Increasing Land Use Research Articles

Insights into agricultural influences and weathering processes from major ion patterns

AbstractKarst areas and their catchments pose a great challenge for protection because fast conduit flow results in low natural attenuation of anthropogenic contaminants. Studies of the hydrochemistry of karst sources and river solutes are an important tool for securing and managing water resources. A study of the geochemical downriver evolution of the Wiesent River and its tributaries, located in a typical karst terrain, revealed unexpected downstream decreases of nitrate with maximum mean values of 30 mg/L at the source to minimum values of 18 mg/L near the river mouth. This trend persisted over the length of the river even though increased agricultural activities are evident in the downstream section of the catchment. This pattern is caused by fertilizer inputs via diffusive and fast conduits flow from karst lithology in the upstream area that may have reached the river's source even from beyond the hydrological catchment boundaries. Further downstream, these influences became diluted by tributary inputs that drain subcatchments dominated by claystone and sandstone lithologies that increased potassium and sulphate concentrations. Our findings indicate that bedrock geology remains the dominant control on the major ion chemistry of the Wiesent River and that agricultural influences are strongest near the headwaters despite increased land use further downstream, due to long‐term storage and accumulation in karst aquifers. This feature may not be unique to the Wiesent River system, as carbonates cover significant portions of the Earth's surface and subsequent work in other river systems could establish whether such patterns are ubiquitous worldwide.

From the Culture of Migration to the Culture of Remittances: Evidence from Immigrant-Sending Communities in China

Extending the notion of “the culture of migration,” we propose and elaborate the concept of “the culture of remittances” to examine the flow of remittances in the immigrant-sending province of Fujian, China. We argue that the culture of remittances influences two important variables in the study of remittances: amount of remittances and whether they are used for public projects for the community. A careful statistical analysis using data from Fujian province supports our two major predictions. We also find that elite immigrants are more likely to use remittances for public projects in immigrant-sending communities. Our policy calls for more strategies and services in dealing with major concerns such as family members left behind (i.e., the elderly) in communities and increasing land use issues, as well as more proactive strategies to cultivate elite immigrants who are increasingly transnational and are likely to become catalysts for economic transformations in these communities and beyond.

Patterns of passage into protected areas: Drivers and outcomes of Fulani immigration, settlement and integration into the Kachia Grazing Reserve, northwest Nigeria

Increasing land use and associated competition for natural resources in the wake of high human and livestock population pressures have been major challenges confronting pastoralists of West Africa. This is especially true in Nigeria where Fulani make up 4% of the national population and prevailing national insecurity issues are impacting on pastoral livelihoods, including violent conflicts over land and ethnic, religious and political disparities.This study examined the dynamics of immigration within the Kachia Grazing Reserve (KGR), an exclusively Fulani pastoralist community in Kaduna State, northwest Nigeria, prompted by concerns from both the farming communities and the authorities about mounting pressure on existing limited resources, particularly in regard to availability of cattle grazing resources.Drawing from a household census conducted in 2011 and employing a range of qualitative methods (focus group discussions and key informant interviews), this study explored the drivers and consequences of immigration and subsequent integration within the KGR community.The study revealed two types of immigration: a steady trickle of pastoralists migrating to the reserve to settle and acquire land, secure from the stresses of competition from cultivators, and the sudden influx of internally displaced persons fleeing violent clashes in their areas of origin.Population pressure within the reserve has risen steadily over the past three decades, such that it is severely overgrazed (as evidenced by reports from the KGR community that the animals run short of pasture even during the wet season due to desertification and the spread of non-edible weeds). The newer immigrants, fleeing conflict, tended to arrive in the reserve with significantly larger herds than those kept by established residents. Pastoralists in the reserve have been forced back into the practice of seasonal transhumance in both wet and dry seasons to support their herds, with all the attendant risks of theft, clashes with cultivators and increased disease transmission.

Potential to curb the environmental burdens of American beef consumption using a novel plant-based beef substitute.

