scholarly journals The role of open woodland in mitigating microclimatic extremes in agricultural landscapes

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (S2) ◽  
pp. 118-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas P. Baker ◽  
Zara E. Marais ◽  
Neil J. Davidson ◽  
Dale Worledge ◽  
Daniel S. Mendham
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Open Woodland

scholarly journals Ecological Connectivity in Agricultural Green Infrastructure:  Suggested Criteria for Fine Scale Assessment and Planning

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 807
Author(s):  
Simone Valeri ◽  
Laura Zavattero ◽  
Giulia Capotorti
Keyword(s):  
Land Cover ◽  
Green Infrastructure ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Landscape Heterogeneity ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Spatial Pattern Analysis ◽  
Fine Scale ◽  
Unique Type

In promoting biodiversity conservation and ecosystem service capacity, landscape connectivity is considered a critical feature to counteract the negative effects of fragmentation. Under a Green Infrastructure (GI) perspective, this is especially true in rural and peri-urban areas where a high degree of connectivity may be associated with the enhancement of agriculture multifunctionality and sustainability. With respect to GI planning and connectivity assessment, the role of dispersal traits of tree species is gaining increasing attention. However, little evidence is available on how to select plant species to be primarily favored, as well as on the role of landscape heterogeneity and habitat quality in driving the dispersal success. The present work is aimed at suggesting a methodological approach for addressing these knowledge gaps, at fine scales and for peri-urban agricultural landscapes, by means of a case study in the Metropolitan City of Rome. The study area was stratified into Environmental Units, each supporting a unique type of Potential Natural Vegetation (PNV), and a multi-step procedure was designed for setting priorities aimed at enhancing connectivity. First, GI components were defined based on the selection of the target species to be supported, on a fine scale land cover mapping and on the assessment of land cover type naturalness. Second, the study area was characterized by a Morphological Spatial Pattern Analysis (MSPA) and connectivity was assessed by Number of Components (NC) and functional connectivity metrics. Third, conservation and restoration measures have been prioritized and statistically validated. Notwithstanding the recognized limits, the approach proved to be functional in the considered context and at the adopted level of detail. Therefore, it could give useful methodological hints for the requalification of transitional urban–rural areas and for the achievement of related sustainable development goals in metropolitan regions.

scholarly journals Green Infrastructure Planning in Metropolitan Regions to Improve the Connectivity of Agricultural Landscapes and Food Security

Land ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 414 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolina Yacamán Ochoa ◽  
Daniel Ferrer Jiménez ◽  
Rafael Mata Olmo
Keyword(s):  
Urban Agriculture ◽  
Land Use Planning ◽  
Green Infrastructure ◽  
Landscape Connectivity ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Positive Contribution ◽  
Urban Resilience ◽  
Open Spaces ◽  
Metropolitan Regions

Green infrastructure (GI), as a concept and as a tool for environmental land-use planning at various scales, has burst onto the academic, political, and policy-making scenes in the last two decades. This tool, associated with strategic planning, offers integrated solutions for improving the ecological connectivity and urban resilience of open spaces, especially those affected by processes of urban sprawl, the abandonment of agriculture, and the territorial fragmentation of habitats and traditional agricultural landscapes. In spite of the advantages of GI, its design and implementation face a range of challenges and limitations. In this context, this paper has two objectives: Firstly, to address a critical review of recent literature on the subject, which, among other things, highlights the lack of references to the role of peri-urban agriculture in GI planning, and the positive contribution made by peri-urban agriculture to the local food supply and other regulatory and cultural services. Secondly, to propose a methodology to contribute to integrating practical GI planning in metropolitan regions to maximize the activation of traditional agricultural landscapes and the improvement of landscape connectivity in metropolitan regions for the reconnection of rural-urban relationships.

Birds of Prey in Agricultural Landscapes: The Role of Agriculture Expansion and Intensification

Birds of Prey ◽  
2018 ◽  
pp. 197-228
Author(s):  
Juan Manuel Grande ◽  
Paula Maiten Orozco-Valor ◽  
María Soledad Liébana ◽  
José Hernán Sarasola
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Birds Of Prey ◽  
Agriculture Expansion

scholarly journals Introducing Life Cycle Assessment in Costs and Benefits Analysis of Vegetation Management in Drainage Canals of Lowland Agricultural Landscapes

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 2236
Author(s):  
Elena Tamburini ◽  
Elisa Soana ◽  
Mauro Monti ◽  
Elisa Anna Fano ◽  
Giuseppe Castaldelli
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Nitrogen Removal ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Aquatic Vegetation ◽  
Vegetation Management ◽  
Nitrate Pollution ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Costs And Benefits

Nitrate pollution remains an unsolved issue worldwide, causing serious effects on water quality and eutrophication of freshwater and brackish water environments. Its economic costs are still underestimated. To reduce nitrogen excess, constructed wetlands are usually recognized as a solution but, in recent years, interest has been raised in the role of ditches and canals in nitrogen removal. In this study, we investigated the environmental and economical sustainability of nitrogen removal capacity, using as a model study a lowland agricultural sub-basin of the Po River (Northern Italy), where the role of aquatic vegetation and related microbial processes on the mitigation of nitrate pollution has been extensively studied. Based on the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach and costs and benefits analysis (CBA), the effectiveness of two different scenarios of vegetation management, which differ for the timing of mowing, have been compared concerning the nitrogen removal via denitrification and other terms of environmental sustainability. The results highlighted that postponing the mowing to the end of the vegetative season would contribute to buffering up to 90% of the nitrogen load conveyed by the canal network during the irrigation period and would reduce by an order of magnitude the costs of eutrophication potential.

