Agriculture

Ecosystems &
Enwronment
ELSEVIER

Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

Soil erosion and environmental impact of vegetable production in

the Cameron Highlands, Malaysia
David J. Midmore a,1, Hans G.P. Jansen a,*, Robert (3. Dumsday b
a Asian Vegetable Research and Development Center (AVRDC), P.O. Box 42, Shanhua, Tainan, Taiwan
b School of Agriculture, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Vic. 3083, Australia

Accepted 3 May 1996

Abstract
Vegetable production in the Cameron Highlands of Malaysia has expanded over the past 25 years and has been
implicated in the increase in sedimentation in reservoirs in the region. The present study was executed to evaluate current
methods, patterns and profitability of vegetable production; study the causes, environmental impact and externality cost of
soil erosion; assess the effectiveness and adoption of soil conservation and management practices; determine the extent of
adoption of integrated pest management methods; and elicit farmers' perceptions regarding the main constraints in vegetable
cultivation. Recent changes in land use within the area are quantified by a geographical information system, Landsat
imagery, a digital elevation model and a 1992 farm survey of 10% of the farmers. Farmers modify the natural environment
by mechanical excavations and other earthworks, and compensate for the negative effects of soil erosion on productivity by
extensive use of irrigation, chicken manure, lime, and inorganic fertilizers. The preparation of broad platform terraces, cut
out of the natural slope, is a major source of soil erosion which is estimated at 24 t ha- ~ year- l on average. However, on a
per event basis, soil loss may be as high as 155 t ha - l per event. Terraces are resurfaced periodically because of
impoverished soil and reducing yields. Bench terraces, while reducing erosion, are rare owing to labor shortages. With the
exception of polyethylene rain shelters, other agronomic practices do not substantially reduce soil erosion. Recommendations
are made regarding the timing of land clearing and resurfacing of terraces, and suggestions for interventions that may
improve catchment management are offered. The value of the negative externalities imposed on the Electricity Board as a
result of sedimentation in waterways and reservoirs is estimated at M$ 2 106 per year, or less than 4% of the total annual
gross value of vegetable production in the CH. However, soil erosion resulting from vegetable cultivation in the CH is likely
to cause other negative off-site effects that cannot easily be quantified, including adverse effects on public health as a result
of run-off of chemicals, loss of wildlife habitat, and potential loss of tourism.
Keywords: Environment; IPM; Malaysia; Profitability; Soil erosion; Sustainability; Vegetables

1. Introduction
* Corresponding author at: Research Program on Sustainability
in Agriculture (REPOSA, CATIE/UAW/MAG), Apdo. 224,
7210 Gufipiles, Costa Rica. Tel.: 506-710-6595; fax: 506-7102327; e-mail: hjansen@sol.racsa.co.cr.
Present address: Department of Biology, Central Queensland
University, Rockhampton, Qld. 4702, Australia.

1.1. Background
The relative economic importance of agriculture
in Malaysia has declined as a result of diversification
and industrialization of the economy. Demographic

0167-8809/96/$15.00 Copyright 1996 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

PII S01 6 7 - 8 8 0 9 ( 9 6 ) 0 1 0 6 5 - 1

30

D.J. Midmore et al. / Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

pressure on the land has increased as witnessed by

average population density which has increased from
25.5 persons km -2 in 1961 to 59.7 persons krn -2 in
1994 (World Bank, 1995). Strategies to enhance
agricultural development need to take account of the
shrinkage in land available for agriculture due to
urbanization and industrialization. On the basis of
data in World Bank (1995) it can be calculated that
whereas rural populations have increased at an average annual rate of 1.3% between 1961 and 1994, the
corresponding rate for urban populations is 4.7%.
The same source reveals that, between 1980 and
1990, agricultural output grew at an average rate of
3.8% year -j , whereas industry and manufacturing
grew at average annual rates of 7.1% and 8.8%,
respectively. These developments have led to greater
competition across sectors for resources including
labor and capital, as well as an increasing concern
for preserving the environment. Agriculture in the
highlands encompasses these issues and, with appropriate technologies, could help to improve the overall
performance of the agricultural sector.
A large part of the mountainous steep lands in
Malaysia is kept under forest. However, in peninsular Malaysia, nearly l04 ha of steep mountainous
land in the Cameron Highlands (CH) have been
developed for (largely) temperate vegetables (mainly
cabbage, tomato, and leafy vegetables), as well as
for tea, floriculture, and fruits. Additional land has
been opened for non-agricultural uses (including golf
courses). Other highland areas in Malaysia which
have been developed for agricultural purposes can be
found in east Malaysia, where cocoa and pepper are
planted on steep lands. Another land use type in
steep areas is shifting cultivation, also mainly found
in east Malaysia (Sarawak) and amounting to about
2.7 106 ha, of which 0.1 10 6 ha are cleared
annually for the cultivation of hill rice and other
food crops. The other east Malaysian state, Sabah, is
dominated by a landscape of hilly and steep land
which accounts for over 60% of its total area. In
Kundasang, primary jungle is being replaced through
clearing operations and vegetable production on steep
land is gaining popularity.

unreliability of official data on vegetable area and

production. For example, while data adapted from
the governmental Fifth Malaysia Plan suggest that
the area under vegetables has fluctuated around 104
ha throughout the past decade (Anang, 1989), data
from the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) suggest
fluctuations in the area under vegetables between
8 103 and 2.8 104 ha during the period 19701989 (MOA, various years). Similarly, figures supplied by Anang (1989) and FAO (1990) seem to
agree on an annual production of some 5 105 t
year -~ in the late 1980s, as opposed to official
estimates of less than 3 X 105 t (Ahmad et al.,
1992).
Estimates of vegetable consumption based on
consumption surveys carried out by the Federal
Agricultural Marketing Authority (FAMA) paint a
picture in which the consumption of vegetables increased from l l 8 g per capita day -l in 1982 to 153
g per capita day -I in 1985 (Ahmad et al., 1992).
However, the most recent FAO figures (which do not
include home garden production) for availability of
vegetables indicate a per capita daily supply of just
over 100 g (FAO, 1991), consistent with figures for
domestic production and trade for 1985-1990
(Anang, 1989; FAO, 1990) which indicate that vegetable availability falls significantly short of the 200
g per capita day-1 considered necessary to meet
daily micro-nutrient requirements (Ali et al., 1996).
More seriously, a comparison of a hypothetical continuation of historical growth patterns of vegetable
supply over the past two decades into the future with
projected increases in vegetable demand (based on
expected growth in population and per capita income) suggests a considerable widening of the gap
between domestic demand and supply, mainly fueled
by strong growth in per capita income exceeding 6%
year-~ and urbanization of about 5% year-l (Jansen, 1992; Ahmad et al., 1992).
Even though a sizable proportion of Malaysia's
total vegetable production is exported (mainly
tomato, chilies and cabbage produced in the CH for
the Singapore market, worth about MS z 5 107

1.2. Vegetable statistics in Malaysia

Any analysis of the status of the vegetable sector

in Malaysia at the national level is hampered by the

2 M$ stands for Malaysian dollar (or Ringgit) for which the

1992 exchangerate is about 2.6 to the US dollar.

