical for achieving effective conservation outcomes.

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  • Koushik Chowdhury & Bhagirath Behera, 2020. "Traditional water bodies and ecosystem services: Empirical evidence from West Bengal, India," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 44(3), pages 219-235, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:natres:v:44:y:2020:i:3:p:219-235
    DOI: 10.1111/1477-8947.12196
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    1. Lin Meng & Chuanguang Zhu & Jie Pu & Bo Wen & Wentao Si, 2022. "Study on the Influence Mechanism of Intangible Cultural Heritage Distribution from Man–Land Relationship Perspective: A Case Study in Shandong Province," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-18, August.
    2. Chowdhury, Koushik & Behera, Bhagirath, 2021. "Traditional water bodies and cultural ecosystem services: Experiences from rural West Bengal, India," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 24(C).

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