From 1991, Syria revived the 'hema' grazing-reserve system at Talila, near Palmyra, growing a reintroduced oryx herd from 116 to 153 by 2010, while ICARDA's micro-catchments lifted nearby shrub survival from 10% to 90% - before ISIS occupation (2015-17) disrupted both.
116 to 153
Reintroduced oryx herd size (1991-2010)
10% to 90%
Shrub survival with micro-catchment ridges (n/a)
3.3 to 1.3 t/ha
Modelled soil erosion, restored Badia rangeland
Details
Maturity
Discontinued
Promoter
Syrian Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform / ICARDA / FAO
Period
1991-2010 (disrupted 2011-present)
Keywords
rangeland management, drylands, biodiversity, water harvesting, agriculture
Context
Syria's Badia steppe (10.2M ha, 55% of the country) was degraded by decades of overgrazing. In 1991 the government, with FAO support, established Al-Talila Reserve near Palmyra to combine rangeland rehabilitation, oryx/gazelle reintroduction and revived hema-style grazing agreements.
Results
The reintroduced oryx herd grew from 116 to 153 animals by 2010. ICARDA's micro-catchment trials at Mehasseh raised shrub survival from under 10% to over 90%, with modelled runoff falling from 23.5mm to 19.1mm and soil erosion from 3.3 to 1.3 t/ha.
Conclusions
The 2011 conflict and 2015-17 ISIS occupation of Palmyra disrupted the reserve; no verified post-war animal counts exist, so recent outcomes are unconfirmed.
Implementation
Indicative cost
Medium (€50k–€500k)
Time to results
Long (> 3 years)
Staffing & skills
Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform field staff, ICARDA researchers, FAO technical advisors
Conditions for success
stable security conditions to sustain reserve management
continued camel/sheep-owner buy-in to hema grazing agreements
ongoing water-harvesting maintenance
Common failure modes
armed conflict disrupting reserve management and wildlife stocks
Commonly funded by
National / regional programmes
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Data sources
Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.
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