D.J. Midmore et a l . / Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 2 9 - 4 6

year-'), Malaysia is a substantial net vegetable importer (mostly potatoes, garlic and onion) with a total
vegetable import bill of M$ 2.28 108 in 1990, up
from 2.5 107 in 1970. A lack of suitable production technologies makes it neither technically feasible nor economically viable to produce these imported vegetables under local conditions (Vimala et
al., 1994). In addition to this negative trade balance
in fresh vegetables, Malaysia's imports of processed
vegetables exceed corresponding exports by well
over M$ 107 annually. Given projected volumes of
domestic production and domestic and export demand (FAMA, personal communication, 1991;
Jansen, 1992), the annual shortage of vegetables is
likely to reach at least 2.5 105 t with a corresponding import bill exceeding M$ 4 108 by 1995.

1.3. Environmental aspects of highland vegetable

production
Despite consistent attempts to adapt temperate
vegetables to lowland tropical climates, a large proportion of temperate vegetables consumed in tropical
countries is produced under more favorable highland
climates. Vegetable production in highland areas of
southeast Asia (e.g. Bandung in Indonesia, Baguio in
the Philippines, Nuwara Eliya in Sri Lanka, Dalat in
Vietnam, Cameron Highlands in Malaysia) is highly
lucrative and it is unlikely that a shift towards lowland vegetable production will deter highland farmers from continuing with the production of vegetables (Midmore and Poudel, 1996). Indeed, with increasing demand for high quality vegetables, new
land areas (inevitably with steeper slopes than
presently under cultivation) are being opened in all
the above regions, despite occasional government
restrictions. The dissected land morphology of the
highlands, often with cultivated slopes of up to 30 ,
and intense rainfall (2500-3000 mm year -~ ) largely
confined to the rainy season, are conducive to serious soil erosion which, besides causing a loss of soil
fertility which results in declining crop productivity,
may lead to silting of irrigation systems and hydroelectricity dams, eutrophication of waterways, destruction of infrastructure due to landslides, loss of
wildlife habitat, damage to public health, plus increased water treatment costs (Pimentel et al., 1995).
The CH is an important vegetable growing area

31

with an estimated vegetable area in 1992 of 2140 ha

(Fuad, 1993). A considerable portion of the production is exported, earning valuable foreign exchange.
However, there is mounting concern about the longterm environmental impact of vegetable production
in the CH, focusing not only on the presumably
heavy use of pesticides (with health hazards presented by pesticide residues, the build-up of resistance and contamination of soil), but particularly on
erosion from vegetable production areas, resulting in
sedimentation of infrastructure and loss of soil structure and nutrients. The CH is an area is of inherent
beauty with a thriving tourist industry which may be
damaged by the already highly visible soil exposure
following land clearing, even though part of the
latter may be caused by the tourist industry itself
(Cheng and Chen, 1995). In addition, retums on
investment in Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB, or
Electricity Board) infrastructure have significantly
diminished as a result of accelerated soil erosion
with consequent sedimentation in waterways and
reservoirs (Omar, 1988). Proposals for reducing these
problems have generally ignored economic factors
and have consequently not been adopted by farmers.
For example, starting in 1979, the World Bank funded
a program to test various soil conservation practices,
including the construction of narrow (1-2 m) bench
terraces. This culminated in the establishment of an 8
acre demonstration farm, now managed by the Department of Agriculture (DOA). However, very limited acceptance of these practices has taken place.
Even though vegetable farmers in the CH do construct terraces, these are wide (10-100 m) platform
terraces cut into slopes rather than bench terraces.

1.4. Study objectives

The major objectives of the study were to develop
a picture of changes in land use in the CH between
1986 and 1990; assess structure and patterns of
vegetable production; estimate volumes and profitability of vegetable production; study the main
sources and physical extent of the soil erosion problem, including estimating (part of) the externality
costs associated with it; assess the extent of adoption
of soil conservation and management practices as
well as farmers' attitude towards such practices;
quantify the extent of adoption of integrated pest

32

D~I. Midmore et al. / Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

management (IPM) practices among survey farmers

to ascertain the need for further research and promotion; and suggest intervention measures that may
improve catchment management. After discussing
some methodological aspects of the study and describing the major sources of data in the next section,
each of these objectives will be addressed in separate
sub-sections of Section 3. The latter is followed by a
discussion, while the last section is reserved for
conclusions.

2. Materials and methods

2.1. Study area

Extending over an area of 71 255 ha, the CH is

located in the state of Pahang, 250 km from the
capital Kuala Lumpur. After Johor state, Pahang,
with some 2500 ha under vegetables, is the second
most important vegetable growing state in Malaysia.
The total area under vegetable cultivation in CH
accounts for about half of the total highland vegetable area in Malaysia. Sources at the Malaysian
Agricultural Research and Development Institute
(MARDI) estimate vegetable production in the CH at
180 t day -I with a value of M$ 0.15 10 6 (Dumsday et al., 1991).
Most vegetable cultivation in the CH takes place
between 900 and 1400 m above sea level. Soils are
mainly derived from granite, with sandy to sandy
clay loam textures, and are classified as paleudults
(Paramanathan, 1977). The undisturbed soil 0 - 1 0 cm
beneath the organic or humus layer comprises 40%
sand, 16% silt, 44% clay, electrical conductivity
(EC) 0.13 mS cm -I and pH 4.2 (MARDI, unpublished data, 1983). For most of the study area,
natural or diverted drainage is to a reservoir constructed in 1965 for the purpose of generation of
hydroelectric power. With the exception of valley
floors, vegetable production is rarely practiced on
natural slopes but rather on (mostly platform) terraces cut out of the natural slope without concern for
repositioning of top soil or humus. Farmers, therefore, require heavy inputs of nutrients even on newly
opened land in order to sustain crop growth.
The cool temperate climate of the CH ideally suits
production of temperate vegetables, with maximum

monthly mean temperature ranging from 21 to 24C

and minimum from 11 to 14C. Average rainfall data
for 1981-1991 shows a bimodal annual pattern, with
peaks in April/May and October/November that
are closely related to erosion rates (Dumsday and
Huang, 1992; Midmore et al., 1996). No month is
without rainfall, and the driest months are December
and June. Annual rainfall for the past 35 years
averaged 2205 mm year -~. Local perception is that
air temperature has risen and rainfall diminished
over the past four decades, to some extent confirmed
by data from the Malaysian Meteorological Service
(Midmore et al., 1996). Forest clearing has been
commonly suggested as a cause of climate change in
the area.
2.2. Sampling methodology

A stratified random sample consisting of 206

farmers in 13 different locations (between 9 and 28
farmers per location) in the CH was interviewed 3
during January 1992, with the survey data referring
to the 1991 calendar year. Individual farms were
chosen on the basis of individual farm location, size,
vegetable type and area and household size, with the
help of detailed maps obtained from FAMA. Representative soil samples were collected at each farm,
and analyzed for texture, pH and EC. Similarly,
natural land slopes and slopes of terraces and beds
were assessed on each farm. Observations on the
degree of soil erosion on each farm were also
recorded. From the sample, 193 farms for which
complete data sets were available were retained for
analysis, representing approximately 10% of all vegetable farms in the CH.
2.3. Land use and satellite data

To assess changes in land use between 1986 and

1990, Digital Landsat Mapper (TM) data for 1990, a
1:50000 topographic map, and a land use map for
1986 produced by DOA were utilized. To produce a
land use map for 1990, a standard false color composite TM image at a scale of 1:50000 was developed for visual interpretation aided by ground

