Bibliography of Gambian Related Publications

Natural Resources

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Title: Application Of Avhrr Data And Mixture Modelling To Estimate Forest And Range Burning In West Africa: The Gambia (Global Change, Satellite).
Date: 1996
Source: Thesis (PH.D.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA, 1996. 172 p.; Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-04, Section: A, page: 1784. Director: STUART E. MARSH.
Author(s): HAY, RODRICK AIRD.
Abstract: Burning in savannas significantly impacts the physical environment and has recently been recognized for the significant role it could play in climate change by releasing large amounts of greenhouse gases (Menaut et al., 1991). This is particularly true for West African savannas which cover approximately $3`times10`sp6$ km$`sp2$, one of the largest contiguous extents of savannas in the world. Recently it has been suggested that 2.4-4.2 gt C (gigatons of carbon) are released by savanna burning annually (Hall and Scurlock, 1990). Even with this impact our knowledge of tropical vegetation systems is limited (Sadar et al., 1990). One method of monitoring vegetation over large regions is using satellite remote sensing. The Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) is well suited for the task due to its high temporal resolution (daily), large area coverage (2700 km swath width) and spectral channel availability (near-infrared band useful for monitoring vegetation). In this study AVHRR data for four burn seasons were analyzed to determine the origin, spread and extent of burning for The Gambia. The accuracy of the assessment was verified using coincident higher spatial resolution (30 m) Thematic Mapper (TM) data and field assessments. The burn extents calculated using a traditionally classified AVHRR image were within 11% of those calculated by the TM. Further a linear mixture model was applied to the AVHRR imagery to determine if burn estimates could be improved. It was found that by thresholding mixture model results, derived using AVHRR bands 1, 2 and 3, acceptable burn estimates were produced. The mixture model estimates were consistently higher than the TM estimations, particularly for agricultural areas.
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Title: Mangroves As Indicators Of Coastal Change
Date: 1996
Source: CATENA v. 27 no. 3-4 96 OCT p. 167-178
Author(s): BLASCO, F; SAENGER, P; JANODET, E
Abstract: In view of the unique biological characteristics of mangroves, it is interesting to assess the extent to which these ecosystems can be used as indicators of coastal change or sea-level rise. From recent studies of mangrove mortality at several locations (including Guiana, Gambia, Cote d'Ivoire, Kenya, India and Bangladesh), it appears that these coastal ecosystems are so specialized that any minor variation in their hydrological or tidal regimes causes noticeable mortality. Each species of mangrove (but particularly those belonging to the genera Rhizophora, Bruguiera, Sonneratia, Heritiera and Nypa) occurs in ecological conditions that approach its limit of tolerance with regard to salinity of the water and soil, as well as the inundation regime. If the duration of daily immersion were to be modified by tectonic, sedimentological or hydrological events, the species either readjusts to the new conditions or succumbs to unsuitable conditions. Consequently, the use of remote sensing data for mangrove ecosystems offers excellent potential as a tool for monitoring coastal change.
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Title: Vulnerability Of The Coastal Zone Of The Gambia To Sea-Level Rise And Development Of Response Strategies And Adaptation Options
Date: 1996
Source: CLIMATE RESEARCH v. 6 no. 2 96 FEB 19 p. 165-177
Author(s): JALLOW, B P; BARROW, M K A; LEATHERMAN, S P
Abstract: The coastal zone of The Gambia consists of 70 km open ocean coast and 200 km sheltered coast. Only about 20 km of the open coastline is significantly developed and this includes Banjul (the capital city), Bakau and Cape St. Mary, Fajara and the Tourism Development Area (TDA). Tourism is the most important economic sector in the coastal zone and contributes about 10% of the government revenue. Fisheries and agriculture are also important coastal industries. In this study the Aerial Videotape-assisted Vulnerability Analysis (AVVA) technique has been used to provide a detailed analysis of vulnerability to sea level rise, and adaptation strategies have been identified. The data used includes a video recording of the coastline, color infrared and black and white aerial photography, topographic maps, bathymetric maps, a geological map of The Gambia and still photographs. The data have been used to characterize the coastal zone into 9 geomorphological units, wherein the cultural and heritage sites of economic importance have been delineated and characterized according to their biophysical and economic importance. Future erosion rates have been projected by applying the Bruun Rule, and future total land loss due to inundation in response to global warming and accelerated sea level rise has been determined. The sea level rise scenarios considered are 0.2 m, 0.5 m, and 1.0 m per century. Inundation is estimated to be about 92.32 x 10(6) m(2) for a 1.0 m sea level rise, 45.89 x 10(6) m(2) for a 0.5 m sea level rise and 4.96 x 10(6) m(2) for a 0.2 m sea level rise. The greater part of this area lost will be wetlands and mangrove systems important for fish spawning areas and habitats for wildlife. Shoreline retreat is estimated to vary between about 6.8 m in cliffy areas to about 880 m for more flat and sandy areas based on the Bruun Rule. Population and physical structures at risk have been determined. Attempts have been made to report this loss in monetary terms, but firm figures are not yet available. Only one unit of the coastal zone has been evaluated. In this unit, it is expected that the capital city will be completely lost through both erosion and inundation within 50 to 60 yr with a total of 42000 persons displaced. Lands and physical structures to be lost are estimated at US$ 217 million. Response strategies and adaptation options identified include: innovative sand management, building and rehabilitation of groins, construction of revetments to protect important areas, construction of sea-walls/bulkheads, public outreach and awareness, building regulations and urban growth planning, wetland preservation and mitigation, and development of a coastal zone management plan.
