Regional Natural Resource Management Research Articles

Assessment of sustainability in the Wulo Abiye watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia

Assessing the sustainability of watersheds holds significant importance for regional natural resource management and to achieve sustainable development. This study investigated the sustainability of the Wulo Abiye watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia. The sustainability status of the watershed was evaluated by using 17 indicators representing the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of sustainable development goals (SDGs) based on the local and existing conditions of the watershed. The results indicated that environmental sustainability was at 'high' level, while social and economic sustainability and the aggregate index were at ‘moderate’ levels. The overall level of community participation in the planning and evaluation phases of watershed management was at 'low' levels. The implementation phase was at 'high' level. Overall, the sustainability status of watershed management and level of community participation were at ‘moderate’ levels. The study concluded that integrated support is needed to overcome the identified challenges to achieve sustainable development in watersheds.

Spatial and temporal variation in normalized difference vegetation index of vegetation in Liaoning Province from the perspective of ecogeographic zoning

Normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) is an important indicator reflecting vegetation cover and growth status. It is of significance for regional ecological conservation and natural resource management to investigate its spatial and temporal variation trends and response to ecological factors. We divided Liaoning Province into three ecological geographical regions, including northwest agro-pastoral zone, central agricultural zone, and eastern agroforestry zone. Based on remote sensing, vegetation, climate, topography and human activities, we used trend analysis and geographic probe model to examine the spatial and temporal trends of NDVI in Liaoning Province, and analyzed the intensity and interaction mechanism of each driver on the spatial distribution pattern of NDVI. The results showed that the annual average NDVI in Liaoning Province from 2001 to 2020 was 0-0.92, showing a distribution pattern of high in the east and low in the west, high in the inland and low in the coastal land. The overall trend of vegetation cover was increasing, and the NDVI increasing areas were mainly concentrated in the northwest agro-pastoral zone and the eastern agroforestry zone, the NDVI reduction areas were mainly concentrated at the border between the central agricultural zone and the eastern agroforestry zone, as well as in the coastal area of the eastern agroforestry zone. The annual average NDVI change varied among the three ecological-geographic zones. The NDVI of the northwest agro-pastoral zone from 2001 to 2020 were generally low, but showed a fluctuating trend of slow increase. The NDVI of the eastern agroforestry zone was high overall, and the interannual variation of NDVI was generally stable. The distribution of high and low NDVI in the central agricultural zone was staggered, and the interannual variation of NDVI showed a decreasing trend. Natural factors were the key drivers of NDVI changes in the three ecogeographic zones, with cumulative temperature and precipitation having the greatest influence. The interactions between the factors were all mutually and nonlinearly enhanced.

Spatial Analysis Of Land Cover Change In Wae Batu Gajah Watershed, Ambon City In 2013, 2018 And 2023 Using Geographic Information System

This research presents a spatial analysis of land cover change in the Wae Batu Gajah Watershed, Ambon City, over three time periods, namely 2013, 2018, and 2023, using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The data used for land cover change analysis are Landsat 7 satellite images for 2013 and satellite images for 2018 and 2023. Land cover is classified based on SNI 7465:2010 on Land Cover Classification which consists of built-up land, open land, non-agricultural land and water bodies. The analysis showed significant changes in land use patterns, including rapid urbanization, loss of natural habitats, and transformation of agricultural land. This information provides an important basis for sustainable regional planning and natural resource management. In addition, this study provides insights into the socioeconomic impacts of land cover change on local communities, and makes an important contribution to the understanding of environmental dynamics and better decision-making for the future of the Wae Batu Gajah watershed.

