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Scenarios serve science by testing the sensitivity of a system and/or society to adapt to the future. In this study, we present a new land use scenario methodology called ScenaLand. This methodology aims to develop plausible and contrasting land use and management (LUM) scenarios, useful to explore how LUM (e.g. soil and water conservation techniques) may affect ecosystem services under global change in a wide range of environments. ScenaLand is a method for constructing narrative and spatially explicit land use scenarios that are useful for end-users and impact modellers. This method is innovative because it merges literature and expert knowledge, and its low data requirement makes it easy to be implemented in the context of inter-site comparison, including global change projections. ScenaLand was developed and tested on six different Mediterranean agroecological and socioeconomic contexts during the MASCC research project (Mediterranean agricultural soil conservation under global change). The method first highlights the socioeconomic trends of each study site including emerging trends such as new government laws, LUM techniques through a qualitative survey addressed to local experts. Then, the method includes a ranking of driving factors, a matrix about land use evolution, and soil and water conservation techniques. ScenaLand also includes a framework to develop narratives along with two priority axes (contextualized to environmental protection vs. land productivity in this study). In the context of this research project, four contrasting scenarios are proposed: S1 (business-as-usual), S2 (market-oriented), S3 (environmental protection), and S4 (sustainable). Land use maps are then built with the creation of LUM allocation rules based on agroecological zoning. ScenaLand resulted in a robust and easy method to apply with the creation of 24 contrasted scenarios. These scenarios come not only with narratives but also with spatially explicit maps that are potentially

Scenarios serve science by testing the sensitivity of a system and/or society to adapt to the future. In this study, we present a new land use scenario methodology called ScenaLand. This methodology aims to develop plausible and contrasting land use and management (LUM) scenarios, useful to explore how LUM (e.g. soil and water conservation techniques) may affect ecosystem services under global change in a wide range of environments. ScenaLand is a method for constructing narrative and spatially explicit land use scenarios that are useful for end-users and impact modellers. This method is innovative because it merges literature and expert knowledge, and its low data requirement makes it easy to be implemented in the context of inter-site comparison, including global change projections. ScenaLand was developed and tested on six different Mediterranean agroecological and socioeconomic contexts during the MASCC research project (Mediterranean agricultural soil conservation under global change). The method first highlights the socioeconomic trends of each study site including emerging trends such as new government laws, LUM techniques through a qualitative survey addressed to local experts. Then, the method includes a ranking of driving factors, a matrix about land use evolution, and soil and water conservation techniques. ScenaLand also includes a framework to develop narratives along with two priority axes (contextualized to environmental protection vs. land productivity in this study). In the context of this research project, four contrasting scenarios are proposed: S1 (business-as-usual), S2 (market-oriented), S3 (environmental protection), and S4 (sustainable). Land use maps are then built with the creation of LUM allocation rules based on agroecological zoning. ScenaLand resulted in a robust and easy method to apply with the creation of 24 contrasted scenarios. These scenarios come not only with narratives but also with spatially explicit maps that are potentially

During the last 10 years, several attempts to map soil attributes at the scale of mainland France have been realised. We exemplify them by seven major outputs: maps of organic C stocks, trace elements (TE), microbial density and diversity, soil thickness, available water capacity (AWC), extractable P, and changes in soil pH. We first briefly describe the data and the methods used to produce these maps and summarise their main results. We then focus on their impacts on various categories of the public, i.e. the general public and citizens; farmers; private companies; non-governmental organisations; agricultural development organisations, stakeholders, and national agencies; French governmental bodies; and international organisations. We also analyse the demands that came to the French National Soil Information Centre from 2008 to 2018 and the impact that our activities had in various media. Soil organic C had the largest impact in nearly all categories of end-users, which may be linked to the recent ‘4 per 1000’ initiative launched by the French governmentduring the COP21 and to the fact that farmers are interested in increasing the organic matter content of their soil for increasing the fertility. TE obtained high scores, which may be related to citizens' care about health and to the fact that governmental bodies and national agencies have a major interest in site contamination assessments. The soil P content, pH, and AWC exhibited major impacts on the agricultural sector. Maps of the soil P content and pH were used as geomarketing tools by private companies selling fertilisers and soil amendments, whereas the AWC was already incorporated into decision-making aid tools for irrigation management developed by development organisations for farmers. Microbial diversity generated collaborations with a large network of farmers and had a large media impact. Nevertheless, the visibility of soil information to the general public should be increased. This can be done by using

