ABSTRACT
China’s national campaign for reforestation and conservation of biodiversity has strongly condemned the practice of shifting cultivation, especially since the wasteful burning of “valuable wood biomass” contrasts sharply with serious wood shortages in many parts of the country (Feng Yaozong 1993; Gao Lizhi et al. 1996; Tao Siming 1995; Xu Weishan 1990; Xu Ziafu 1994; Xu Zaifu and Liu Hongmao 1995; Anonymous 1992). As a consequence, both the academic and political communities in China have advocated the development of alternatives to shifting cultivation (Wu Zhaolu and Zhu Hualing 1996; Anonymous 1992). However, wholesale rejection of shifting cultivation ignores the realities of shifting cultivators, for whom practical alternatives are limited. As a result, shifting cultivation continues and is silently accepted by local officials, highlighting the prudence of exploring indigenous solutions (Wu Zhaolu and Zhu Hualing 1996; Xu Youkai et al. 1996; Anonymous 1980; Zeng Juemin 1995).
