Regional Agricultural Systems Research Articles

Food, water, and fault lines: Remote sensing opportunities for earthquake-response management of agricultural water

Earthquakes often cause destructive and unpredictable changes that can affect local hydrology (e.g. groundwater elevation or reduction) and thus disrupt land uses and human activities. Prolific agricultural regions overlie seismically active areas, emphasizing the importance to improve our understanding and monitoring of hydrologic and agricultural systems following a seismic event. A thorough data collection is necessary for adequate post-earthquake crop management response; however, the large spatial extent of earthquake's impact makes challenging the collection of robust data sets for identifying locations and magnitude of these impacts. Observing hydrologic responses to earthquakes is not a novel concept, yet there is a lack of methods and tools for assessing earthquake's impacts upon the regional hydrology and agricultural systems. The objective of this paper is to describe how remote sensing imagery, methods and tools allow detecting crop responses and damage incurred after earthquakes because a change in the regional hydrology. Many remote sensing datasets are long archived with extensive coverage and with well-documented methods to assess plant-water relations. We thus connect remote sensing of plant water relations to its utility in agriculture using a post-earthquake agrohydrologic remote sensing (PEARS) framework; specifically in agro-hydrologic relationships associated with recent earthquake events that will lead to improved water management.

Exploring the role of local heirloom germplasm in expanding western Washington dry bean production

ABSTRACTIncreasing production of dry beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) could contribute to the sustainability of regional agricultural systems. This study in western Washington identified 24 distinct dry bean varieties grown in the region for 20–130 years; varieties originated from diverse geographic areas and were maintained because growers valued the culinary, visual, and agronomic traits as well as history and marketability. Primary barriers to increased production were access to scale-appropriate equipment and drying beans in the field prior to harvest. Locally conserved germplasm may have value in participatory plant breeding projects that recognize the contributions of regional farmers.

일본잡초학회에서 본 일본의 잡초연구 동향

This paper reviews current status of weed science in Japanese regional agricultural systems based on the 54th Annual Meeting of the Weed Science Society of Japan. About 300 researchers from 5 countries including Korea participated in the Conference and presented 100 papers in research areas. This congress has an purpose to discuss new troubles, findings and results of weed science. Weed science faces big challenges such as increase in herbicide-resistant weeds, gene-flow from transgenic crops, and invasive weeds. Major research topics were invasive weeds and their ecology, allelopathy, weed management in paddy field, weed management in field crops, and herbicide resistance. Weed control and herbicide resistance management in paddy field were a main object of research. To prevent the increase of problematic weeds and to overcome food crisis, the importance of weed-related researches has been raised. Therefore it is expected that various weed management systems and control of herbicide resistant weeds should be studied continuously in the weed science.

Estimation of potassium and magnesium flows in animal production in Dianchi Lake basin, China.

The objectives of this study were to estimate and evaluate potassium (K) and magnesium (Mg) budgets and flows of animal production in the basin of Dianchi Lake, China. Feed sampling and farmer interviews were conducted in field surveys. The supplies of K and Mg from local and external feeds and the retention, production and excretion of animals were calculated individually for dairy cows, fattening pigs, breeding sows, and broilers and laying hens. The K and Mg flows on a regional level were estimated using the individual budgets. At the individual level, in dairy cattle, the K and Mg supplied from local feeds accounted for large parts of the total nutrient intakes, whereas in the other animal categories most of the K and Mg in the feeds depended on external resources. Our findings also suggested that excessive Mg intake resulted in high Mg excretion and low use efficiency in dairy cattle and fattening pigs. At the regional level, the K and Mg amounts of manure produced and applied in the area (K: 339 and Mg: 143 t/year) exceeded those used as local feeds. Our results imply the animal production potentially increased the K and Mg loads in the regional agriculture system.

Climatic water balance dynamics over the last five decades in Romania’s most arid region, Dobrogea

