Land use impacts on Boswellia dalzielii Hutch. an African frankincense tree in Burkina Faso

Boswellia dalzielii Hutch., an African frankincense tree, is a socio-economically important aromatic and medicinal tree. It is currently threatened by uncontrolled exploitation, and therefore requires action to ensure its sustainable management. This study assessed the population structure and regeneration of its natural stands across three land use types in Burkina Faso: woodlands, fallows and farmlands. Sixty, fifty and fifty 50 m × 20 m plots were established respectively in woodlands, fallows and farmlands. All the plots were surveyed for adult tree (dbh ≥ 5 cm) density, dbh, total height and health conditions. Data on regeneration density (dbh < 5 cm), source (generative, stem shoots, suckers), total height and collar diameter were also collected. The results show similar total tree heights (7.0 m-9.0 m) but significantly (p < 0.05) smaller tree dbh in woodlands (mean ± SD: 20.5 ± 0.49 cm) and fallows (29.3 ± 0.64 cm) than in farmlands (32.8 ± 0.15 cm). Adult tree density (trees/ha) was 1.3 and 2.7 times higher in woodlands (82.37 ± 6.57) than in fallows (62.00 ± 3.98) and farmlands (30.02 ± 1.63), respectively. The density of regeneration in woodlands was 28 and 6 times higher than in fallows and farmlands, respectively. The majority (> 50%) of regenerating plants were suckers and no seedling regeneration was found in farmlands. The distribution of trees in diameter classes was J-shaped in woodlands, bell-shaped in farmlands and positive asymmetric in fallows, indicating recruitment bottlenecks. We found that 80.18% of individuals encountered were unhealthy. Intensive debarking and cutting were the main threats to the species and no conservation strategy was in place in the study region. We suggest measures to reduce intensive debarking and cutting, which should contribute to better management of the species.

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An examination of land use impacts of flooding induced by sea level rise

Natural Hazards and Earth System Science ◽

10.5194/nhess-17-315-2017 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 17 (3) ◽

pp. 315-334 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Jie Song ◽

Xinyu Fu ◽

Yue Gu ◽

Yujun Deng ◽

Zhong-Ren Peng

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Sea Level Rise ◽

Sea Level ◽

Urban Growth ◽

Flood Mitigation ◽

Coastal Hazards ◽

Land Use Impacts ◽

Study Region ◽

Sea Levels ◽

Modeling Uncertainties

Abstract. Coastal regions become unprecedentedly vulnerable to coastal hazards that are associated with sea level rise. The purpose of this paper is therefore to simulate prospective urban exposure to changing sea levels. This article first applied the cellular-automaton-based SLEUTH model (Project Gigalopolis, 2016) to calibrate historical urban dynamics in Bay County, Florida (USA) – a region that is greatly threatened by rising sea levels. This paper estimated five urban growth parameters by multiple-calibration procedures that used different Monte Carlo iterations to account for modeling uncertainties. It then employed the calibrated model to predict three scenarios of urban growth up to 2080 – historical trend, urban sprawl, and compact development. We also assessed land use impacts of four policies: no regulations; flood mitigation plans based on the whole study region and on those areas that are prone to experience growth; and the protection of conservational lands. This study lastly overlaid projected urban areas in 2030 and 2080 with 500-year flooding maps that were developed under 0, 0.2, and 0.9 m sea level rise. The calibration results that a substantial number of built-up regions extend from established coastal settlements. The predictions suggest that total flooded area of new urbanized regions in 2080 would be more than 25 times that under the flood mitigation policy, if the urbanization progresses with few policy interventions. The joint model generates new knowledge in the domain between land use modeling and sea level rise. It contributes to coastal spatial planning by helping develop hazard mitigation schemes and can be employed in other international communities that face combined pressure of urban growth and climate change.