Foresight in natural resource management: A case study in Australia

Accelerated impacts of climate change pose significant challenges for natural resource management (NRM), challenging traditional decision-making approaches. Foresight provides a range of suitable methods for informing NRM due to high uncertainty and complexity. Foresight processes are inherently political endeavours because they are used to allocate resources and engage in normative questions of what constitutes a desirable future. Existing empirical examples suggest that broader political and institutional settings may constrain foresight in NRM. However, to date, research has not explored the broader contexts that shape foresight processes. The paper draws on qualitative and quantitative data from an exploratory survey with 32 regional NRM organisations (NRMOs) across Australia. It develops an exploratory framework that situates foresight interventions within nested scales, to consider how broader socio-cultural, political and institutional contexts shape and constrain how NRMOs apply foresight and how its outcomes are taken up in decision-making. We have found that NRMOs are using a broad range of foresight methods with five categories of outcomes, including relationship building, knowledge generation and integration; capacity building; strategy development; and normative outcomes. We argue that increased attention to normative outcomes may support NRM to explicitly engage with the political dimensions of long-term planning. Despite this, the broader socio-cultural and environmental contexts create a challenging disjunct wherein foresight interventions face multiple constraints and tensions.

Development of a map for land use and land cover classification of the Northern Border Region using remote sensing and GIS

The land use and land cover study (LULC) play an essential role in regional socio-economic development and natural resource management to develop sustainable development in vegetation changes, water quantity and quality, land resources, and coastal management. This study uses remote sensing data to investigate LULC in the Northern Border Region (NBR) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The purpose of this study is to obtain a better understanding of the patterns and drivers of changes in LULC in the NBR over the past three decades. Remote sensing data from Landsat imagery between 1990 and 2022 were used to classify LULC types, and a time series analysis was performed using Landsat imagery to detect changes over time. The classification finds four main classes: bare land, built-up area, rocks, and vegetation. The results indicate a significant increase in urban development. The outcomes revealed that most urbanization occurred in the outskirts of the cities, where previously there were bare soil lands. The main drivers of urbanization were population growth and economic development. These findings have important implications for city planning, the management of green spaces, and the sustainable development of cities. Maximum Likelihood classifier was used to perform the classification. The accuracy assessment demonstrated satisfactory results, with an overall accuracy of 92.6%. The study paves the way for further monitoring LULC changes in the NBR geographic location. The technique used was adequate to address the objectives of this study.

Monitoring of sustainable land management using remotely sensed vegetation cover and variable tolerable soil erosion targets across New South Wales, Australia

AbstractThe monitoring of land management practices is vital for the protection of soil resource and the environment. Here, we present a new approach to monitor sustainable land management using widely available remotely sensed data, such as MODIS fractional vegetation cover data. The method is based on the concept of maintaining sufficient vegetation cover to prevent hillslope water erosion beyond tolerable soil erosion targets. The targets were based on long‐term natural erosion rates plus a small constant and are spatially and temporally variable, not static as in most reported studies to date. Where vegetation cover is more than that required to prevent nontolerable erosion under normal conditions for that calendar month, the site (pixel) is deemed to be managed sustainably. Monthly indices are then combined to form a yearly sustainable land management index (SLMI), presented as raster maps with a spatial resolution of 100 m. We explored this new method through case studies over New South Wales (NSW), Australia, over the period 2010 to 2021, with a particular examination of 2020. Results were further stratified by land uses and natural resource management regions, which revealed useful data and trends. The method is offered as an example of the potential use of readily available vegetation cover data to quantitatively assess and monitor levels of sustainable land management across landscapes. We believe it overcomes the limitations of previous methods to monitor vegetation cover and land management from remote‐sensed data alone. Other users are encouraged to adapt the broad approach to meet local requirements.

Quantifying blue carbon stocks and the role of protected areas to conserve coastal wetlands

