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Fuelwood, fodder and livestock status in a Himalayan watershed in Mussoorie hills (Uttarakhand, India)

In the hill areas, the traditional systems of dependence on forest products like fuel for their households and fodder for their livestock has an important bearing on the status of Himalayan watersheds. The population of livestock is therefore also significant. The fuel and fodder requirements of the hill people are important routine activities for which women/children spend long hours of their day-to-day life. But this regular collection of the fuel and fodder from the different land use categories in close proximity of villages have been an important factor for causing soil erosion, low fertility of the land and other degradation processes.