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Water Resource Utilization and Livelihood Adaptations under the Background of Climate Change: A Case Study of Rural Households in the Koshi River Basin

In the Koshi River Basin, the effects of climate change have become clear. Agricultural countries, such as Nepal, depend on farmers’ adaptations to climate change for local sustainable development. Limited livelihood options, unequal access to resources and information, and climate change-related floods and droughts have reduced farmer welfare. Few studies have investigated the effects of altitude in rural areas or examined livelihood adaptation strategies in Nepal. Using a survey of farmers in rural areas at high, middle, and low altitudes in Nepal, this article explores the impacts of climate change-related floods and droughts, as well as the water resource utilization, disaster resilience, and livelihood improvement ability of farmers and the influencing factors. This article adopted participatory rural appraisal to obtain survey data from farmers at three altitudes. Through one-way ANOVA and F-tests, farmers’ perceptions of floods and droughts were analyzed, and through field investigations, their production and water consumption patterns were established. Logistic regressions show that college education, farming income, and domestic water consumption have the strongest impacts on households’ disaster resilience, while non-farm income, male laborer rates, and college education have the strongest impacts on households’ abilities to improve livelihoods. Based on our results, we offer countermeasures and suggestions on education, gender equality, and rural infrastructure construction.