Adaptation and Management Practices of Communities Vulnerable to Gully Erosion in Anambra and Imo States, Nigeria

This study is aimed at evaluating the adaptation and management practices of communities vulnerable to gully erosion in Anambra and Imo States, respectively. The study employed qualitative research methods involving a cross sectional research design using questionnaire survey and interviews. The information for the causes of gully erosion among sampled communities showed the following distribution: 13.1% respondents believed that it has been caused by deforestation; 25.2% of the respondents indicated infrastructural development causes; 20.5% of the sampled respondents indicated poor farming systems; 31.8% of the respondents were of the opinion that the misuse of land contributes more to the causes of gully erosion in the study area; while the remaining 9.4% of the respondents indicated mining as one of the causes of gully erosion in the study area. The distribution revealed that majority of sampled respondents indicated land misuses as a prominent factor leading to gully erosion formation in the study area. The study therefore noted that gullies have impact on depletion of the soil through constant action of erosion and these have several implications for food production which is the primary economic activity engaged on by the majority of residents in the study area. Thus, adaptive capacities of residents in affected gully erosion areas in Anambra and Imo States have not been effective. This will definitely lead to increased socio-economic effects which have several implications on their potential for growth and development in the study area.

Keywords: Gully erosion; Vulnerability; Land use; Soil erosion; Adaptation; Remediation