3 The survey sample and questionnaire are described in Dumsday et al. (1992).

D.I. Midmore et al./ Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

truthing. A digital elevation model (DEM) of the

study area was also developed, taking 100 m contour
lines and peaks from the topographic map at a scale
of 1:50000. Separate land use maps for 1986 and
1990 were overlayed on the model, using 100 m
100 m (1 ha) grid size (which linearly interpolated
altitude of grid cells when they lay between contours), and a slope map was prepared with the following slope classes: less than 2, 2-5, 5-10, 10-20,
20-30, 30-40, and over 40 .
2.4. Rainfall and erosivity
Pluviographic charts for the period 1981-1991
were surveyed, and the kinetic energy of rainstorms
of over 10 mm (over the worst 30 min period) was
calculated as follows (Wischmeier and Smith, 1978;
Dumsday and Huang, 1992)
KE = 210 + 891og~0I
where KE is kinetic energy (m-t ha-l c m - l ) and I
is intensity (cm h - l ) .
Thus, KE represents the units of work done (i.e.
moving 1 t by 1 m) per unit volume (1 ha-cm).

3. Results and discussion

3.1. Changes in land use between 1986 and 1990

The land use map for 1990 suggests that more
than 3000 ha were used for vegetable and flower
Table I
Land use statistics for 1986 a and 1990 b for the CH
Land use types

1986
ha

Vegetables and flowers

1453
Tea estates
2942
Cleared tea area
ND
Newly opened forests
ND
Scrub and scattered farms 1702
Town
194
Total

6291

1990
% of total ha

33

Table 2
Distribution of vegetable area (%) according to DEM and survey
Slope class ()

Survey
DEM

0-2

2-5

5-10

10-20

20-30

30-40

> 40

2.1
30.2

12
9.3

29.3
18.4

46.1
28.0

11.5
11.1

0
2.7

0
0.3

production in that year (Table 1), exceeding previous

estimates by some 50% (Ko et al., 1987). Analysis
of land distribution in the designated slope classes
with the DEM indicates that 40% of vegetable production in 1990 was on land with natural slopes over
5 (Midmore et al., 1996). The correspondence between natural slopes measured from the DEM and
those collected on sample farms is reasonable with
the exception of land in the 0 - 2 class (Table 2).
Data from G O M / A D B (1988) and Macken and Ong
(1979) are consistent with the field survey rather
than the DEM. Owing to the large vertical interval
used (100 m), it is likely that the DEM incorrectly
interpreted land in the low slope category. In locations where there is little land in the class 0 - 5 , the
relationship between slopes on sample farms and the
DEM is very close. Survey data indicate that, although most farmers are cultivating vegetables on
land with a natural slope of 10-20 , more than
one-half uses beds with a slope of less than 2 and
only 10% had beds with a slope of over 5 . Only
16% of all newly opened areas have slopes over 20,
which is not excessive considering that most new
lands are upslope of those already opened within
each valley in the CH.
3.2. Structure and patterns of vegetable production

% of total

23,1
46.8
27.1
3.1

3237 c
2821
210
1453 a
1860 e
179

33.2
28.9
2.2
14.9
19.1
1.8

100.0

9759

100.0

a Land use map of DOA.

b Satellite imagery.
c Includes farm roads, farm houses, rain shelters, and farm yards.
a Includes dead ferns, cleared forest, barren land, and land slides.
e Includes fruit orchards.
ND, no data included.

At just over 0.8 ha (Table 3), average farm size

among sample farmers is about double the national
average for vegetable farmers (Anang, 1989). It exceeds the average farm size of 0.55 ha in the CH
reported by Dumsday et al. (1991) but is in line with
the average farm size of 0.85 ha reported by Taylor
et al. (1993). If farm numbers have not markedly
increased in the recent past, the recorded increase in
individual farm size is in line with the observed
increase in total area under vegetables in the CH.
Most farmers' tenure arrangement consists of a Temporary Ownership Licence (TOL). TOLs are a corn-

34

DJ. Midmoreet al./ Agriculture,Ecosystemsand Environment60 (1996)29-46

Table 3
Land statistics (ha) for individual sample farms
N
Mean Min.
Total farm size
193 0.82 0.16
Cultivated land
193 0.75 0.16
Owned land
32 0.75 0.28
Temporarilyoccupiedland 130 0.89 0.16
Rented-in land
32 0.56 0.20
Irrigated land
Sprinkler
175 0.74 0.16
Other irrigation
26 0.53 0.10
Plastic shelterarea
50 0.40 0.04
Area under terraces
Platformterrace
157 0.67 0.02
Bench terrace
47 0.27 0.02

Max.
4.0
4.0
2.0
4.0
1.6

CV
0.57
0.58
0.48
0.57
0.60

4.0
1.2
1.8

0.60
0.68
0.78

4.0
1.2

0.62
1.04

mon form of land tenure where land is held for 5-15

years, carrying nominal fees (about M$ 250-350
ha -t year-l), accompanied by reviews of land use
and management practices. There have been few
cases of TOLs being revoked. Only 16% of all
sample farmers rent some of their land from others,
with an average rented-in area of less than 0.6 ha at
an average rental cost of about M$ 7000 ha -~. All
farms have some form of irrigation facility, 90%
with sprinkler irrigation. Water is directed from
stream flow higher in the watershed, by way of small
weirs and plastic pipes to provide a sufficient head to
operate sprinklers. Farmers generally have sufficient
facilities to irrigate their whole farm area. About
one-quarter of all sample farmers make use of plastic
shelters, on average covering about 0.4 ha of land.
While most sample farmers grow exclusively vegetables, 14 (7% of the sample) also produce cut
flowers. The annual value of flower production in
the CH has been estimated at some M$ 2 X 107
(Dumsday et al., 1991), or about 40% of the value of
vegetable production. Even though flower cultivation
is generally considered an increasingly important and
profitable enterprise, data collected to calculate the
(absolute and relative) profitability of flower cultivation turned out unreliable.
Most farmers grow between two and five different
vegetable species, of which the most popular include
cabbage (English Brassica oleracea var capitata,
Chinese Brassica pekinensis), tomato (Lycopersicon
esculentum), lettuce (Indian Lactuca indica and head
Lactuca sativum), onion ( Allium cepa), snow peas
( Pisum sativum var. macrocarpon), celery (English

