Search

Land Use Land Cover (LULC) change is a complex phenomenon driven by various natural and anthropogenic factors, significantly impacting carbon storage potential. By applying integrated models of ANN-CA Markov, GeoDetector, and InVEST model, this study aimed to analyze LULC change, their driving factors, and implications on carbon storage in the Forest Management Unit (FMU) of Ampang Plampang in West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. Several data sources were utilized in the modelling approach, including DEM (Digital Elevation Model), topographical map, Landsat imageries (2011, 2016, 2021), measured carbon density (above ground, below ground, soil, dead organic), and socio-economic data (number of populations, farmer, and agricultural land). The dryland forest in the study area constitutes the most extensive LULC that has experienced significant declines due to deforestation, predominantly transforming into agricultural land, and these are predicted to continue until 2031 with different magnitudes. The significant driving factors of LULC change were elevation, population pressure on land, and distance from settlement. The LULC change also greatly influenced the decline of carbon storage historically (2011–2016) and in projected LULC (2026–2031). The conversion of forested areas to non-forest LULCs has released carbon emissions of about 1.89 Mt CO 2 -eq. The study findings implied that the integration of ANN-CA Markov, GeoDetector, and InVEST models has been helpful for comprehending complicated interactions among LULC change, driving factors, and carbon dynamics. The results also contribute to the scientific knowledge base for land management decision-making and policy formulation. Effective management of LULC changes through low carbon development is suggested to mitigate the loss of carbon storage capacities, foster sustainable development goals (SDGs), support Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), and improve ecosystem resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land Use Land Cover (LULC) change is a complex phenomenon driven by various natural and anthropogenic factors, significantly impacting carbon storage potential. By applying integrated models of ANN-CA Markov, GeoDetector, and InVEST model, this study aimed to analyze LULC change, their driving factors, and implications on carbon storage in the Forest Management Unit (FMU) of Ampang Plampang in West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. Several data sources were utilized in the modelling approach, including DEM (Digital Elevation Model), topographical map, Landsat imageries (2011, 2016, 2021), measured carbon density (above ground, below ground, soil, dead organic), and socio-economic data (number of populations, farmer, and agricultural land). The dryland forest in the study area constitutes the most extensive LULC that has experienced significant declines due to deforestation, predominantly transforming into agricultural land, and these are predicted to continue until 2031 with different magnitudes. The significant driving factors of LULC change were elevation, population pressure on land, and distance from settlement. The LULC change also greatly influenced the decline of carbon storage historically (2011–2016) and in projected LULC (2026–2031). The conversion of forested areas to non-forest LULCs has released carbon emissions of about 1.89 Mt CO2-eq. The study findings implied that the integration of ANN-CA Markov, GeoDetector, and InVEST models has been helpful for comprehending complicated interactions among LULC change, driving factors, and carbon dynamics. The results also contribute to the scientific knowledge base for land management decision-making and policy formulation. Effective management of LULC changes through low carbon development is suggested to mitigate the loss of carbon storage capacities, foster sustainable development goals (SDGs), support Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), and improve ecosystem resilience.

Although the important role of dry forests in livelihoods is immense, empirical evidence on the role of socioeconomic factors in the collection of dry forest products is still lacking. This study aimed to assess the determinants of household participation in dry forest product collection and its contribution to the household economy in Jawi district. The primary data were collected from 259 randomly selected households. The determinant factors affecting household participation in dry forest product (gum and resin) collection and the level of revenue from gum and resin were evaluated using a Heckman 2-stage selection model. According to the findings of this survey, dry forest revenue accounts for 23.69% of the total annual household income. Our findings reveal that age, proximity to the forest, distance to the market, participatory forest management (PFM) membership, frequency of forest extension, and poor wealth status have a substantial impact on a household's engagement in dry forest product collection and the level of income generated from engagement in dry forest product collection. Policies and strategies aimed at improving the well-being of households in the country's dry forest areas should focus on the market development of resources to boost the income of local people.

