Land use,the environment and development in post-socialist Mongolia

This paper describes the economic policies that have transformed the pastoral sector in post-socialist Mongolia, and their impact on pastoral land use. These policies reflect the influence of development economists from the Asian Development Bank who have been advising the Mongolian government, and their conviction that exclusive private rights to land are a necessary precondition of an efficient rural market economy. These assumptions stand in marked contrast to indigenous Mongolian conceptions of rights over land, and the policy debate reflects the contested nature of knowledge of the Mongolian environment. However, far from preventing damage to the resource base, evidence suggests that these policies of land allocations may actually be exacerbating problems of pasture degradation. This paper argues that policies of this kind reveal a misunderstanding of the nature of Mongolian pastoralism and the conditions that have made it viable in the past. Although international development agencies lionize a romanticized notion of Mongolian “traditions” as reflecting a “respect for nature”, there is little appreciation of the actual institutions that successfully conducted pastoralism until recently, the concrete embodiment of Mongolian pastoral knowledge. Environmentalist agendas reflect a familiar western interest in promoting western conservationist ideology and establishing and expanding protected areas to harbour wildlife and biodiversity. Mongolian practices tend to be cast as “traditions” to be utilized for the greater goal of conservation as conceived of in western terms, rather than seen as part of wider social and political institutions of land use.     

A quantitative assessment of policy options for no net loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services in the European Union

The Biodiversity Strategy of the European Union includes a target to “ensure no-net-loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services by 2020”. Many policy options can be envisioned to achieve such a no-net-loss target, mainly acting on land use and land management. To assess the effectiveness of such policies at a European Union (EU) scale, we simulated land use changes and their impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services indicators. We analysed a Business–as-Usual scenario, and three no-net-loss scenarios. The no-net-loss scenarios included measures that aim to reduce negative impacts of land use change on biodiversity and ecosystem services, by better implementation of existing biodiversity conservation measures (Scenario 1); and enhancement of existing measures (Scenario 2); and offsetting residual impacts on areas of high biodiversity and ecosystem service value (Scenario 3).Results show that none of the scenarios achieved overall no-net-loss. Compared to a Business-as-Usual scenario, the no-net-loss scenarios reduced the overall degree of land cover change at EU level, hence reducing impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services in large parts of the EU. The more comprehensive no-net-loss scenarios resulted in a gain of natural land cover. Moreover, natural areas became better connected, especially in peri-urban areas as a result of impact avoidance and offsetting. Richness of farmland bird species was projected to increase. Measures included in the no-net-loss scenarios had net positive effects on pollination and carbon sequestration, neutral effects on crop production, erosion prevention and flood regulation, and negative effects on nature-based recreation, compared to Business-as-Usual. In particular circumstances policy measures invoked displacement effects in land use allocation, reducing the effectiveness of the measures. This was primarily the case for flood regulation services throughout the EU.This study differentiates the potential effectiveness of a no-net-loss policy framework in three manners: (i) considering biodiversity and ecosystem services simultaneously; (ii) in the light of existing policies and land use pressures; and (iii) in different land use contexts across the EU. Taken together, we conclude that achieving no-net-loss for biodiversity and ecosystem services throughout the EU remains challenging given high land use demands. Nevertheless, in large parts of Europe there appears room for improvement for certain kinds of biodiversity and ecosystem services compared to Business-as-Usual, while still meeting other land use demands.     

Land allocation to meet sectoral goals in Indonesia—An analysis of policy coherence

Land is a scarce resource affecting the implementation of many sectoral policies. In Indonesia, the expansion of palm oil plantations has led to non-sustainable land use practices in past years, particularly deforestation. More recently, the government has set ambitious targets for the adoption of biodiesel which will require expansion of oil palm plantations, thus putting further pressure on land. Meanwhile, the need to guarantee food supply, forest conservation and climate change mitigation also imply challenges when it comes to land allocation and use. This paper examines the role that land plays in the implementation of sectoral policies in Indonesia, exploring the availability of land to satisfy the multiple goals defined in national policies. We explore land competition resulting from allocations made in official policy documents starting with biofuel policy. The analysis of policy goals and coherence when it comes to land allocation is made in relation to agriculture, climate and forestry policies. We conclude that adjustments need to be made in the policies to avoid overlappings and misinterpretations when it comes to land allocation. The area made available for meeting each sectoral policy goal when taking into account cross sectoral interactions is: 14.2 Mha for agriculture, 43 Mha for climate mitigation measures, 9.2 Mha for forestry, and 20.9 Mha for biofuels. A more uniform land classification and development of a common reference database will increase transparency on land allocation and use, and help to monitor land use change, ultimately supporting the achievement of multiple national goals.     

