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Pseudoestrogene bisphenol A (BPA) can be important ingredient of thermochromic inks, increasingly used materials in thermal printing paper, security printing, advertising, design and as temperature indicators in medicine and food industry. BPA mass fraction in thermochromic inks can be up to several percent. Hence, disposal of items with thermochromic prints pose a risk of environmental pollution. In this work BPA mass fraction was monitored during anaerobic degradation of papers with thermochromic prints in soil in both matrices: papers and soil. The degradation conditions simulated deeper layers of waste at a landfill site. Six types of papers with prints of thermochromic ink containing 2% of BPA were subjected to anaerobic degradation over up to 150 days. Initial mass fractions of BPA in papers decreased form (126-460) μg/g to (

In Brazil, agriculture consumes most of the available freshwater, especially in the Cerrado biome, where the rain cycle is marked by long periods of drought. This study, conducted at the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) Research Corporation unit in Santo Antônio de Goiás, Goiás, Brazil, estimated evapotranspiration (ET) in different crops and soil cover. Using multispectral unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) images, Sentinel satellite data, weather station information, and towers employing the eddy covariance method, we applied the "Simple Algorithm for Evapotranspiration Retrieving" (SAFER) to calculate ET in common bean, pasture, and semideciduous seasonal forest areas. The results showed a good agreement between UAV and satellite data, with R 2  = 0.84, also validated with flow towers by the eddy covariance method. UAV-based ET was observed to correspond well to tower (EC) during full vegetative development of beans but is underestimated at the beginning of planting and in the final periods of plant senescence, due to the influence of soil or straw cover. These findings contribute to a better understanding of water dynamics in the system and to enhancing sustainable agricultural practices. This method, adapted for multispectral aerial imaging, can be applied flexibly and on-demand, in different contexts and ground cover. The study highlights the importance of integrated agricultural practices for better management of water resources and preservation of the Cerrado in balance with cultivation areas., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Dwindling groundwater supplies threaten food security and livelihoods. Output subsidies for farmers are a ubiquitous agricultural policy tool, yet their contribution to growing groundwater stress remains poorly quantified. We show how output subsidies guaranteeing the purchase of crops at higher than market prices may have contributed substantially to declining water tables in India. Our analysis suggests that these policies may have led to a 30% over-production of water intensive crops. In the northwestern state of Punjab, rice procurement can potentially account for at least 50% of the groundwater table decline over 34 years. In the central state of Madhya Pradesh, wheat procurement adopted in the late 2000s appears to have driven a 5.3 percentage point increase in dry wells and a consequent 3.4 percentage point increase in deep tubewells. These results suggest that well-intentioned but poorly designed subsidies can impose harmful externalities on the environment and undermine long-term sustainable development., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Agricultural transformation in Punjab, spurred by the Green Revolution of the mid-1960s, has led to significant shifts in land use patterns, crop diversification, and cropping dynamics. This transformation has profound implications for sustainability and economic resilience. This study delves into the complex relationship among agricultural growth, instability, and environmental sustainability in Punjab. It examines the growth and instability in the state's key crops' area, production, and yield/productivity over 56 years, from 1966-1967 to 2021-2022. Using secondary data, this study employs an assortment of methodologies, including compound annual growth rate, simple linear regression, diversity indices such as the Herfindahl index and Simpson diversity index, instability analysis, and decomposition analysis. The results indicate an increase in cropping intensity, indicating agricultural intensification, with a shift towards wheat and rice monoculture from once diverse cropping patterns. The instability analysis reveals that wheat and rice emerge as the most stable crops in their area, production, and yield, while others exhibit instability, raising concerns about diminishing crop diversity and its implications for Punjab's natural resources. The study emphasizes the urgent necessity for sustainable agricultural practices and policies to counteract monoculture's adverse effects and ensure long-term agricultural resilience., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

The study attempted to evaluate the agricultural soil quality using the Soil Quality Index (SQI) model in two Community Development Blocks, Ausgram-II and Memari-II of Purba Bardhaman District. Total 104 soil samples were collected (0-20 cm depth) from each Block to analyse 13 parameters (bulk density, soil porosity, soil aggregate stability, water holding capacity, infiltration rate, available nitrogen, available phosphorous, available potassium, soil pH, soil organic carbon, electrical conductivity, soil respiration and microbial biomass carbon) in this study. The Integrated Quality Index (IQI) was applied using the weighted additive approach and non-linear scoring technique to retain the Minimum Data Set (MDS). Principal Component Analysis (PCA) identified that SAS, BD, available K, pH, available N, and available P were the key contributing parameters to SQI in Ausgram-II. In contrast, WHC, SR, available N, pH, and SAS contributed the most to SQI in Memari-II. Results revealed that Ausgram-II (0.97) is notably higher SQI than Memari-II (0.69). In Ausgram-II, 99.72% of agricultural lands showed very high SQI (Grade I), whereas, in Memari-II, 49.95% of lands exhibited a moderate SQI (Grade III) and 49.90% showed a high SQI (Grade II). Sustainable Yield Index (SYI), Sensitivity Index (SI) and Efficiency Ratio (ER) were used to validate the SQIs. A positive correlation was observed between SQI and paddy ( R 2  = 0.82 & 0.72) and potato yield (R 2  = 0.71 & 0.78) in Ausgram-II and Memari-II Block, respectively. This study could evaluate the agricultural soil quality and provide insights for decision-making in fertiliser management practices to promote agricultural sustainability., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

