scholarly journals Mapping Land Suitability to Guide Landscape Restoration in the Amazon

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 368
Author(s):  
René Poccard-Chapuis ◽  
Sophie Plassin ◽  
Reinis Osis ◽  
Daniel Pinillos ◽  
Gustavo Martinez Pimentel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Land Tenure ◽  
Forest Restoration ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Forest Degradation ◽  
Land Suitability ◽  
Landscape Restoration ◽  
Design Assessment ◽  
Ecosystem Services Mapping

Beyond reducing deforestation, the control of forest degradation, the promotion of forest restoration, and the improvement of agricultural practices in the Brazilian Amazon are becoming increasingly important for sustainable development. To enable farmers and authorities to organize their landscapes and optimize both agricultural practices and the provision of ecosystem services, mapping land suitability is essential, but it is lacking in the region. In this paper, we present a method for mapping land suitability at a fine scale (30-m pixels), adapted to the needs of farmers and municipalities, to not only optimize agricultural production but also the ecosystem services provided by forests. We used topographic data from the Brazilian municipality of Paragominas to produce four maps, one each of soil texture, slope, floodplains, and hydrography, that we then combined into a single land suitability map. This map has been incorporated into a spatial database, which also contains information on land use, remoteness, and land tenure. We performed spatial analyses to measure the process of land use change, and to define indicators that enable local stakeholders to organize landscape restoration. We highlight an organic link between agricultural intensification and forest restoration, and provide a spatial tool for landscape design, assessment, and monitoring.

Vulnerabilities and Threats to Natural Forest Regrowth: Land Tenure Reform, Land Markets, Pasturelands, Plantations, and Urbanization in Indigenous Communities in Mexico

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1340
Author(s):  
Elena Lazos-Chavero ◽  
Paula Meli ◽  
Consuelo Bonfil
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Tenure ◽  
Natural Regeneration ◽  
Forest Conservation ◽  
Biosphere Reserve ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
Landscape Restoration ◽  
Peasant Communities ◽  
Tenure Reform ◽  
Biological Corridor

Despite the economic and social costs of national and international efforts to restore millions of hectares of deforested and degraded landscapes, results have not met expectations due to land tenure conflicts, land-use transformation, and top-down decision-making policies. Privatization of land, expansion of cattle raising, plantations, and urbanization have created an increasingly competitive land market, dispossessing local communities and threatening forest conservation and regeneration. In contrast to significant investments in reforestation, natural regrowth, which could contribute to landscape regeneration, has not been sufficiently promoted by national governments. This study analyzes socio-ecological and economic vulnerabilities of indigenous and other peasant communities in the Mexican states of Veracruz, Chiapas, and Morelos related to the inclusion of natural regeneration in their forest cycles. While these communities are located within protected areas (Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve, Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve, El Tepozteco National Park, and Chichinautzin Biological Corridor), various threats and vulnerabilities impede natural regeneration. Although landscape restoration involves complex political, economic, and social relationships and decisions by a variety of stakeholders, we focus on communities’ vulnerable land rights and the impacts of privatization on changes in land use and forest conservation. We conclude that the social, economic, political, and environmental vulnerabilities of the study communities threaten natural regeneration, and we explore necessary changes for incorporating this process in landscape restoration.

scholarly journals Forest landscape restoration: state of play

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (12) ◽  
pp. 201218
Author(s):  
John A. Stanturf ◽  
Stephanie Mansourian
Keyword(s):  
Forest Restoration ◽  
Forest Products ◽  
Forest Degradation ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Tree Planting ◽  
Forest Landscape ◽  
Landscape Restoration ◽  
Community Forests ◽  
Landscape Degradation ◽  
Forest Landscape Restoration

Tree planting has been widely touted as an inexpensive way to meet multiple international environmental goals for mitigating climate change, reversing landscape degradation and restoring biodiversity restoration. The Bonn Challenge and New York Declaration on Forests, motivated by widespread deforestation and forest degradation, call for restoring 350 million ha by 2030 by relying on forest landscape restoration (FLR) processes. Because the 173 million ha commitments made by 63 nations, regions and companies are not legally binding, expectations of what FLR means lacks consensus. The frequent disconnect between top-level aspirations and on-the-ground implementation results in limited data on FLR activities. Additionally, some countries have made landscape-scale restoration outside of the Bonn Challenge. We compared and contrasted the theory and practice of FLR and compiled information from databases of projects and initiatives and case studies. We present the main FLR initiatives happening across regional groups; in many regions, the potential need/opportunity for forest restoration exceeds the FLR activities underway. Multiple objectives can be met by manipulating vegetation (increasing structural complexity, changing species composition and restoring natural disturbances). Livelihood interventions are context-specific but include collecting or raising non-timber forest products, employment and community forests; other interventions address tenure and governance.

