Impact of population pressure on food production: An analysis of land use change and subsistence pattern in the Tari basin in Papua New Guinea Highlands

The impact of increase in population on, land use and subsistence pattern w as examined in two environmentally contrasting Huli-speaking communities, H ell and Wenani, in the Tari basin in Papua New Guinea Highlands. Despite th e similar extent of population increase in both communities, the damage to land differed markedly. In Hell, a decrease in land productivity owing to e xcessive agricultural use has induced farmers to shorten the fallow duratio n, which in rum has led to further land degradation and difficulties in inc reasing food production. In contrast, Wenani villagers have coped with the population increase by enlarging areas for cultivation and possibly will be able to double their present production level, although increasingly frequ ent disputes over land rights have restricted peoples' access to fertile ar eas. During a period of climatic perturbations in 1994, land and labor prod uctivities of crops were three rimes higher in Wenani than in Hell, which s uffered a severe food shortage. This difference in ability to cope with cli matic perturbations may have increased with population growth. The findings in the present study suggest that the effects of population pressure on fo od production may differ between communities, depending on the indigenous e nvironment and subsistence pattern.