scholarly journals The environment they lived in: anthropogenic changes in local and regional vegetation composition in eastern Fennoscandia during the Neolithic

Author(s):  
Teija Alenius ◽  
Laurent Marquer ◽  
Chiara Molinari ◽  
Maija Heikkilä ◽  
Antti Ojala

Abstract Understanding about regional versus local changes in vegetation is critical in answering archaeological questions, in particular at a time when humans are assumed to have caused higher disturbances at local scales rather than regional scales; this is the case during the Neolithic. The aim of this paper is to assess the impact of Neolithic land use on regional and local vegetation dynamics, plant composition and disturbance processes (e.g. fire) in eastern Fennoscandia. We apply the Landscape Reconstruction Algorithm (LRA) to high-resolution pollen records from three lacustrine sediment cores that cover the Neolithic period. We calculate changes in vegetation composition and the rate of plant compositional change. Fire dynamics are estimated as an indicator of land use, although fire can result from both natural and anthropogenic disturbances. Our results show that during the Early Neolithic, changes were mainly driven by natural and climate-induced factors and vegetation composition and fire activity were similar at both regional and local scales. From ca. 4000 bc onwards, trends in vegetation and fire dynamics start to differ between regional and local scales. This is due to local land uses that are overshadowed at the regional scale by climate-induced factors. The use of the LOVE model in pollen analyses is therefore very useful to highlight local land uses that are not visible by using REVEALS.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad A. Alam

This research focuses on the waste and environmental damage caused by mining activities and the impact that this has on settlement pattern of adjacent areas. This research identifies that mining cities are unique in their land use dynamics due to the physical attributes of mining sites and there impacts on human and nature. Using a method of three sequential approaches to understand the land use dynamics of mining cities the first study examines the physical attributes of mining sites, through the creation of a new data set that combines existing and abandoned sites from existing separate datasets, outlining production, proximity to settlement areas and water bodies to identify their degree of threat to human and nature. Secondly, a single case study of Copper Cliff, ON is used to investigate how mining activities and its changes interact with surrounding land uses through a Land mosaic-function-land change feedback model adapted from Richard T.T. Forman’s theory of land mosaic. The analysis then investigates the policy responses that are enacted to mitigate the mining activities with other land uses. The analysis identifies that the potential impact of mining activities is more prominent where mining waste production is higher and located at close proximity to settlement areas. However, although the growth pattern of settlement areas are often guided by the physical characteristics of mining sites, effective response of land use policies may stimulate positive changes of land use pattern.


Author(s):  
Stepan Dankevych

The problem of ensuring the balanced use of forest lands determines the search for new economic and environmental tools that can influence this process. The need to improve the certification tool as part of the financial and economic mechanism for ensuring balanced forestry land use corresponds to the directions of state policy and European integration intentions of Ukraine, modern requirements of the ecological aspect of forestry land use. The work examines the practice in the field of forest certification in Ukraine from the point of view of balanced land use. Spatial-temporal analysis and assessment of the scale and dynamics of the spread of forest FSC certification in Ukraine has been carried out. The study was formed in three stages: (I) study of changes over time in the volume of forest certification on a national scale, (II) assessment of trends over time for indicators on a regional scale, (III) study of the relationship between individual indicators. The analysis of the impact of FSC-certification of forest management in Ukraine on the environmental indicators of forestry land use based on the results of the correlation between the statistical characteristics of certain economic and environmental indicators, such as the area of certified forests, capital investments, reforestation. Analysis of statistical data showed the relationship between environmental and economic performance over time and changes in specific characteristics on a regional scale. The study makes it possible, on the basis of an objectively existing causal relationship between phenomena and indicators, to identify the course of certain positive or negative processes in forestry land use. Forest certification can play a role in maintaining a balanced use of forest lands, preventing illegal logging, forest degradation and contributing to reforestation and capital investments. The study helps to identify certain key variables that limit the ability of forestry operators to ensure balanced use of forest lands and how forest certification can affect this. Foreign experience in stimulating forest certification has been investigated for the possibility of borrowing the experience of using management tools in order to motivate forest certification in Ukraine. It has been proven that certification is a significant environmental tool for ensuring a balanced level of land use and has the potential for further development.


1994 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 236 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. McIntyre

Management of variegated landscapes (in which the native vegetation still forms the matrix but has been modified in a variable way) requires strategies to maintain or enhance existing vegetation within the context of human land-uses such as agriculture. Using rangelands in the New England region of New South Wales as an example, spatial patterns of land-use and modification are described. Management principles for conservation of herbaceous communities in areas of pastoral production are suggested, based on the following assumptions: 1) low intensity pasture utilization and management (i.e., limited fertilization, soil disturbance and grazing) is conducive to the maintenance of species richness at a local and regional scale; 2) stratification of management intensity on farms is compatible with viable grazing operations; 3) landscape context is important as effects of management may spread beyond the managed area; 4) spatial arrangement of land-uses could be optimized to maintain or increase diversity. Although our understanding of these issues is incomplete, there is general observational and theoretical support for them. Incorporation of principles derived from these assumptions in the farm planning process is a useful strategy for preserving grassland vegetation in landscapes where opportunities for reserve conservation are limited.