This study is the first attempt to assess rice cultivation under alternate wetting and drying (AWD) and continuous flooding (CF) using the latest scenarios from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), utilizing AquaCrop Model. Field experiments were conducted during the dry season 2023 to get the model calibration and validation input. We used two shared socioeconomic pathways scenarios (SSP3-7.0 and SSP5-8.5) developed within Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) and projected the rice growth during 2040-2070. The simulation results demonstrated the effectiveness of AquaCrop in capturing crop development across treatments and varieties. This model's accuracy in simulating canopy cover (nRMSE = 14-32.5%), time series biomass (nRMSE = 22-42.5%), grain yield (Pd = 4.36-24.38%), and total biomass (nRMSE = 0.39-18.98%) was generally acceptable. The analysis of future climate shows an increasing trend in the monthly average temperature by 0.8 °C (Tmin) and 1.3 °C (Tmax) in both scenarios. While ETo values were not anticipated, rainfall was expected to increase with average values of 5.62 mm to 11.25 mm. In addition, the study found that varieties with growing periods longer than 93 days after transplanting (DAT), such as CAR15 and Sen Kra Ob, were most impacted by heat stress conditions, leading to reduced yield, harvest index (HI), and water use efficiency (WUE). In our case, CAR15 and Sen Kra Ob grain yields were reduced by 53% and 8%, respectively. AWD maintains superior WUE compared with CF regardless of the type of varieties, suggesting this technique is a drought-adaptive strategy., Competing Interests: Declarations Competing interests The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Agriculture faces a significant problem as a result of the decline in per capita freshwater supply that has been observed over the past couple of decades. Better water management strategies are required in order to make agriculture water secure, environmentally sustainable, and economically attractive. The goal of this study was to develop water productivity scenarios for rice and wheat crops in India's Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) by analysing agricultural production from the perspective of water consumption. To pinpoint the areas that are hydrologically suitable for growing rice and wheat crops under RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 climate change scenarios, water footprints and water productivity have been mapped. The study found that changes in temperature trends under future climate scenarios are probably going to increase crop water requirements, leading to greater water footprints for IGP regions. Water risk hotspots have been identified in the IGP for the rice- and wheat-growing states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, and Haryana. In order to achieve food security in a sustainable way, attention should be given to increase the water productivity of both crops., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Three soil transects located in the granitic regions of Palamaner mandal, Andhra Pradesh, India, were examined to assess the pollution levels of both primary and secondary metals (Si, Al, Fe, Ca, Mg, Na, K, Cu, Mn, P, and Zn) and to ascertain the degree of soil pollution in agricultural areas. The soils along these transects are slightly acid to neutral, with dark brown to red rubified argillic clay-rich B horizons alongside a moderate cation exchange capacity. The A horizon soils display low organic carbon levels with a moderate variability and contain over 70% SiO 2 , exhibiting low variability due to limited leaching in a semiarid climate. The findings suggest that iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn) oxides play a role in reducing contamination levels through oxidation and precipitation processes. Furthermore, the soils show low to moderate cation exchange capacity, which restricts the retention of absorbed heavy metals, thus lessening their negative impacts. A two-way ANOVA revealed significant differences in CEC, organic carbon, and total zinc content across different horizons and landscape positions. Si, Al, and Cu had small increases and negative geoaccumulation indices in all soil profiles, suggesting no pollution. However, the Nemerow and mean contamination degree over 6 point to slight to moderate pollution. The analysis identified three distinct clusters with significant variations in contamination factors for SiO 2 and Cu. Five principal components were determined, explaining 76% of the total variance, primarily derived from geogenic sources and remaining within acceptable limits. This research on soil transects in granitic regions contributes to a better understanding of the distribution, movement, and concentration of elemental oxides based on slope position, which is essential for pollution assessment and soil quality enhancement., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Eastern Thailand and Rayong province face perennial drought and water scarcity due to natural characteristics of climate and geology. Therefore, increasing water surface by man-made reservoirs is one of the priorities in the regional development plan to provide water adequately for industrial purposes, domestic consumption, and agriculture. The large reservoir constructions may induce land use, land cover changes (LULCC), yet it also is expected to alleviate the drought harshness in the region. By delineating Landsat satellite images and spatial analysis, this study revealed the LULCC in Rayong from 1990 to 2020. The most prominent LULCC was surface water expansion, about 10.9% per year, yet the increase was the most substantial in the first decade rather than the last two decades. Vegetation expansion was observed, contributing to an increase in forests/plantations and intensified agriculture by 39.19% and 25.54%, respectively. The LULCC corresponded to a 3.64% increase in ecosystem service values (ESV), implying positive benefits from the LULCC. Vegetation drought conditions monitored by the vegetation health index (VHI) exhibited an improvement trend, especially in the eastern basins. The development of artificial reservoirs was proven to stimulate the expansion of intensive agriculture and vegetation drought mitigation with spatial heterogeneity, spreading mainly across areas of the basins rather than remote areas. The research findings inform the efficiency of the reservoirs and irrigation systems regarding the beneficial effects on drought mitigation and water scarcity for agricultural cultivation. They also provide spatial information on areas still hindered by water problems that should be addressed in future strategies., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Air pollution in South Asia is a health emergency, responsible for 2 million deaths every year 1 . Crop residue burning accounts for 40-60% of peak pollution during the winter harvest months 2,3 . Despite being illegal, this practice remains widespread 4,5 . Any solution to curb the problem necessitates government action at scale. Here we study whether leveraging the incentives of bureaucrats tasked with controlling burning can mitigate this phenomenon. Using a decade of wind, fire and health data from satellites and surveys from the Demographic and Health Surveys Program, we show that crop burning responds to bureaucrat incentives: fires increase by 15% when wind is most likely to direct pollution to neighbouring jurisdictions, and decrease by 14.5% when it pollutes their own. These effects intensify with stronger bureaucratic incentives and capacity. We also find that bureaucrat action against burning deters future polluters, further reducing fires by 13%. Finally, using an atmospheric model, we estimate that one log increase in in utero exposure to pollution from burning raises child mortality by 30-36 deaths per 1,000 births, underscoring the importance of bureaucrat action. Contrary to the growing beliefs that the problem of crop burning is intractable 6,7 , these findings highlight specific ways in which existing bureaucrats, when properly incentivized, can improve environmental management and public health outcomes., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Land degradation often results in poor soil quality in many parts of Ethiopia, including the study area. To address this issue and promote sustainable land management practices, various land use and management methods (LUMMs) have been implemented. However, little information is available regarding how these management practices influence overall soil quality dynamics of the study area. This study aimed at evaluating soil quality dynamics in the Urago micro-watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia, under major LUMMs: barren land (BL), grassland (GL), established farm boundary (EFB), restored degraded land (RDL), and stone-supported soil bund (SSB). Forty-five disturbed and fifteen undisturbed soil samples were collected from the ploughed soil layer (0-20 cm) of each LUMM and analysed for selected physicochemical properties to be used as indicators of soil quality. Principal component analysis and multiple correlation were used to select the minimum data set (MDS) to evaluate the overall soil quality index (SQI). The MDS included SOC, clay content, exchangeable Mg 2+ , and available P, which could replace other indicators for assessing the overall soil quality dynamics of the study watershed. The result showed notable variations in particle-size fractions, soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), available P (av. P), and exchangeable Na + , K + , and Mg 2+ levels among the LUMMs. RDL had higher sand and silt contents than SSB, whereas SSB had higher clay content compared to RDL, GL, and BL. GL, RDL, and EFB showed significantly higher levels of SOC, TN, and av. P, respectively, compared to other LUMMs. The obtained SQI showed that GL had the highest score (0.847), followed by SSB (0.703), RDL (0.701), EFB (0.644), and BL (0.628). This underscores the significance of stone-supported soil bund and restored degraded land as an efficient management method to enhance soil quality and agro-ecosystem through conserving soil and encouraging sustainable farming practices., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Analysis of land use and land cover (LULC) change and its drivers and impacts in the biodiversity hotspot of Bale Mountain's socio-ecological system is crucial for formulating plausible policies and strategies that can enhance sustainable development. The study aimed to analyze spatio-temporal LULC changes and their trends, extents, drives, and impacts over the last 48 years in the Bale Mountain social-ecological system. Landsat imagery data from the years 1973, 1986, 1996, 2014, and 2021 together with qualitative data were used. LULC classification scheme employed a supervised classification method with the application of the maximum likelihood algorithm technique. In the period between 1973 and 2021, agriculture, bare land, and settlement showed areal increment by 153.13%, 295.57%, and 49.03% with the corresponding increased annual rate of 1.93%, 2.86%, and 0.83%, respectively. On the contrary, forest, wood land, bushland, grass land, and water body decreased by 29.97%, 1.36%, 28.16%, 8.63%, and 84.36% during the study period, respectively. During the period, major LULC change dynamics were also observed; the majority of woodland was converted to agriculture (757.8 km 2 ) and grassland (531.3 km 2 ); and forests were converted to other LULC classes, namely woodland (766.5 km 2 ), agriculture (706.1 km 2 ), grassland (34.6 km 2 ), bushland (31.9 km 2 ), settlement (20.5 km 2 ), and bare land (14.3 km 2 ). LULC changes were caused by the expansion of agriculture, settlement, overgrazing, infrastructure development, and fire that were driven by population growth and climate change, and supplemented by inadequate policy and institutional factors. Social and environmental importance and values of land uses and land covers in the study area necessitate further assessment of potential natural resources' user groups and valuation of ecosystem services in the study area. Hence, we suggest the identification of potential natural resource-based user groups, and assessment of the influence of LULC changes on ecosystem services in Bale Mountains Eco Region (BMER) for the sustainable use and managements of land resources., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Evaluating the impacts of farming systems on biodiversity is increasingly important given the need to stem biodiversity loss, decrease fossil fuel dependency, and maintain ecosystem services benefiting farmers. We recorded woody and herbaceous plant species diversity, composition, and abundance in 43 wetland-adjacent prairie remnants beside crop fields managed using conventional, minimum tillage, organic, or perennial cover (wildlife-friendly) land management in the Prairie Pothole Region. We used a hierarchical framework to estimate diversity at regional and local scales (gamma, alpha), and how these are related through species turnover (beta diversity). We tested the expectation that gamma richness/evenness and beta diversity of all plants would be higher in remnants adjacent to perennial cover and organic fields than in conventional and minimum tillage fields. We expected the same findings for plants providing ecosystem services (bee-pollinated species) and disservices (introduced species). We predicted similar relative effects of land management on alpha diversity, but with the expectation that the benefits of organic farming would decrease with increasing grassland in surrounding landscapes. Gamma richness and evenness of all plants were highest for perennial cover, followed by minimum tillage, organic, and conventional sites. Bee-pollinated species followed a similar pattern for richness, but for evenness organic farming came second, after perennial cover sites, followed by minimum tillage and conventional. For introduced species, organic sites had the highest gamma richness and evenness. Grassland amount moderated the effect of land management type on all plants and bee-pollinated plant richness, but not as expected. The richness of organic sites increased with the amount of grassland in the surrounding landscape. Conversely, for conventional sites, richness increased as the amount of grassland in the landscape declined. Our results are consistent with the expectation that adopting wildlife-friendly land management practices can benefit biodiversity at regional and local scales, in particular the use of perennial cover to benefit plant diversity at regional scales. At more local extents, organic farming increased plant richness, but only when sufficient grassland was available in the surrounding landscape; organic farms also had the highest beta diversity for all plants and bee-pollinated plants. Maintaining native cover in agroecosystems, in addition to low-intensity farming practices, could sustain plant biodiversity and facilitate important ecosystem services., (© 2024 His Majesty the King in Right of Canada and The Authors. Ecological Applications published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of The Ecological Society of America. Reproduced with the permission of the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada.)