Apium graveolans var. dulce and Chinese Apium

graveolans var. secalinum), spinach (Spinacia oleracea), garland chrysanth (Chrysanthemum coronarium), beans (butter Phaseolus lunatus, green Phaseolus vulgaris, French Phaseolus vulgaris), mustard
(Chinese Brassica juncea kaves, leaves), Capsicum
sp., and radish (Raphanus sativus). Farmers' cropping patterns are determined by a variety of factors.
For example, cabbage is relatively easy to grow,
without the need for plastic shelters. However, crops
such as spinach, tong-ho and lettuce need rain shelters for optimal yield performance. Tomato is a crop
with a relatively high labor requirement.
Vegetables are grown year-round, although some
seasonality is encountered among species. Consideration of harvest time is important in relation to soil
exposure and erosion during pre-sowing cultivation,
and before complete ground cover by the succeeding
crop (Midmore et al., 1996). Although the popularity
of intercropping depends on the species grown, a
large proportion of respondents indicated that intercropping was often not practiced owing to labor
shortages, but is believed to reduce price risks and
provide some degree of control of pests and diseases
(Taylor et al., 1993).
3.3. Volumes and profitability of vegetable production
The total gross area cultivated with vegetables
(i.e. taking account of multiple cropping and intercropping) by sample farmers is 318 ha with cabbage
(Chinese and English), tomato, and lettuce accounting for respectively 47%, 15%, and 7%. The average
cropping intensity (area cropped year-l per area)
equals 2.2, which is considerably less than the value
of 3.2 calculated on the basis of 1988 data
(GOM/ADB, 1988). Area, production and yields of
individual vegetable species show wide variation
between sample farmers (Table 4). Given that the
sample represents 10% of all vegetable farmers in
the CH, the figures in Table 4 result in a total daily
vegetable production of 179 t, confirming the earlier
MARDI estimate. The value of annual vegetable
production by the sample farmers at average prices is
M$ 5.642 X 106 (Table 5), giving an estimated total
annual production value for the CH of M$ 5.642 x
1 0 7 . This latter figure again is in agreement with

D.I. Midmore et al./ Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

Table 4
Area and yield of vegetable crops for sample farms, per annum
N

Gross area (ha)

Yield (t h a - t )

Mean Min. Max. CV

English
135
cabbage
Chinese
88
cabbage
Mustard
17
Spinach
23
Garland
18
chrysanth
Lettuce
53
Celery
23
Onion
34
Beans
17
Peas
27
Tomato
101
Capsicum 13
Radish
10
Other
30
vegetables b

Mean Min. Max. CV

0.73

0.12 4.8

0.87 27.1

6.3 84.4 0.59

0.54

0.12 2.0

0.64 26.4

5.0 72.5 0.55

0.57
0.62
0.47

0.12 2.4
0.12 2.2
0.12 1.2

1.06 12.9
0.86 14.5
0.82 14.8

4.5 27.5 0.57

1.3 56.3 0.95
1.3 45.0 0.77

0.42
0.40
0.56
0.30
0.44
0.46
0.33
0.43
0.56

0.10
0.08
0.12
0.08
0.10
0.08
0.13
0.10
0.10

0.77
1.10
0.93
0.89
0.79
0.72
0.55
0.77
0.84

2.0
2.2
2.8
1.2
2.0
2.0
0.7
1.2
1.7

12.8
13.9
13.0
10.1
5.7
26.0
27,1
16,1
18.7

3.4
0.8
1.0
2.0
0.2
0 a
3.3
7.0
1.4

26.3
45.0
60.0
23.8
22.5
75.0
68.8
30.0
65.5

0.48
0.88
0.87
0.64
0.78
0.60
0.90
0.43
0.95

a One farmer experienced crop failure.

b Includes a wide range of vegetables, each grown by six sample
farmers or less.

estimates made by MARDI, though significantly below the estimate of M$ 108 provided by the DOA
(Dumsday et al., 1991). Owing to its large area and

35

high yields, English cabbage is responsible for nearly

one-third of the total value of vegetable production
in the CH, despite its low price relative to most other
vegetables.
The average difference between the highest and
lowest prices received ranges from a factor of 1.4
(for beans) to 2.7 (for capsicum). Data presented in
Ding et al. (1981) combined with 1991 price data
from FAMA, allow a comparison between 1991 and
1981 vegetable prices (in nominal terms). Although
prices for spinach have nearly doubled and those of
beans increased by 50% over the last decade, prices
of English cabbage, capsicum and radish have seen
significant decreases of the order of 40%. Nominal
prices of lettuce, mustard and tomato have remained
about the same, implying significant decreases in
real prices. Within-year price fluctuations (measured
by the ratio of the highest and lowest average price
received by farmers during a particular year) decreased between 1981 and 1991 for most vegetables.
This ratio had substantially exceeded 2.0 for almost
all vegetables in 1981, but had dropped below 2.0
for most vegetables by 1991.
Costs and returns of vegetable cultivation are
calculated at two levels. First, net returns ha-J
year- 1 were calculated for each individual vegetable
species (i.e. totals for the year for all crops of each
species), defined as the difference between sales

Table 5
Prices and annual production value of vegetable crops of sample farmers in the CH
Total production value
(103 MS) based on

Price
(MS k g - ~)

English cabbage
Chinese cabbage
Mustard
Spinach
Garland chrysanth
Lettuce
Celery
Onion
Beans
Peas
Tomato
Capsicum
Radish
Other vegetables
Total

Average

High

Low

Avg. price

High price

Low price

0.64
0.53
0.83
1.19
1.39
1.04
1.06
0.82
1.54
4.66
0.92
1.97
0.45
1.73

0.84
0.67
1.07
1.64
1.85
1.30
1.42
1.13
1.81
5.86
1.23
3.00
0.61
2.05

0.46
0.38
0.61
0.73
0.9
0.77
0.67
0.48
1.29
3.47
0.64
1.13
0.28
1.20

1799
669
85
202
131
291
96
232
112
339
976
193
26
491

2424
854
111
279
174
368
126
359
135
435
1330
289
35
634

1086
477
60
118
81
207
57
102
89
242
644
117
16
313

5642

7553

3609

D.J. Midmore et al./ Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

36

revenues and the sum of expenditures on seed, manure, chemical fertilizers, pesticides and tractor use.
Net returns calculated in this way can be interpreted
as returns to labor (including management) plus
money left over to pay for what mostly are fixed
costs, including irrigation investment costs, plastic
shelter costs, costs to make beds and terraces, land
rent and taxes, electricity costs, and marketing costs.
Second, net income (NI) per farm year-t is calculated as the sum (over vegetable species) of net
returns ha-~ year - l , multiplied by the actual area
for each individual species, minus the sum of the
cost items which could not be attributed to individual
vegetable species. The latter include hired labor costs
(including permanent labor, but excluding family
labor); annualized costs of irrigation, plastic shelters
and terrace construction; recurrent cost of beds (remaking) and terraces (re-surfacing); other material
costs; land rent and taxes; electricity costs; marketing costs; and any other costs not included elsewhere. NI per farm year- 1 calculated in this way can
be interpreted as net profits, or returns to own land,
family labor and management.
Net returns ha-~ year-l at average prices vary
between M$ 9 l 0 3 and 1.4 10 4 for most vegetable species (Table 6). While onion and radish
seem to generate relatively low returns (particularly
at the lower end of the price range), peas, tomato and

(particularly) capsicum have above-average returns.