The utilization of ecosystem services mapping in land use planning: the experience of LIFE SAM4CP project

2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 523-545 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefano Salata ◽  
Carolina Giaimo ◽  
Carlo Alberto Barbieri ◽  
Gabriele Garnero
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Land Use Planning ◽  
Ecosystem Services Mapping

scholarly journals Obstacles and options for the design and implementation of payment schemes for ecosystem services provided through farm trees in Saxony, Germany

2011 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 454-463 ◽  
Author(s):  
CHRISTIAN SCHLEYER ◽  
TOBIAS PLIENINGER
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Land Tenure ◽  
Institutional Economics ◽  
Cultural Landscapes ◽  
Spatial Arrangement ◽  
Production Costs ◽  
Payment Schemes ◽  
High Production ◽  
Societal Preferences

SUMMARYAgricultural crops and pasturelands cover 24–38% of the global land area, and thus the ecological services that agricultural systems provide are of utmost societal importance. An important determinant of ecosystem services provision from European farmland is the amount and spatial arrangement of trees, shrubs and woodlands that are integrated into the respective land-use systems. This paper uses an institutional economics framework for the analysis of payment schemes for ecosystem services (PES schemes) that enhance the establishment, conservation and management of farm trees and woodlands, elaborating on the reasons for the often very reluctant participation of farmers in these schemes. PES schemes in Saxony (Germany) were selected as a typical example. Obstacles identified included high production costs and opportunity costs for land use, contractual uncertainties, land-tenure implications and heterogeneous societal preferences for ecosystem services of farm trees. Further, since scheme adoption has been relatively low compared with the total area covered by the respective farm tree types in Saxony, the PES schemes alone could not explain the substantial increase in number and size of some farm-tree types, in particular hedgerows. Regionalized premiums, result-oriented remuneration and cooperative approaches are options to improve participation in PES schemes for farm trees. The example of PES schemes for farm trees highlights one of the major challenges for the protection and preservation of cultural landscapes: they are man-made and thus need to be preserved, managed and maintained continuously.

scholarly journals Strategic Pathways to Scale Up Forest and Landscape Restoration: Insights from Nepal’s Tarai

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 5237
Author(s):  
Sushma Bhattarai ◽  
Basant Pant ◽  
Hari Krishna Laudari ◽  
Rajesh Kumar Rai ◽  
Sharif A. Mukul
Keyword(s):  
Forest Ecosystem ◽  
Forest Restoration ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Forest Degradation ◽  
Landscape Restoration ◽  
The People ◽  
Hilly Region ◽  
Socioeconomic Structure ◽  
The Government ◽  
Landscape Level

Deforestation and forest degradation mostly caused by human interventions affect the capacity of the forest ecosystem to provide ecosystem services and livelihood benefits. Forest and landscape restoration (FLR) is an emerging concept that focuses on the improvement of the ecosystem as well as the livelihood of the people at the landscape level. Nepal has successfully recovered degraded forest land mainly from the hilly region through forest restoration initiatives, especially community-based forestry. However, the Tarai region is still experiencing deforestation and forest degradation. This study navigated the gaps related to forest restoration in the existing policies and practices and revealed that the persistence of deforestation and forest degradation in Tarai is a result of a complex socioeconomic structure, the limitations of the government in implementing appropriate management modality, unplanned infrastructure, and urban development. We suggest that forest restoration should focus on ecological and social wellbeing pathways at the landscape level to reverse the trend of deforestation and forest degradation in the Tarai regions of Nepal. The study provides critical insight to the policymakers and practitioners of Nepal and other countries (with similar context) who are engaged in forest/ecosystem restoration enterprise.

scholarly journals Spatial-temporal analysis of the risk to water pollution against land use changes in Lobo Stream Drainage Basin, Itirapina-SP, Brazil

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
pp. 34
Author(s):  
Phelipe Da Silva Anjinho ◽  
Allita Rezende dos Santos ◽  
Mariana Abibi Guimarães Araujo Barbosa ◽  
Frederico Fabio Mauad
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Water Resources ◽  
Forest Restoration ◽  
Drainage Basin ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Water System ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Temporal Analysis ◽  
Land Use Classification ◽  
Natural Ecosystems

The landscape transformation caused by economical activities generates impacts on natural ecosystems and the water system is one of the most susceptible to anthropic alterations. In this context, the objective of this study was to analyze the vulnerability of the water resources of the Lobo Stream Drainage Basin (LSDB), Itirapina-SP, through the application of the Environmental Quality Index of Water Resources (EQI-Hydro), in a 32 years period, corresponding to the years 1985 and 2017. The EQI-Hydro was calculated from the analysis of the Euclidean distance of the water resources to the impacting sources, determined by means of land use classification, and then rescaled based on fuzzy logic. The results show that approximately 57% of the watershed area is classified as high and very high EQI-Hydro. The Itaqueri River and the Água Branca Stream are the most vulnerable to pollution due to their proximity to pollution sources. This manifests the need for adequate agricultural practices and public policies for forest restoration, aiming the preservation of the LSDB water resources.