Agro-based pulp and paper mills in India are one of the most polluting industries; in addition, they are high consumers of raw water. Growing scarcity of high quality freshwater as well as stringent regulatory standards is compelling these units to explore appropriate water management options. Based on data obtained through a questionnaire survey and plant visits, this work provides an overview of the water use and effluent treatment status in Indian agro-residue and recycled pulp and paper mills. The challenges faced by this sector are reviewed and practices adopted by progressive units to minimize freshwater use are illustrated through case studies.

Agricultural field experiments are costly and time-consuming, and often struggling to capture spatial and temporal variability. Mechanistic crop growth models offer a solution to understand intricate crop-soil-weather system, aiding farm-level management decisions throughout the growing season. The objective of this study was to calibrate and the Crop Environment Resource Synthesis CERES-Maize (DSSAT v 4.8) model to simulate crop growth, yield, and nitrogen dynamics in a long-term conservation agriculture (CA) based maize system. The model was also used to investigate the relationship between, temperature, nitrate and ammoniacal concentration in soil, and nitrogen uptake by the crop. Additionally, the study explored the impact of contrasting tillage practices and fertilizer nitrogen management options on maize yields. Using field data from 2019 and 2020, the DSSAT-CERES-Maize model was calibrated for plant growth stages, leaf area index-LAI, biomass, and yield. Data from 2021 were used to evaluate the model's performance. The treatments consisted of four nitrogen management options, viz., N0 (without nitrogen), N150 (150 kg N/ha through urea), GS (Green seeker-based urea application) and USG (urea super granules @150kg N/ha) in two contrasting tillage systems, i.e., CA-based zero tillage-ZT and conventional tillage-CT. The model accurately simulated maize cultivar's anthesis and physiological maturity, with observed value falling within 5% of the model's predictions range. LAI predictions by the model aligned well with measured values (RMSE 0.57 and nRMSE 10.33%), with a 14.6% prediction error at 60 days. The simulated grain yields generally matched with measured values (with prediction error ranging from 0 to 3%), except for plots without nitrogen application, where the model overestimated yields by 9-16%. The study also demonstrated the model's ability to accurately capture soil nitrate-N levels (RMSE 12.63 kg/ha and nRMSE 12.84%). The study concludes that the DSSAT-CERES-Maize model accurately assessed the impacts of tillage and nitrogen management practices on maize crop's growth, yield, and soil nitrogen dynamics. By providing reliable simulations during the growing season, this modelling approach can facilitate better planning and more efficient resource management. Future research should focus on expanding the model's capabilities and improving its predictions further., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

The utilization of agricultural waste to create value-added goods has benefited waste management while resolving cost-effectiveness and food shortage problems. Returning biochar produced from agricultural waste to the agricultural field is a sustainable method of enhancing crop production while lowering the environmental effect of typical fertilizers. It also enhances soil condition by modulating pH, soil organic carbon, water retention capacity, and soil ion exchange potential. The current work concentrated on the production of iron oxide-loaded biochar from banana peels. Pyrolysis was carried out at temperatures ranging from 400 to 500 °C. The co-precipitation technique was utilized to impregnate Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles on biochar, and it showed to be an effective and trustworthy method. Loading was done in situ. Characterization techniques such as XRD, FTIR, CHNS, and TGA were employed to characterize synthesized materials. Swelling ratio, water retention, absorbance, and equilibrium water content percentage were used to study the adsorption capabilities of Fe 3 O 4 -loaded biochar, soil, and raw biochar. As a consequence, Fe 3 O 4 -enriched biochar was shown to have better adsorption capability than raw biochar, which in turn showed better adsorption properties than soil. Iron-loaded biochar was employed as a fertilizer in Abelmoschus esculentus (Okra), and the results showed that it is a cost-effective, environmentally friendly fertilizer., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Flash floods in mountainous regions like the Himalayas are considered to be common natural calamities. Their consequences often are more dangerous than any flood event in the plains. These hazards not only put human lives at threat but also cause economic deflation due to the loss of lands, properties, and agricultural production. Hence, assessing the impact of such hazards in the existing agricultural system is of utmost importance to understand the probable crop loss. In this paper, we studied the efficiency of the remotely sensed microwave data to map the croplands affected by the flash flood that occurred in July 2023 in Himachal Pradesh, a mountainous state in the Indian Himalayan Region. The Una, Hamirpur, Kangra, and Sirmaur districts were identified as the most affected areas, with about 9%, 6%, 5.74%, and 3.61% of the respective districts' total geographical area under flood. Further, four machine learning algorithms (random forest, support vector regressor, k-nearest neighbor, and extreme gradient boosting) were evaluated to forecast maize and rice crop production and potential loss during the Kharif season in 2023. A regression algorithm with ten predictor variables consisting of the cropland area, two vegetation indices, and seven climatic parameters was applied to forecast the maize and rice production in the state. Amongst the four algorithms, random forest showed outstanding performance compared to others. The random forest regressor estimated the production of maize and rice with R 2 more than 0.8 in most districts. The mean absolute error and the root mean squared error obtained from the random forest regressor were also minimal compared to the others. The maximum production loss of maize is estimated for Solan (54.13%), followed by Una (11.06%), and of rice in Kangra (19.1%), Una (18.8%) and Kinnaur (18.5%) districts. This indicated the utility of the proposed approach for a quick in-season forecast on crop production loss due to climatic hazards., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Due to the anthropogenic pressures of expansion areas for livestock and agricultural production in the Brazilian Cerrado, it is of paramount importance to understand the dynamics of land use/land cover (LULC) changes in this region. Thus, we investigated LULC changes in two sub-basins of the Tocantins-Araguaia River basin from 1997 to 2015 and consequently projected future changes for the timespan between 2030 and 2050. The Formoso sub-basin experienced significant expansion of agricultural and pasture areas, whereas the Sono sub-basin limited farmland expansion (more stable native vegetation) due to substantial protected areas, trends that were also observed for future projections (2030 and 2050). Pastureland in the Formoso sub-basin increased by 5.8%, while the Sono sub-basin saw significant gains in cultivated land, according to change detection analyses during the 1997-2015 period. High stability probabilities of no change (> 70%) for grassland areas in the Sono River sub-basin and pasturelands in the Formoso River sub-basin were computed. The CA-Markov model demonstrated a high consistency level with actual LULC classes for both sub-basins, as indicated by an overall Kappa coefficient above 0.8. Future projections for 2030 and 2050 show a substantial expansion of agriculture and pasture in both sub-basins, driven by specific factors such as soil organic carbon stocks, distance from rural settlements, and proximity to rivers. Short- and mid-term simulations indicate substantial expansion of agriculture and pasture in both basins, with potential adverse impacts on water erosion. Consequently, developing policies for soil management and sustainable land use planning is essential for agroecosystem sustainability, promoting a balanced approach to economic development while addressing climate change and anthropogenic challenges., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