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Title: Emissions Of Greenhouse Gases From Agriculture, Land-Use Change, And Forestry In The Gambia
Date: 1995
Source: ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT v. 38 no. 2-3 95 NOV-DEC p. 301-312
Author(s): JALLOW, B P
Abstract: The Gambia has successfully completed a national greenhouse gas emissions inventory based on the results of a study funded by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)/Global Environment Facility (GEF) Country Case Study Program. The concepts of multisectoral, multidisciplinary, and interdisciplinary collaboration were most useful in the preparation of this inventory. New data were gathered during the study period, some through regional collaboration with institutions such as Environment and Development in the Third World (ENDA-TM) Energy Program and the Ecological Monitoring Center in Dakar, Senegal, and some through national surveys and the use of remote sensing techniques, as in the Bushfires Survey. Most of the data collected are used in this paper. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change/Organisation for Economic Go-operation and Development/International Energy Agency (IPCC/OECD/IEA) methodology is used to calculate greenhouse gas emissions. Many of the default data in the IPCC/OECD/IEA methodology have also been used. Overall results indicate that in the biomass sectors (agriculture, forestry, and land-use change) carbon dioxide (CO2) is emitted most, with a total of 1.7 Tg. This is followed by methane (CH4), 22.3 Gg; carbon monoxide (CO), 18.7 Gg; nitrogen oxides (NOx), 0.3 Gg; and nitrous oxide (N2O), 0.014 Gg. The Global Warming Potential (GWP) was used as an index to describe the relative effects of the various gases reported here. Based on the emissions in The Gambia in 1993, it was found that CO2 will contribute 75%, CH4 about 24.5%, and N2O 0.2% of the warming expected in the 100-year period beginning in 1993. The results in this analysis are limited by the shortcomings of the IPCC/OECD/IEA methodology and scarce national data Because the methodology was developed outside of the developing world, most of its emissions factors and coefficients were developed and tested in environments that are very different from The Gambia. This is likely to introduce some uncertainties into the results of the calculations. Factors and coefficients that are country- or region-specific are likely to provide more accurate results and should be developed. The surveys were conducted either during the wet season or just at the end of the wet season. This seasonal factor should contribute to variations in the results, particularly in the livestock numbers and composition survey. Use of one-time survey data is also likely to introduce uncertainty into the results.
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Title: Ethnography And Agroforestry Research A Case-Study From The Gambia
Date: 1995
Source: AGROFORESTRY SYSTEMS v. 32 no. 2 95 p. 127-146
Author(s): MADGE, C
Abstract: This work examines the contribution that an ethnographic methodology can make to gender-sensitive agroforestry research. Using a Gambian case study, diverse subsistence, commercial and socio-cultural roles of forest products are investigated and the gender-based similarities and differences in their uses are highlighted. An ethnographic approach is combined with political economy perspectives to illustrate how the significance of such products, particularly for women, has markedly increased during the past two decades, especially for commercial purposes, in response to changing environmental, economic and social circumstances. Environmental management practices are used by rural individuals to regulate forest resources. Although there is potential for formal management policy to build upon these indigenous practices, a detailed understanding of local human-environmental relationships is essential for any planning mechanism to succeed. Thus an enthnographic approach can make a positive contribution towards gender-sensitive agroforestry research and practice.
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Title: Grazing Land Tenure And Livelihood Security: A Study Of Two Clusters Of VIllages In The Gambia.
Date: 1995
Source: Masters Thesis (M.SC.)--UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH (CANADA), 1995. 148 p.; Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 34-01, page: 0181.
Author(s): ROBINSON, LANCE W.