scholarly journals Drivers of change in biodiversity and ecosystem services in the Cantareira System Protected Area: A prospective analysis of the implementation of public policies

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (suppl 1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Viviane Dib ◽  
Marco Aurélio Nalon ◽  
Nino Tavares Amazonas ◽  
Cristina Yuri Vidal ◽  
Iván A. Ortiz-Rodríguez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Biodiversity Conservation ◽  
Atlantic Forest ◽  
Protected Area ◽  
Forest Restoration ◽  
Public Policies ◽  
Southeastern Brazil ◽  
Forest Law ◽  
Forest Code

Abstract: The lack of implementation of well-designed public policies aimed at the conservation of natural ecosystems has resulted, at a global level, in the decline of ecosystem functioning and, consequently, of the contributions they make to people. The poor enforcement of important environmental legislation in Brazil - for instance, the “Atlantic Forest Law” (Law n.11.428/2006) and the “Forest Code” (Law n.12.651/2012) - could compromise the overall maintenance of ecosystems and the services they provide. To explore the implications of different levels of federal laws’ enforcement within the Cantareira System Protected Area (PA) - a PA in southeastern Brazil that provides fresh water for 47% of the Sao Paulo Metropolitan Area -, we developed a conceptual framework to identify indirect and direct drives of biodiversity and ecosystem changes. We also projected four land-use scenarios to 2050 to test the effects of deforestation control and forest restoration practices on biodiversity and ecosystem services maintenance: the “business-as-usual” scenario (BAU), which assumes that all trends in land-use cover changes observed in the past will continue in the future, and three alternative exploratory scenarios considering the Atlantic Forest Law implementation, the partial implementation of the Forest Code and the full implementation of the Forest Code. Using the land-use maps generated for each scenario, we assessed the impacts of land-use changes on biodiversity conservation and soil retention. Our results revealed all alternative scenarios could increase biodiversity conservation (by 7%; 12%; and 12%, respectively), reduce soil loss (by 24.70%; 34.70%; and 38.12%, respectively) and sediment exportation to water (by 27.47%; 55.06%; and 59.28%, respectively), when compared to the BAU scenario. Our findings highlight the importance of restoring and conserving native vegetation for the maintenance and improvement of biodiversity conservation and for the provision of ecosystem services.

scholarly journals Ecosystem Services Valuation for the Sustainable Land Use Management by Nature-Based Solution (NbS) in the Common Agricultural Policy Actions: A Case Study on the Foglia River Basin (Marche Region, Italy)

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 57
Author(s):  
Elisa Morri ◽  
Riccardo Santolini
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Public Goods ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Land Use Management ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Human Wellbeing

Agricultural land is a very important ecosystem that provides a range of services like food, maintenance of soil structure, and hydrological services with high ecological value to human wellbeing Ecosystem Services (ESs). Understanding the contribution of different agricultural practices to supply ESs would help inform choices about the most beneficial land use management. Nature-based Solutions (NbS) are defined by IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) as actions to protect, sustainably manage and restore natural or modified ecosystems, which address societal challenges (e.g., climate change, food and water security, or natural disasters) effectively and adaptively, while simultaneously providing human wellbeing and biodiversity benefits. Some actions farmers can implement in the new Rural Development Programs (RDP 2021–2022 and 2023–2027) can be considered as NbS and could affect the quantity, quality, and time of some ESs related to water regulation and supply, N adsorption and erosion protection. This study aims to evaluate these ESs in different scenarios in the upper Foglia river basin (Italy) and at a local scale (farming), and to highlight the issue to compensate farmers for the production of public goods which benefit the whole society (ESs) by the implementation of RDP’s actions. These scenarios highlight how actions have positive effects on ecosystem services and their economic value related to land use management, on maintaining agricultural practices by integrating Water Frame Directive (2000/60/EC), Directive 2007/60/EC on the management of flood risks and highlighting the potential role of farmers in a high diversity landscape. This study highlights a new way to evaluate the processes of natural capital in the production of public goods, which benefits the whole society (ESs), by emphasizing the economic and environmental role of farmers in producing them and putting on the table data to trigger a PES (Payment for Ecosystem Services) mechanism. To facilitate decision making, robust decision support tools are needed, underpinned by comprehensive cost-benefit analyses and spatially modeling in which agriculture can be a strategic sector to optimize food production and environmental protection in harmony with the Farm to Fork (F2F) strategy.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document