The record of past human adaptations provides crucial lessons for guiding responses to crises in the future 1-3 . To date, there have been no systematic global comparisons of humans' ability to absorb and recover from disturbances through time 4,5 . Here we synthesized resilience across a broad sample of prehistoric population time-frequency data, spanning 30,000 years of human history. Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses of population decline show that frequent disturbances enhance a population's capacity to resist and recover from later downturns. Land-use patterns are important mediators of the strength of this positive association: farming and herding societies are more vulnerable but also more resilient overall. The results show that important trade-offs exist when adopting new or alternative land-use strategies., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

This study analyzed the patterns and drivers of LULC dynamics in relation to the expansion of large-scale irrigated agriculture in the Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia from 1972 to 2016. Aerial photographs (1972), Landsat images (1980, 2000) and SPOT5 satellite images (2016) were analyzed using GIS tools to reveal LULC changes, and documentation, key informant interviews and focus group discussions were used to ascertain the biophysical and socioeconomic implications and drivers of these dynamics. The study revealed that cultivated and rural settlement land, and urban built-up areas had expanded at the expense of forestland, woodland, shrubland and grassland. While an increase in the production of cash crops had brought some benefits to smallholder farmers, such as access to irrigation and modern agricultural inputs and technologies, the unregulated conversion of natural vegetation to cultivated land resulted in a loss of biodiversity, deforestation, and reduction of pasture and firewood. We identified that significant LULC changes in the study area were caused by intersecting biophysical, economic, institutional, technological and demographic factors, which reinforced each other with varying magnitudes at different moments in time. These changes were underpinned by one key driver, that is, government agricultural policies that promoted investment in commercial agriculture for national and export markets. The study shows that understanding the complex interaction between the contributing factors and drivers of LULC change is crucial to inform decision-making and policies, in particular, by directing responses towards the underlying drivers of change rather than only the proximate causes., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Given the recognition that climate change predominantly affects the most vulnerable groups, there has been a growing interest in reorientations that can influence family farming's resilience. However, there is still a lack of research relating this subject to sustainable rural development perspectives. We reviewed 23 studies published between 2000 and 2021. These studies were systematically selected according to the pre-established criteria. Even though there is evidence that using adaptation strategies can effectively strengthen climate resilience in rural communities, many limiting factors remain. The convergences for sustainable rural development may include actions with a long-term horizon. These actions include an improvement package for territorial configurations within a local, inclusive, equitable, and participatory perspective. Furthermore, we discuss possible arguments for the results and future directions to explore opportunities in family farming., (© 2023. The Author(s) under exclusive licence to Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.)

The development of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) is crucial in ensuring the creation of a low-carbon society and mitigation of climate change. These tasks require concerted actions from multiple stakeholders since the very concept of CSA is rather complex and requires multi-dimensional consideration. This study defines and applies various indicators to evaluate the development of CSA in the European Union (EU). To do this, three different multi-criteria decision-making methods, namely Simple Additive Weighting (SAW), Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) and Vlse Kriterijumska Optimizacija Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR; multi-criteria optimization and compromise solution), were employed for the construction of a composite indicator. A combination of both objective (entropy) and subjective (Analytic Hierarchy Process) weighting techniques was utilized to derive the weights of the indicators. The leaders in the EU in terms of CSA are Austria, Denmark and the Netherlands, whereas the countries with the lowest levels of CSA development are Cyprus, Greece and Portugal. This study also revealed divergence in the development of these practices in the EU-24 for the period 2004-2019. Thus, a more inclusive approach is needed to ensure the spread of climate-smart ideas in European agriculture sectors., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

The assessment of land's agricultural potential, through a land capability evaluation, delves into its innate limitations, crop suitability, and responses to soil management. In regions where agriculture reigns supreme, socio-economic development is inexorably linked to the agricultural sector, making the optimal utilization of land resources an imperative pursuit. The pursuit of this objective is underpinned by the selection of new agricultural areas and the determination of which crops thrive in specific locations, for which the multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) method emerges as an ideal choice. This comprehensive research endeavour revolves around the intricate interplay of climatic, edaphic, fertility, topographical, and socioeconomic determinants. Within this intricate web, a total of 15 determinants play a pivotal role, including precipitation, potential evapotranspiration (PET), soil texture, drainage, soil organic-carbon, nitrogen content, pH, clay content, river proximity, land use/land cover (LULC), slope, temperature, social suitability, irrigation density, and elevation. To weigh these determinants, the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) comes into play, ultimately revealing that the dominant influences on land capability stem from the realms of climate and soil. The watershed's terrain analysis revealed a distinct suitability contrast: 168 km 2 highly suitable, 181.3 km 2 moderate, and 429 km2 low. The eastern and northeastern sectors were notably promising. Rigorous validation, using the ROC curve, confirmed the reliability and precision. The process yielded an impressive 83.2% AUC, unequivocally confirming the assessment's remarkable accuracy and dependability., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Climate-induced extreme events with fluctuations in climatic indicators like temperature and precipitation highly influence crop productivity. This study deals with quantitative analysis of climatic variability and crop production (1990-2018) using panel data regression analysis. The focus is on variability of three crops, i.e., paddy, maize, and wheat in the Rangit river basin of Sikkim Himalaya, India. Meterological data were acquired from the Indian Meteorological Department, agricultural data from the state agricultural department and a field survey were also conducted with the farmers, using a structured questionnaire, focused group discussion, and key informant observations. The acquired data was analyzed with the help of correlation and multiple linear regression analysis to analyze the relationship between climatic variability and crop production. The result of the study shows that all three crops are dependent on rainfall; however, paddy was the most sensitive to climatic variability. It was found that the overall grain production had an inverse relation to temperature, but it had a positive correlation with rainfall. It was observed that there was a continuous decline in the overall production of paddy and wheat. During deficiency years, it was found that when - 11.33% rainfall was deficient, paddy yield declined by - 1.52%. Further, a deviation of - 13.48% led to a decline of - 54.78% in wheat. The study advocates that timely policy interventions and strategies shall reduce climatic shocks and improve productivity. This would strengthen the livelihood security of the local communities, overcome the challenges of food security, and ensure long-term sustainability of Rangit River basin., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Forecasting rainfall at the local scale to inform farm-level decisions is complex and it remains an unresolved problem with dire implications for food security. Here, we examine indigenous knowledge forecasting systems used by smallholder farmers in Maondo Agriculture Camp (MAC) of Sesheke District in the Western Province of Zambia to increase their climate change adaptive capacity at the farm level. We adopted a qualitative approach that uses an exploratory-descriptive design. We then used purposive sampling, a non-probability methodological approach, to choose respondents. We applied semi-structured interviews and questionnaires as data collection tools and examined the data using thematic content analysis. We found that > 50% of small-scale farmers receive forecasts produced by the Zambia Meteorological Department (ZMD) through stakeholders' meetings. Farmers who do not receive ZMD forecasts depend on indigenous knowledge systems. Results further indicate that farmers in the MAC combine several indicators to predict rainfall. Prominent among them include plants, weather-related parameters, and astrological indicators. A cursory inspection of these rainfall predictors revealed several points specifically highlighting three salient thematic contents, i.e. biological, meteorological, and astrological. Results further showed that both conventional science and indigenous knowledge used to forecast rainfall have strengths and weaknesses. We, therefore, conclude that the integration of the two methods has the potential to significantly improve rainfall forecasts and ultimately agricultural productivity at the farm level., (© 2022. The Author(s) under exclusive licence to International Society of Biometeorology.)