With the exception of capsicum for which the survey
finds exceptionally high returns (which may however
be offset by the high costs of constructing rain
shelters), these results are consistent with those from
an earlier survey carried out by MARDI (Ding et al.,
1981).
Expenditures for manure (mostly chicken dung to
improve soil fertility) account for the largest part of
total material costs for most vegetables (Midmore et
al., 1996). Many farmers are reluctant to give information about pesticides, and quantities, used are certainly under-reported, resulting in an over-estimation
of net returns. The share of seed costs differs widely
among different vegetables, on average varying from
only 1% for tomato (indicative of the fact that nearly
all tomato farmers use their own seed) to nearly 50%
for seed material for onion.
In calculating NI per farm year- 1 (Table 7), costs
for semi-permanent structures such as irrigation facilities, plastic shelters and terraces are annualized
using the formula: A = P [ r / ( 1 - (1 + r)-t)], where
A is the annualized capital cost of the structure; P is
the current cost of the structure; t is the assumed
lifespan of the structure; and r is the borrowing rate
for farmers (8% in 1992). On the basis of the survey
data, the life span of irrigation structures and plastic
shelter structures is set to 10 years, with the life span

Table 6
Mean costs and returns of vegetable crops in the CH (MS h a - i )
N

English cabbage
Chinese cabbage
Mustard
Spinach
Garland chrysanth
Lettuce
Celery
Onion
Beans
Peas
Tomato
Capsicum
Radish
Other vegetables

135
88
17
23
18
53
23
34
17
27
101
13
10
30

Average gross
revenues at

Material
costs a

Mean price

High price

Low price

17166
13472
11446
15553
15583
12884
13484
9794
15708
24575
22997
50251
7759
23923

22625
16915
14410
21569
21427
16301
19217
13440
18744
30792
31675
76996
10610
29182

12114
9974
8665
9423
9455
9480
7558
5798
12577
18072
15240
30508
4766
16101

a Includes costs for seed, manure, fertilizer, pesticides and tractor use.

3598
3649
2129
2448
2000
2711
2013
2976
2262
4216
4111
6697
2503
2769

Net returns at
Mean price

High price

Low price

13567
9824
9316
13105
13584
10172
11471
6818
13446
20359
18887
43554
5256
21154

19027
13266
12280
19121
19427
13590
17204
10464
16482
26575
27564
70299
8107
26413

8516
6325
6536
6976
7455
6769
5545
2822
10315
13855
11129
23811
2263
13332

D.J. Midmore et aL / Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

Table 7
Mean annual costs and returns (MS per farm) for vegetable
production

Total annual gross revenues

from vegetable crops
Annual material costs
(vegetable crop-specific)
Seed
Manure
Fertilizer
Pesticides
Tractor use
Annual costs (non-vegetable
crop specific)
Hired labor costs
Annualized costs of
Sprinkler irrigation
Other irrigation
Plastic shelters
Bench terraces
Platform terraces
Bed costs
Cost of liming
Costs of other
materials
Land rent
Land taxes
Electricity costs
Marketing costs
Other costs
Total input costs
Net annual income
per farm

Mean

SD

193

27702

26919

190
188
189
164
166

519
2510
1486
748
92

591
2519
1835
729
185

91

5771

8447

172
17
39
48
158
57
117
188

1682
1045
5095
374
2131
910
306
2357

2432
1268
4559
395
1330
1233
360
1608

32
158
80
131
2
193
193

3946
286
337
883
4500
16729
10974

3361
277
218
724
707
12925
21876

of the plastic itself set to 2 years. Terraces are

assumed to last for 15 years. The survey data indicate that the costs of terrace construction and periodic re-surfacing amount to about M$ 11 700 ha-l
and M$ 27 200 ha-l for bench and wide terraces,
respectively, which translate into corresponding annual costs of M$ 1365 and M$ 3177 (assuming an
interest rate of 8% which reflects the prevailing bank
rate in 1992). NI per farm year -! from vegetables
averages M$ 1.1 10 4, though with considerable
variation among farms.
3.4. Soil erosion
3.4.1. Erosivity
Although a close linear fit is observed between
monthly rainfall erosivity and rainfall (Fig. 1), there

37

is an important outlier, namely May 1991, when

erosivity was much greater than expected based upon
data for the monthly rainfall. It is possible that a
large proportion of the erosion for the 11 year period
(1981-1991) is accounted for by that month's KE.
A visit to the area in September 1991 provided
visual evidence of severe gully erosion and land
slips, and suggests that to be effective, erosion control practices should be implemented in anticipation
of extraordinary rainfall events. The low likelihood
of such rare events does not encourage farmers to
adopt preventive measures.
3.4.2. Sources of soil erosion
In the CH, soil becomes exposed following forest
clearing (approximately 880 ha year-1 between 1986
and 1990; Table 1), clearing and pruning of tea, and
crop harvest (in addition to leveling for roads and
buildings, which is not considered here). Rapid sheet
erosion takes place immediately after land clearing
before vegetables are planted. Based on satellite
imagery, about 7.5% of tea land is subject to rejuvenation, and therefore liable to erosion (i.e. is exposed
at any particular time). Seasonality in the harvest of
cabbage (the most widely grown vegetable crop in
the CH) has the greatest influence on exposed cultivated land area, particularly since farmers are accustomed to collect and remove crop residues from their
fields. Major harvest activity is in April and August,
and these are the months with some of the highest
rainfall erosivities recorded (Dumsday and Huang,
1992).
Construction of beds and (particularly platform)
terraces is another source of soil erosion. Growing
vegetables on beds is common in the CH for all
vegetable crops. Survey data indicate that, on average, beds need to be re-made every 22 weeks, mostly
because of poor soil and low vegetable yields. About
75% of all sample farmers make beds across the
slope, with most of the remaining farmers constructing them up and down the slope. Farmers rarely
orientate their beds in line with the contour.
Fifty-four (i.e. less than one-third of sample farmers, in agreement with Taylor et al. (1993)) and 187
farmers have constructed bench and platform terraces, respectively. The percentage of land under
wide terraces greatly exceeds that under bench terraces, with on average 36% of the land of the 54

D.J. Midmore et al./ Agriculture, Ecosystems and Enuironment 60 (1996) 29-46

38
800

y =

- 19.59

+ 0.87x

R."2 = 0 . 7 9

600

,i

>

400

M
o

1,nil

200"

":

""

"

*e

i
!

: I

0'

100

200

300

Rainfall

400

500

600

(mm)

Fig. I. Relationship between monthly erosivity and rainfall for the Cameron highlands, 1981 - 1991.

farmers under bench terraces, while platform terraces

on average occupy 92% of farm land. Bench terraces
have a number of disadvantages compared with platform terraces. Their construction is done entirely by
hand (as opposed to platform terraces which are
constructed largely by machine, leading to a high
degree of soil erosion), cultivation is more labor-intensive, they are relatively difficult to irrigate, and it
is impractical to protect them with plastic shelters.
Re-surfacing of terraces 4-10 years after construction is necessary to avoid declining yields and is
mostly done (71% of respondents) by covering the
terrace with fresh soil taken from a face newly cut
from the batter of the natural slope. The other onethird of farmers scraped off poor topsoil to expose
soil beneath. Soil erosion also occurs from the backslopes and rises of terraces, especially if not protected with mulches or cover crops. In spite of the
greater difficulty associated with the construction
and management of bench terraces, there does not
seem to be a benefit in terms of retained silt and less

sand as the proportion of bench terrace per farm

increased (Midmore et al., 1996). Soil erosion may
intensify when a combination of conditions occurs
such that the soil is heavily charged with water and
is followed by long continuous heavy rain causing
land slips.
3.4.3. Physical extent and externality costs of soil
erosion
The extent of soil erosion was determined through
analysis of soil samples as well as by visual assessment made by survey enumerators on each individual farm. Based on the soil samples taken at each
farm, the texture of topsoil is quantified on the
assumption that more eroded soils would have lower
clay fractions and higher sand fractions. Data on the
percentage of clay in soil from farms with plastic
shelters, assumed to have least soil erosion, show a
significant positive increase as the proportion of land
under plastic increases (Fig. 2). The clay fraction in
soil from farms with all land covered by plastic