Vegetated coastal ecosystems, in particular mangroves, tidal marshes and seagrasses are highly efficient at sequestering and storing carbon, making them valuable assets for climate change mitigation and adaptation. The state of Queensland, in northeastern Australia, contains almost half of the total area of these blue carbon ecosystems in the country, yet there are few detailed regional or state-wide assessments of their total sedimentary organic carbon (SOC) stocks. We compiled existing SOC data and used boosted regression tree models to evaluate the influence of environmental variables in explaining the variability in SOC stocks, and to produce spatially explicit blue carbon estimates. The final models explained 75 % (for mangroves and tidal marshes) and 65 % (for seagrasses) of the variability in SOC stocks. Total SOC stocks in the state of Queensland were estimated at 569 ± 98 Tg C (173 ± 32 Tg C, 232 ± 50 Tg C, and 164 ± 16 Tg C from mangroves, tidal marshes and seagrasses, respectively). Regional predictions for each of Queensland's eleven Natural Resource Management regions revealed that 60 % of the state's SOC stocks occurred within three regions (Cape York, Torres Strait and Southern Gulf Natural Resource Management regions) due to a combination of high values of SOC stocks and large areas of coastal wetlands. Protected areas in Queensland play an important role in conserving SOC assets in Queensland's coastal wetlands. For example, ~19 Tg C within terrestrial protected areas, ~27 Tg C within marine protected areas and ~ 40 Tg C within areas of matters of State Environmental Significance. Using multi-decadal (1987–2020) mapped distributions of mangroves in Queensland; we found that mangrove area increased by approximately 30,000 ha from 1987 to 2020, which led to temporal fluctuations in mangrove plant and SOC stocks. We estimated that plant stocks decreased from ~45 Tg C in 1987 to ~34.2 Tg C in 2020, while SOC stocks remained relatively constant from ~107.9 Tg C in 1987 to 108.0 Tg C in 2020. Considering the level of current protection, emissions from mangrove deforestation are potentially very low; therefore, representing minor opportunities for mangrove blue carbon projects in the region. Our study provides much needed information on current trends in carbon stocks and their conservation in Queensland's coastal wetlands, while also contributing to guide future management actions, including blue carbon restoration projects.

The monetary value of 16 services protected by the Australian National Biosecurity System: Spatially explicit estimates and vulnerability to incursions

Biosecurity systems protect numerous assets, distributed differentially across space. Focusing on Australia’s 56 natural resource management regions, we generate spatially explicit estimates of the current value of 16 different services generated by assets that are protected by the biosecurity system (hereafter values). Benefit transfer functions are used to generate some values; others are derived from observable market data. Across all regions and services, we estimate an aggregate value of approximately $250b p.a. Nearly 90% of those values are ecosystem service values, associated with Australia’s Natural Capital and more than one-half are services not normally bought or sold in the marketplace (e.g., a subset of cultural and most regulating services). We use insights from the literature, in conjunction with our values, to estimate the potential losses that (a) weeds and (b) invertebrates, could inflict in different regions – hereafter, vulnerabilities (potential $ losses per hectare p.a.). Urban areas are generally more vulnerable than remote areas, and many regions are more vulnerable to invertebrates than weeds, but weed vulnerabilities dominate in several of the large, remote, NRMs across the north, in the ‘outback’ and in the west. Our values can be used to assess the vulnerability of natural capital, and other capitals, to a wide range of other threats and are thus of potential use in numerous policy settings. Our generic approach to considering impacts at large geographic scale (using values and then assessing vulnerabilities) is one that is useful and transferrable to other settings across the world.

The Regional Diagnosis of Onset and Demise of the Rainy Season over Tropical and Subtropical Australia

Abstract In this paper, we introduce a novel strategy to robustly diagnose the onset and demise of the rainy season using daily observed rainfall over seven specific regions across Australia, as demarcated by the Natural Resource Management (NRM) agency of Australia. The methodology lies in developing an ensemble spread of the diagnosed onset and demise from randomly perturbing the observed daily time series of rainfall at synoptic scales to obtain a measure of the uncertainty of the diagnosis. Our results indicate that the spread of the ensemble in the diagnosis of the onset and demise dates of the rainy season is higher in the subtropical region than the tropical region. Secular change of earlier onset, later demise, longer length, and wetter season are also identified in many of these regions. The influence of the PDO at decadal scale, ENSO and Indian Ocean dipole at interannual scale, and MJO at intraseasonal scale also reveals significant influence on the evolution of the rainy season over these regions in Australia. Most important, the covariability of the onset date with the length of the season and seasonal rainfall anomaly of the season is highlighted as a valuable relationship that can be exploited for real-time monitoring and providing an outlook of the forthcoming rainy season, which could serve some of the NRM regions. Significance Statement We document the rainfall variability during the rainy season over tropical, subtropical, and semiarid regions of Australia and relate them to modes of climate variability spanning from intraseasonal to secular time scales. The study highlights the varied influence of the modes of climate variability on various aspects of the evolution of the rainy season, such as its onset and demise dates and the seasonal rainfall anomaly over these Australian regions. The study uses 114 years of data and shows that the variations in the length of the rainy season and its seasonal rainfall anomaly are strongly dictated by variations of rainy-season onset date. This provides a quick seasonal outlook of the forthcoming rainy season by just monitoring the onset-date evolution in these regions.