基于CVM不同支付方式的耕地保护外部性测度及其差异性分析

[目的]支付方式的科学设置对CVM在耕地保护外部性评估中的应用具有重要意义。文章基于CVM不同支付方式视角,以焦作市耕地保护外部性测度为例,剖析不同支付方式的耕地保护外部性测度结果的差异性。[方法]采用支付卡式CVM。[结果](1)"出钱"、"义务劳动"、"出钱和义务劳动"不同支付方式下的年户均耕地保护支付意愿(WTP)差异性是产生单位面积耕地保护外部性差异的根本原因;(2)居民家庭收入水平、文化程度、与耕地的关联程度、耕地生态社会效益认知程度、可支配的闲暇时间、劳动力成本及农产品成本收益等是造成不同支付方式的城镇居民和农户耕地保护WTP差异的主要影响因素。[结论]通过与基于单边界二分式的焦作市耕地保护居民WTP测度结果对比表明,在科学设置支付区间和假想市场情景、合理进行假想偏差规避下,基于支付卡式综合计算整理的"出钱和义务劳动"方式的居民耕地保护支付意愿和单位面积耕地保护外部性测度结果具有较高的可靠性。研究最终选取"出钱和义务劳动"方式下的1 624.9元/(hm~2·年)作为焦作市单位面积耕地保护外部性测度结果,该结果可作为现实条件下耕地保护经济补偿标准的理论参考依据。     

The role of wildlife-associated recreation in private land use and conservation: Providing the missing baseline

Successfully integrating human activities with ecosystem conservation forms the foundation of sustainability and is key to maintaining biological diversity. This is especially important in privately-owned lands in the U.S., which harbor high levels of biodiversity yet are often vulnerable to habitat degradation and loss. This study analyzes recreation as a sustainable use on private property, focusing on wildlife-associated recreation, defined here as fishing, hunting and wildlife watching. Eighteen national surveys implemented by three U.S. government agencies spanning 1999–2013 were analyzed to provide baseline information and an assessment of the conservation impact of recreation. Results show that approximately 440.1 million acres of private land, ∼22% of the contiguous land area of the U.S., are either leased or owned for wildlife-associated recreation. Land utilized for hunting accounts for 81% of that total. Approximately 33% of private forestland, 18% of private grazing land and 4% of private cropland is used to earn revenue from recreational activities. Annual spending for wildlife-associated recreation on private land is estimated at $814 million in day-use fees, $1.48 billion for long-term leases, and $14.8 billion to own land primarily for recreation (2011 dollars). Hunters own or lease properties of larger size classes than anglers or wildlife-watchers, indicating that hunting may provide a greater economic incentive for maintaining large unfragmented properties that provide a variety of conservation benefits. On grazing and cropland, landowners who earn income from recreation are significantly more likely to participate in government conservation programs (p < 0.001) and to pay for private conservation practices (p = 0.08). This provides support that recreation incentivizes conservation at higher rates than agricultural activities alone. Three policy measures that could further enhance conservation benefits of recreation are discussed.     

The influence of African swine fever information on consumers’ preference of pork attributes and pork purchase

This paper uses a randomized survey instrument to study the impact of African Swine Fever (ASF) information on Chinese consumers’ preference for pork attributes and purchases during the recent peak of the ASF pandemic in 2019. We study consumers’ preference for pork attributes including brand, meat texture and taste, quality safety assurance, and traceability under different information treatments. Results show that the willingness to pay (WTP) for quality safety assurance is the highest, followed by brands and traceability systems, and the WTP is lowest for good taste. We show that providing detailed ASF information substantially changes consumer preference by altering the relative importance of pork attributes and price sensitivity, which enables consumers to focus more on safety-related attributes while paying less attention to price and taste attributes. Furthermore, we find that a higher belief in the future of ASF occurrence reduces the frequency of purchases marginally but does not significantly influence for amount per purchase and the total purchase amount.     