The analysis of a territory’s climatic water balance dynamics against the background of climate change is a key component for increasing water resource management efficiency. The present study aims to analyse climatic water balance (CWB) dynamics in Romania’s most arid region, Dobrogea, located in the southeast. The study covers the 1961–2009 period, and is based on annual and seasonal CWB values (mm), provided by nine weather stations located throughout the region. The study, based on statistical and GIS techniques, is divided into two main stages, both carried out at annual and seasonal scales–trend analysis using the Mann-Kendall test, the Sen’s slope method, and CWB value distribution type analysis. In order to identify the probabilistic types of distributions, four mathematical models were identified–Pearson, Gamma, Chi-Squared and Wakeby, statistically verified with the P-P Plot, Q-Q Plot and Probabillity Difference Graph (PDG) curve tests. Thus, in terms of trends, the results showed a deficit increase especially at the northern stations, mainly for annual values (with a peak in the northeast, where CWB rates reached –3.2 mm/yr). While general CWB declines occurred in winter, spring and summer, apparent decrease rates were found in the northern region (highest negative rates–summer, northwest, –1.4 mm/yr). Autumn is an exception, due to overall increase rates which peaked in the southwest (2.3 mm/yr). However, the entire trend analysis indicated a general lack of statistical significance. The distribution type histogram analysis showed that, annually and seasonally, deficit values are generally dominant (more noticeable in the northern region), except for the winter season, mainly characterized by surplus intervals. Thus, the results suggest a climatic water deficit increase over the last five decades especially in northern Dobrogea, which signals the need for a spatial prioritization targeting a more efficient water resource management, necessary first and foremost for increasing regional agricultural system productivity.

The implementation of measure 121 of the rural development program: Comparative analysis between Italy and Lithuania

This study analyze some specific aspects of the implementation of the Rural Development Program between the Apulia Region (in Southern Italy) and Lithuania for the period 2007–2013 and highlight the limitations characterizing the possibility of building an analysis framework aimed at understanding how it actually affects the regional and country agricultural system. More specifically, by referring to a specific measure of the rural development program (Measure 121 of Axes I), the aim is to analyze whether there are difference of investment activity implemented. To this purpose, we have worked at collection all the information available at the Managing Authority of Apulia Region and Lithuanian Institute of Agrarian Economics. The observation of the gathered data, in fact, makes us observe the existence some difference between two country, in particular in Lithuania there is preference for a larger number of small projects that provides more homogeneous development of rural areas and promotes entrepreneurship, in Italy (Apulia Region) mostly large projects were financed. The aim to this study is to make an early attempt to conceptualize a framework through the analysis of the Rural Development Program 2007–2013 between Italy (Apulia Region) and Lithuania, the measure 121 it is implemented. The results of this study evidence a large number of small projects in Lithuania aimed at provide a more homogeneous development of rural area.

Limitations to assess the impact of rural development policy in the Puglia region: The case of measure 121 – Axes I

In this work, some specific aspects of the Rural Development Plan of the Puglia Region (in Southern Italy) for the period 2007-2013 are analyzed and the limitations characterizing the possibility of building an analysis framework aimed at understanding how it actually affects the regional agricultural system are highlighted. More specifically, by referring to a specific measure of the rural development program (Measure 121 of Axes I), the aim is to verify whether the investment activity implemented has actually generated some positive results which can induce us to say that the EU budget devoted to rural development is well spent. In order to achieve this purpose, the authors of the present work have worked at gathering all the information available at the Puglia Region Authority. Nevertheless, this is not helpful for the type of the analysis the authors would like to conduct. The observation of the gathered data, in fact, makes the authors observe the existence of severe limitations deriving from the way in which the Regional Authority manages the data collection. The main aim of this work is to present a framework of analysis which might be used for policy evaluation purposes and to discuss what should be further required for a useful completion of the dataset with the aim of making it the subject of empirical analyses.

Climate Change Impacts on Maize-yield Potential in the Southwestern United States

Agricultural productivity is strongly dependent on local climate conditions determined by meteorological parameters thus assessing the potential impact of the climate change and variability on regional agricultural systems has become crucial. To ensure food security, it is required to find under performing regions to investments and assess yields change in high-performing regions in coming decades under climate change and variability. In this study, we investigate the response of maize yield potential (Yp) on climate change scenario using Agricultural Production Systems sIMulator (APSIM) crop model over the Southwestern U.S. (SWUS) region.APSIM's modules are essentially point-based models representing the system at a single point in space. We develop automated modeling framework (ApsimRegions, 2013), which allows the APSIM to be run over a large domain with about a thousand points over the study area. Using 21-year period (1991-2011) of North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR) data, we perform sensitivity test of the maize Yp to assess the relative contribution of climate variables, by adding standard deviation of the climatological values. The results show that maximum and minimum temperature greatly contribute to the variation of maize yields over the SWUS on the interannual time scale, depending on geographical locations with varied local climates.In order to access data of present and future climate, we have completed high-resolution regional climate simulation by dynamically downscaling general circulation model results (GFDL-ESM2M) using regional climate models (WRF and OLAM). In this study, 20 years of integration period is selected in both historical period (1981-2000) and future period (2031-2050). The potential maize yields in the future period under the RCP8.5 greenhouse gas concentrations pathways show that the yields are significantly changed comparing to the historical period. In the generally rising temperature regime, the projected Yp shows strong geospatial variations according to the regional climate characteristics.