A review of current trends and future directions in the medical ethnobotany of Gilgit-Baltistan (Northern Pakistan)

Background: Ethnobotanical studies play an important role in understanding the plant diversity, bio-cultural variability, utilization of plant-based resources, drug discovery and conservation efforts. The current paper reviews and assesses the ethnobotanical literature and documented medicinal plants of the region of Gilgit-Baltistan, Northern Pakistan. Methods: Relevant literature was searched using electronic scholarly databases Google Scholar, Google, Scopus, Sciences Direct, PubMed, Medline and Web of Science internet websites were extensively browsed using different 24 terms as key words. A total of twenty-four (24) academic journal articles published from 2002 – 2020 were reviewed. Results: Geographically, 54% articles were from Karakorum Range, 75% form Gilgit sub region and 25% Gilgit district. Ethnic-wise 58% of the studies were conducted on Shinas, 25% on Baltis and 12.5% on Brushiski while Wakhi and Khwar were least explored. For data collection interview methods were solely used. A total of 413 plant species were used for 3160 remedies in 224 genera and 79 families from both wild (83%) and cultivated sources (16%). Asteraceae, Rosaceae and Fabaceae were the most used plant families with 58, 36 and 32 species respectively. Artemisia was the leading genus with 11 species followed by Prunus (9 species). Salix, Saussurea, Potentilla, Astragalus and Allium contributed seven (7) species each. Regarding habit herbaceous species were most commonly used (310 species, 75%) and shrubs and trees showed comparatively less contribution with 53 (12%) and 49 (11%) species. Article quotation of the recorded species indicated that, Hippophae rhamnoides and Thymus linearis were the most important medicinal species with highest AQ values (number of reports)17 i.e. reported by 70% of the articles. These recorded species were used to treat 353 disease types for different human body systems. Conclusion: The region of GB is still poorly investigated ethnobotanically, and limited literature found on this subject. However, the diverse medicinal flora of Gilgit-Baltistan validated the regional potential of phytomedicines despite scarce research efforts. GB territory possesses three national parks and current study may be fruitful to develop strategies for regional biodiversity conservation and natural resource management. Keywords: Indigenous knowledge, medicinal plants, mountain ecosystem, natural resources

How prominent are coastal and marine environments in Australia's natural resource management regions? A reflection of past arrangements and current conditions

Coastal Natural Resources Management (NRM) is a distinct sector in Australia with a focus on biodiversity conservation. It is a sector worthy of scrutiny because coastal and marine environments are arguably more complex and dynamic than their terrestrial counterparts thus creating more diverse challenges for managers. Land tenure at the coast in Australia also sets these environments apart and has direct implications for NRM governance, including reliance on a volunteer workforce. Numerous politically driven federal policy and funding cycles have shaped what has become Australia's current NRM system. It is argued that over time the coastal sector has become increasingly marginalised through these cycles. Here we concentrate on the devolved governance framework established in the mid-2000s as the federal government's ‘regional delivery’ model. While NRM policy has since re-centralised and shifted focus, regions and their administration have endured and are significant entities but have received little recent attention. This paper presents a brief history of NRM in Australia including the emergence of state NRM architecture and an update of the status of coastal NRM regions. We use a sample of ten NRM regions selected based on coastline length to land area ratios and affluence attributes. The prominence of coasts is considered through three pillars essential to the NRM system: Boards of Management; strategic planning, and support for the volunteer community. While a regional NRM framework is in place, the prominence of coastal and marine environments is questionable in relation to Boards of Management expertise. This has implications for strategic planning. The interrogation of plans suggests that overall, the focus of stakeholders is not primarily on conservation of coastal assets and the past levels of support for coastal volunteers is a but shadow of previous programs. A set of national guidelines or principles to integrate coastal and marine priorities in NRM planning cycles offer one mechanism to amend this situation along with a reinvigoration of a community support program.

