Earth Observation and Geospatial Analysis for Fire Risk Assessment in Wildland–Urban Interfaces: The Case of the Highly Dense Urban Area of Attica, Greece

Mapping agricultural land abandonment from spatial and temporal segmentation of Landsat time series

The effect of Landsat ETM/ETM + image acquisition dates on the detection of agricultural land abandonment in Eastern Europe

Agricultural land abandonment in Mediterranean environment provides ecosystem services via soil carbon sequestration

This paper examines patterns of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows to Southern European (SE) regions, which seem to be at the margin of the FDI attraction game accounting for a very small share of total inward FDI in the EU. In order to understand why these regions have attracted such a low number of foreign investors, this contribution provides the following analysis: (i) an overall picture of the main characteristics of patterns of inward FDI in SE regions at geographical and sectoral levels; (ii) the factors that drive FDI flows into EU regions; (iii) an assessment of the potential attractiveness of SE regions, both in absolute terms and with respect to other EU regions. The main results indicate that SE regions are definitively less attractive than other EU regions, though a lot of variation does exist at both geographical and sectoral levels. In order to improve their capacity to attract FDI, SE regions should improve their factors of attractiveness by implementing several structural reforms.

Agricultural abandonment and re-cultivation during and after the Chechen Wars in the northern Caucasus

Linking litter production, quality and decomposition to vegetation succession following agricultural abandonment

Cropland abandonment and flood risks: Spatial analysis of a case in North Central Vietnam

In recent years, forest fires have increased in terms of frequency, extent and intensity, especially in Mediterranean countries. Climate characteristics and anthropogenic disturbances lead forest environments to display high vulnerability to wildfires, with their sustainability being threatened by the loss of vegetation, changes on soil properties, and increased soil loss rates. Moreover, wildfires are a great threat to property and human life, especially in Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) areas. In light of the impacts and trends mentioned above, this study aims to assess the impact of the Mati, Attika wildfire on soil erosion. The event caused 102 fatalities, inducing severe consequences to the local infrastructure network; economy; and natural resources. As such, the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) was implemented (pre-; post-fire) at the Rafina, Attika watershed encompassing the Mati WUI. Fire severity was evaluated based on the Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR). This index was developed utilizing innovative remotely sensed Earth Observation data (Sentinel-2). The high post-fire values indicate the fire's devastating effects on vegetation loss and soil erosion. A critical “update” was also made to the CORINE Land Cover (CLC) v. 2018, by introducing a new land use class namely “Urban Forest”, in order to distinguish the WUI configuration. Post-fire erosion rates are notably higher throughout the study area (4.53–5.98 t ha−1 y−1), and especially within the WUI zone (3.75–18.58 t ha−1 y−1), while newly developed and highly vulnerable cites now occupy the greater Mati area. Furthermore, archive satellite data (Landsat-5) revealed how the repeated (historical) wildfires have ultimately impacted vegetation recovery and erosional processes. To our knowledge this is the first time that RUSLE is used to simulate soil erosion at a WUI after a fire event, at least at a Mediterranean basin. The realistic results attest that the model can perform well at such diverse conditions, providing a solid basis for soil loss estimation and identification of high-risk erosion areas.

Trade-offs of European agricultural abandonment

Soil carbon and nitrogen accumulation during long-term natural vegetation restoration following agricultural abandonment in Qingling Mountains

Agricultural land abandonment is the crucial issue of land use /land cover change in many parts of the world and it is directly related to soil erosion in the mountain areas. Nepal has also faced heavy agricultural land abandonment from the mountain regions in the last two decades. This study is concerned with agricultural land abandonment and its impact on soil erosion in the Madi Watershed, Gandaki Province of Nepal. This study used high-resolution aerial photography and Google Earth images to map cultivated land and its abandonment in 1995 and 2020. The Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) model has been used to estimate soil erosion. Studies revealed that more than 40% of the agricultural land was abandoned from 1995 to 2020 and there is higher spatial variability of abandonment intensity. High altitude and steeper slope areas have a higher intensity of abandonment than in lower altitude and lower slope gradients. There is a significant impact of abandonment of agricultural land on reducing soil erosion from 1995 to 2020. The average rate of soil erosion was quite high in 1995 but decreased to 51.5 percent in 2020. There are higher rates of reduction in soil erosion at higher altitudes and marginal lands like steeper slopes and the areas having lower solar radiation because of the higher proportion of agricultural land abandonment. Thus, it can be concluded that agricultural land abandonment during the last 25 years significantly impacts soil erosion control in the study area.

Determinants of agricultural land abandonment in post-Soviet European Russia

Responses of birds of different biogeographic origins and habitat requirements to agricultural land abandonment in northern Spain

P300 Does in vitro antimicrobial resistance predict clinical outcomes in urinary tract infections: systematic review and metaanalysis

Agricultural land abandonment is increasingly a global land-cover change phenomenon that has strong implications for the environment (e.g., biodiversity, carbon sequestration, novel ecosystems, wildfires) and societal well-being (livelihood, agricultural landscapes). Agricultural land abandonment is often referred to as the cessation of farming and giving away land for natural succession, such as grasses, shrubs, and trees on former agricultural lands, but may also result in land degradation. Agricultural land abandonment can be a more complex land-change transition, including the cessation of agricultural activity in favor of land uses other than agricultural ones, such as forestry, construction of dwellings, game reserves, and tourism. Studies have shown that agricultural land abandonment often is driven by rational decision-making and profit maximization, including weighing up opportunity costs and alternative livelihood strategies. However, the conditions of institutions, which are supposed to govern land use, and the personal characteristics of those involved in agricultural activities, are playing a vital role in the decision of abandonment. It should also be noted that the decision on abandonment or maintenance of farming can be quite complex and driven by non-economic factors, such as personal predisposition to farming, education, ethnicity, religion, age, and availability of successors. The progress of studying land abandonment and existing research gaps are highlighted in the text.