Assessing the role of economic actors in the production of private and public goods in three EU agricultural landscapes

2015 ◽  
Vol 58 (12) ◽  
pp. 2113-2136 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.J. Villanueva ◽  
S. Targetti ◽  
L. Schaller ◽  
M. Arriaza ◽  
J. Kantelhardt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Goods ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Private And Public

scholarly journals Contribution to the knowledge of the arthropods community inhabiting the winter-flooded meadows (marcite) of northern Italy

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Della Rocca ◽  
Silvia Stefanelli ◽  
Elisa Cardarelli ◽  
Giuseppe Bogliani ◽  
Francesco Bracco
Keyword(s):  
Ground Beetle ◽  
Northern Italy ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Butterfly Species ◽  
Beetle Species ◽  
Rove Beetles ◽  
Invertebrate Conservation ◽  
Rove Beetle ◽  
Natural Grasslands

Flooded semi-natural grasslands are endangered ecosystems throughout Europe. In Italy, amongst flooded meadows, one special type called “marcita” is strongly threatened. It is a stable flooded grassland used to produce green forage even during winter months due to the thermal properties of water coming from springs and fountains that prevent the soil from freezing. To date, some research has been carried out to investigate the role of the marcita for ornithological and herpetological communities. However, no comprehensive data on invertebrates inhabiting this particular biotope available. The aim of this study was to characterise the terrestrial entomological community of these typical winter-flooded meadows in northern Italy and, in particular, in six marcita fields located in the Ticino Valley Regional Park. We collected data on species richness and diversity of Carabidae, Staphylinidae, Araneae, Lepidoptera and Orthoptera inhabiting marcita during the summers of 2014 and 2015 and data on overwintering Coleoptera during the winter of 2014-2015. Amongst the collected species, we identified those highly linked to this habitat. We found a total of 47 ground beetle species, 35 rove beetle species, 29 spider species, one Lucanidae, 16 butterfly species and 24 grasshopper and cricket species. Most of the species were collected during the summers of 2014 and 2015, while some others were also, or exclusively, overwintering (17 ground beetles, four rove beetles and one Lucanidae) and were collected during the winter of 2014-2015. Marcita fields hosted specialised species and species typical of hygrophilous habitats, amongst which are included the butterfly Lycaena dispar, the ground beetle Dolichus halensis and the grasshopper Chrysochraon dispar. This study represents the first contribution to the knowledge of terrestrial arthropod communities associated with this particular type of winter-irrigated meadow in Europe and confirms the importance of this biotope for invertebrate conservation in agricultural landscapes.

scholarly journals Developing the paradigm of environmental management in agriculture (to the 175-th anniversary of V.V. Dokuchaev)

2021 ◽  
pp. 5-26
Author(s):  
V. I. Kiryushin
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Management ◽  
Land Reclamation ◽  
Ecological Status ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Adaptive Landscape ◽  
Ecological Planning ◽  
Club Of Rome

The main stages of the formation of ecological paradigms of environmental management are considered, the fundamental role of V.V. Dokuchaev ideas and the importance of following V.I. Vernadskiy works in their development are shown. The role of scientists of the Club of Rome in the development of the ideology of sustainable development and its controversial perception by the world scientific community is reflected. The analysis of the existing paradigms, in particular of the co-evolutionary paradigm, and its implementation in the theory and practice of adaptive-landscape farming systems is given. The priority tasks for its improvement are defined. Further prospects for its development are considered in the framework of the proposed constructive-biospheric paradigm of environmental management, which implies the creation of a network of agricultural landscapes (agricultural, water, land reclamation, agro-industrial, rural forestry, livestock, residential) in compliance with the ecological status of the territory. The grouping of ecological functions of the landscape and mechanisms of their transformation into socio-economic functions are considered as tools for landscape-ecological planning and design.

The biodiversity values of farming systems and agricultural landscapes

2004 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 80 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. C. Lefroy ◽  
F. P. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Farming Systems ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Conservation Priorities ◽  
Current Effort ◽  
Perennial Plant ◽  
Remnant Vegetation ◽  
Farm Scale ◽  
Ecological Science ◽  
Regional Conservation

The current effort in Australia to increase the proportion of perennial vegetation in agricultural landscapes to manage dryland salinity presents opportunities to improve the viability of remnant vegetation and its dependant biota. At this intersection of ecology and agriculture, many questions arise concerning interpretations of biodiversity from the perspectives of landowners and conservationists, the conservation priorities in agricultural landscapes, and the role of ecological science in understanding the functional contribution of emerging perennial-plant based farming systems to the viability of the native biota. This paper provides the background for the four papers that follow, presented originally at a workshop at Rutherglen in Victoria in October 2003 to discuss the issue of biodiversity values in agricultural landscapes. It then puts forward an approach to research into the biodiversity value of perennial land use systems based on three principles; understanding regional conservation priorities, appreciating farm scale priorities and constraints from the perspective of the landholder, and identifying response functions to establish the role of revegetation in maintaining the viability of the native biota.

scholarly journals The role of biogeochemical barriers in protecting aquatic ecosystems against pollution in agricultural environment

2015 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 9-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edyta Łaskawiec
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Aquatic Ecosystems ◽  
Protective Role ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Water Bodies ◽  
Agricultural Environment ◽  
Accumulation Capacity

This review discusses the importance of ecotones with high plant diversity which are highly effective in retaining pollutants and waste. Biogeochemical barriers play a vital role in eliminating biogenic pollutants, pesticides and heavy metals. Belts of rush plants and meadow vegetation considerably expand the accumulation capacity of water bodies and watercourses. The mechanisms responsible for the protective role of biogeochemical barriers involve various processes such as sorption, sedimentation, denitrification and assimilation, which require the coexistence of plants and microorganisms in aquatic ecosystems. Buffer barriers were presented as one of the ecohydrology tools in agricultural landscapes.

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