Abstract
Large areas worldwide have been affected by farmland abandonment and subsequent plant colonization with significant environmental consequences. Although the process of farmland abandonment has slowed down, vegetation recovery in abandoned lands is far from complete. In addition, agricultural areas and pasture lands with low-intensity activities could be abandoned in the near future. In this foreword, we review current knowledge of the impacts of farmland abandonment on water resources and soil conservation, and we highlight the open questions that still persist, in particular regarding terraced landscapes, afforested areas, abandonment of woody crops, traditional irrigated fields, solute yields, long-term trends in the response of abandoned areas, and the management of abandoned farmland. This Special Issue includes seven contributions that illustrate recent research into the hydrological, geomorphological, and edaphological consequences of farmland abandonment.
Highlights
Farmland abandonment is a major land-use change in many rural territories, in temperate, developed regions [1,2,3]
Campbell et al (2008) [2] estimated that 385–472 million hectares of farmland was abandoned worldwide between 1700 and 2000. 99% of this land abandonment occurred during the last 100 years of this period. It affected all parts of the world, but was more intense in the United States, Europe, and Australia
Research carried out worldwide has shown that vegetation recovery in abandoned lands has significant implications for landscape, water resources, soil erosion and biodiversity [4,5,17,27]. This Special Issue includes seven contributions that focus on the hydrological and geomorphological consequences of farmland abandonment in different environments, including terraced landscapes, afforested areas, abandoned land at different stages of succession and recent abandonment in irrigated land and steep vineyards. In this foreword, we review briefly the main impacts of farmland abandonment on water resources and soil conservation and identify the main questions that still need to be addressed by scientists and land managers
Summary
Farmland abandonment is a major land-use change in many rural territories, in temperate, developed regions [1,2,3]. Research carried out worldwide has shown that vegetation recovery in abandoned lands has significant implications for landscape, water resources, soil erosion and biodiversity [4,5,17,27] This Special Issue includes seven contributions that focus on the hydrological and geomorphological consequences (soil hydraulic properties, runoff, soil erosion, solute export) of farmland abandonment in different environments, including terraced landscapes, afforested areas, abandoned land at different stages of succession and recent abandonment in irrigated land and steep vineyards. Soil erosion can be significant during the first stages of plant colonization, as shown by Ruiz-Flaño et al (1992) [51] and by Cerdá et al (2018) [52] for the Western Mediterranean region, but it decreases over time as vegetation cover becomes denser. In semi-arid fields with marl lithology, terrace abandonment enhances intense surface erosion and favors piping, which may lead to deep gully incisions [75]
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