D.J. Midmore et al./Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

shelters is also greater than that from farms without

plastic shelters (Midmore et al., 1996). Even though
data (not given here) for cultivated soils show that
much silt and clay has been washed away compared
with undisturbed soil, the extent of alteration of
composition was not greatly affected by agronomic
management practices, other than by the use of
plastic rainsheiters (18.0 vs. 15.6%, t = 2.32, d.f. =
4-153). Although plastic shelters result in less pesticide usage (Taylor et al., 1993), better quality produce (Chang and Liao, 1989) and reduced erosion
(Fig. 2), their long-term use may create new problems related to an increase in soil EC. The soil
sample analysis indicates that all five farms with EC
over 1.5 mS c m - 1 have a proportion of their production under plastic. On average, farms with plastic
shelters have an EC of 0.47 mS c m - l compared

39

with 0.27 for farms without shelters (t = 2.49, P <

0.05).
Based on visual observations, rill erosion is considered the most serious, with 73% of all sample
farms already experiencing at least moderate rill
erosion, followed by gully erosion which is a reason
for concern on nearly half of all sample farms. Even
though two-thirds of all sample farms have not yet
had land slips, the situation can be expected to
worsen in the future. During the survey, severe land
slips were observed on 10% of the farms, most likely
a result of the heavy rains of May 1991. However,
no meaningful relationships exist between visual assessments of erosion (rill, sheet, gully) and texture of
soil samples collected at each farm (data not presented). Rill erosion is more likely to occur when the
natural and arable slope is high, but neither bed

t
RA2 = 0.08

y = 11.05 + 0.053X

20

II

0
m
O

10 ~

0"9 . . . . . . .

20

~ " ' " ' T ~

40

of

land

...................

6o

under

plastic

80

100

shelters

Fig. 2. Relationshipbetween the percentageof clay in soil samplesand the percentageof land under plastic shelters.

40

D.J. Midmore et al./ Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

length nor slope bear a statistically significant relationship to visual estimates of rill erosion (Midmore
et al., 1996).
Reliable figures for the loss of revenue by the
TNB are difficult to acquire. Both quantity and
quality of downstream water are inferior to those of
the past (Omar, 1988). By July 1986, one-third of
the capacity of Ringlet Reservoir was taken up by
silt (1.15 106 m 3, compared with an expected
1.6 x 106 m 3 over a 70 year life span until 2045)
and in 1992 an estimated 2 X 10 6 m 3 of sediment
occupied the reservoir (Fig. 3), despite the removal
of 3.82 X 105 m 3 over the period 1980-1988 at a
cost of M$ 1.3 X 10 6 (Syed, 1993). Thus, the total
estimated volume of deposited sediment (an unknown amount is carried in a suspended form to
lower reaches of the waterways) between 1975 and
1992 amounts to 2.382 X 106 m 3 (Midmore et al.,
1996). With a bulk density of approximately 1.4, this
amounts to 3.335 X 106 t of soil. At a cost of M$ 5
m-3, the cost of dredging the reservoir will amount
to M$107, to which can be added the dredging costs
from 1980-1988 (MS 1.3 106), another M$ 1.5
10 6 to clear intakes on two occasions, and an esti-

mated M$ 106 annual loss due to partial operation

(Omar, 1988; Syed, 1993). Thus, the value of the
negative externalities imposed on the TNB from
1980 to 1992 amounts to some M$ 2.58 X 107, or
some M$ 2 X 106 year -~. This is less than 4% of
the total gross value of vegetable production in the
CH which, on the basis of figures in Table 7, can be
estimated at some M$ 5.6 X 107 (there are about
2000 vegetable farmers in the CH who, on average,
produce M$ 2.8 x 10 4 worth of vegetables).
Assuming a linear rate of increase in opening up
of new land, starting with 750 ha in 1965 (Lim,
1970; Macken and Ong, 1979) to some 9.75 103
ha in 1992, and a relatively negligible loss from the
natural forest ecosystem, the average accountable
loss of soil from all opened lands is estimated at
23.52 t ha -l y e a r - l (3.335 X 106 t divided by an
average area of 5.25 x 103 ha divided by 27 years).
This figure most likely is an under-estimate since the
early rate of opening was probably less than linear
because of an expanding periphery of cleared forest,
confirmed by a non-linear rate of filling of the
reservoir with sediment (Midmore et al., 1996). The
estimate of average soil loss at 24 t ha-~ year-~ is

2,0

,,

o,.

~,s

o~

==

"o
o.

c-

/
I=:
,,,,1

,e

0,5

t~

0,0
1965

1975

1982

1992

Year
Fig. 3. Cumulative sedimentation in the Ringlet reservoir, including some removal of sediment.

D.J. Midmore et a L / Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

in line with that observed by Shallow (1956) for

vegetables in the CH. An alternative estimate can be
obtained by assuming that, rather than being a continuous process, erosion occurs mainly at a few
particular points in time, i.e. during land opening and
once-in-20-years events of extreme rainfall (one in
May 1991 on some 9.5 103 ha and the other in the
1970s on approximately 3 10 3 ha). Hence, taking
the total opened area between 1965 and 1992 of
some 9 103 ha, and adding the areas involved in
one-off periods of high erosivity, results in an erosion estimate of 155 t ha-l per event, based upon
the sedimentation figures calculated above. In reality, the truth most likely lies between these two
extremes, tending towards a lower rate of erosion
after farms have been opened. If rates of soil erosion
were consistently high due to poor field management, in line with rates reported for slopes and soils
of a similar nature, then the reservoir would have
filled at a far faster rate. However, the filling of the
reservoir was more or less in line with the rate of
opening new land (Midmore et al., 1996), providing
further evidence that the major source of sediment
was due to the initial soil loss at breaking of new
land.

3.5. Adoption of soil conservation and management

practices
Reliable and proven soil conservation technologies include, among others, mulches, contour planting, agroforestry, cover crops, relay cropping, and
proper drainage (Kuypers et al., 1987; Pimentel et

41

al., 1995). Seventy-five per cent of all sample farmers consider mulching as too labor-intensive and
expensive, and dispose of their crop stubble and
weeds into gullies or other non-arable areas. The
majority of the remaining 25% put their crop stubble
and weeds on terrace batters. Liming, however, is
practiced by 62% of all sample farmers mostly using
rock forms, with an average annual quantity applied
of 1.2 t haSeventy-five per cent of all sample farmers cultivate across the slope on terraces. Terrace cultivation
is considered by farmers to facilitate water control in
general and improve drainage in particular, to minimize human drudgery, to maximize land area, and to
improve photosynthesis. Farmers do not plant along
the contours which is generally viewed as making
most fanning operations too difficult, particularly
irrigation and transportation of inputs and harvested
produce. Stagnation of rain water and flooding are
major problems during the heavy rain season close to
the batters in both bench and platform terraces.
The general problem with the adoption of soil
conservation practices among vegetable farmers in
the CH seems that, even though they are aware of
the environmental problems in the CH and expect a
future deterioration in most indicators of sustainability, such as soil quality, crop yields, and pest and
weed infestation, farmers perceive soil erosion to be
an increasingly serious problem the greater the distance from their own farms (Table 8). Thus, while
only 28% of sample farmers view soil erosion as
serious or very serious on their own farm, 61% and
80% indicated similar concerns for their local district