Ecosystem services–biodiversity relationships depend on land use type in floodplain agroecosystems

Managing agricultural floodplains to meet present and future human requirements without jeopardizing biodiversity conservation is a challenge for land use planners and ecologists. This paper aims to disentangle the relationships between ecosystem services and biodiversity in multifunctional landscapes, such as floodplain agroecosystems, by disaggregating their values across land use types. We measured eight ecosystem services (gas regulation, soil formation, nutrient regulation, habitat provision, food provision, raw materials production, education, and recreation) and six plant diversity indexes (richness, abundance, and true diversity for both plant species and growth forms) in seven land use types identified in the floodplain of the River Piedra (Spain). We observed that all land use types provided services to some extent, but each one was better at providing certain services. Natural or semi-natural habitats provided more services and hosted greater diversity than cultivated land use types. In addition, five diversity indexes were strongly correlated to at least three ecosystem services each one. Habitat provision and education were the ecosystem services positively correlating to most diversity indexes, whereas food provision was negatively correlated to all diversity indexes. Moreover, analyzing the interactions between ecosystem services and biodiversity across land use types, we observed that land use type was the controlling factor regarding the sign and significance of the interaction. The results of this study suggest that, in floodplains agroecosystems, a mosaic landscape of different land use types helps support ecosystem services and contributes to maintaining biodiversity while using local resources. Such land use policies might manage agricultural floodplains at the landscape scale while still being able to accommodate specific measures for each land use type. Moreover, riparian forests should be preserved and restored across the floodplain as they are hot spots for biodiversity and ecosystem services provision.     

规范·安全·效益--谈银行如何规范土地储备贷款

银行信贷是土地收购储备之最重要的资金来源 ,在土地收购储备供应过程中 ,银行贷款作为一种投资行为 ,不可避免地存在着诸如负债风险、经营风险、政策风险、经济风险、不规范操作等风险。为规避这些风险 ,文章提出了掌握国家宏观政策 ,规范放款行为 ,分析可能风险 ,加强防范对策研究等项措施建议     

浙江森林生物多样性保护与可持续发展研究

森林生物多样性丰富,但森林生物多样性资源利用与保护的协调存在许多问题。原因在于:人类中心论的观念、保护的“外部性”特点、国家宏观调控能力和财力不足、经济利益驱动。因此,必须从理念、法规、制度、方法、手段等各层面上改进,加强各保护环节的工作,才能使森林生物多样性得到更有效的保护。     

Global food demand,productivity growth,and the scarcity of land and water resources: a spatially explicit mathematical programming approach

In the coming decades, an increasing competition for global land and water resources can be expected, due to rising demand for food and bio‐energy production, biodiversity conservation, and changing production conditions due to climate change. The potential of technological change in agriculture to adapt to these trends is subject to considerable uncertainty. In order to simulate these combined effects in a spatially explicit way, we present a model of agricultural production and its impact on the environment (MAgPIE). MAgPIE is a mathematical programming model covering the most important agricultural crop and livestock production types in 10 economic regions worldwide at a spatial resolution of three by three degrees, i.e., approximately 300 by 300 km at the equator. It takes regional economic conditions as well as spatially explicit data on potential crop yields and land and water constraints into account and derives specific land‐use patterns for each grid cell. Shadow prices for binding constraints can be used to valuate resources for which in many places no markets exist, especially irrigation water. In this article, we describe the model structure and validation. We apply the model to possible future scenarios up to 2055 and derive required rates of technological change (i.e., yield increase) in agricultural production in order to meet future food demand.     

The land sparing – land sharing controversy: Tracing the politics of knowledge

Feeding 9 billion people by 2050 on one hand, and preserving biodiversity on the other hand, are two shared policy goals at the global level. Yet while these goals are clear, they are to some extent in conflict, because agriculture is a major cause of biodiversity loss, and the path to achieve both of them is at the heart of a public controversy around ‘productive’ land use and biodiversity conservation. Over the years, the scientific, policy, civil society and agri-business communities have been engaged in producing evidence that can support a land sparing policy (separating intensive agricultural production from biodiversity conservation) or a land sharing policy (integrating the two in larger and more extensive landscapes). This paper contributes to this debate by analyzing land sparing and land sharing (LSS) as a socio-technical controversy. Through the analysis of large and small corpora of scientific, policy, corporate social responsibility and sustainability standards documents we explore the ethical underpinnings and social networks that support the opposing sides of this controversy. We explore these linkages in order to explain how the concept of land sparing achieved dominance in the scientific literature and how the concept has been taken up in international policy, business and civil society circles. We examine the convergences and divergences in alliances between actors in this controversy in order to map how specific actors have promoted the concept of land sparing as the best way to used land for biodiversity and food production.     