Wood fuel is not only the main source of energy for both rural and urban households but also a vital means of livelihood diversification for rural households to improve livelihood capital in developing countries like Ethiopia. However, the status of wood fuel producers' livelihood capital and their vulnerability is poorly understood in the drylands of Ethiopia. The main purpose of the research is to characterize the livelihoods of firewood and charcoal producers as well as identify sources of livelihoods' vulnerability in the dryland areas of the country. These urge to transit for sustainable energy use. The study used survey data collected from 857 sampled wood fuel producer households and Focus Group Discussions. The data were analyzed descriptively using livelihood measurement indicators and livelihood vulnerability indexes (exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity indicators) in the context of farming, agro-pastoralist, and pastoralist communities. Results indicated that generally financial, human, and social capital of wood fuel producers were low whereas natural and physical capital were better. Results also indicated engagement in the production of wood fuel strengthened the producers' livelihood capital and delivered other benefits such as opportunities for livelihood diversification as well as reducing vulnerability and improved livelihoods. The pastoral and agro-pastoral communities' livelihood capital sources were more vulnerable than farming communities. The study has also identified that wood fuel production was one of the major coping strategies employed by the sampled households to mitigate the effects of different shocks. Finally, the study results implied that wood fuel production is the highest priority area of intervention to improve the livelihoods of communities in the dry lands. It is also worthwhile to establish sustainable approaches for wood fuel production keeping the dry land forest and environment safe. This calls policy for a just transition toward an equitable wood fuel production system with the potential to deliver sustainable energy and rural development through the incorporation of wood fuel importance to rural livelihoods.

Monitoring woody cover by remote sensing is considered a key methodology towards sustainable management of trees in dryland forests. However, while modern very high resolution satellite (VHRS) sensors allow woodland mapping at the individual tree level, the historical perspective is often hindered by lack of appropriate image data. In this first study employing the newly accessible historical HEXAGON KH-9 stereo-panoramic camera images for environmental research, we propose their use for mapping trees in open-canopy conditions. The 2–4 feet resolution panchromatic HEXAGON satellite photographs were taken 1971–1986 within the American reconnaissance programs that are better known to the scientific community for their lower-resolution CORONA images. Our aim is to evaluate the potential of combining historical CORONA and HEXAGON with recent WorldView VHRS imagery for retrospective woodland change mapping on the tree level. We mapped all trees on 30 1-ha test sites in open-canopy argan woodlands in Morocco in the field and from the VHRS imagery for estimating changes of tree density and size between 1967/1972 and 2018. Prior to image interpretation, we used simulations based on unmanned aerial system (UAS) imagery for exemplarily examining the role of illumination, viewing geometry and image resolution on the appearance of trees and their shadows in the historical panchromatic images. We show that understanding these parameters is imperative for correct detection and size-estimation of tree crowns. Our results confirm that tree maps derived solely from VHRS image analysis generally underestimate the number of small trees and trees in clumped-canopy groups. Nevertheless, HEXAGON images compare remarkably well with WorldView images and have much higher tree-mapping potential than CORONA. By classifying the trees in three sizes, we were able to measure tree-cover changes on an ordinal scale. Although we found no clear trend of forest degradation or recovery, our argan forest sites show varying patterns of change, which are further analysed in Part B of our study. We conclude that the HEXAGON stereo-panoramic camera images, of which 670,000 worldwide will soon be available, open exciting opportunities for retrospective monitoring of trees in open-canopy conditions and other woody vegetation patterns back into the 1980s and 1970s.