Sustainability assessment in the anthropocentric watershed based on emergy and decomposition methods: A case study of Erhai Lake Basin, southwest China

Assessment of anthropocentric watersheds’ sustainability and its driving forces is important for regional natural resources management and sustainable development. However, the impact of natural resources use on watersheds’ sustainability needs deeper exploration. This study employs emergy accounting and decomposition analysis methods to evaluate the sustainability and related key factors of Erhai Lake Basin (ELB) of Yunnan province in China -- a watershed facing urgently sustainable issues. Major results show that the environmental sustainability index (ESI) of ELB decreased with low production efficiency -- emergy yield ratio (EYR), and high environmental pressure -- environmental loading ratio (ELR) from 2000 to 2015. Four factors within the decomposition analysis have been identified, namely the emergy intensity factor (ΔUG), resource factor (ΔRF), water supporting factor (ΔWN) and water efficiency factor (ΔPW), as the major drivers of ESI changes. The economic development in ELB highly exceeded the carrying capacity of natural water resources, relying on imported resources and, in so doing, affecting sustainability levels. Accordingly, several suggestions are proposed which are helpful for sustainable watersheds governance.

Leichhardt, land clearing and livestock: the legacy of European agriculture in the Brigalow Belt bioregion of central Queensland, Australia

Context The Brigalow Belt bioregion of central Queensland has been extensively developed for agriculture since exploration by Leichhardt in 1844. About 4.5 million hectares of vegetation dominated by brigalow (Acacia harpophylla) was cleared as part of the Land Development Fitzroy Basin Scheme, which commenced in 1962. When the Vegetation Management Act 1999 commenced, 93% of brigalow woodland had been cleared. Grazing is the dominant land use in the Fitzroy Basin, with 2.6 million cattle over 11.1 million hectares (72% of the catchment area). This is the largest cattle herd in any natural resource management region in Australia, accounting for 25% of the state herd and 11% of the national herd. Aims The Fitzroy Basin, Queensland’s largest coastal catchment, drains directly to the Great Barrier Reef, and as reef health continues to decline, there has been increased focus on the impacts of land-use change and grazing management on hydrology and runoff water quality. The Brigalow Catchment Study sought to determine the impact of land clearing, land-use change and land management on hydrology, soil fertility, water quality and animal production in the Fitzroy Basin. Methods The study is a paired, calibrated catchment study. Catchment hydrology, soil fertility, water quality and agricultural productivity were monitored before and after land clearing and land-use change. Key results The Brigalow Catchment Study has shown that clearing brigalow for grazing in the Fitzroy Basin doubled runoff, increased peak runoff rate by 50% and increased total suspended solid loads by 80%. Soil fertility and pasture productivity also declined under grazing compared with brigalow. Overgrazing exacerbated these results, as failure to reduce stocking rate with reduced pasture productivity more than tripled runoff, peak runoff rate and total suspended solid load compared with conservatively grazed pasture. Conclusions This study demonstrates the impacts of land-use change and land management on hydrology, soil fertility and water quality. The long-term data records are a model in their own right, capable of answering land-use and land-management questions beyond the initial study scope. Implications Sustainable grazing management should consider the production limitations of depleted soil and pasture resources to minimise land degradation.

Hydrology and runoff water quality from three improved pastures compared with virgin brigalow (

The Fitzroy Basin in central Queensland has the largest cattle herd of any natural resource management region in Australia, and legumes have been widely used to boost fertility of rundown soil and improve cattle liveweight gains. However, there is a paucity of information on the effect of leguminous pastures on hydrology and water quality. This study investigated runoff water quality over eight hydrological years from virgin brigalow (Acacia harpophylla) woodland and three improved pastures, namely, buffel grass (Pennisetum ciliare), butterfly pea (Clitoria ternatea) and leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala). Runoff event mean concentrations and loads of total and dissolved nitrogen, phosphorus, and carbon in addition to total suspended solids are reported. Brigalow woodland had the greatest loss of sediment and nitrogen attributed to the inherently fertile Vertosols (clay soil), but the low occurrence and amount of runoff meant that it had a low risk to water quality. Despite a similar number of runoff events from the improved pastures, leucaena pasture had less total runoff and a lower maximum peak runoff rate in addition to lower nitrogen and carbon in runoff. Total suspended solids and carbon in runoff were greater from grass pasture than from the leguminous pastures, whereas nitrogen and phosphorus were greatest from the butterfly pea pasture, especially in the first 2 years post-planting. Greater exports of phosphorus from the improved pastures were concerning, given the potential for downstream impacts.