The food demands of the United States (US) impart significant environmental pressures. The high rate of consumption of beef has been shown to be the largest driver of food-borne greenhouse gas emissions, water use and land occupation in the US diet. The environmental benefits of substituting animal products with vegetal foods are well documented, but significant psychological barriers persist in reducing meat consumption. Here we use life cycle assessment to appraise the environmental performance of a novel vegetal protein source in the mean US diet where it replaces ground beef, and in vegetarian and vegan diets where it substitutes for legumes, tofu and other protein sources. We find that relative to the mean US diet, vegetarian and vegan diets significantly reduce per-capita food-borne greenhouse gas emission (32% and 67%, respectively), blue water use (70% and 75%, respectively) and land occupation (70% and 79%, respectively), primarily in the form of rangeland. The substitution of 10%, 25% and 50% of ground beef with plant-based burger (PBB) at the national scale results in substantial reductions in annual US dietary greenhouse gas emissions (4.55–45.42 Mt CO2 equivalents), water consumption (1.30–12.00 km3) and land occupation (22300–190100 km2). Despite PBB’s elevated environmental pressures compared to other vegetal protein sources, we demonstrate that minimal risk exists for the disservices of PBB substitution in non-meat diets to outweigh the benefits of ground-beef substitution in the omnivorous American diet. Demand for plant-based oils in PBB production has the potential to increase land use pressures in biodiversity hotspots, though these could be obviated through responsible land stewardship. Although the apparent environmental benefits of the PBB are contingent on actual uptake of the product, this study demonstrates the potential for non-traditional protein substitutes to play a role in a transition towards more sustainable consumption regimes in the US and potentially abroad.

Soybean cultivation supports a diverse arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal community in central Argentina

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis is a key plant-microbe interaction in sustainable ecosystems. Increasing land use intensity poses a threat to AM fungal communities, yet little is known of the impact of agricultural land use on AM fungal communities in many regions and cultivation types. The last few decades have witnessed increased cultivation of soybean worldwide with Argentina becoming one of the major producers. We compared the diversity and taxon composition of AM fungal communities in soybean fields in central Argentina with that in a natural Espinal forest under similar environmental conditions. We sequenced AM fungal DNA from root and soil samples collected from pairs of soybean fields and pristine forest ecosystems. We found that although AM fungal diversity tended to be lower in samples collected from the soybean field, the total number of AM fungal taxa was similar in both agricultural and forest ecosystems. Roots of soybean plants were colonized by diverse communities of AM fungi. AM fungal community composition in roots was primarily driven by host plant identity, but land use type (soybean field versus Espinal forest) was also an important determinant of community composition. The intensity of anthropogenic land use correlated with the proportion of easily-cultured AM fungal taxa, probably due to their efficient colonization strategies and better ability to recover from disturbance. Thus, soybean cultivation has affected AM fungal communities in terms of both diversity and functional attributes, although the diverse AM fungal communities are still present, probably due to the relatively low level of fertilizer application.

The simpler the better: When decreasing landscape complexity increases community stability

Herbivores and their predators are affected by changes in land-use and habitat fragmentation. Past studies of tri-trophic herbivore communities have found that increasing land-use intensity leads to declines in community stability. The majority of these studies analysed community stability in highly fragmented ecosystems characterised by intensive agriculture. In this study we considered how landscape configuration and composition affected habitat networks and parasitoid food webs under moderate but increasing land use. We used gall wasp communities as models to test the effects of landscape change on multi-species hierarchical communities of plants and animals. We investigated characteristics of networks formed by rose bushes and quantitative webs of rose gall parasitoids along a gradient of land-use intensity. We found that link density and compartmentalisation of rose bush networks, and local extinction within parasitoid webs increased with increasing landscape homogenization. Because these network and web characteristics are linked with resilience, our results suggest that stability of these communities can increase as landscapes become less complex. This is an intriguing aspect of landscape homogenisation effects on biological communities that contrasts with most expectations and the majority of the relevant literature, where decreasing community stability is usually associated with landscape homogenization.