Abstract: To address perceived problems such as overgrazing and reduction in availability of uncultivated land, the Gambian government has been considering altering the traditional rural land tenure system. Any changes to the tenure system could affect security strategies that households rely upon. Research into grazing land tenure and livelihood security strategies in two clusters of Gambian villages showed that there are few restrictions on access to grazing land. It was also found that household security strategies comprise three successive "lines of defense": attempting to maintain current income (especially through diversification), relying upon the income of previous years (savings), and relying upon the income of others (credit). Relatively open access to uncultivated land, a source of forage for livestock and food and income for people, is crucial to these lines of defense; therefore, only gradual reforms to land tenure, with an emphasis on strengthening the capacity of local institutions, are recommended. ISBN: 0315975342
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Title: Resurrection Of Soil Surveys A Case-Study Of The Acid Sulfate Soils Of The Gambia .1. Data Validation, Taxonomic And Mapping Units
Date: 1995
Source: SOIL USE AND MANAGEMENT v. 11 no. 2 95 JUN p. 69-76
Author(s): DENT, D L; AHMED, F B
Abstract: Statistical techniques are used to test and re-interpret archival data from soil surveys of the tidal floodplain of the River Gambia. Key soil attributes include salinity, ripeness and the acid sulphate hazard. Soil taxonomic units derived by cluster analysis of all the validated data do not correspond with the intuitively-defined soil series of the original surveys. However they do correspond with practical soil mapping units, and distinguish areas of quite different geotechnical behaviour, kinds and degrees of salinity and acid sulphate hazard.
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Title: Converting the wetlands, engendering the environment: the intersection of gender with agrarian change in the Gambia.
Date: 1993
Source: Economic Geography; Oct 1993, v69, n4, p329(19)
Author(s): Carney, Judith
Abstract: In this paper, I examine how agricultural diversification and food security are transforming wetland environments in The Gambia. With irrigation schemes being implemented in lowland swamps to encourage year-round cultivation, agrarian relations are rife with conflict between men and women over the distribution of work and benefits of increased household earnings. Economic change gives rise to new claims over the communal tenure systems prevalent in lowland environments and allows male household heads to enclose wetlands and thereby control female family labor for consolidating their strategies of accumulation. The forms of female resistance are detailed in this paper. COPYRIGHT Clark University 1993
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Title: Salinity-intrusion forecasting system for Gambia river estuary.
Date: 1993
Source: Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management; May-June 1993, v119, n3, p339(14)
Author(s): Risley, John C.; Guertin, D. Phillip; Fogel, Martin M.
Abstract: A methodology is presented for forecasting the response of salinity movement in a tidal estuary to seasonal rainfall and freshwater inflows. The forecasting procedure uses linked stochastic and deterministic models to provide information to aid decision makers. These models include: (1) Multisite stochastic rainfall data generation models used to generate long-term synthetic records of 10-day rainfall for stations in the upper river basin; (2) a deterministic rainfall-runoff multiple regression model used to compute a long-term record of 10-day mean flow on the river's main stem based on real-time initial flow and rainfall data and synthetic rainfall records; and (3) a one-dimensional finite difference salinity intrusion model used to compute the movement of the 1 part per thousand (ppt) salinity level for each year of the computed long-term flow record. A cumulative probability distribution of the maximum salinity flushing distances along the estuary is developed as a tool for decision makers. The Gambia estuary in West Africa was used as a case study. COPYRIGHT American Society of Civil Engineers 1993
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Title: Employment and Environmental Rehabilitation in the Sahel.
Date: 1992
Source: International Labour Review; 1992, v131n1, p. 111-123 (13 pages)
Author(s): Guichaoua, Andre.
Abstract: A comprehensive assessment is presented of the successive approach used since the 1970s in the field of environmental rehabilitation in the countries of the Sahel. These countries include Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Chad, the Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, the Niger, and Senegal. The study analyzes the causes of environmental rehabilitation and examines methods of intervention, techniques applied, and ways in which populations may be involved. An attempt is made to outline the prospects facing various ongoing programs in terms of employment, control by the rural populations themselves of funds and equipment, and the strategies adopted by international aid and cooperation organizations.
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Title: A Study Of Geographic Information Systems: Applications For Land Planning And Natural Resource Management In Sub-Saharan West Africa--A Rationale For A Community-Based Approach.
Date: 1991
Source: Masters Thesis (M.L.A.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT ARLINGTON, 1991. 145 p.; Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 30-03, page: 0583. Supervisor: J. RANDLE HARWOOD.
Author(s): PINNEY, BETH ANN.