This study sought to assess how smallholder farmers have been living and responding to impacts of climate change in Hanang' District, Tanzania. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected using key informant interviews, household surveys, focus group discussions (FGDs) and field observations. Quantitative data from the questionnaire survey were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), whilst, qualitative data were exposed to content analysis. Rainfall and temperature trends were analyzed using Microsoft Excel and the significance of the trends determined using Mann-Kendall and CUSUM analysis. Most respondents (78%) revealed decreased rainfall amounts and changed onset, and 94% reported increased temperature. Farmers disclosed that droughts and floods are major climatic stresses in the area; this was substantiated by observed increasing and decreasing temperature and rainfall trends respectively. This corroborated with most respondents who perceived decreased rainfall amounts and changed onset, and reported increased temperature levels. Response strategies include crop diversification and drought-resistant crop varieties, migration, abandoning some crops, and short-cycle crops. However, smallholder farmers have been failing to effectively address climatic challenges. We argue that they are still heavily reliant on social, economic, and policy support to improve their adaptive capacity, particularly, transformative responses., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

It has been argued that gender affects climate change response especially among farming communities yet literature is scant on gender perspectives of response. In recognition of this, the study examined responses with the associated challenges and opportunities across gender in the South East (SE) Nigeria. A mixed research approach including a participatory research approach (PRA), field observation and household questionnaire survey was used to collect data. The survey sample included 300 (150 men and women each) farm household heads from six villages in the region. Data were analyzed and presented using principal component analysis (PCA), non-parametric and descriptive statistics. The study found that men and women-headed households differed in their use of strategies like migration from affected areas and livelihood diversification (p < 0.05). Women have more challenges of insufficient improved farming knowledge than men. The challenges for men were majorly insufficient technologies like mechanization. Components of these challenges include technology, environmental-related challenges among others. Response opportunities for men and women include digital/mobile telecommunications and learning by doing respectively. Compared to men, women had less participation in opportunities for the development of human capital through training (p < 0.05). The study recommends that more opportunities should be provided for the training of farmers especially women on climate change response., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

The potential of mitigation actions to limit global warming within 2 °C (ref.  1 ) might rely on the abundant supply of biomass for large-scale bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) that is assumed to scale up markedly in the future 2-5 . However, the detrimental effects of climate change on crop yields may reduce the capacity of BECCS and threaten food security 6-8 , thus creating an unrecognized positive feedback loop on global warming. We quantified the strength of this feedback by implementing the responses of crop yields to increases in growing-season temperature, atmospheric CO 2 concentration and intensity of nitrogen (N) fertilization in a compact Earth system model 9 . Exceeding a threshold of climate change would cause transformative changes in social-ecological systems by jeopardizing climate stability and threatening food security. If global mitigation alongside large-scale BECCS is delayed to 2060 when global warming exceeds about 2.5 °C, then the yields of agricultural residues for BECCS would be too low to meet the Paris goal of 2 °C by 2200. This risk of failure is amplified by the sustained demand for food, leading to an expansion of cropland or intensification of N fertilization to compensate for climate-induced yield losses. Our findings thereby reinforce the urgency of early mitigation, preferably by 2040, to avoid irreversible climate change and serious food crises unless other negative-emission technologies become available in the near future to compensate for the reduced capacity of BECCS., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited.)

Change in land use and land cover (LULC) contributes in worsening ecological issues. Studying the trends of change in land use is highly significant to deal with global climate change and sustainable development. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the spatial-temporal dynamics of LULC of the Bamenda Mountains (BM) in the North West region of Cameroon, over a period of 34 years (1988-2022) and predict 34 years (2022-2056) future land use scenario of this site using time series satellite imagery (MSS, TM, ETM+, and OLI-TIRS) and ancillary data and to comprehend the driving forces of land use/land cover change (LULCC). The trends of LULCC were quantified; LULC maps were derived by classifying time series satellite images. Six LULC categories were identified during the study period (1988-2022). The research revealed a significant LULCC of the BM which can be justified by increase in the human population observed in the study area and the desire to extend agricultural lands to sustain the growing population. Overall, cultivated area 5684 ha (10.47%), 10680 ha (19.57 %), and 15163 ha (27.78%) and built-up area 449 ha (0.83%), 996 ha (1.83%), and 3242 ha (5.94%) for the study years 1988, 2003, and 2022, respectively, were all on the increase throughout the study period at the expense of other land cover types. The predicted figures of 2056 showed a continuous reduction of montane forest and savanna: 2401.92 ha (4.40%) and 25,862.67 ha (47.39%), respectively. Bare area is expected to drop in 2056 (2905.92 ha (5.32%)). The above decrease, when compared to 2022 figures, represents a loss of 3.97%, 4.53%, and 0.57%, respectively. The losses observed are gained by built-up and cultivated land (5.72% and 3.39%, respectively), covering surfaces areas of 6364.89 ha (11.66%) and 17,008.56 ha (31.17%), respectively. The above findings suggest that population growth is likely the major menace to the natural environment. It is thus safe to say that substantial LULCC was observed throughout the study period and will undoubtedly continue if nothing is done. This necessitates urgent measures such as reforestation and afforestation, encouraging off-farm activities and even improving technologies to combat the rate of forest degradation of the BM. Additionally, rebuilding trust between the French and English Cameroons through dialogue is premodial, to end the curent conflictual civil war and lessen the landscape configuration in Bamenda., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Agricultural production systems in semi-arid areas are vulnerable to a myriad of risks. Using a systems approach of risk framework and a mixed-methods research design, this paper sought to explore selected biophysical and socio-economic risks that contributed to vulnerability of agricultural production systems in the semi-arid lowlands of Mwanga District, Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania. Despite the lack of statistically significant relationships between amounts of rainfall and crop production in the district, 30 focus group participants perceived that spatial and temporal changes of rainfall distribution as coupled with increased crop pest/disease outbreaks and soil loss contributed to vulnerability of agricultural production systems in terms of frequent crop failure and famine particularly amongst farmers who practised rain-fed farming in the semi-arid lowlands. Furthermore, participants perceived that crop production and yields were negatively influenced by poor marketing and institutional structures and that crop production and yields were negatively influenced by farmers' poor access to appropriate technologies including seeds, fertilizers, agrochemicals, agricultural machinery and infrastructure including modern irrigation schemes and all-weather roads. By way of conclusion, reduced vulnerability of agricultural production systems calls for integrated enhancement of farmers' capacity in addressing the biophysical, agro-industrial and institutional risks., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