Interspecific interaction alters root morphology in young walnut/wheat agroforestry systems in northwest China

The objective of this experiment was to learn more about root morphology and spatial distribution in a specify walnut (Juglans regia L.)/wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) intercropping system. The effects of intercropping on aboveground yield and land equivalent ratio (LER) were also determined. The experiment was conducted at Hetian in the southern part of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. The results showed that walnut/wheat intercropping reduced the aboveground yield of both component species. However, the LER of the intercropping system averaged 1.62. This meant that intercropping increased land use efficiency. Intercropping significantly reduced the root length density, root surface area density, and root diameter (RD) of both component species compared with sole-cropping. In contrast, intercropping significantly increased the specific root length of walnut. Root competition between species was the greatest in the 0–40 cm soil depth. Root competition caused uneven distribution of RD and specific root length. The plasticity of root morphology and spatial distribution is key for adapting to competition and maximizing water and nutrient uptake in walnut/wheat agroforestry systems.

Direct and indirect effects of agricultural intensification on a host-parasitoid system on the ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata L.) in a landscape context

Intensification of land use is known as a major driver of worldwide decline in biodiversity. Trophic interactions might be especially affected by a changing landscape structure due to agricultural intensification. In this study we investigated the effects of increasing land use intensity on a tritrophic system at different spatial scales in a landscape context. We examined two weevil species, Mecinus labilis Herbst and M. pascuorum Gyllenhal, as well as their common parasitoid, Mesopolobus incultus Walker, living on a common native herb, the ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata L.), at 76 sites in three geographic regions in Germany. The effect of land use intensity on species abundances was analysed across a range of spatial scales (100–2000 m) around the study sites. In all three regions and across most spatial scales, an increasing proportion of intensively managed grasslands in the surrounding landscape directly negatively influenced herbivore abundance. An increasing proportion of semi-natural habitats had a direct positive influence on herbivore abundance. The abundance of M. labilis was best explained at radii of r = 1500–2000 m, that of M. pascuorum at r = 100–500 m. The parasitoid, M. incultus, was indirectly influenced by land use intensity via the density of its two hosts. Agricultural intensification of grasslands can profoundly affect the abundance of their herbivorous and entomophagous fauna at landscape scale. This may have important implications for landscape management and the conservation of higher trophic level organisms in agricultural landscapes.

Soaking seeds with paclobutrazol enhances winter survival and yield of rapeseed in a rice-rapeseed relay cropping system

Rice-rapeseed relay cropping is an effective way to use winter fallow fields and increaseland use efficiency. However, the overlapping period of 10–15 days for rice-rapeseedcultivation results in reduced winter survival and less yields. Therefore, in this study, weinvestigated if the treatment of oil rape seeds with paclobutrazol (PAC) improves its winterhardiness and yields by altering its crop morphology. First, a pot experiment was conducted todetermine the appropriate PAC concentration to soak seeds upon seedling growth and thegermination rate. Another pot trial was performed to check the responses of different rapeseedcultivars to the proposed treatment. Rapeseed was cultivated in no-tillage rice fields at anexperimental site in Wuhan from 2009 to 2011. In the absence of PAC treatment, rapeseed sownin pots and rice fields showed excessive elongation of the crown, which resulted in low yieldsand yield-related traits at maturity. Soaking seeds in PAC improved seedling growth, seedlingsurvival and crown diameter, but decreased the crown length during winter. The most effectiveconcentration of PAC was 4 mg/L and higher concentrations significantly reduced seedgermination rates. Our results demonstrated that rapeseed sown in rice fields after the seeds hadbeen soaked with PAC improved seedling quality at the wintering stage and yield at maturity.

Edificios de apartamentos de altura media en la Habana. Evaluación

<p>El edificio de apartamentos de altura media resulta una solución apropiada para la vivienda urbana, ya que sin elevados costos de construcción y mantenimiento permite un buen aprovechamiento del suelo urbano. La redensificación de las áreas urbanas consolidadas mediante la inserción de nuevos edificios de vivienda permite aprovechar la infraestructura y servicios existentes, y reducir las distancias. No obstante, el aumento del uso del suelo y las densidades conspiran en contra del logro de ambientes interiores apropiados. El presente artículo ofrece los principales resultados de una investigación desarrollada entre 2000-2010, encaminada a evaluar las soluciones de diseño de los edificios de apartamentos en La Habana, en particular aquellos ubicados en zonas urbanas compactas, a partir de la integración de requerimientos de economía y calidad, como referencia para los nuevos edificios de vivienda a proyectar y construir en la trama urbana consolidada de la ciudad.</p>

Exploring car ownership and car use in neighborhoods near metro stations in Beijing: Does the neighborhood built environment matter?

