The proposed 5 VDC in west Makawanpur which lies within the brink of Mahabharata range is one of the seriously affected districts in this regard. Out of the district total land area of 242,600 ha, only 6.49 percent of the total land is claimed to be safe from landslide threats (UNDP 2004). Although the geology of the Mahabharat is fragile and prone to landslide and flood, the local land use practices are also equally to blame. Slash and burn agriculture practiced by the indigenous Chepangs and Tamangs in increasingly shorter fallow period on the steep slopes of the areas is associated with deforestation, loss of biodiversity, threat of forest fires, emissions of greenhouse gases, and serious soil erosion, leading to a significant decline in land productivity. Other inefficient practice such as plantation of maize in steep outward terrace has also led to significant loss of topsoil thus increasing surface run off. The consequent alluvial deposits in the river valleys have triggered the rise of riverbeds threatening the very existence of the near-by settlements.

COMDEKS baseline assessment revealed that there are noted synergies between certain livelihood activities. For example, honey-bee keeping and mustard/Chiuri cultivation side by side improves the yield of mustard/Chiuri through better pollination and at the same time improves the honey yield due to the higher availability of pollen sources. Similarly, higher bat population near pulse fields enhances the pulse yield because the bats eat up the harmful insects affecting pulse crops. However, the population of honey bee and bats is threatened due to increased use of pesticides and illegal hunting of bats respectively. It has negatively affected the crop productivity.

At the landscape level, alley cropping, silvopasture, windbreak practices and repararian forest buffer can also be implemented which could not only protect the land and agrobiodiversity within the landscape.