Playing musical chairs with land use obligations: Market-based instruments and environmental public policies in Brazil

In Brazil, market-based instruments focusing on land use dimensions are increasingly promoted as a means to make public environmental policies effective. Landowners and farmers call for more flexible regulations and economic incentives to adopt ecologically sound practices, while public agencies and conservation NGOs seek new ways of financing and legitimising legal standards. Market-based instruments are considered by these actors as having the potential to both achieve their own goals and conciliate all interests. As a result, legal frameworks (including cap-and-trade systems, biodiversity offsetting and payments for ecosystem services) are being designed which allow to exchange land use rights and obligations. Under a sociolegal approach, this article provides an overview of such instruments. It shows to what extent they may entail a reconfiguration of the burden sharing and the priority setting of nature conservation. Depending on how actors use legal standards, their responsibilities may be eased and the level of conservation may be lowered, both facts that raise significant controversy.     

Land fragmentation,women empowerment and school dropout of children in Vietnam

This study examines the effect of land fragmentation on school dropout of children in Vietnam. To address the endogeneity issue, the study proposes an instrumental variable – that is land per capita at the commune level. The study also uses another instrumental variable – the percentage of land plot acquisition before 1993 – to check the robustness of the results. The findings are that higher land fragmentation decreases child school dropout. Land fragmentation has significant impacts on school dropout of children aged 10–15, however, it does not have any impact on school dropout of children aged 6–10. We explain these findings through one particular mechanism – that is women empowerment. A higher level of land fragmentation increases women empowerment in deciding to visit family, friends or relatives, the purchase of daily goods, large purchases, their own health, and their children’s health. A variety of robustness checks corroborate these findings.     

The complex reality of biodiversity conservation through Natural Protected Area policy: Three cases from the Yucatan Peninsula,Mexico

The federal policy of Natural Protected Areas has become the main instrument for conserving biodiversity in Mexico. Established in territories representative of different ecosystems but also of cultural diversity, protected areas in Mexico have historically been created and managed with a centralized rationale, creating several conflicts with local communities over the use of natural resources. The country's approach to protected areas perfectly illustrates the complexities, difficulties and challenges entailed in biodiversity conservation. This paper develops a critical analysis of this policy instrument in Mexico, and analyzes three Natural Protected Areas in the Yucatan Peninsula: The Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, the Celestún Biosphere Reserve, and the Otoch Ma’ax Yetel Kooh Natural Protected Area. The case studies serve as examples of the most common difficulties that arise in Mexican Natural Protected Area policy: (1) uncoordinated public policies; (2) the usual conflict between environmental authorities and local people over the management of natural resources; and (3) the exclusion of local people's perspectives, values and beliefs in conservation policy development and implementation.     

Evaluating sustainability options in an agricultural frontier of the Amazon using multi-criteria analysis

Agricultural expansion and deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon are driven by a complex interaction between economic and demographic drivers and institutional constraints. Land use policies such as Conservation Units and the Forest Code law should conserve biodiversity and other environmental aspects while, on the other hand, increasing commodity prices of beef and soy, driven by world markets provokes economic growth and expansion of the agricultural area. We carried out an impact assessment in eleven municipalities within an agricultural frontier along the road BR-163 that runs in the Brazilian Amazon states of Mato-Grosso and Pará. The impact assessment, covered a period between 2008 and 2020, showed that the autonomous development in the study area results in a strong increase in the performance of economic indicators but a reduction in environmental and some social indicators. The studied conservation policies are able to reduce negative environmental impacts to some extent, while hardly affecting economic and social indicators. The multi-criteria analysis (MCA) showed a trade-off relation between the economic and environmental dimension in such a way that the effect was much stronger in the high commodity price scenario than in the low price scenario. The policy implications of the MCA results are discussed in light of the institutional capacity of the Brazilian States under study, to implement effective conservation policies.     

论我国土地征购制度的构建

我国现行的土地征用制度是在高度集中的计划经济体制背景下形成的,存在种种弊端,因此在分析土地征购制度优越性基础上,提出如何克服土地征购制度可能存在的问题,构造我国土地征购制度的模式,就是由政府垄断征地市场,统一征地并统一支付全部的征地费用,然后经过土地储备中的前期开发,再分别向用地者提供土地.     

The role of legal protection in forest conservation in an urban matrix

Establishing forest protection standards is essential for biodiversity conservation and for ensuring the public water supply. This study evaluated whether compliance with environmental legislation aimed at protecting the Atlantic Forest is sufficient to minimize the negative effects of urban pressure on the conservation of biodiversity in the water source area of the Billings reservoir in the municipality of Diadema. To assess the effectiveness of environmental legislation, we created a current land use and land cover map as well as maps for an expected legal scenario and evaluated both using landscape metrics. Our findings indicate that forest resource availability in the area is critical but can be improved by compliance with legal obligations, which have complementary effects and the potential to promote less fragmented landscapes. On the other hand, they do not prevent the tendency of fragmentation caused by the surrounding urban matrix, which can reduce the positive effect of the legal compliance on forest conservation in cases of consolidated urban areas.     