아시아·태평양 지역 잡초연구 동향 및 전망

This paper reviews current status of weed science in Asian-Pacific regional agricultural systems based on the 24th Asian-Pacific Weed Science Society Conference. About 190 researchers from 16 countries including Korea participated in the Conference and presented 160 papers in 11 research areas. Major research topics were invasive weeds and their ecology, allelopathy, weed management in paddy field, weed management in field crops, and herbicide resistance. Because rice is a major food crop in Asian countries, weed control and herbicide resistance management in paddy field were a main object of research. Weed control in maize, soybean and wheat has also been studied continuously. To prevent the increase of problematic weeds and to overcome food crisis, the importance of weed-related researches has been raised. Therefore it is expected that various weed management systems and control of herbicide resistant weeds should be studied continuously in the future.

Monitoring and evaluating the sustainability of Italian agricultural system. An emergy decomposition analysis

The agricultural sector is critical for the achievement of sustainable development worldwide. Its present and future sustainability relies on the difficult balance of food production and environmental impact. The need for resource use optimization and increasing reliance on renewable energy, calls for increased development and integration of its supporting, provisioning, regulating and social services (multifunctionality) worldwide, in agreement with the global framework of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, the European Union Objectives and other international assessment studies (e.g. the United Nations International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development).The performance of the Italian agricultural system is monitored and evaluated in this paper by means of the emergy accounting method coupled to decomposition analysis techniques, applied to a 25 year time series (1985–2010). The aim of this study is to assess the sustainability of these systems over time as well as to identify the major drivers of performance change, to serve as the basis for future policy scenarios. Two Italian regional agricultural systems (Emilia Romagna, in Northern Italy, and Campania, in Southern Italy) are selected as case studies representative of the Italian agriculture. Results show a steady decrease of cropped land, an increase of the fraction of renewable resource use, an overall increase of sustainability (expressed by emergy indicators) in both regions. The fraction of renewable emergy use increased from 14% to 21% in the Emilia Romagna region and from 23% to 27% in the Campania region, compared to the year 1985, with oscillating behavior over time. The overall Emergy Sustainability Index increased from 14% to 16% in the Emilia Romagna region and from 15% to 19% in the Campania region, recently. The results of decomposition analysis highlight the important role of land use change and labor productivity as major drivers of total emergy use in both agricultural systems. The approach applied in this paper is applicable to the study of other national and regional agricultural sectors wordwide, provided suitable time series of input and output flows are available.

Regional-scale phosphorus flows and budgets within France: The importance of agricultural production systems

Large-scale studies at the regional, national and global scales are increasingly needed to assess nutrient flows in agroecoystems and to identify their drivers. In this study, we aimed to quantify the extent to which regional phosphorus (P) flows and soil P budget depend on agricultural production systems. Phosphorus was taken as a case study due to its sorbing properties in soil and to the many questions concerning its future availability. The issue was studied from two different stages: (1) for the 21 administrative regions of France; and (2) by selecting four contrasting French regions—the Centre region (a crop farming region), Brittany (an animal farming region) and Lorraine and Aquitaine (mixed farming regions). Phosphorus flows and soil P budgets were quantified on a yearly basis for the 21 regions from 1990 to 2006, whereas a 5-year average was calculated for the years 2002–2006 to compare the four selected regions. At the beginning of the study (1990), the calculated P budget was positive for all regions averaging 17.5 kg P ha−1 year−1 which declined over years to 4.4 kg P ha−1 year−1 in 2006, but huge differences between the 21 regions were observed, confirming the heterogeneity of the regional P flows. Agricultural production systems strongly influenced the P flows through feed, fodder and animal excretion, while P fertiliser consumption was only partially influenced. As a consequence, both the regional soil P budgets and the magnitude of soil P inflows and outflows were strongly dependent on the regional agricultural production systems. A balanced soil P budget could be obtained in crop farming regions, but it strongly relied on P fertiliser use. The animal farming regions continued to accumulate P in the soil, and further use of P fertilisers in these regions is questionable. Finally, there was no simple rule between the mixed farming systems and the soil P budget. This study offers some initial elements for understanding the drivers of mineral P fertiliser use, i.e. the factors governing P fertiliser use by the farmers. It may also contribute to the redesign of regional farming systems oriented towards more effective use of nutrients at the global scale.