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A PYTHON TOOL TO ESTIMATE LAND-USE IMPACTS ON GROUNDWATER NITRATE CONCENTRATIONS OBSERVED AT HIGH-CAPACITY PUMPING WELLS IN AN UNCONFINED GLACIAL AQUIFER

10.1130/abs/2020am-349317 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Stephanie Lynn DeVries ◽

◽

William Garrett Hooten ◽

William Garrett Hooten

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

High Capacity ◽

Land Use Impacts ◽

Pumping Wells ◽

Nitrate Concentrations

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Land Use/Cover Response to Rainfall Variability: A Comparing Analysis between NDVI and EVI in the Southwest of Burkina Faso

Climate ◽

10.3390/cli3010063 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 63-77 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Benewinde Zoungrana ◽

Christopher Conrad ◽

Leonard Amekudzi ◽

Michael Thiel ◽

Evariste Da

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Burkina Faso ◽

Rainfall Variability

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Afforestation of Degraded Croplands as a Water-Saving Option in Irrigated Region of the Aral Sea Basin

Water ◽

10.3390/w13101433 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (10) ◽

pp. 1433

Author(s):

Navneet Kumar ◽

Asia Khamzina ◽

Patrick Knöfel ◽

John P. A. Lamers ◽

Bernhard Tischbein

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Water Balance ◽

Water Supply ◽

Water Availability ◽

Irrigation Water ◽

Water Saving ◽

Aral Sea ◽

Water Balance Components ◽

Study Region ◽

Trade Offs

Climate change is likely to decrease surface water availability in Central Asia, thereby necessitating land use adaptations in irrigated regions. The introduction of trees to marginally productive croplands with shallow groundwater was suggested for irrigation water-saving and improving the land’s productivity. Considering the possible trade-offs with water availability in large-scale afforestation, our study predicted the impacts on water balance components in the lower reaches of the Amudarya River to facilitate afforestation planning using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). The land-use scenarios used for modeling analysis considered the afforestation of 62% and 100% of marginally productive croplands under average and low irrigation water supply identified from historical land-use maps. The results indicate a dramatic decrease in the examined water balance components in all afforestation scenarios based largely on the reduced irrigation demand of trees compared to the main crops. Specifically, replacing current crops (mostly cotton) with trees on all marginal land (approximately 663 km2) in the study region with an average water availability would save 1037 mln m3 of gross irrigation input within the study region and lower the annual drainage discharge by 504 mln m3. These effects have a considerable potential to support irrigation water management and enhance drainage functions in adapting to future water supply limitations.

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Changing Land Use and Population Density Are Degrading Water Quality in the Lower Mekong Basin

Water ◽

10.3390/w13141948 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (14) ◽

pp. 1948

Author(s):

Flavia Tromboni ◽

Thomas E. Dilts ◽

Sarah E. Null ◽

Sapana Lohani ◽

Peng Bun Ngor ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Land Use ◽

Population Density ◽

Local Population ◽

Reference Conditions ◽

Mekong River ◽

Land Use Impacts ◽

Wet Season ◽

Mekong Basin ◽

Lower Mekong Basin

Establishing reference conditions in rivers is important to understand environmental change and protect ecosystem integrity. Ranked third globally for fish biodiversity, the Mekong River has the world’s largest inland fishery providing livelihoods, food security, and protein to the local population. It is therefore of paramount importance to maintain the water quality and biotic integrity of this ecosystem. We analyzed land use impacts on water quality constituents (TSS, TN, TP, DO, NO3−, NH4+, PO43−) in the Lower Mekong Basin. We then used a best-model regression approach with anthropogenic land-use as independent variables and water quality parameters as the dependent variables, to define reference conditions in the absence of human activities (corresponding to the intercept value). From 2000–2017, the population and the percentage of crop, rice, and plantation land cover increased, while there was a decrease in upland forest and flooded forest. Agriculture, urbanization, and population density were associated with decreasing water quality health in the Lower Mekong Basin. In several sites, Thailand and Laos had higher TN, NO3−, and NH4+ concentrations compared to reference conditions, while Cambodia had higher TP values than reference conditions, showing water quality degradation. TSS was higher than reference conditions in the dry season in Cambodia, but was lower than reference values in the wet season in Thailand and Laos. This study shows how deforestation from agriculture conversion and increasing urbanization pressure causes water quality decline in the Lower Mekong Basin, and provides a first characterization of reference water quality conditions for the Lower Mekong River and its tributaries.

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