Public transport services are believed to play an important role in constraining car use. However, it has been found that cars are still used at high rates near many metro stations. This paper aims to explore car ownership and car use in people living close to metro stations. Taking Beijing, China, as a case study, this study shows that the likelihood of owning a car, and the number of work and non-work vehicle kilometers traveled (VKT), is lower in areas with higher mixed land use. Residents’ income and family structure both affect VKT. People with an awareness of sustainable land use and transportation modes use fewer VKT. The study also has some interesting new findings in the Chinese context. It found that residential density was not significantly related to VKT. Interestingly, neighborhood type was firmly associated with car ownership and use: those who live in Danwei neighborhoods generated more work VKT, and those living in indemnificatory neighborhoods used more non-work VKT. Additionally, renters were less likely to own cars than house owners, and people with Beijing hukou generated more VKT. People preferring to live in close proximity to the metro system and travel by foot were more likely to own cars in the future than other people. The results suggest that increasing land use diversity and the accessibility of living amenities in neighborhoods near metro stations could enhance the performance of transport systems by reducing dependence on cars. Housing and transport policies, along with behavior-education programs, could strengthen this effect.

Predicting off‐site impacts on breeding success of the marsh harrier

ABSTRACTConstruction of buildings, and other types of land uses by humans can exert negative impacts on wildlife that live in the areas surrounding such developments (i.e., off‐site impacts). To reduce or lessen such impacts, it is important to determine the biological metrics (e.g., abundance, breeding success) that are affected and at which spatial scales. We monitored the eastern marsh harrier (Circus spilonotus) breeding in wetland patches in northern Japan for 4 years and quantified its abundance (no. pairs) and breeding success (no. juveniles) in natural environments compared to artificial land uses in the surrounding areas. We developed a hierarchical model to simultaneously infer the effects of foraging habitats and artificial land uses on the numbers of pairs and juveniles. We found that the amount of foraging habitat within 0.5 km of wetland patches positively influenced the number of pairs per patch and that the amount of artificial land use within 2.0 km from the patches negatively influenced the number of pairs per patch and the number of juveniles per pair. The number of juveniles per patch was therefore affected by these 2 features and was most susceptible to increased land use by humans within 2.0 km from the patches. Our results can be used to predict the magnitudes of off‐site impacts on eastern marsh harriers before any additional development occurs. To effectively manage off‐site impacts, we highlight the importance of considering species abundance and the biological processes mediating breeding success that are possibly affected by different land uses. © 2017 The Wildlife Society.

Assessment of Trace Metals in Water and Sediment in a Tropical River Potentially Affected by Land Use Activities in Northern Sarawak, Malaysia

This paper reports the trace metals in water and sediment of the Baram river in Northern Sarawak, Malaysia, a tropical river that is subjected to increasing land use activities, particularly logging. Water and sediment samples were collected from a total of 32 stations along the main and tributaries of the Baram river in triplicates. Water samples were digested based on the open acid digestion method whilst sediment was microwave digested. The samples were analysed with microwave plasma atomic emission spectrometer for arsenic (As), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), lead (Pb), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), selenium (Se) and zinc (Zn). Mercury (Hg) was analysed using the flow injection system. The background values of metals in water were determined based on 95th percentile of unaffected samples. For sediment, the baseline values were derived from the cumulative distribution curves with kneedle algorithm incorporated to improve the identification of background thresholds for assessment of contamination. The contamination factors suggest enrichment of Al, Fe, Mn, particularly at stations downstream where substantial development of oil palm plantations and land clearing activities were found. Significant correlations between Al, Fe and Mn in water suggest similar origin, possibly from surface runoff as these elements are prominently found in sediment. This study reveals that logging activities adjacent to the Baram river has caused accelerated surface runoff affecting the balance of Al, Fe and Mn in the environment.

