Trade-off relationship between modern agriculture and biodiversity: Heavy consolidation work has a long-term negative impact on plant species diversity

Human-driven land-use changes often cause a decline in biodiversity. Although traditional agricultural practices maintained biodiversity at high levels, recent land-use changes may have negative consequences on species composition. In this study, we examined the hypothesis that land consolidation, which is a major recent land-use change in agricultural areas, decreases plant species diversity over the long term (the so-called negative legacy). To test this hypothesis, we examined the relationships between consolidated areas and the occurrence of threatened plant species across Japan and at the prefecture scale. Twenty-three threatened plant species were selected, all of which were formerly common. Our results show that areas containing records of threatened plant species rarely experienced consolidation at whole-country and prefectural scales. Breakdown analysis showed that unconsolidated agricultural areas contained significantly more threatened species than consolidated agricultural areas. These results suggest that threatened plant species require unconsolidated agricultural areas (i.e., these species could not grow in consolidated areas). Thus, we propose that consolidation history could be used as an indicator of the potential for biodiversity recovery. We also suggest that consolidated agricultural areas should be used for food production rather than for the restoration of biodiversity, for reasons of cost efficiency.     

The Pre-industrial landscape in Moravia. The case study of inventory and analysis of the ancient land use structures in the Czech Republic)

The paper deals with the process of searching and inventorying of relict - so-called pre-industrial landscape - in Moravia (approximately 1/3 of the territory in the east of the Czech Republic). So far, during the inventory of pre-industrial landscape segments in Moravia, around 1,500 land use mosaic areas have been registered, surviving without significant changes since the completion of maps of the so-called stable cadastre realized in the 1830s to the present. Each of these areas with a steady mosaic has been supplemented with substantial quantitative and qualitative characteristics. This paper presents the results of geodatabase analysis of segments of the pre-industrial landscape concerning the sea elevation and morphology of the area. The results show that although numerous parts of stable ancient landscapes have been preserved at higher altitudes, they reach larger separate areas and larger aggregate areas at lower altitudes with more fertile soils. Hypotheses attempting to explain this territorial disparity are also presented in the text of the paper.     

A cellular automata-based land-use model as an integrated spatial decision support system for urban planning in developing cities: The case of the Bogotá region

Bogotá and the 17 neighboring municipalities make up one of the biggest metropolitan areas in Latin America. However, despite strong functional interactions within the area, there is no official government body at this level in charge of coordinating authorities and providing solutions to the wide variety of issues arising in the regional urban land system. Aiming at providing an insight on future land-use developments linked to new transport infrastructures and at offering a tool to support territorial decision-making, this paper presents a cellular automata-based (CA) model based in Metronamica® software, that allows testing different scenarios based on potential land-use policies, environmental suitability and transport alternatives.There has not been, so far, an urban planning tool that accounts for the complexities of this region. CA-based land-use simulations constitute a useful approach to understanding the impacts of urban planning policies and regulations. This tool can help to improve inter-territorial and inter-institutional coordination, which through planning and management policies seek a spatially integrated development, with a long-term perspective.The CA-based model proposed was calibrated to reproduce land-use changes between 2007 and 2016 using different methods and indicators. The model was used to simulate and analyze eight scenarios with different policy directions of transport infrastructure in the future of the region. The results of the simulations reflect the dynamics of territorial occupation. The calibration indices in the experiment indicate a high degree of suitability for the CA Bogotá model, proving its effectiveness and potential as a useful tool for decision-making. The results show that occupation scenarios with restricted developable zones within the city, tend to have the greater dispersion rate in the study area, compared to scenarios where land development plans are promoted in Bogotá, which representing a more compact development.     

Utilizing urban form characteristics in urban logistics analysis: a case study in Lisbon,Portugal

Within the realm of urban logistics, Macário (2013) developed a hypothesis, denominated the Logistics Profile (LP) concept that suggests homogeneous groups of urban zones with respect to three dimensions, which could be used to analyze freight movement policy: (1) the social and built environment; (2) characteristics of the goods/products being moved; (3) characteristics of the deliveries at the receiver establishment. The concept was expected to ease the transferability of best practices in city logistics, by analyzing similarities and differences between zones. This research uses a quantitative methodology to apply the LP concept, and assess its potential, using the city of Lisbon as a case study. The analysis is focused on: (a) the extrapolation of freight trip generation per establishment and delivery characteristics from a sample of commercial establishments to the population within the case study, (b) proposing a methodology to test the LPs, (c) testing the existence of proposed LPs. Freight trips have been extrapolated using a Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA) model. Freight delivery characteristics were attributed to establishments from a sample-based probability distribution. LPs were tested using a two-step cluster analysis. Some LPs have been matched with clusters of case-study zones, subject to case study particularities. Profile overlap was not an issue and occurrences were expected. The testing showed that Logistic Profiles have the potential for being used as a departure point for urban freight planning and policy analysis.     