Tendency of land reclamation in coastal areas of Shanghai from 1998 to 2015

Coastal land reclamation is one of the major human interventions in the coastal areas, it is a process undergo in many parts of the world. Land reclamation supplies land for development with urgent needs for coastal cities, and creates the opportunity for rapid urbanization, however, it also influences the integrity of the coastal ecosystem and results in a decline in biodiversity and ecosystem services. Over-exploitation and unreasonable use of coastal land has been a major issue and became a threat to ecological security in China. This paper analyzed the coastal land expansion and utilization process from 1980 to 2015 in Shanghai through remote sensing image processing and field investigations. The process of land reclamation in Shanghai and the effect of land use transformation on natural wetlands and the quality of the natural habitat are explored by analyzing land use and land cover change and modeling ecosystem services change by Integrated valuation of ecosystem services and tradeoffs (InVEST) model. The results show that the urban ‘ocean sprawl’ in Shanghai has increased by ∼10 % from 1980 to 2015 which transformed natural wetlands into construction land significantly. Despite strict control over the quality of reclamation projects and appropriate compensation with artificial wetlands, the natural habitat damage caused by reclamation increases exponentially in the past few decades. Recently the policies have changed from encouraging human reclamation to prohibit all kinds of land reclamation programs from national to local scales. It has major policy implications for future coastal habitat conservation. This paper gives an overview of the land reclamation in Shanghai and its impact on natural habitat that can foster the related policies to promote healthier and more reasonable urbanization during the economic transformation.     

Characterizing land disturbance in Atewa Range Forest Reserve and Buffer Zone

Changes in land cover of protected areas and their buffers have serious implications on the conservation of biodiversity within such biomes because land use has been recognized as one of the major drivers of biodiversity change. Atewa Range Forest Reserve is one of Ghana's Upper Guinea Forests declared as a Globally Significant Biodiversity Area (GSBA). But the reserve is under threat from several human disturbances which could impact on the land cover of the reserve.This study examined the spatial and temporal changes in land cover of Atewa Range Forest Reserve and it's buffer between 1986 and 2013 using remote sensing. Land use and land cover (LULC) classification and change detections were undertaken using one Landsat Multispectral Scanner (MSS) image of 1986 and Landsat ETM+ images of 2003 and 2013.The study also investigated the driving forces of LULC and the effectiveness of the Forest and Wildlife Policy of 1994 in the management of the reserve.Results of image classification showed that much of the peripheral closed and open vegetative covers have been converted to farms and bushes with little disturbance within the interior of the reserve. The study revealed that, the conservation management policies were yielding very little results due to a number of policy deficiencies including low staff strength, lack of logistics and low remuneration. Enforcement of legal instruments against illegal logging, small scale mining and farming activities within the reserve, improvement in the staff strength and their condition of service, intensification of public education on the value of forest and the need to protect it are some of the major recommendations that could curb encroachment on the reserve.     

Farmers’ land use decision-making in the context of changing land and conservation policies: A case study of Doi Mae Salong in Chiang Rai Province,Northern Thailand

In Thailand, land use planning and policy decision-making were—and to some extent still are—organized in a hierarchical and disjointed fashion. This is also true for the utilization of public lands, including forest reserves in the northern uplands that are often settled by ethnic minorities. There are, however, instances of change in land policies and regulations and in the way decisions and plans are made. Doi Mae Salong (DMS) in Northern Thailand, where there is a trend towards land use for conservation purposes, is a case in point. This paper aims to explore decision-making by farmers in DMS in the context of changing land regulations and policies from the 1950s to the present. The Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework, together with a historical perspective and with narratives on land management through time, were applied by using in-depth interviews of key informants and group farmers’ discussions as tools. The time period under investigation was divided into three periods of change: The first period, before the year 1960, was an era of security concern. In contrast, the second period, from 1961 to 1996, was an era of emerging conservation priorities. Finally, the third period, from 1997 to the present, is an era of lessons learned from the conservation era. Land use decision outcomes reveal that the decision-making processes of farmers are influenced both by the hierarchical decisions of higher authorities and by horizontal linkages among multiple stakeholders. However, while farmers participate readily in forest conservation activities, they do not play an active role in the process of changing policies.