Comparison of land use change in payments for environmental services and National Biological Corridor Programs

Costa Rica established the National Biological Corridor Program in 2006. Under the National Biological Corridor Program, the long-running Payment for Environmental Services Program was newly prioritized into biological corridors throughout the country. The National Biological Corridor Program caused a nationwide spatial shift in placement of payments for environmental services throughout Costa Rica. We classified ASTER 15-m resolution imagery in a central Costa Rica corridor connecting the eastern and western protected areas networks to analyze the change in forests during the National Biological Corridor Program with its targeted payments for environmental services effort. We used object-based classification methods, and compared land cover changes over an initial four-year period of corridor policy enactment. We calculated the changes within PES properties and outside of PES regions, and we also calculated forest patch metrics during the same time period. Results indicate a decline in forest cover over the study period, along with an increase in urban and pasture land covers, with higher change and loss of forest centered inside of the biological corridor, near the construction area for the new San Carlos highway, and within eastern pasture areas. We also saw a higher percentage of forest loss inside of the biological corridor area as compared to areas outside of the biological corridor. Forest loss was drastically less within current and historic PES properties, as compared to the overall study region. Across the entire study region, patch metrics show a decrease in the number of patches and a slight decrease in average patch size. These results suggest that current and past designation of PES prevents forest loss within PES properties while the current designation of priority conservation status via the National Biological Corridor Program is not increasing connectivity and forest conservation. This is shown by increased land use change and a decrease in forest associated with biological corridor designation. These results are antithetical to the goals of the National Biological Corridor Program.

Maize and Potato Intercropping: A Technology to Increase Productivity and Profitability in Tigray

Abstract Smallholders have limited landholding in the highlands of Tigray and therefore there is a critical need to improve land use efficiency (LUE). One way to improve the LUE is through intercropping of companion crops including maize and potato. An experiment was conducted to evaluate the intercropping ratio as a means to improve land use efficiency during the 2012 cropping season. The treatments tested were three intercropping ratios of maize: potato in 1:1, 1:2, 2:1 row arrangement compared against the maize and potato only cropping. The objective of the study was to identify the best intercropping ratio that maximizes land use efficiency. Land equivalent ratio (LER) was used to compare the land use efficiency of the intercrops with each sole crop. The total yield of intercropped crops were greater than sole cropping, shown by LER>1. The overall advantage of intercropping ranged from 35 to 58%. The highest land equivalent value of 58% was recorded for one maize and two potato rows arrangements indicated a yield advantage of 58% over sole crop. The partial land equivalent value of both crops in intercropping was less than one indicating the cohesiveness of both crops in intercropping. Thus, it can be concluded that 1maize: 2 potato intercropping is a viable agronomic option in increasing land use efficiency and increased food security. It is, therefore, imperative to demonstrate the best treatment under farmer’s condition.

Modelling direct and indirect effects of herbicides on non-target grassland communities

Natural grassland communities are threatened by a variety of factors, such as climate change and increasing land use by mankind. The use of plant protection products (synthetic or organic) is mandatory in agricultural food production. To avoid adverse effects on natural grasslands within agricultural areas, synthetic plant protection products are strictly regulated in Europe. However, effects of herbicides on non-target terrestrial plants are primarily studied on the level of individual plants neglecting interactions between species.In our study, we aim to extrapolate individual-level effects to the population and community level by adapting an existing spatio-temporal, individual-based plant community model (IBC-grass). We analyse the effects of herbicide exposure for three different grassland communities: 1) representative field boundary community, 2) Calthion grassland community, and 3) Arrhenatheretalia grassland community. Our simulations show that herbicide depositions can have effects on non-target plant communities resulting from direct and indirect effects on population level. The effect extent depends not only on the distance to the field, but also on the specific plant community, its disturbance regime (cutting frequency, trampling and grazing intensity) and resource level.Mechanistic modelling approaches such as IBC-grass present a promising novel approach in transferring and extrapolating standardized pot experiments to community level and thereby bridging the gap between ecotoxicological testing (e.g. in the greenhouse) and protection goals referring to real world conditions.