A new 5-year Common Agricultural Policy has been in place since January 2023. Like its predecessors, this new policy will fail to deliver significant climatic and environmental benefits. We show how the Green Architecture of the policy relying on the three instruments of conditionality, eco-schemes, and agri-environment and climate measures could have been used more consistently and effectively. Our proposals are based on core principles of public economics and fiscal federalism as well as on research results in agronomy and ecology. Conditionality criteria are the minimal requirements that every agricultural producer must meet. Farmers should be rewarded for efforts that go beyond these basic requirements through eco-schemes for global public goods complemented by agri-environment and climate measures centred on local public goods. Eco-schemes should cover the whole agricultural area by targeting permanent grasslands, crop diversification, and green cover and non-productive agro-ecological infrastructures. We discuss trade-offs that our proposals could generate., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

The unpredictability of the climate has drawn a lot of interest worldwide, especially that of the annual mean temperatures and rainfall. In this study, non-parametric tests such as the LOWESS curve method, Mann-Kendall (MK), SNHT test, Pettitt's test (PT), and Buishand range test (BRT) were used to evaluate long-term (2000-2020) rainfall data series to examine rainfall variability. The Dakshina Kannada district has the highest average rainfall is 3495.6 mm with a magnitude change% of about 26.2, while the Koppala district has the lowest average rainfall roughly about 530.4 mm, with a magnitude change % of about 11.49 mm in a year. The statistics from the fitted prediction line were utilized to determine the maximum coefficient determination (R 2  = 0.8808) in the Uttara Kannada region. Because of the commencement of the present rising era, 2015 is the shift year in rainfall with the highest potential of being a change point in the state's Western Ghats region. It was also revealed that the majority of the districts exhibit positive trends before the change point and vice versa. The current research can be used to plan for and minimize the agricultural and water resource challenges in the state of Karnataka. To link observable patterns to climate variability, the next inquiry must identify the source of these changes. Overall, the study's findings will help organize and improve drought, flood, and water resource management techniques in the state., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Peri-urban areas support a broad range of multifunctional demands for public goods. In northwest Europe, peri-urban areas tend to overlap with intensive agricultural land, resulting in conflicts between agricultural use and the public good demands of residents. Sustainable intensification (SI) of agriculture might help reconcile agricultural and well-being goals, but it is unclear how the mix of actors in a peri-urban setting can trigger or restrain SI. In a Dutch case study, we explored how SI of agriculture can contribute to making peri-urban areas more sustainable, and which actors are key enabling factors for implementing SI. We used interviews, surveys, workshops, and empirical analysis to obtain insight into the stakeholder's vision of a sustainable future for the case study area, the farming system and actor network. We integrated these insights in a Bayesian Belief Network, where we linked the actor network to implementation of three SI measures (farm-level efficiency measures, small landscape elements, and direct sales), and used sensitivity analysis to model effects of support for implementation by different groups of actors. The case study has a dense stakeholder network, where, dependent on the SI measure, farmers are triggered by all actors to implement SI, or have a stronger role in uptake themselves. The sensitivity analysis suggested that the future preferred by the stakeholders requires broad support of all actors involved, with local actors without a formal role being essential for uptake. Overall, trade-offs among public goods are almost inevitable when taking up SI measures., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Low-intensity agriculture is important for the conservation of many European habitats and species. However, biodiverse farmlands-also referred to as high nature value (HNV) farmlands-are threatened by years of agricultural intensification and land abandonment. Considering the ongoing changes in land-cover-evident throughout Europe-it is important to assess how land transformation is affecting HNV farmlands. Here, we evaluate land-cover changes within HNV farmlands during 2006-2018. We find that HNV farmlands inside Natura 2000 sites are less likely than those outside to be converted to artificial surfaces and more likely to maintain mosaic farming. However, land transformation patterns vary between member states, suggesting that different processes are driving the land-cover changes within each state. We recommend that member states support HNV farmers by making a more effective use of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and that the EU prioritizes the protection of HNV farmlands during its next CAP reform post-2020.

The study relates to the use of automated plant protection systems in agriculture. The article presents a proprietary automated mobile platform with an aerosol generator of hot mist. Furthermore, the cause of the loss of a chemical preparation in the spraying of plant protection products on the tree crown was determined in the course of field research. A statistical analysis of the results of experiment was carried out and the effect of droplet size on leaf coating density was determined. The manuscript presents a diagram of the degree of penetration of the working solution as it drops into the crown of the tree, as well as a cross-sectional graph of the permeability of the spray from the projection of the fruit tree crown. The most effective modes of operation of the automated mobile platform for spraying plant protection products with a mist generator aggregate were established. Analysis of the results shows that the device meets the spraying requirements of the procedure for spraying plant protection products. The novelty of this research lies in the optimal modes identified by movement of the developed automated mobile platform and the parameters of plant treatment with protective equipment when using a hot mist generator. The following mode parameters were established: the speed of the automated platform was 3.4 km/h, the distance to the crown of the tree was 1.34 m, and the flow rate of the working fluid was 44.1 L/h. Average fuel consumption was 2.5 L/h. Effective aerosol penetration reduced the amount of working fluid used by up to 50 times.

The environmental impacts of cannabis cultivation have been an issue of growing concern, with legalization often framed as a means to introduce regulations that hinder damaging practices. However, the concept of frontier expansion presents the possibility that the widespread establishment of this new industry may institute an additional source of habitat encroachment. Here, through geospatial analysis, we employ Colorado as a case study to investigate the distribution of licensed recreational cannabis cultivators, potential habitat infringement of threatened and endangered species, and LULC change. From 2011 to 2016, licensed cannabis cultivation has resulted in over 67 ha of LULC change toward more developed land uses. In addition, nearly 15 km of new fencing was constructed establishing over 38 ha of fenced areas, and nearly 60 ha of vegetation was cleared. Much of this cannabis-driven LULC change is identified within the habitats of threatened and endangered species, as well as areas recognized as containing high biodiversity values with the potential for conservation. Thus, notable cannabis-driven frontier expansion is evident. Cannabis-driven LULC change is found to be primarily produced by outdoor and greenhouse facilities, as well as operations utilizing mixed-cultivation methods in rural areas. Therefore, policy instruments that inter alia encourage indoor cannabis cultivation in urban areas are recommended and discussed., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Contrary to the expectations of promoters of organic agriculture, the adoption of the technology by smallholder farmers in Africa has been low and slow, for reasons not well understood. Existing studies on the topic mostly estimated the effect of some variables on the adoption of the technology. But adoption is characterized by complex and dynamic interactions of many interconnected factors, which existing studies overlooked. The underlying causal structures and feedback mechanisms that dynamically interact to affect the adoption of organic farming in urban and rural Africa are also not well known. To bridge these gaps, we used a system dynamics tool called participatory causal loop diagraming to map the underlying causal factors and feedback mechanisms driving the adoption of organic farming in rural and urban Nigeria. We conducted loop and network analyses of the group causal loop diagrams, which were created during the participatory system dynamics modeling workshops with the organic farmers in our study areas. Our findings underscore the importance of the knowledge of organic farming, demand- and supply-side-oriented awareness creation, and the economic viability of organic farming for widespread adoption of the technology. We suggested the potential leverages around which interventions can be built to boost the adoption rates of the technology., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

