Economic Land Use Research Articles

Nature–society and development: social, cultural and ecological change in Nepal

This paper presents a theoretical framework for analyzing human–environment issues that examines shifting, dialectical relationships between social and power relations, cultural beliefs and practices, and ecological processes to allow an interdisciplinary, complex assessment of social and environmental change in Nepal. The purpose of this analysis is to capture the complexity and non-static nature of environmental and social change in the context of uneven development. Drawing from political ecology and feminist geography, this framework brings together scholarship on aspects of human–environment issues that are often pursued in isolation, yet all three processes, social–political relations, cultural practices and ecological conditions, have been acknowledged as important in shaping the trajectory of social and ecological change. I argue that a consideration of the articulations between them is necessary to understand first, how specific land management regimes arise and are dominant over time in specific places. And second, I examine the extent to which these regimes distribute resources equitably within communities, promote economic development and sustain ecological resilience. In this analysis, ecological processes are conceptualised as co-productive of social and cultural processes to explore their role in land management regimes without resorting to environmental determinist or similarly reductive paradigms. I present this framework through the example of natural resource management, specifically community forestry in Nepal, as it offers a rich case study of the relationships between the political economy of land use and the ecological effects of natural resource extraction.

Conservation Policy in Brazilian Amazonia: Understanding the Dilemmas

Conservation policy in Brazilian Amazonia is rapidly evolving. The dynamics of different interest groups affect the political economy of land use. Choices include allocation of effort between completely and partially protected areas and between creation of new conservation units versus consolidation of existing units. Tensions between different levels of government, different groups of nongovernmental organizations, and between the public versus private sectors are evident. While the conflicting interests of such groups present many barriers, they also offer conservation opportunities. Negotiation with indigenous peoples represents one of the most critical areas for the long-term future of natural ecosystems in the region.

Process and mechanism of arable land change in Hebei Province during the past 50 years

Hebei Province is one of the regions with most densely population, fastest economic growth and most intensive land use in China. The contradiction of land shortage sharpened by high-speed economic development with population growth has become a serious problem, which has restricted regional sustainable development.This paper revealed the basic process, regional differences of change and the gravity center of arable land area according to the long-series statistical data of arable land during the past 50 years. On the basis of the above mentioned, the major driving forces that influence the changes of the arable land are discussed. The research results indicate that there is a trend of obvious fluctuating decrease in arable land area during the last 50 years. The changes of arable land area undergo the process from increase to sharp decrease to gently decrease. The regional disparity of change in arable land area is very notable and the gravity center of arable land area moves to the northeast 49.22 km. Regarding the decrease in arable land, the direct driving forces include adjustments of agricultural structure and reclamation, and indirect driving forces include advance in technology, economic interest and population growth etc.

A framework for integrated biophysical and economic land use analysis at different scales

There is a general need for quantitative tools that can be used to support policy makers in regional rural development. Here, a framework for (sub-) regional land use analysis is presented that quantifies biophysical and economic sustainability trade-offs. The framework, called sustainable options for land use (SOLUS), was developed over a 10-year period of investigation in the Northern Atlantic Zone of Costa Rica and encompasses scale levels that range from field to region. SOLUS consists of technical coefficient generators to quantify inputs and outputs of production systems, a linear programming model that selects production systems by optimizing regional economic surplus, and a geographic information system. Biophysical and economic disciplines are integrated and various types of knowledge, ranging from empirical expert judgement to deterministic process models are synthesized in a systems-analytical manner. Economic sustainability indicators include economic surplus and labor employment, and biophysical ones include soil N, P and K balances, biocide use and its environmental impact, greenhouse gas emission and nitrogen leaching loss and volatilization. Land use scenarios can be implemented by varying properties of production inputs (e.g., prices), imposing sustainability restrictions in the optimization, and incorporating alternative production systems based on different technologies. Examples of application of SOLUS in the Northern Atlantic Zone of Costa Rica show that introduction of alternative technologies may result in situations that satisfy both economic as well as biophysical sustainability. On the other hand, negative trade-offs were found among different dimensions of biophysical sustainability themselves.

Surveillance for Bloodborne Infections

At the close of the 20th century, the blood supply in the U.S. is among the safest in the world. Multifaceted and overlapping strategies that include comprehensive donor history-taking and screening (soon to include nucleic acid testing for HCV and HIV), and viral inactivation of plasma derivatives have resulted in significant declines in transfusion-transmitted infections. Nonetheless, we and our blood supply remain vulnerable to new or re-emerging infections as a consequence of changes in human behavior and demographics, improvements in technology and industry, economic development and land use, and microbial change. The second phase of CDC's strategic plan to improve our national capacity against emerging infectious diseases targets diseases transmitted through blood and blood products as one of its nine special focus areas. One of our mainstays against emerging threats must include surveillance, integrated with a multi-disciplinary approach that includes epidemiology and laboratory sciences. Enhanced surveillance can play an important role in helping to ensure the continued safety of blood and plasma products.