Temporal complexity of southernBeaufortSea polar bear diets during a period of increasing land use

AbstractFrom 2000 to 2013, use of land as a seasonal habitat by polar bears (Ursus maritimus) of the southern Beaufort Sea (SB) subpopulation substantially increased. This onshore use has been linked to reduced spatial and temporal availability of sea ice, as well as to the availability of subsistence‐harvested bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) bone piles. Here, we evaluated the role of climate conditions on consumption of traditional ice‐associated prey relative to onshore bowhead whale bone piles. We determined seasonal and interannual trends in the diets ofSBpolar bears using fatty acid‐based analysis during this period of increasing land use. Diet estimates of 569SBpolar bears from 2004 to 2012 showed high seasonal fluctuations in the proportions of prey consumed. Higher proportions of bowhead whale, as well as ringed seal (Pusa hispida) and beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas), were estimated to occur in the winter–spring diet, while higher proportions of bearded seal (Erignathus barbatus) were estimated for summer–fall diets. Trends in the annual mean proportions of individual prey items were not found in either period, except for significant declines in the proportion of beluga in spring‐sampled bears. Nonetheless, in years following a high winter Arctic oscillation index, proportions of ice‐associated ringed seal were lower in the winter–spring diets of adult females and juveniles. Proportions of bowhead increased in the winter–spring diets of adult males with the number of ice‐free days over the continental shelf. In one or both seasons, polar bears that were in better condition were estimated to have consumed less ringed seal and/or more bowhead whale than those in worse condition. Therefore, climate variation over this recent period appeared to influence the extent of onshore vs. on‐ice food use, which in turn, appeared to be linked to fluctuating condition ofSBpolar bears.

Effect of Intercropping of Legumes and Rates of Nitrogen Fertilizer on Yield and Yield Components of Maize (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) at Arba Minch

Intercropping of legumes and cereals, an old practice since ancient civilization, plays pivotal role to increase land use efficiency, improve income and food production per unit area and minimize the risks of crop failure for small scale farmers. Thus, field experiment was conducted to determine the effect of intercropping of legumes and rates of nitrogen fertilizer on yield and yield components of maize (Zea mays L.). The experiment consisted of 0, 23, 46, 69 and 92 kg·N·ha-1 and sole maize, maize + commom bean, maize + common bean - mung bean cropping systems with Random Complete Block Design factorial experiment in three replications using maize variety, “BH-140”, common bean variety (Hawassadume) and mung bean variety. Maximum plant heights, dry matter and grain yield, were observed from sole cropped maize and maize + common bean, when applying 92 kg·N·ha-1. Significantly higher total Land Equivalent Ratio of 2.2, Gross Monetary Value of 87,191 birr ha-1, Monetary Advantage of 47,068.2 Birr ha-1, total productivity (80,568.49 birr) and net return (55,214.0 birr) were recorded from maize + common bean - mung bean. The, maximum marginal rate of return was obtained from maize + common bean - mung bean and applying 69 kg·N·ha-1 (1080%). Thus, farmers should be advised to practice cropping of maize + common bean - mung with 69 kg·N·ha-1 to get economical maize production.

Priority areas in municipality planning: ecosystem services, environmental impact assessments and research areas

Background: Several pressing issues face municipal planners including increased land use and climate change. Managing these issues requires a balance between different actions to accommodate citize ...

Modeling the impact of highland settlements on ecological disturbance of streams in Choke Mountain Catchment: Macroinvertebrate assemblages and water quality

Human disturbances of waterways in Ethiopian highlands have increased throughout the last century due to population growth and increased land use. Despite this, there is a lack of knowledge on macroinvertebrate responses to human disturbances and the application of biological monitoring in tropical highland waterways in general. In this study, we have evaluated the human impact on the ecological integrity of the Chemoga River catchment in the Choke mountain watershed in the northwestern region of the Ethiopian Blue Nile highlands. During wet and dry seasons the water quality and macroinvertebrate assemblages were assessed. Multivariate statistics and Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA) were used to identify factors influencing macroinvertebrate community structures in highland streams in the northwest regions of Ethiopia. A total of 66 taxa of benthic macroinvertebrates were recorded, among which Diptera (38%) and Coleoptera (21%) were the most dominant. The results revealed a severe decrease in the ecological integrity of the Chemoga River in terms of macroinvertebrate composition at higher altitude. The ordination and cluster analysis clearly indicates extremely low macroinvertebrate diversity at sites where human impact is severe and a strong effect of altitude. These results highlight the need to protect the highland waterways of the Blue Nile area and that of similarly degraded watersheds in the Ethiopian highlands.