2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (22) ◽  
pp. 5053-5067 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Li ◽  
Philippe Ciais ◽  
Shushi Peng ◽  
Chao Yue ◽  
Yilong Wang ◽  
...  

Abstract. The use of dynamic global vegetation models (DGVMs) to estimate CO2 emissions from land-use and land-cover change (LULCC) offers a new window to account for spatial and temporal details of emissions and for ecosystem processes affected by LULCC. One drawback of LULCC emissions from DGVMs, however, is lack of observation constraint. Here, we propose a new method of using satellite- and inventory-based biomass observations to constrain historical cumulative LULCC emissions (ELUCc) from an ensemble of nine DGVMs based on emerging relationships between simulated vegetation biomass and ELUCc. This method is applicable on the global and regional scale. The original DGVM estimates of ELUCc range from 94 to 273 PgC during 1901–2012. After constraining by current biomass observations, we derive a best estimate of 155 ± 50 PgC (1σ Gaussian error). The constrained LULCC emissions are higher than prior DGVM values in tropical regions but significantly lower in North America. Our emergent constraint approach independently verifies the median model estimate by biomass observations, giving support to the use of this estimate in carbon budget assessments. The uncertainty in the constrained ELUCc is still relatively large because of the uncertainty in the biomass observations, and thus reduced uncertainty in addition to increased accuracy in biomass observations in the future will help improve the constraint. This constraint method can also be applied to evaluate the impact of land-based mitigation activities.


2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 597-641 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. J. Pitman ◽  
N. de Noblet-Ducoudré ◽  
F. B. Avila ◽  
L. V. Alexander ◽  
J.-P. Boisier ◽  
...  

Abstract. The impact of historical land use induced land cover change (LULCC) on regional-scale climate extremes is examined using four climate models within the Land Use and Climate, IDentification of robust impacts project. To assess those impacts, multiple indices based on daily maximum and minimum temperatures and daily precipitation were used. We contrast the impact of LULCC on extremes with the impact of an increase in atmospheric CO2 from 280 ppmv to 375 ppmv. In general, changes in both high and low temperature extremes are similar to the simulated change in mean temperature caused by LULCC and are restricted to regions of intense modification. The impact of LULCC on both means and on most temperature extremes is statistically significant. While the magnitude of the LULCC induced change in the extremes can be of similar magnitude to the response to the change in CO2, the impacts of LULCC are much more geographically isolated. For most models the impacts of LULCC oppose the impact of the increase in CO2 except for one model where the CO2-caused changes in the extremes is amplified. While we find some evidence that individual models respond consistently to LULCC in the simulation of changes in rainfall and rainfall extremes, LULCC's role in affecting rainfall is much less clear and less commonly statistically significant, with the exception of a consistent impact over South East Asia. Since the simulated response of mean and extreme temperature to LULCC is relatively large, we conclude that unless this forcing is included we risk erroneous conclusions regarding the drivers of temperature changes over regions of intense LULCC.


2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lirih Wigaty ◽  
Samsul Bakri ◽  
Trio Santoso ◽  
Dyah Wulan S. R. Wardani

Ecological disruption as a result of changes in the area of forest cover to other land uses can affect the microclimate and impact toward malaria morbidity.   Malaria is an infectious disease caused by protozoa a genus of Plasmodium that transmitted by female Anopheles sp. mosquito vectors.  The environmental factors that play a role in the risk to transmission of malaria related to vector breeding places.   The purpose of this research is establish the impact of land use changes toward malaria morbidity. This study was conducted from March to September 2015.   Dynamics of land use changes in regency/city be identified through interpretation of landsat imagery in 2002, 2009, and 2014 with supervised classification and resulted in percentage of land use, the influence of impact toward malaria morbidity processed using multiple linear regression models.  Parameter optimization using statistic software.   The result showed that the impact of positive variable that significant toward malaria morbidity are mangrove forest and total population, while impact of negative variable that significant are extensive swamp and health personnel.   Variable which not impact that significant toward malaria morbidity are forests, community forests, undeveloped land, dry land, other land uses, population density, precipitation, unhealthyhousing, urban, and physiographic. Keywords : land use, malaria morbidity


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 12628
Author(s):  
Sudhansu Bhagawati ◽  
Badal Bhattacharyya ◽  
Binoy K. Medhi ◽  
Snigdha Bhattacharjee ◽  
Himangshu Mishra