Reviews: TERRA-1 Proceedings: Understanding the Terrestrial Environment, from Garden Cities to New Towns: Campaigning for Town and Country Planning 1899–1946, from New Towns to Green Politics: Campaigning for Town and Country Planning 1946–1990, Local Economic Development: Public—Private Partnership Initiation in Britain and Germany, Economic Activity and Land Use: The Changing Information Base for Local and Regional Studies, Housing and Social

Reviews: TERRA-1 Proceedings: Understanding the Terrestrial Environment, from Garden Cities to New Towns: Campaigning for Town and Country Planning 1899–1946, from New Towns to Green Politics: Campaigning for Town and Country Planning 1946–1990, Local Economic Development: Public—Private Partnership Initiation in Britain and Germany, Economic Activity and Land Use: The Changing Information Base for Local and Regional Studies, Housing and Social

Book Review: Economic Activity and Land Use: The Changing Information Base for Local and Regional Studies

Book Review: Economic Activity and Land Use: The Changing Information Base for Local and Regional Studies

SUMMER DROUGHTS IN NORTHLAND - A POOR EXCUSE

Dry summer conditions in Northland have been cited as a significant limiting factor for high levels of milkfat production. For example: "Droughts of significant economic impact on the agricultural economy occur on average once in every three years" (Male 1978). "Dairy farming is a major part of Northland agriculture but the climate is not very suitable for dairy production . and droughts from January/February to April are not uncommon" (M.A.F. 1980). At other times though, Northland has been described quite differently, du Faur (1962) wrote: "Some districts such as South Auckland, parts of the Waikato, Manawatu, Wairarapa ___ will benefit from the provision of (summer) supplementary feed in a majority of seasons. Other areas such as Bay of Plenty, North Auckland . rarely need summer supplementary feeding". So it woud seem that Northland has a real Jekyll and Hyde character. Despite the different views, over 2000 farmers find dairy farming to be the most economic land use. Northland produces around 13% of New Zealand's annual dairy export earnings. It is in fact, a larger dairy production area than either the Bay of Plenty, Manawatu/- Wairarapa or the South Island. Today the industry in Northland is stronger than ever. This paper examines the "summer drought" view of Northland by comparing production trends with the South Auckland (Waikato) region - the "Mecca" of New Zealand's dairy industry.

Role of remote sensing technique in integrated economic land use planning in Andaman Islands

The paper discusses the use of Remote Sensing techniques for the integrated economic land use planning in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, agricultural land use being the main objective. Broad aspects of physiography, soil, land use etc. have been described. An idea about the soil environment and erosion hazards is given. A land use pattern on the basis of land capability and land suitability classification together with cropping pattern has been evolved and the model has been developed for the Island.

A Long-Run Analysis of Urban Growth over Space

It might be safely said that in the literature on urban economics no satisfactory analysis has been carried out to account for the long-run dynamic processes of urban economic growth, whereas none of the growth models developed so far has incorporated spatial or locational elements explicitly to study the phenomena of long-run urban growth over time and space.' This situation is particularly unfortunate when we think of an increasing number of economic and social problems arising from competition among growing industries over available land or conflicts between rapid economic growth and optimal land use in and around urban areas. In this paper, with the lack of appropriate urban growth models in mind, we shall take a first step towards a full integration of economic growth theory and urban location theory by introducing two dynamic factors, namely population growth and transportation improvements, into a simple von Thiinen-type model of industrial location. Specifically we assume that population is growing at a given constant rate while transportation improvements are brought about by social transportation investment which is financed through taxation. Then we carry out a dynamic analysis of long-run urban growth by identifying a balanced growth equilibrium and proving its existence and global stability under certain assumptions. Some other properties of the model, particularly a golden-rule result in regard to optimal taxation for transportation improvements, are derived in a special case with Cobb-Douglas production functions and zero opportunity cost of land.

Field Soil Science as a Basis for Soil Classification and Economic Land Use

Agronomy JournalVolume 52, Issue 10 p. 615-615 Book Review Field Soil Science as a Basis for Soil Classification and Economic Land Use By Prof. Dr. Dipl. Ing. Herbert Franz. Verlag Georg Fromme and Co., Spengergasse 39, Vienna V, Austria. 583 pp. 1960. Cardboard bound $12.60, half-linen $13.10 Don Kirkham, Don Kirkham Iowa State UniversitySearch for more papers by this author Don Kirkham, Don Kirkham Iowa State UniversitySearch for more papers by this author First published: 01 October 1960 https://doi.org/10.2134/agronj1960.00021962005200100032xAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume52, Issue10October 1960Pages 615-615 RelatedInformation

THE CEMETERIES OF CHICAGO: A PHASE OF LAND UTILIZATION

(1955). THE CEMETERIES OF CHICAGO: A PHASE OF LAND UTILIZATION. Annals of the Association of American Geographers: Vol. 45, No. 3, pp. 245-253.