The expanding global population and the use of conventional agrochemical pesticides have led to the loss of crop yield and food shortages. Excessive pesticide used in agriculture risks life forms by contaminating soil and water resources, necessitating the use of nano agrochemicals. This article focuses on synthesis moiety and use of nanopesticides for enhanced stability, controlled release mechanisms, improved efficacy, and reduced pesticide residue levels. The current literature survey offered regulatory frameworks for commercial deployment of nanopesticides and evaluated societal and environmental impacts. Various physicochemical and biological processes, especially microorganisms and advanced oxidation techniques are important in treating pesticide residues through degradation mechanisms. Agricultural waste could be converted into nanofibers for sustainable composites production, new nanocatalysts, such as N-doped TiO 2 and bimetallic nanoparticles for advancing pesticide degradation. Microbial and enzyme methods have been listed as emerging nanobiotechnology tools in achieving a significant reduction of chlorpyrifos and dimethomorph for the management of pesticide residues in agriculture. Moreover, cutting-edge biotechnological alternatives to conventional pesticides are advocated for promoting a transition towards more sustainable pest control methodologies. Application of nanopesticides could be critical in addressing environmental concern due to its increased mobility, prolonged persistence and ecosystem toxicity. Green synthesis of nanopesticides offers solutions to environmental risks associated and using genetic engineering techniques may induce pest and disease resistance for agricultural sustainability. Production of nanopesticides from biological sources is necessary to develop and implement comprehensive strategies to uphold agricultural productivity while safeguarding environmental integrity., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The soil environment is a primary destination for contaminants such as microplastics (MPs) and heavy metals (HMs), which are frequently detected simultaneously. The long-term coexistence of MPs and HMs in the soil necessitates unavoidable interactions, affecting their environmental chemical behavior and bioavailability. These co-contaminants pose potential threats to soil organism growth and reproduction, crop productivity, food security, and may jeopardize human health via the food chain. This paper summarizes the sources and trends of MPs in the soil environment, along with the mechanisms and current research status of MP adsorption or desorption of HMs. Additionally, this paper reviews factors affecting HM adsorption on MPs, including MP properties, HM chemical properties, and other environmental factors. Lastly, the effects of MPs and HMs on soil ecology and human health are summarized. The interaction mechanisms and potential biological effects of their co-contamination require further exploration. Future research should delve deeper into the ecotoxic effects of MP-HM co-contamination at cellular and molecular levels, to provide a comprehensive reference for understanding the environmental behavior of their co-contamination in soil., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declared that they have no conflicts of interest to this work. We declare that we do not have any commercial or associative interest that represents a conflict of interest in connection with the work submitted., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Given the substantial effects of agricultural practices on the environment, this paper introduces a novel stakeholder-based framework for assessing the ecosystem services (ESs) provided by agricultural areas. Ecosystem services include essential functions such as water supply, food production, carbon storage, soil erosion control, and habitat support. In addition to ESs, water footprint is also taken into account to evaluate the impacts of agricultural activities on water resources. Some of the mentioned ESs are assessed using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). Then, by extending and combining the Conflict Resolution Model with the Composition of Probabilistic Preferences (CRMCPP) method and the leader-follower game (LFG), while considering the hierarchical structure of decision-makers, the best scenario for enhancing the ESs is selected. The Zarrinehroud River Basin (ZRB) in Iran has been chosen as a case study to evaluate the performance of the proposed framework, as this basin is vital for supplying water to Lake Urmia, the largest hypersaline lake in the Middle East. In this paper, 16 Water and Environmental Resources Management (WERM) scenarios have been defined according to the Urmia Lake Restoration National Committee (ULRNC) projects. Then, the mentioned ESs have been evaluated under different WERM scenarios. Ultimately, by utilizing the CRMCPP-LFG method and taking into account the hierarchical structure of decision-makers, we can identify the optimal WERM scenario. The criteria for making this decision include various factors, such as ecosystem services and the costs involved in implementing the WERM scenarios. In the selected scenario, the average water inflow into Lake Urmia is projected to rise to 1329 million cubic meters per year, which is 6.3% more than the average inflow in the current condition. Key initiatives in this scenario include reducing cultivated areas, altering irrigation methods, changing crop patterns, and incorporating water-efficient plant species., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Understanding the spatiotemporal dynamics of the environmental effects associated with paddy field utilization (PFU) is imperative for safeguarding the availability of food while preserving the environment. While thorough investigations have been carried out on the individual environmental effects of PFU, study on comprehensive environmental effects of PFU and the spatial inequity issues stemming from the transfer of these effects are scarce. This study aims to quantify the greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE), nitrogen emissions (NE), and water consumption (WC) linked to PFU in China from 2000 to 2020. Additionally, it evaluates the transference of environmental effects through the inter-provincial rice flow and examines the resultant spatial inequity issues. The intensity of GHGE has demonstrated a consistent increase, while the intensity of NE has shown a fluctuating yet generally decreasing trend. Provinces with high water footprints are predominantly located in the northern regions. Specifically, GHGE increased by 3.54 Mt, primarily due to intensified agricultural inputs. NE decreased by 0.08 Mt, largely influenced by the enforcement of sustainable agricultural practices. WC escalated by 3.49 billion m 3 , chiefly as a result of heightened groundwater dependence. Significant increases in environmental effects were observed in Northeast China Plain (NECP) and Middle-lower Yangtze Plain (MLYP), whereas Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau (YGP), Southern China (SC), and Sichuan Basin and surrounding regions (SBSR) experienced reductions. The volume of inter-provincial rice flow initially surged before witnessing a decline, with a net increase of 15.59 Mt in rice outflow from NECP. The transferred volumes of GHGE, NE, and WC within China surged by 123.87%, 105.26%, and 119.05%, respectively. Huang-Huai-Hai Plain (HHHP) and SC emerged as principal outflows of environmental effects, while MLYP and NECP became the main inflows, exacerbating regional environmental disparities. Lorenz curves for GHGE, NE, and WC indicate a growing deviation from the line of absolute equality, highlighting a substantial increase in spatial inequality regarding the environmental effects of PFU in China. Moving forward, it is crucial to optimize PFU and rice flow patterns to mitigate the specific regional environmental effects, enhance the spatial efficiency of rice production, and promote spatial equity in environmental effects., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Changes in soil phosphorus (P) distribution and budget critically impact the sustainability of agricultural systems. Yet, few studies have examined the long-term evolution of cropland (and crop-specific) P budget and use efficiency (PUE) at a grid level. Here, we conducted a comprehensive evaluation of the cropland P budget and PUE and their human-environmental drivers in China during 1992-2018 at a spatial resolution of 0.1°. The results reveal a significant shift in China's cropland P budget from a deficit of -3.70 Tg P yr -1 in 1992 to a surplus of 0.31 Tg P yr -1 in 2018, mainly driven by increased fertilizer application and decreased soil erosion by water. The concurrent national average cropland PUE initially decreased from 0.51 in 1992 to 0.34 in 2003, but afterwards increased to 0.39 in 2015. An environmental-Kuznets-curve-like (EKC) relationship was identified between the national average P budget (inverted U-shaped) or PUE (U-shaped) and per capita GDP in China, with the turning point occurring in 2013 for the previous and at per capita GDP of US$8.85 k (constant 2017 US$) for the latter. But PUE had been well below a threshold of 0.40 at the national level after crossing the turning point and showed a considerable trend divergence among crops, particularly for cash ones. Spatially, northern and northwestern China exhibited high positive P budget but achieved relatively low PUE in the 2010s. Crop leaf area, irrigation, fertilizer input, and precipitation were identified as the most important factors determining the multi-year spatial pattern of P budget, while fertilizer input, temperature, and residue return played a dominant role in regulating PUE. Our findings highlight the need for a long-term commitment to regionalized and crop-specific synthetic management practices for controlling P inputs and minimizing P loss in the context of global change in China., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Low-molecular-weight organic acids (LMWOAs) play a crucial role as components of dissolved organic matter in soil, influencing the sorption/desorption, degradation, and plant uptake of diverse pollutants within the agricultural soil ecosystem. This study delves into the sorption behavior and mechanism of the fluoroquinolone antibiotic enrofloxacin (ENR) on agricultural soil in North China, focusing on the impact of LMWOAs. Through batch equilibrium experiments, we explored the sorption/desorption kinetics of ENR under varying conditions such as temperature, pH, ion strength, and ion type, with the addition of acetic acid, oxalic acid, and citric acid individually. Our findings reveal that the sorption and desorption kinetics of ENR-whether with or without LMWOAs-conformed well to the pseudo-second-order kinetic model (R 2  ≥ 0.997). The presence of LMWOAs notably enhanced ENR sorption while impeding desorption in soil, with oxalic acid demonstrating the highest promotion effect followed by acetic acid and citric acid. Moreover, the sorption capacity and affinity of ENR decreased with rising solution pH, dropping from 96.8%-98.5% to 30.9%-34.4%. Acidic conditions favored ENR retention in soil, with inhibition of sorption escalating alongside increasing ionic strength. LMWOAs, soil solution pH, and coexisting ions emerge as pivotal factors shaping ENR sorption behavior. Furthermore, LMWOA presence intensified desorption hysteresis of ENR on soil, with a desorption hysteresis coefficient (HI) ≤ 0.124. These results suggest that LMWOAs restrict ENR mobility in the local soil environment, heightening the risk of its accumulation in soil and crops. This study offers valuable insights into the intricate interplay among LMWOAs, ENR sorption dynamics, and environmental outcomes, underscoring the importance of understanding such complexities in agricultural soil management., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Soil ecosystems are complex networks of microorganisms that play pivotal roles in nutrient cycling, stress resilience, and the provision of ecosystem services. Among these microbial communities, soil biofilms, and complex aggregations of microorganisms embedded within extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) exert significant influence on soil health and function. This review delves into the dynamics of soil biofilms, highlighting their structural intricacies and the mechanisms by which they facilitate nutrient cycling, and discusses how biofilms enhance the degradation of pollutants through the action of extracellular enzymes and horizontal gene transfer, contributing to soil detoxification and fertility. Furthermore, the role of soil biofilms in stress resilience is underscored, as they form symbiotic relationships with plants, bolstering their growth and resistance to environmental stressors. The review also explores the ecological functions of biofilms in enhancing soil structure stability by promoting aggregate formation, which is crucial for water retention and aeration. By integrating these insights, we aim to provide a comprehensive understanding of the multifaceted benefits of biofilms in soil ecosystems. This knowledge is essential for developing strategies to manipulate soil biofilms to improve agricultural productivity and ecological sustainability. This review also identifies research gaps and emphasizes the need for practical applications of biofilms in sustainable agriculture., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have influenced the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