Land use change has a great impact in determining the diversity patterns of soil fauna. Adoption of any land use pattern significantly affects the soil structure and its physico-chemical characteristics, which often leads to the loss of biodiversity. Considering the collembolans as the key organism in the indicator shopping basket of soil environment, the response of Collembola communities under three different land uses represented by forest, vegetable and tea ecosystems was studied. Collembolans were sampled at monthly intervals using Tullgren funnel and identified by standard taxonomic keys. Diversity analysis and soil chemo-edaphic factors were studied to establish the impact of different land uses on Collembola communities. Five genera of Collembola viz., Cyphoderus, Entomobrya, Isotoma, Folsomia and Hypogastrura were recorded from the forest ecosystem whereas Folsomia was completely absent in vegetable ecosystem and the tea ecosystem soil was devoid of both Folsomia and Hypogastrura. Seasonal diversity and density of Collembola were recorded to be higher in the forest ecosystem indicating the presence of relatively stable habitats as compared to vegetable and tea ecosystems showing relatively disturbed habitats. Correlation studies between different chemo-edaphic factors and collembolan population revealed that the moisture and organic carbon content of soil had significant positive correlation during all the four seasons in all the ecosystems studied. Higher adoption of mechanical and chemo-centric agriculture depletes the available resources of the soil and makes it less habitable and conducive for the growth and sustenance of collembolans in vegetable and tea ecosystem as compared to forest. Appropriate landscape planning, land management strategies and developing proper methods of land use practices may pave the way for the improvement of collembolan diversity at landscape level.


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (3B) ◽  
pp. 227-237
Author(s):  
Pham Viet Hong ◽  
Tran Anh Tuan ◽  
Nguyen Thi Anh Nguyet

Today, environmental hazards and challenges are no longer confined to the national or regional scale but on the global scale. One of the biggest challenges for humanity is the natural disasters, global warming and sea level rise. The natural disasters causing serious consequences for human life, such as: Storms, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, desertification, high tides... increase in frequency, intensity and scale. In recent years, Ca Mau province as well as coastal provinces of Vietnam is under great influence due to the impacts of climate change. One of the most affected districts in Ca Mau province is Ngoc Hien district. The district has a geographic location with three sides bordering the sea, one side bordering the river, a completely isolated terrain. The terrain is flat, strongly divided by the system of natural rivers and canals and intertwined canals, so it is constantly flooded by the sea. Ngoc Hien district is characterized by a sub-equatorial monsoon climate, directly affected by irregular semi-diurnal regime. The main purpose of the paper is to assess coastal vulnerability due to the impact of climate change over time with GIS-based remote sensing images. Remote sensing data with multi-time characteristics, collected in many periods and covering a wide area is an effective tool for monitoring shoreline fluctuations in particular and land use status of the study area in general.


2011 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 19-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muh Marfai

Impact of coastal inundation on ecology and agricultural land use case study in central Java, Indonesia Focusing on the regional scale, this study provides information concerning the existing ecological problems associated with coastal inundation in the northern part of coastal area in Central Java Province, Indonesia. The objectives of this paper are to map the coastal inundation, to investigate the impact of coastal inundation on coastal environment and ecology, and to assess the impact of inundation on agricultural land use. An integration of techniques, namely neighborhood analysis, iteration operation, and superimposed analysis method has been applied to generate the digital map and to analyze the impact of inundation. Fieldwork measurement has been done using cross-profiling in order to observe the impact of inundation on the coastal ecosystem. Based on the scenario of 100 cm and 150 cm of inundation, the affected area is about 15 207.6 Ha and 16 687.31 Ha, respectively. Fishpond, dry farming and paddy field are the most affected agricultural areas due to coastal inundation.


2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 3159-3173 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Fredh ◽  
A. Broström ◽  
M. Rundgren ◽  
P. Lagerås ◽  
F. Mazier ◽  
...  

Abstract. This study explores the relationship between land-use and floristic diversity between 600 BC and AD 2008 in the uplands of southern Sweden. We use fossil pollen assemblages and the Regional Estimates of Vegetation Abundance from Large Sites (REVEALS) model to quantitatively reconstruct land cover at a regional scale. Floristic richness and evenness are estimated using palynological richness and REVEALS-based evenness, respectively. We focus on the period AD 350 to 750 to investigate the impact of an inferred, short-lived (< 200 yr) period of land-use expansion and subsequent land abandonment on vegetation composition and floristic diversity. The observed vegetation response is compared to that recorded during the transition from traditional to modern land-use management at the end of the 19th century. Our results suggest that agricultural land use was most widespread between AD 350 and 1850, which correlates broadly with high values of palynological richness. REVEALS-based evenness was highest between AD 500 and 1600 which indicates a more equal cover among taxa during this time interval. Palynological richness increased during the inferred land-use expansion after AD 350 and decreased during the subsequent regression AD 550–750, while REVEALS-based evenness increased throughout this period. The values of palynological richness during the last few decades are within the range observed during the last 1650 yr. However, REVEALS-based evenness shows much lower values during the last century compared to the previous ca. 2600 yr, which indicates that the composition of present-day vegetation is unusual in a millennial perspective. Our results show that regional scale changes in land use have had clear impacts on floristic diversity in southern Sweden, with a vegetation response time of less than 20 to 50 yr. We show the importance of traditional land use to attain high biodiversity and suggest that ecosystem management should include a regional landscape perspective.


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