The effects of changing regional Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation System on Italian farmers’ strategies

The aim of this paper is to identify and assess the role played by innovative extension services in affecting farmers’ strategy. More specifically we implement a multivariate probit model to evaluate the effects of different types of extension services introduced by a reform in the domain of Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation System (AKIS) in Italy. The results show that both generalist and specialized services could play a major role in farmers’ value creation strategies. They also confirm that different strategies for creating value are jointly implemented. Finally, they show that a further improvement in the quality of public provision of extension services within regional AKIS and a greater (systemic) interaction between farmers, rural actors and local networks should be supported.

Emergy evaluation perspectives of an irrigation improvement project proposal in China

Emergy theory and method are used to evaluate the feasibility of an irrigation improvement project in China and its contribution to local agricultural development. An emergy method for evaluating the costs and benefits of the project and a composite index named the emergy cost–benefit ratio ( EmCBR) were developed. The emergy evaluation shows that the major costs associated with the proposed project come from earthwork (77.4% of the total cost) and concrete work (15.4%), and that water saving (43.0% of the total benefit) and agricultural yield increase (56.9%) are the most important contributions. The calculated EmCBR is 0.97 (the lowest value for a feasible project is 1.0) which indicates that this project would not be feasible in emergy terms. The regional agricultural system could not benefit from the proposed project, according to several emergy indices: emergy yield ratio ( EYR), emergy investment ratio ( EIR), environmental load ratio ( ELR) and environmental sustainability index ( ESI). The results show that conventional cost–benefit analysis could fail to provide an adequate decision-making framework because it is unable to value resources and environmental impacts properly. More additional emergy evaluations should be completed on other alternatives to the proposed project to provide adequate guidelines for selecting the best alternative that contributes most to agricultural development with limited environmental impact.

제49회 일본잡초학회 참가 보고

Abstract : This paper reviews current status of weed science in Japanese regional agricultural systems based on the 54th Annual Meeting of the Weed Science Society of Japan. About 300 researchers from 5 countries including Korea participated in the Conference and presented 100 papers in research areas. This congress has an purpose to discuss new troubles, findings and results of weed science. Weed science faces big challenges such as increase in herbicide-resistant weeds, gene-flow from transgenic crops, and invasive weeds. Major research topics were invasive weeds and their ecology, allelopathy, weed management in paddy field, weed management in field crops, and herbicide resistance. Weed control and herbicide resistance management in paddy field were a main object of research. To prevent the increase of problematic weeds and to overcome food crisis, the importance of weed-related researches has been raised. Therefore it is expected that various weed management systems and control of herbicide resistant weeds should be studied continuously in the weed science.

A Modelling Framework for Optimisation of Commodity Production by Minimising the Impact of Climate Change

The agricultural sector is vulnerable to the impact of climate change due to decreasing rainfall, increasing temperature, and the frequency of extreme weather events. A modelling framework was developed and applied to identify issues, problems and opportunities arising in regional agricultural systems as a consequence of climate change. This integrated framework blends together land suitability analysis, uncertainty analysis and an optimisation approach to establish optimal agricultural land-use patterns on a regional scale for current and possible future climate scenarios. The framework can also be used to identify (i) regions under threat of productivity decline, and (ii) alternative crops and their locations that can cope better with changing climate. The methods and contents of the framework are presented by means of a case study developed in the South West Region of Victoria, Australia. The results can be used to assess land suitability in support of optimised crop allocations across a local region, and to underpin the development of a regional adaptation policy framework designed to reduce the vulnerability of the agriculture sector to the impacts of climate change.

Carbon‐based stock feed additives: a research methodology that explores ecologically delivered C biosequestration, alongside live weights, feed use efficiency, soil nutrient retention, and perennial fodder plantations

There is considerable interest in reliable and practical methods to sequester carbon (C) into agricultural soils to both reduce atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations and improve conventional productivity. This article outlines a research methodology to refine the efficacy and economics of using long-lived C species (biochars) as stock feed additives, produced from farm waste biomass, for ecologically delivered soil biosequestration, while generating renewable bioenergy. This article also draws attention to potential parallel outputs including annual feed use efficiency, fodder species expansion, soil nutrient retention, aquatic habitat protection, and forestry revegetation, using nitrogen-fixing perennial fodder plant species. A methodology to generate parallel results including standing fodder tree C sequestration, optimised production of Acacia spp. biochar, animal growth on high-tannin fodder with biochar feed additives, soil nutrient and stable C fractions, and economics of Acacia spp. bioenergy production. This form of research is contextually dependent on the regional agricultural production system, legislation, and surrounding ecosystem. Therefore, this article suggests the use of a scenario approach to include regionally specific levels of biochar integration with respect to the local prices for C, fossil fuels, meat and livestock, fertilisers, fodder, feed additives, water, renewable energy, revegetation and capital.

