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Displaying 576 - 580 of 1605Policy options to address global land use change from biofuels
The use of biofuels can increase land competition, leading to global land use change (LUC). LUC poses risks such as increased greenhouse gas emissions and food prices. The magnitude of the risk is uncertain, but could be significant. Given these uncertainties and risks, we suggest that policymakers pursue a mix of the following three strategies: (1) promote feedstocks that rely less on land; (2) reduce LUC risk for land-using feedstocks; and (3) stimulate investments that increase land productivity and environmental protection.
case of urban sprawl in Spain as an active and irreversible driving force for desertification
The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) does not distinguish between natural and human drivers, and between active and inherited desertification. Partly as a result of these ambiguities the UNCCD has attracted a low level of international attention. As the Spanish case study shows, this vagueness hinders the implementation of effective strategies to combat this global challenge.
Exploring double side-selling in cooperatives, case study of four coffee cooperatives in Rwanda
Apart from the difficulty to attract new members, leakage of sales outside the cooperative is a major challenge for the coffee cooperatives in Rwanda. Local (independent) traders still constitute a major market for coffee producers. Yet, cooperatives also accept the produce from non-members and pay them the same price. Our objective in this paper is to analyse the importance of this phenomenon of double side-selling. We collected data from a sample of 170 coffee farmers. We use a probit model to analyse characteristics linked to cooperative membership and to study double side-selling.
Assessing net carbon sequestration on urban and community forests of northern New England, USA
Urban and community forests play an important role in the overall carbon budget of the USA. Accurately quantifying carbon sequestration by these forests can provide insight for strategic planning to mitigate greenhouse gas effects on climate change. This study provides a new methodology to estimate net forest carbon sequestration (FCS) in urban and community lands of northern New England using ground based forest growth rates, housing density data, satellite derived land cover and tree canopy cover maps at the county level.
Effects of land use on soil organic carbon and microbial processes associated with soil health in southern Brazil
Carbon plays a key role in determining soil health, which is defined as the soil's capacity to maintain environmental functions and biological productivity. In this study, C cycling was evaluated in soils along a gradient of land use, from native forest (NF), reforested sites (secondary forest – SF, Araucaria angustifolia – AR, Pinus elliottii – PI), clear-cut P. elliottii stands (CT) to farmland (AG). NF, AR, and SF sites had lower litter C:N ratios than PI, CT, and AG sites.