Soil is a rare natural resource and it is at the center of the main issues in agronomy, environment and land use planning. At global level, erosion is one of the major soil degradation processes and it is responsible for the decrease in agronomic potential of soils and in agricultural land surfaces. Water and soil conservation works (WSCW) are built to protect soil from erosion. The financial and environmental cost the WSCW construction is very high. However, the positive impacts of WSCW are not taken into account in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The objectives of this study is to intergrate the impact of WSCW on soil quality in LCA. There are different types of WSCW with different functions and they act differently on erosion process. In this study we focussed on contour ridges (CR) because they are associated to crop systems. CR are generally built in upland areas to reduce runoff and erosion, to increase on-site deposition of eroded particles and to increase local water infiltration. They modify water and soil flows at catchment scale, so it is necessary to use a model able to calculate the inventory flow at the catchment and not at the plot level. In this study we present a methodology to integrate the impact of CR on topsoil erosion at the catchment level and to compute characterization factors in presence of such WSCW. The proposed method was applied in a case study in semi-arid context in central Tunisia (Merguellil watershed) which presents the issues of over-exploitation of water resources, accelerated land degradation and a high expansion of conservation works. In order to investigate the impact of WSCW on topsoil erosion, diffrent catchment scenarios (with and without CR) and land use types were tested using soil redistribution model (LandSoil model). For life cycle impact assessment, we focussed on two midpoint impact categories of LANCA soil functions : erosion resistance and mechanical infiltration. The CFs were calculated using the two models : LANCA a

Soil is a rare natural resource and it is at the center of the main issues in agronomy, environment and land use planning. At global level, erosion is one of the major soil degradation processes and it is responsible for the decrease in agronomic potential of soils and in agricultural land surfaces. Water and soil conservation works (WSCW) are built to protect soil from erosion. The financial and environmental cost the WSCW construction is very high. However, the positive impacts of WSCW are not taken into account in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The objectives of this study is to intergrate the impact of WSCW on soil quality in LCA. There are different types of WSCW with different functions and they act differently on erosion process. In this study we focussed on contour ridges (CR) because they are associated to crop systems. CR are generally built in upland areas to reduce runoff and erosion, to increase on-site deposition of eroded particles and to increase local water infiltration. They modify water and soil flows at catchment scale, so it is necessary to use a model able to calculate the inventory flow at the catchment and not at the plot level. In this study we present a methodology to integrate the impact of CR on topsoil erosion at the catchment level and to compute characterization factors in presence of such WSCW. The proposed method was applied in a case study in semi-arid context in central Tunisia (Merguellil watershed) which presents the issues of over-exploitation of water resources, accelerated land degradation and a high expansion of conservation works. In order to investigate the impact of WSCW on topsoil erosion, diffrent catchment scenarios (with and without CR) and land use types were tested using soil redistribution model (LandSoil model). For life cycle impact assessment, we focussed on two midpoint impact categories of LANCA soil functions : erosion resistance and mechanical infiltration. The CFs were calculated using the two models : LANCA a

Purpose Salinisation is a threat not only to arable land but also to freshwater resources. Nevertheless, salinisation impacts have been rarely and only partially included in life cycle assessment (LCA) so far. The objectives of this review paper were to give a comprehensive overview of salinisation mechanisms due to human interventions, analyse the completeness, relevance and scientific robustness of existing published methods addressing salinisation in LCA and provide recommendations towards a comprehensive integration of salinisation within the impact modelling frameworks in LCA. Methods First, with the support of salinisation experts and related literature, we highlighted multiple causes of soil and water salinisation and presented induced effects on human health, ecosystems and resources. Second, existing life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) methods addressing salinisation were analysed against the International Reference Life Cycle Data System analysis grid of the European Commission. Third, adopting a holistic approach, the modelling options for salinisation impacts were analysed in agreement with up-to-date LCIA frameworks and models. Results and discussion We proposed a categorisation of salinisation processes in four main types based on salinisation determinism: land use change, irrigation, brine disposal and overuse of a water body. For each salinisation type, key human management and biophysical factors involved were identified. Although the existing methods addressing salinisation in LCA are important and relevant contributions, they are often incomplete with regards to both the salinisation pathways they address and their geographical validity. Thus, there is a lack of a consistent framework for salinisation impact assessment in LCA. In analysing existing LCIA models, we discussed the inventory and impact assessment boundary options. The land use/land use change framework represents a good basis for the integration of salinisation impacts due to a land u

Food LCA should include salinization. Salinization is a threat not only to arable land but also to freshwater resources. Nevertheless, salinization impacts have been rarely and partially included in LCA so far. First, a comprehensive overview of salinization mechanisms is presented and highlights its multiple causes, which affect soil and water, and ultimately human health, ecosystems and resources. Second, adopting the ILCD analysis grid, we analyzed the scientific relevance and accuracy of existing published methods addressing salinization in LCA. Although interesting, these seminal approaches are often incomplete with regards to both the salinization pathways they cover and their geographical validity. Third, we analyzed how to consistently integrate salinization within the methodological frameworks for impacts modeling in LCA, and raised questions to address towards a comprehensive integration of salinization.

Food LCA should include salinization. Salinization is a threat not only to arable land but also to freshwater resources. Nevertheless, salinization impacts have been rarely and partially included in LCA so far. First, a comprehensive overview of salinization mechanisms is presented and highlights its multiple causes, which affect soil and water, and ultimately human health, ecosystems and resources. Second, adopting the ILCD analysis grid, we analyzed the scientific relevance and accuracy of existing published methods addressing salinization in LCA. Although interesting, these seminal approaches are often incomplete with regards to both the salinization pathways they cover and their geographical validity. Third, we analyzed how to consistently integrate salinization within the methodological frameworks for impacts modeling in LCA, and raised questions to address towards a comprehensive integration of salinization.