Land use change in the river basins of the Great Barrier Reef, 1860 to 2019: A foundation for understanding environmental history across the catchment to reef continuum

Land use in the catchments draining to the Great Barrier Reef lagoon has changed considerably since the introduction of livestock grazing, various crops, mining and urban development. Together these changes have resulted in increased pollutant loads and impaired coastal water quality. This study compiled records to produce annual time-series since 1860 of human population, livestock numbers and agricultural areas at the scale of surface drainage river basins, natural resource management regions and the whole Great Barrier Reef catchment area. Cattle and several crops have experienced progressive expansion interspersed by declines associated with droughts and diseases. Land uses which have experienced all time maxima since the year 2000 include cattle numbers and the areas of sugar cane, bananas and cotton. A Burdekin Basin case study shows that sediment loads initially increased with the introduction of livestock and mining, remained elevated with agricultural development, and declined slightly with the Burdekin Falls Dam construction.

Redefining southern Australia’s climatic regions and seasons

Climate scientists routinely rely on averaging over time or space to simplify complex information and to concisely communicate findings. Currently, no consistent definitions of ‘warm’ or ‘cool’ seasons for southern Australia exist, making comparisons across studies difficult. Similarly, numerous climate studies in Australia use either arbitrarily defined areas or the Natural Resource Management (NRM) clusters to perform spatial averaging. While the NRM regions were informed by temperature and rainfall information, they remain somewhat arbitrary. Here we use weather type influence on rainfall and clustering methods to quantitatively define climatic regions and seasons over southern Australia. Three methods are explored: k-means clustering and two agglomerative clustering methods, Ward linkage and average linkage. K-means was found to be preferred in temporal clustering, while the average linkage method was preferred for spatial clustering. For southern Australia as a whole, we define the cool season as April–September and warm season as October–March, though we note that a three-season split may provide more nuanced climate analysis. We also show that different regions across southern Australia experience different seasons and demonstrate the changing spatial influence of weather types with the seasons, which may aid regionally or seasonally specific climate analysis. Division of southern Australia into 15 climatic regions shows localised agreement with the NRM clusters where distinct differences in rainfall amounts exist. However, the climate regions defined here better represent the importance of topographical aspect on weather type influence and the inland extent of particular weather types. We suggest that the use of these regions would provide consistent climate analysis across studies if widely adopted. A key requirement for climate scientists is the simplification of data sets into both seasonally or regionally averaged subsets. This simplification, by grouping like regions or seasons, is done for a number of reasons both scientific and practical, including to help understand patterns of variability, underlying drivers and trends in climate and weather, to communicate large amounts of data concisely, to reduce the amount of data required for processing (which becomes increasingly important with higher resolution climate model output), or to more simply draw a physical boundary between regions for other purposes, such as flora and fauna habitat analysis, appropriate agricultural practices or water management.

GrazingFutures: learnings from a contemporary collaborative extension program in rangeland communities of western Queensland, Australia

Producer reliance on drought subsidies instead of proactive planning and timely destocking in low rainfall years has prompted Queensland government investment in promoting business and drought resilience. GrazingFutures (AU$6 million budget, 2016–2022) is an extension project focussed on enhancing business management skills of extensive livestock producers in western Queensland, Australia. The region’s rangelands are in productivity decline, span 1 million km2 and are managed by graziers operating more than 2400 livestock businesses (beef, sheep and goats). The Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries delivers GrazingFutures as a component of the Drought and Climate Adaptation Program, in partnership with regional natural resource management groups and other public and private organisations. Project delivery emphasised upskilling multi-agency staff and livestock producers to promote practice change within three whole of business themes: (1) grazing land management; (2) animal production; and (3) people-business. Three independent surveys (2018, 2019, 2020) indicated positive practice change was occurring in grazing businesses as a consequence of the project. Graziers instigated management changes even under major environmental challenges including extended drought (2013–2020), an extreme flood event in 2019 and the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. This paper details the rationale, progress against the objectives, challenges and future direction of the GrazingFutures extension project.