Adaptation of vulnerable regional agricultural systems in Europe to climate change – results from the ADAGIO project

Abstract. During 2007-2009 the ADAGIO project (http://www.adagio-eu.org) is carried out to evaluate regional adaptation options in agriculture in most vulnerable European regions (mediterranean, central and eastern European regions). In this context a bottom-up approach is used beside the top-down approach of using scientific studies, involving regional experts and farmers in the evaluation of potential regional vulnerabilities and adaptation options. Preliminary results of the regional studies and gathered feedback from experts and farmers show in general that (increasing) drought and heat are the main factors having impact on agricultural vulnerability not only in the Mediterranean region, but also in the Central and southern Eastern European regions. Another important aspect is that the increasing risk of pest and diseases may play a more important role for agricultural vulnerability than assumed before, however, till now this field is only rarely investigated in Europe. Although dominating risks such as increasing drought and heat are similar in most regions, the vulnerabilities in the different regions are very much influenced by characteristics of the dominating agroecosystems and prevailing socio-economic conditions. This will be even be more significant for potential adaptation measures at the different levels, which have to reflect the regional conditions.

Farming dynamics and social capital: A case study in the urban fringe of Mexico City

Urban development has important implications for farmland preservation and natural resource management in local peri-urban communities. Social science research on recent changes in rural landscape of mega-cities tends to be limited to case studies in Latin-American nations. This study analyses the socioecomic dynamics of farming land use and the interactions between multiple cultural variables and the environment. Fieldwork was carried out during the 2002–2003 period in rural livelihoods of the five high mountain towns of south Mexico City. Data obtained from participatory survey and ethnographic techniques were integrated to assess changes in rural landscape and resource management and how urbanization, deforestation and market oriented agricultural production result in different livelihoods within a similar urban fringe context. The dynamic of mixture of urban and rural landscapes is based on farm productivity and social capital factors. The study concludes that policy support for regional agricultural production systems through enhancing ecosystems services, environmental protection and economic development is needed for sustainable development of local communities.

Harmony Coefficient and Regional Agricultural Systems

The regional agricultural system (RAS) can be divided into three subsystems: ecological, economic, and social. This article examines the use of the harmony coefficient (HC), efficacy coefficient, rank of the harmony coefficient (RHC), and its appraising index system within the RAS. The harmony coefficient function was developed using a variance coefficient and then applied to Ziyang District, Yiyang City in Hunan Province (ZYH), China, as a test case. From 1995 to 2002, the HC of RAS increased from 0.2982 to 0.4826 and the RHC increased from 3 to 5, although the HC trend was an “n” type in general. This suggests that the HC was weakly maladjusted and the RAS was not harmonious. The HC of the ecological subsystem decreased from 0.3898 to 0.2850, and its RHC from 4 to 3, with the HC trend following the “n” type. For the economic subsystem, the HC value increased from 0.5767 to 0.7458 and the RHC from 6 to 8. However, the trend in HC for the economic subsystem was of the “U” type. The HC of the social subsystem increased slightly from 0.4948 to 0.4663, and the RHC did not change in value. From the HC trends, the HC curve of the economic subsystem is above the HC curve of ZYH and the HC curve of the ecological subsystem is below the HC curve of ZHY. Hence, the ZHY environment has been destroyed by economic development. Environment and social building should be regarded as important issues in the future and promoting RAS harmony development should be considered. The results of the theoretical analysis match fairly closely with reality, and suggest that the harmony theory is feasible in appraising RAS development phases.

Impact of nitrogen reduction measures on nitrogen surplus, income and production of German agriculture

Among the numerous non-point sources of diffuse water pollution with nitrogen, agriculture is counted one of the main sources. The agricultural policies of the Agenda 2000 and a decoupling of direct payments for farmers from their production decisions are exemplarily evaluated as nitrogen reduction measures using the Regional Agricultural and Environmental Information System RAUMIS. The results show that until the target year 2010 the risk of diffuse pollution of water bodies with nitrogen is a regional problem in Germany. These problems are neither mitigated by the policies of Agenda 2000 nor by a decoupling of direct payments from production decisions of farmers. While total nitrogen surplus reduces considerably after a decoupling of direct payments due to decreases of land-use the nitrogen surplus on the remaining cultivated area increases resulting from structural changes. Granting the same amount of direct payments to farmers in both policy alternatives the agricultural sector income would be higher after a decoupling of direct payments opposed to the Agenda 2000 resulting from a more efficient allocation of inputs.