ABSTRACT Land use conversion entails trade‐offs across multiple ecosystem services of wildlife. Wildlife is often characterized by spatiotemporal dynamics that affect this trade‐off. The aim of this paper is to examine the net benefits from changes in the land use composition, given the consequences for the benefits provided by a harvested migratory prey species. The study is applied to land use and roe deer hunting in Sweden. We examine the spatial dynamics of land use, predator populations, prey, and prey hunting, by developing a bioeconomic model that is estimated using a dynamic spatial‐lag model (dynamic SAR). The results show that a conversion of coniferous and broadleaf forests into grazing land increases game harvests and could offset the negative impact of large carnivores on hunting outcomes. Yet, such conversion is likely to be associated with a net social cost. In contrast, there are both increased game harvests and net economic gains from conversion of coniferous forests into broadleaves. Our findings are informative for policymaking on land use and wildlife management.

ABSTRACT Nature tourism based on the observation of sea turtles is a socioeconomic activity that promotes the conservation of endangered species. However, tourism can affect the nesting sites, drastically affecting the ecosystem function. In this study, we propose a socio‐ecological model to describe the interplay between tourists and a turtle population with temperature‐dependent sex determination and an arribada strategy. In the modeling process, we consider that tourists visiting an arribada nesting beach have different behaviors, depending on the region in which they are distributed. The analysis of the model shows that scenarios of sustainable tourism exist when some conditions over the parameters of the model are satisfied. Using numerical simulations of the solutions of the model, we show different scenarios of coexistence of tourists and turtles. However, when the parameters of the model are varied, the solutions of the model might show scenarios of unsustainable tourism. Finally, we discuss the overall results in terms of sustainable or catastrophic scenarios that can occur in the socio‐ecological system.

ABSTRACTAs a consequence of climate change, the encroachment of the native species Empetrum nigrum (crowberry) is exerting multifaceted effects on the Arctic socio‐ecological system in Norway. The native invader detrimentally affects the quality of the reindeer grazing land, yet is beneficial for carbon sequestration, that is, providing both ecosystem services and disservices. Though the Norwegian reindeer husbandry acknowledges the importance of pasture quality, the government has not adopted any quantitative indicator to evaluate the current situation. Employing optimal control in a bioeconomic model of three species—reindeer, vegetation, and crowberry—we explore the effectiveness of three controls: slaughter and feeding of reindeer, and burning crowberry, in the short run (5 years) and long run (30 years). Our study seeks to determine the optimal crowberry burning effort and assess whether incorporating carbon sequestration alters the preferred burning strategy. Our results emphasize the critical role of crowberry burning in rejuvenating vegetation, a key indicator of pasture quality, especially in the long run. Burning crowberry remains optimal when carbon sequestration is included, yet at a lower level than when this value is excluded. We also highlight the incorporation of a salvage value for the palatable pasture, advocating for a balanced approach to burning that optimizes economic net benefit while sustaining pasture quality. Incorporating salvage values into the social welfare function emphasizes both the potential future use and the preservation of the grazing pasture for future generations. Our results suggest that the decision‐maker should continue burning crowberry in the long run while taking into account the plant's carbon sequestration, to maximize social welfare.

ABSTRACTThe effective eradication and control of harmful species are crucial for agriculture and for the conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity. Since harmful invasive species often spread over large areas, their eradication may necessitate cooperation among multiple agents, such as farmers, landowners, and countries. A key challenge is determining how the contributions could be allocated among the agents, such that no agent would benefit from unilaterally changing its contribution (Nash equilibrium). We introduce a dynamic game‐theoretic model that incorporates invasive species population dynamics. Our findings reveal that, counterintuitively, in Nash equilibria, agents incurring lower annual costs from the species contribute more. Moreover, multiple Nash equilibria exist, and those with fewer contributing agents are more efficient, leading to faster eradication. This indicates that efficiency in managing biological populations often conflicts with fairness. Therefore, some agents may have to compromise on fairness for cost‐effective project implementation, and policymakers and planners must balance fairness and efficiency when assigning eradication responsibilities among landowners or countries.

ABSTRACTConservation initiatives depend on interactions among organizations and communities that have different goals. Multilevel hierarchies provide a common decision‐making structure with different actors responsible for conservation decisions over nested spatial scales. We examine consequences of hierarchical decision‐making for spatial prioritization of new protected areas. We combine insights from general theory, an algebraic example, and a numerical application, the latter motivated by federal‐to‐state grant‐giving in the western United States. Working through a decision‐making hierarchy means fewer species can be protected for a given budget than suggested by analyses that ignore the role of conservation institutions in decision‐making. This efficiency cost results from higher level decision‐makers—the federal government in our numerical application—giving up control to lower level actors—state governments in this case. Ensuring close agreement over spatial priorities between actors can limit potential losses in how much biodiversity can be protected. By reallocating funds among lower level actors, the higher level actor can mitigate remaining losses. Spatial optimization approaches that ignore the integral role of institutions in conservation, like decision‐making hierarchies, overestimate what protected area programs can achieve and risk misallocating limited conservation funds. Accounting for multilevel decision‐making reveals where building consensus among actors will be particularly important and suggests alternative strategies that conservation funders can pursue.

ABSTRACTAchieving environmental sustainability is of utmost importance to economies worldwide, regardless of their level of development. As a result, most international economies have accepted several accords to deal with environmental issues on a global scale. Reducing reliance on fossil fuels has been broadly recognized as the pinnacle of environmental sustainability, even though various strategies are believed to address these challenges. In light of the above, this study employs data from 1990 to 2022 to examine the environmental effects of nuclear power, increased usage of renewable energy (REE) sources, urbanization (URB), mineral depletion, and financial globalization within the framework of E7 nations. This study employs a three‐stage least squares co‐integration method. For robustness, Fully Modified Ordinary Least Squares and Canonical Cointegrating Regression were employed. The results show that nuclear energy, REE, geothermal energy, financial globalization, and URB have negative and significant impacts on environmental stewardship. In contrast, mineral depletion had a significant and positive impact on environmental stewardship. These findings provide several policy recommendations for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, without compromising environmental quality. Consequently, it is advisable for these nations to integrate energy policy measures and provide consistency in energy strategy by aligning the fundamental aspects of global nuclear and geothermal energy to facilitate the achievement of the SDGs.