Table 8
Farmers' perception of erosion on their own fields, in their local district, and within the Cameron Highlands in general, for the past, present,
and future (percentage of farmers viewing problem as non-existent, moderate, serious and very serious)
Non-existent

Moderate

Serious

Own fields

Past
Present
Future

27
27
23

53
45
48

12
21
22

Very serious
9
7
7

Local district

Past
Present
Future

8
6
8

60
33
32

26
49
40

6
12
21

Cameron Highlands

Past
Present
Future

5
2
4

49
19
20

36
56
48

10
24
29

42

D J . Midmore et at./Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

and the CH, respectively. On the other hand, farmers

believe that soil erosion was less of a problem in the
past. In addition, two-thirds blame the weather (particularly the heavy rains during 1991) for the increase in erosion problems, rather than some of their
own cultivation practices. About one-quarter of all
respondents recognizes deforestation and opening up
of new land for vegetable cultivation as important
contributors to soil erosion, but 74% of all sample
farmers are unwilling to plant trees on their farm
(mainly due to the limited area of land available),
with most of the remaining farmers showing an
interest in fruit trees. Only 7% of farmers explicitly
mentioned low adoption of soil conservation methods by vegetable farmers as an important reason for
increased soil erosion problems. At the same time,
when asked about ways in which farming methods
affect soil erosion, farmers seemed well aware of the
fact that a well-drained farm causes less erosion.
About half of all sample farmers mentioned lack of
proper drainage facilities on their farm as a major
contributing factor towards soil runoff from their
farms. Some farmers also admit that the natural slope
of their land is too steep for farming, and that the
necessary construction of terraces and beds caused a
lot of erosion. When asked about possible solutions
to soil erosion, the majority of farmers mentioned the
use of sandbags, plastic mulches and wooden planks,
as well as improved drainage facilities. When questioned about the implementation of erosion control
practices, 27% claimed not to use any, stating that
soil erosion is not a serious problem on their farms,
or that it is so serious that nothing can be done about
it, while 44% use sandbags, 23% construct clay or
cement drains, 12% use cover crops, 3% protect
batters with vegetation and 1% uses mulches. However, several farmers expressed concern about the
costs associated with these measures. Relatively few
farmers mentioned cultivation or other management
practices(i.e, relay or intercropping, rotation, contour farming, cover crops and trees, plastic shelters)
as possible ways to overcome soil erosion problems.
A moratorium on further opening of new farming
areas was mentioned by only 12 farmers.
Table 9 summarizes farmers' perceptions regarding the effectiveness and suitability of a wide range
of soil conservation measures. Consistent with earlier
findings, farmers are generally not enthusiastic about

Table 9
Farmers' perceptions of soil conservation methods (percentage of
farmers)
Conservation
method

Capability to
reduce erosion

Suitability for
own farm

Contour farming
Covercrops/trees
Terraces/banks
lntercropping
Alley cropping
Relay cropping
Logs/rocks
Sandbags
Mulches on beds
Protection between
beds
Mulches on batters
Plastic mulches
Plastic shelters

25
42
22
20
5
33
35
55
39
42

42
38
51
35
25
24
38
38
28
45

33
20
27
45
70
43
27
7
33
13

25
18
40
64
6
54
34
69
19
19

59 16
72 10
44 16
19 17
74 20
38
8
60
6
23
8
62 19
69 12

39
48
57

27
22
17

35
30
26

29
27
77

47 24
47 26
16 7

High Moderate None Yes No Uncertain

contour farming and the use of cover crops or trees.

The same holds for alley and relay cropping methods
which are considered rather ineffective in combating
soil erosion. The opposite holds for sandbags, use of
which is widespread. The practice of mulching in its
various forms is not widespread and farmers are
divided about its effects on soil erosion. The use of
plastic mulches is, however, favored by farmers over
organic mulches. Plastic shelters are considered by
most farmers to reduce soil erosion, even though
concerns were expressed about their large investment
costs.

3.6. Use of pesticides and adoption of lPM practices

In Malaysia, the presence of pesticide residues on
market vegetables and fruits has long been a matter
of serious concern and is often attributed to the
failure of farmers to restrain application before harvesting. Besides direct effects on humans (including
pesticide poisoning of farmers during application and
consumer health impact of residues) and the environment (soil and water contamination), the presence of
pesticide residues has generated significant trade implications as well 4 (Lim et al., 1988; Jansen, 1994).

4 For example, in 1987 vegetables exported to Singapore were

rejected because of fungicidal residues.

D.J. Midmore et al. / Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

To make an adequate assessment of the extent of

possible environmental damage caused by the overuse of pesticides in horticultural production, data are
needed regarding the use of agro-pesticides. With the
exception of data for highland vegetable production
systems generated by this study, such data are generally difficult to obtain, although some scattered secondary information is available. Agro-pesticides were
a US$ 2.97 108 industry in Malaysia during 1989,
81% of which was spent on herbicides, 12% on
insecticides, 4% on fungicides, and 3% on rodenticides (Anonymous, 1991). Fungicide and insecticide
use on vegetables represent 38% and 25%, respectively, of total use in Malaysia, implying very high
quantities per unit area given that vegetables account
for only about 1% of the total cultivated area (Jansen, 1991). To control pests and diseases, most
vegetable farmers in Malaysia rely solely on chemicals with quantities applied independent of infestation levels, and the use of IPM methods is minimal
(Lim et al., 1988). Ninety-seven per cent of all
survey respondents regard pesticides as a necessary
input, without which the vegetable production is
considered impossible, even though about half of the
respondents have heard about IPM. MARDI's IPM
package comprises a combination of counting larvae
of Diamondback Moth (DBM, the most common
insect pest on vegetables in the CH) and the degree
of parasitism, while basing sprays with B. thuringensis or synthetic insecticides upon predetermined economic threshold levels (Loke et al., 1992). However,
the package is used by less than 10% of vegetable
farmers in the CH (Midmore et al., 1996). Even
though over 50% of all farmers are aware of natural
enemies (e.g. Apanteles plutellae) of DBM, only 16
farmers (8% of the sample) promote biological control methods (mostly wasps). Of these, 12 are in the
cooler central portion of the CH, providing support
for the thesis of Taylor et al. (1993) that farmers in
the central zone show a greater tendency to follow
IPM for DBM. It remains unclear whether this is due
to the greater emphasis MARDI has placed on extension of their package in that zone, or the more
favorable climatic conditions for parasitism of DBM
larvae. A worrying concern for the continued success
and expansion of IPM is the view of 31% of sampled
farmers that pesticides offer the best solution to their
farming problems. Forty-two per cent of all sample

43

farmers claim to be using smaller amounts of insecticides than in the past, while 34% claim to be using
more, and 25% use similar quantities. These figures
are in line with those reported by Taylor et al.
(1993). A switch in type of pesticide was reported by
77% of farmers over recent years, nearly exclusively
because of increased resistance of insects to previously used chemicals. Of the 50 farmers who use
plastic shelters, 27 claim a reduction in the incidence
of pests, with 14 farmers using less insecticides as a
result.