Impacts of land-cover change on the water flow regulation ecosystem service: Invasive alien plants,fire and their policy implications

Land and water resource issues typically fall under separate governance systems. For example, agricultural policy regulates land-cover change while water departments regulate water quality. However, land-use changes can directly affect water resources. Water flow regulation is a key service which is affected by changes in land-cover but its dynamics are poorly understood by most policy makers and land management organisations. We simulated and quantified the effects of plant invasions on land-cover, hydrological soil characteristics and catchment responsiveness on flow regulation using a hydrological model. The case study was located in the indigenous fynbos shrublands in South Africa. Fynbos requires fire to regenerate, has moderate biomass, occurs mostly in areas with a potential to erode and is prone to invasion by woody plant species, particularly trees. Invasions can affect flow regulation by changing community structure and function and increasing fuel loads. The greater fuel load increases fire intensity and severity which, in turn, changes the hydrological responses of catchments. Few studies have assessed the effects of invasion on hydrological responses but studies on plantations have recorded significant increases in soil water repellence following fire, resulting in increased overland flow similar to impacts of fires in invaded areas. Simulation of clear-felling of pines and different degrees of water repellency increased both the responsiveness of the catchment to rainfall and extreme rainfall events. The simulated fire effects were consistent with other studies of hydrological responses to fire. Our study indicates that invasions of pines and acacias in the study area could substantially increase the risk of flood damage even from moderate rainfall events, and highlights the importance of maintaining flow regulation capacity. New policy approaches are required which take account of the linkages and interactions between land-use choices, water resources and ecosystem services, and address them when considering governance arrangements.     

Quantifying land-use change impacts on the dynamic evolution of flood vulnerability

Recently, dramatic flood disasters have occurred incrementally in several regions of the world. Land-use change as one of the main affecting factors becomes a key component in flood risk management. This study strives to deal with quantifying how changes in land use to affect the dynamic evolution of flood vulnerability. The floodplains of Wuhan, which are located in the Yangtze River Basin, have been selected as an example. In this paper, we use GIS to gather different historical geometric data as sources of land-use information. By proposing the Simpsons-dominance index and location index to analyze the characteristics of land-use changes, and building a quantitative model to measure flood vulnerability, a series of flood vulnerability maps demonstrate differential flood vulnerability of floodplains of Wuhan in three inundation scenarios and four historical periods. Finally, the non-parametric correlation is used to reveal the interactive effect of land use and flood vulnerability. Based on this study, comprehensive flood disaster management strategies for land-use planning are proposed for government decision-makers to reduce the flood vulnerability of Wuhan in future.     

东莞市产业结构与土地利用结构的相关性研究

经过改革开放后三十多年的发展,东莞市已经成长为典型的劳动密集型的制造业城市。城市在不断地发展,土地资源的有限性与社会经济发展的矛盾日益突出,使得东莞市的产业结构和土地利用结构与改革开放初期时的状态有明显不同。本文通过分析该市2005-2012年间产业结构和土地利用结构的数据及相关性,进一步理清两者之间的关系,并依此提出如何优化东莞市产业结构,提高土地利用效率的建议。     

Determinants of transport mode choice: a comparison of Germany and the USA

Germany and the USA have among the highest motorization rates in the world. Yet Germans make a four times higher share of trips by foot, bike, and public transport and drive for a 25% lower share of trips as Americans. Using two comparable national travel surveys this paper empirically investigates determinants of transport mode choice in Germany and the USA.In both countries higher population density, a greater mix of land-uses, household proximity to public transport, and fewer cars per household are associated with a lower share of trips by automobile. However, considerable differences remain: all groups of society in America are more car-dependent than Germans. Even controlling for dissimilarities in socio-economic factors and land-use, Germans are more likely to walk, cycle, and use public transport. Moreover, Americans living in dense, mixed-use areas, and close to public transport are more likely to drive than Germans living in lower density areas, with more limited mix of land-uses, and farther from public transport. Differences in transport policy that make car travel slower, more expensive, less convenient, and alternatives to the automobile more attractive in Germany may help account for the remaining differences.     

Biological conservation in dynamic agricultural landscapes: Effectiveness of public policies and trade-offs with agricultural production

Land use change and land management intensification are major drivers of biodiversity loss, especially in agricultural landscapes, that cover a large and increasing share of the world's surface. Incentive-based agri-environmental policies are designed to influence farmers' land-use decisions in order to mitigate environmental degradation. This paper evaluates the effectiveness of agri-environmental schemes for biological conservation in a dynamic agricultural landscape under economic uncertainty. We develop a dynamic ecological economic model of agricultural land-use and spatially explicit population dynamics. We then relate policies (subsidies to grassland, taxation of agricultural intensity) to the ecological outcome (probability of persistence of a species of interest). We also analyze the associated trade-offs between agricultural production (in value) and biological conservation (in probability of persistence) at the landscape scale.     

Informal settlements’ needs and environmental conservation in Mexico City: An unsolved challenge for land-use policy

The aim of this article is to analyze the effectiveness of land-use policy in Mexico City in controlling the expansion of informal human settlements in peri-urban zones of high ecological value. It is argued that Mexico City's land-use policy has been reactive and internally inconsistent, failing to take informal settlements into account, has not offered the poor access to housing with adequate services and greater security in terms of land tenure, and lacks the necessary financial resources and institutional capabilities for providing solutions to these problems. Through a case study of informal settlement management policy in the Tlalpan Delegation,¹ applied in what has been termed SC or “Conservation Land,”² we conclude that local government exhibits an inability to confront the new challenge of urban sustainability, that it resorts to conventional solutions which give rise to contradictory situations where political decision-making prevails over ecological considerations, so land-use policy is permissive and does not halt informal urban expansion in areas of high environmental value.