While the agricultural green transformation has garnered significant attention on the political stage as a crucial strategy for climate change mitigation and sustainable development, there remains a notable gap in our understanding of the prevailing logics that shape organizational decisions on this change in emerging economies. Drawing on the institutional logics perspective, this study explores the impact of state logic (manifested through green credit policy) and market logic (manifested through analyst attention) on agriculture-related firms' (ARFs') green transformation, as well as the moderating effects of organizational transparency and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) level. Using longitudinal data on 201 publicly listed ARFs in China from 2008 to 2020, we find that both state and market logics exert unique effects on facilitating the green transformation of ARFs. More notably, a complementarity between the two logics in offering value for ARFs' green transformation is revealed. This complementary effect becomes more pronounced for organizations with a higher level of transparency or a superior ESG profile. Our study contributes to the neo-institutional perspective of organizational green transformation, a better understanding of conflicting institutional logics in emerging economies, and research on agricultural sustainability., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Understanding the transition from meteorological to agricultural drought is crucial for developing effective drought management strategies and early warning systems. This study provides a unique perspective by utilizing hybrid drought indices to explore the temporal and spatial complexities of drought propagation across two large watersheds-California and Mississippi-that feature distinct agro-climatic conditions and irrigation practices. We assess the links between meteorological drought, measured by the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI), and agricultural drought using three indicators: Vegetation Drought Response Index (VegDRI), GRACE Root Zone Soil Moisture Percentile (SMI), and the Evaporative Demand Drought Index (EDDI). By comparing watersheds with different irrigation systems, we also consider the role of irrigation in modifying drought dynamics. Our analysis identified the 14-day SPI as particularly effective in capturing drought dynamics. Soil moisture showed the earliest response to rainfall anomalies, with a lag of 41 days in California and 59 days in Mississippi. Vegetation stress followed, with a lag of 137 days in California and 75 days in Mississippi, while atmospheric conditions lagged by 143 and 139 days, respectively. Irrigation was found to delay drought impacts by up to two months. This framework offers a finer temporal resolution and a more nuanced understanding of drought propagation, potentially informing more targeted drought mitigation strategies than traditional methods., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Water scarcity is a global challenge. A severe gap between water supply and demand will arise. Consequently, a large part of the world could face water shortage issues in the near future. Increasing cultivated areas and rapid population growth will intensify water consumption, which may lead to a "drink or grow" situation in many countries. Promoting more yield per water drop (MYWD) ideology for water secure development is critically important because the agriculture sector is the largest water consumer by 70%. In lower-middle and low-income countries, water use in agriculture ranges from 80-90%. Advanced water-saving technologies can reduce water consumption by 35-65%, but adoption is less than 20% of the total irrigated area in most countries. Mission 2050 in agricultural countries would be to cover at least 75% and 85% of land under water-saving technologies, which receive surface and groundwater, respectively. The water-saving technologies can decrease farm-scale water consumption, thus alleviating pressure on water resources. In the water scarcity mitigation agenda, the increasing cultivated area under the water-saving technologies should be mapped well since some researchers believe that the water-saving technologies are increasing cultivated area, thereby jeopardizing the "water-saving goal." This comprehensive review navigated the MYWD concept, discussed strategies, sketched a hydrological model to conserve resources, and highlighted economic feasibility, environmental benefits of water-saving technologies, and further improvements. This study can contribute significantly to the future water policy and measures worldwide., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)