Abstract: This study presents applications of Geographic Information Systems for land planning and natural resource management. It provides theoretical and practical answers regarding its relevance, appropriateness, and sustainability in Burkina Faso, Chad, The Gambia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Senegal--Sub-Saharan West Africa. The study advocates a community-based approach. Landscape architects are encouraged to use their knowledge in science and culture to facilitate this approach; using incremental approaches to spatial planning that build-up Africa's land planning capabilities. The research concludes that while GISs may provide timely information, empirical evidence is needed to substantiate their use in Sub-Saharan West Africa. The utilization of GISs in the developing countries is top-down in approach. Nationals remain uninvolved. Local level resource users remain overlooked. Resource management plans proposed by these systems have failed. Rapid Rural Appraisal and the Overlay Mapping Technique are discussed as incremental approaches to gather data and involve nationals into the planning process.
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Title: An overview of water resources planning in West Africa.
Date: 1989
Source: World Development; Nov 1989, v17, n11, p1717(6)
Author(s): Gould, Michael S.; Zobrist, Frederick A.
Abstract:
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Title: Hydrocarbon occurrence in Nw Africa's Msgbc area. (Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea Conakry, petroleum resources)
Date: 1989
Source: World Oil; June 1989, v208, n6, p53(6)
Author(s): Reymond, A.; Negroni, P.
Abstract:
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Title: Predicting Runoff And Salinity Intrusion Using Stochastic Precipitation Inputs.
Date: 1989
Source: Thesis (PH.D.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA, 1989. 194 p.; Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 50-09, Section: B, page: 3892. Director: MARTIN M. FOGEL.
Author(s): RISLEY, JOHN CHARLES.
Abstract: A methodology is presented for forecasting the probabilistic response of salinity movement in an estuary to seasonal rainfall and freshwater inflows. The Gambia River basin in West Africa is used as a case study in the research. The rainy season is from approximately July to October. Highest flows occur in late September and early October. Agriculturalists are interested in a forecast of the minimum distance that occurs each year at the conclusion of the wet season between the mouth of the river and the 1 part per thousand (ppt) salinity level. They are also interested in the approximate date that the minimum distance will occur. The forecasting procedure uses two approaches. The first uses a multisite stochastic process to generate long-term synthetic records (100 to 200 years) of 10-day rainfall for two stations in the upper basin. A long-term record of 10-day average flow is then computed from multiple regression models that use the generated rainfall records and real-time initial flow data occurring on the forecast date as inputs. The flow series is then entered into a one-dimensional finite element salt intrusion model to compute the movement of the 1 ppt salinity level for each season. The minimum distances between the mouth of the river and the 1 ppt salinity front that occurred for each season in the long-term record are represented in a cumulative probability distribution curve. The curve is then used to assign probability values of the occurrence of the 1 ppt salinity level to various points along the river. In the second approach, instead of generating a rainfall series and computing flow from regression models, a long-term flow record was generated using a stochastic first-order Markov process. Probability curves were made for three forecast dates: mid-July, mid-August, and mid-September using both approaches. With the first approach, the initial conditions at the time of the forecast had a greater influence on the flow series than the second approach.
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Title: Water Management For Agriculture In Senegal.
Date: 1987
Source: Masters Thesis (M.S.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA, 1987. 108 p.; Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 26-01, page: 0132.
Author(s): THIOUF, ALASSANE.
Abstract: Water problems in the Sahel region have led to a study of water management in one country of the area, Senegal. Farming systems, human resources, and livestock production of the country have been analyzed. Natural resources, water, soil, topography, and vegetation have also been studied. The study of the different resource shows the potential of improvement in water management. A specific location in Senegal, Kedougou, is chosen and a water management pilot project is designed. The Gambia river and rainfall are the main sources of water for the project. The project is used for different purposes among which are agricultural production, research, and economic improvement. The project is suitable technically, and social, political and economic environments are favorable. The pilot project demonstrates the adequacy of the technologies used for the project. A preliminary estimation of the costs gives an acceptable financial input for such a system.
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Title: Report of the Ninth Session of the Fishery Committee for the Eastern Central Atlantic (Cecaf) Banjul, the Gambia, 15-18 October 1984
Date: 1985
Source: Series: Fisheries Reports No. 322; ISBN: 9251022046 Trade Paper USD 10.00 R
Author(s): Authors, etc.:
Abstract: 46 p
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Title: Fourth Meeting of the West African Subcommittee for Soil Correlation & Land Evaluation Proceedings, Banjul, Gambia, 20-27 Oct. 1979
Date: 1981
Source: Series: World Soil Resources Reports No. 53; ISBN: 9251011176 Trade Paper USD 17.00 R
Author(s): Authors, etc.:
Abstract: 124 p
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