Human perception of mountain hazards in the Kakani - Kathmandu area: experiences from the middle mountains of Nepal

Continuous human interaction with nature, adjustment to land hazards, and transformation of large areas of the mountains into agriculturally-oriented land are characteristics of life in the Kakani-Kathmandu area of the Middle Mountains of Nepal. This ethnographic study attempts to determine perceptions and responses of the local people to mountain hazards and to assess the implications for future land-use policy. The study reveals a richness in local people's environmental knowledge and language vocabulary to express understanding of landscape, land-use practices, and erosional processes. The knowledge is used in the transformation of land-use practice to feed the growing population and to adjust to increasing incidences of landslide problems. Additional socio-economic factors relating to landslide hazards are outlined. Some methodological techniques are suggested for future studies of human perception.