4. Discussion

Management of the CH watersheds illustrates a

classical imbalance between short and long-term expectations of stake-holders within and outside the
watershed. That substantial soil erosion is occurring
within the CH is undeniable, and averaged over
cleared and managed lands (i.e. other than forest) the
annual loss amounts to an estimated 24 t ha-1
year-~ (equivalent to 17 m 3) even though on a per
event basis it may be as high as 155 t ha- J per event
(equivalent to 111 m3). The loss of revenue through
reduced generation of electricity, the increased costs
associated with routine maintenance (shut down) and
replacement of parts with shorter than expected useful life span, the run-off of chemicals (both fertilizers
and pesticides) and associated implications for human and wildlife health, and the potential loss of
tourism must be weighed against the livelihoods of
producers of vegetables, flowers, tea and fruits, the
service industries which supply inputs and transport,
and the net gain in foreign exchange due to exports
and reduction of imports. However, the data required
for such a complete evaluation of the off-site costs of
soil erosion in the CH are currently not available.
The only available data relate to the value of the
negative externalities imposed on the TNB and, even
if vegetable farmers would be taxed to cover all of
these costs, such a tax would represent less than 4%
of the estimated gross value of vegetable production
per farm and therefore not likely deter them from
continuing to grow vegetables under currently prevailing cultural practices. Indeed, when asked about
the main problems experienced in farming in general, and in the cultivation of vegetables in particu-

44

D.J. Midmore et al.// Agriculture, Ecosystems and Enoironment 60 (1996) 29-46

Table 10
Perceived solutions to farming problems proposed by sample
farmers in the Cameron Highlands
Solution

Percentage of sample
farmers mentioning

Increased use of insecticides

Reduction or ban in vegetable imports
Permit to cultivate more land
Price control by the government
Increased labor availability
Improved access to credit facilities
Soil conservation measures
Other

32.1
15.5
12.4
11.4
7.3
5.7
4.1
9,8

lar, farmers do not commonly perceive soil erosion

and fertility as major production constraints. In fact,
87% of all respondents mentioned price-related factors (high variability and low unit prices--which are
mainly blamed on relatively cheap imports from
Thailand and Indonesia) as a problem, with over half
of the total sample ranking variability as their most
important constraint. Yield reducing factors (weeds,
pests and diseases) are also considered an important
problem for vegetable production, with 20%, 37%
and 13% of sample farmers assigning first, second or
third ranking, respectively, to the combination of
these factors. With the notable exception of labor
(34% of sample farmers mentioned labor shortages),
input availability (including that of information) does
not generally seem to present a problem.
Solutions to their main farming problems, as suggested by farmers, can be grouped into eight major
categories (Table 10). Increased use of chemicals in
general, and of insecticides in particular, is the most
frequently mentioned solution (one-third of all sample farmers), confirming that there is still a long way
to go before conditions are such that IPM becomes
as efficient in economic terms as current practices.
The solutions next most frequently mentioned by
farmers are all geared towards improving their incomes obtained from vegetable farming, by being
allowed to bring more land under cultivation and by
controlling the levels and variability of vegetable
prices. Fifteen per cent of farmers feel that the
Malaysian government should either ban or limit the
imports of vegetables, while over 10% favor direct
control of vegetable prices by the government
(FAMA). A number of farmers experience labor

shortages and argue for a relaxation of Malaysia's

immigration laws. Consistent with earlier findings,
less than 5% of sample farmers perceive a need for
soil erosion reduction measures on their own farm.
Nevertheless, analysis of the farming system within
the CH suggests that vegetable farmers do apply
practices which counteract to some extent the effects
of erosion once crops are in the ground. Major
factors involve limiting the slope of terraces to less
than 10, a predominance of across-the-slope as opposed to up-down alignment of beds, minimum
tillage through reuse of production beds with reasonably long periods between reconstruction of beds, the
adoption of bryophytes to counteract erosion from
sides of beds, a degree of intercropping, and emphasis on adequate drainage. However, application of
these conservation practices has relatively little impact since much damage and loss has already occurred at land clearing. Consequently, none of these
practices alone is able to maintain clay/silt: sand
ratios comparable to those of virgin soil. The practice which does conserve that ratio to some extent,
the use of plastic shelters, does not significantly
prevent the loss of silt and clay in absolute terms
compared with the unprotected farm lands and leads
to higher soil EC values.
The adoption of soil conservation and other production practices is not apparently constrained by the
land tenure of individual farmers. Almost all farmers
have overhead sprinkler irrigation systems installed,
and the distribution of plastic shelters is not biased
towards farms with freehold land access. In this
respect, therefore, the financial position of farmers in
the CH does not appear to limit their ability to
implement sound erosion control practices.
Farmers are accustomed to applying large quantities of lime and organic manure on soils with a
naturally low pH and negligible amounts of organic
matter from the time the land is brought into cultivation, and which has occurred as a consequence of the
inversion and burying of the natural humus and
organic matter during terrace formation. Many farmers believe that this practice is rational in terms of
controlling weeds, pests and diseases. However, it
must be realized that, even though in the short term
one may be able to replace water and nutrient losses
caused by soil erosion, potential on-site damage in
the long term includes cumulative loss of soil or-

D.J. Midmore et aL / Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 60 (1996) 29-46

ganic matter, biota, soil depth, and water-holding

capacity, all of which cannot be replaced by extensive use of inputs (Pimentel et al., 1995). In addition,
negative off-site externalities of soil erosion in the
CH not only consist of sedimentation of reservoirs
but may involve other factors as well, such as adverse effects on public health as a result of run-off of
chemicals, loss of wildlife habitat, and potential loss
of tourism,

5. Conclusions
The following solutions to the problem of soil
erosion, resulting from the cultivation of vegetables
in the CH, can be proposed, based on the results of
this study:
1. conservation of organic humus and repositioning
over newly formed terraces;
2. use of organic mulches on soil immediately after
terracing, before crops are (trans)planted;
3. use of organic mulches, a n d / o r relay cropping
practices during production, to continue to cover
soil after harvest (particularly where harvesting in
April and October of dominant cabbage coincides
with heavy rainfall);
4. avoiding preparation of new lands, and resurfacing of old ones, during the peak rainfall months;
5. reinforcing the retaining structure for platform
terraces to reduce the incidence of land slip;
6. re-vegetation of the exposed batters of newly
constructed terraces.
However, the observation that farmers attach low
priority to controlling soil erosion implies that most
of these measures will not be adopted unless the
current system of incentives is changed. In addition,
even though agriculture is an important cause of soil
erosion in the CH (and more data are needed to
quantify the associated off-site externalities), it is
certainly not the only one and attempts to quantify
soil lost from the construction of roads, tourist developments and housing would help validate the conclusions.
Finally, given the serious nature of environmental
degradation in the CH, it may be time to consider
some further initiatives to improve catchment management:
1. bring the stakeholders together--farmers, land
developers, the tourist board and the T N B - - t o

45

explore areas of negotiation and trade-offs with

respect to catchment management;
2. consider the establishment of a catchment authority with power to advise on or regulate land use
practices;
3. exclude farming and infrastructure development
from the more environmentally fragile areas or
areas having a high impact on the reservoir system;
4. revitalize relevant research and extension programs.
Without some of these more radical approaches to
catchment management it is likely that the productive capacity and environmental quality of the CH
will continue to decline.

Acknowledgements
This study was partially funded by the Australian
International Development Assistance Bureau. Valuable comments by Don Jansen and two anonymous
referees are gratefully acknowledged.

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