Modeling the natural regeneration of Cedrus libani A. Richard in Slenfeh, Syria, using binary logistic regression

Species distributions and abundances are undergoing rapid changes worldwide. This highlights the significance of reliable, integrated information for guiding and assessing actions and policies aimed at managing and sustaining the many functions and benefits of species. Mapping and monitoring of forest extent is a common requirement of regional forest inventories and public land natural resource management which requires generation of an accurate database on spatial forest structure distribution and environmental variables. Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology is an effective tool in modern management programs for forest ecosystems. The environmental factors which probably affect in the natural regeneration of Cedrus libani A. Richard in its natural distribution forest in Slenfeh, Syria, were modeled using the binary logistic regression (BLR) model. The effect of environmental factors (spatial and forest structure factors, topographic factors, and spectral indicators) was studied, each one as single set and then their combined effect with each other on the probability of the presence of C. libani seedlings in Slenfeh. The accuracy of the model was clearly improved by studying the effect of environmental factors combined together (84%), while the accuracy of the other studied models did not exceed 70%. The results showed that the forest cover (Cedrus libani, broad leaved except oaks, mixed) is considered a good condition for natural regeneration of C. libani, while the lack of soil moisture in summer was a negative factor in the possibility of the presence of C. libani seedlings in Slenfeh.

Declining trends in plan quality: A longitudinal evaluation of regional environmental plans in Queensland, Australia

Most evaluations of environmental planning consider how planning is conducted, implemented or perceived. The quality of the plans themselves has received limited attention. Plan quality is a key factor in determining planning outcomes with plans of high quality more likely to produce positive planning outcomes. Using criteria for plan quality well established in planning literature, we develop a framework of 62 indicators to measure the extent to which environmental plans are: 1) collaborative; 2) adaptive; 3) action-orientated; and 4) evidence-based. We apply this framework using a systematic methodology to evaluate the quality of a specific type of environmental plan – regional natural resource management plans - introduced in the Australian state of Queensland over a 13 year period between 2004 and 2016.We tested a number of plan quality factors, including the number of funding sources, planning experience (in terms of the numbers of plans produced) and plan format (web-based and ‘traditional’ paper format). Our analysis finds that, rather than improving over time, plan quality has declined between three distinct generations of plans in Queensland. We conclude that dedicated funding for plan development is important for plan quality, while planning experience and plan format do not guarantee higher plan quality.Our findings add to the growing literature on establishing factors of plan quality. We propose that the plan quality framework could be useful in future evaluations and plan comparisons.

Understanding Anthropogenic Impacts on pH and Aragonite Saturation State in Chesapeake Bay: Insights From a 30‐Year Model Study

AbstractOcean acidification (OA) is often defined as the gradual decline in pH and aragonite saturation state (ΩAr) for open ocean waters as a result of increasing atmospheric pCO2. Potential long‐term trends in pH and ΩAr in estuarine environments are often obscured by a variety of other factors, including changes in watershed land use and associated riverine carbonate chemistry and estuarine ecosystem metabolism. In this work, we investigated the anthropogenic impacts on pH and ΩAr over three decades (1986–2015) in Chesapeake Bay using retrospective coupled hydrodynamic‐biogeochemical model simulations. Simulation results demonstrated a clear estuarine acidification signal in the midbay region, with a long‐term increase in the annual duration of acidified bottom waters (pH < 7.5, ~2 days/yr) as well as a shallowing of the saturation horizon (~0.1 m/yr). In contrast, scenario results revealed basification in the upper bay consistent with increased alkalinization of the Susquehanna River. Significant long‐term pH and ΩAr declines in the lower bay were driven by nearly equal contributions from OA and lowered surface ecosystem production. The midbay pH variability was primarily influenced by OA and biological processes, while river basification along with OA played a key role in regulating the long‐term ΩAr variability. This study quantifies the contributions from multiple anthropogenic drivers to changes in estuarine carbonate chemistry over three decades, highlighting the complex interactions in regulating the dynamics of pH and ΩAr and informing regional natural resource management and ecosystem restoration.