Copyright of Chinese Journal of Applied Ecology / Yingyong Shengtai Xuebao is the property of Chinese Journal of Applied Ecology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Ecological restoration is a global priority. Incorporating stakeholders' perceptions has been established as a critical factor to improve the success of restoration and conservation initiatives and decrease future social conflicts; however, it has barely been incorporated. Our objective was to analyze and compare the differences in the perceptions of Chilean dryland forest restoration of three groups: local community, experts, and government managers. We asked about: (1) what is the knowledge, importance, and uses that they have and give to the native forest and its restoration? (2) What is the willingness to restore the native forest? (3) What are the most valuable goods and services provided by the forest? (4) Where to begin to restore? (5) What criteria must be considered to prioritize areas to restore? To determine if the criteria selected were related to the stakeholder group, a semi‐parametric multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was performed. Semi‐structured interviews were carried out with 61 stakeholders. The community gave greater importance to restoring the ravines and creeks, the experts to restoring areas that increase landscape connectivity, and both experts and government managers to restoring areas of greater biodiversity and ecological value. The experts gave a lower value to both social and economic criteria compared to the local community and government managers. The differences among stakeholder perceptions must necessarily be considered in the restoration programs. Research on perceptions can contribute to decision‐making and will favor the social approval and long‐term success of restoration programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foi encontrada uma riqueza de 15 espécies de pseudoscorpiões, de 12 gêneros e 5 famílias (Chthoniidae, Geogarypidae, Olpiidae, Atemnidae e Chernetidae), habitando diferentes plantas da vegetação do sub-bosque, em floresta primária de terra firme, no alto rio Urucu, Coari, Amazonas, no período de 1991 a 1996. As plantas foram examinadas pelo método de "bateção". Apolpium aff. vastum foi à espécie mais freqüente e abundante sobre as plantas. Dentre os tipos de plantas avaliados, as maiores diversidades de espécies de pseudoscorpiões foram registradas nas pequenas palmeiras, tanto com fronde junto ao chão, como elevada acima do chão. A análise da composição das espécies que ocorreram sobre os diferentes tipos de plantas avaliadas foi realizada pelo "modo-Q", tendo como base a matriz de coeficientes de similaridade de "Jaccard", o que demonstrou maior similaridade entre a fauna das palmeiras e outras plantas que acumulam detritos acima do chão, entre as bromélias e entre aráceas de chão e outras plantas que acumulam detritos junto ao chão.A richness of 15 pseudoscorpion species, 12 genera belonging to 5 families (Chthoniidae, Geogarypidae, Olpiidae, Atemnidae and Chernetidae) were found in the undergrowth vegetation of the dryland forest, at the upper Urucu river, Coari, Amazonas, from 1991 to 1996, and was collected by the "beating tray" method. Apolpium aff. vastum was the most frequent and abundant species in the undergrowth forest vegetation. Among the various types of plants examined, the majority of the pseudoscorpions occurred in small palms (in the ground-trenched palms as much as the erect stemmed palms). To appraise the specie's composition of these arachnids found in the different kinds of plants, the Q-mode analysis was used based on Jaccard's similarity coefficients. The coefficients that showed the greatest similarity were between the fauna of the palms and other plants that accumulate litter on top of the ground, and between the Bromeliacea and Aracea of the floor and other plants that use the litter of the ground.

The responses of aboveground parts of the forest to changes in environmental factors and stand age is well studied, but the same is not true for the belowground parts of the forest. Two plantation black locust ( Robinia pseudoacacia L.) forest sites were taken in the Loess Plateau of China, one in the drier, infertile, more sandy area of the middle Loess Plateau, and another in the wetter, fertile, more clay-filled area of the southern Loess Plateau. At each site, both a younger (8-year-old) plantation stand and an older (30-year-old) plantation stand were included to study the effects of soil physicochemical properties and stand age on the fine root (<2 mm) biomass and vertical distribution of black locust forests. Root samples were taken with soil cores to a depth of 100 cm. The fine root biomass decreased from the middle site to the southern site for both stand ages, as expected, and the decrease could be due to a higher fine root N concentration associated with a higher fine root turnover rate at the southern site. There was a similar rooting pattern, though not deeper, in the drier, sandy site as predicted based on soil water infiltration and evaporation demands. The different effects of stand characters (e.g., tree density, tree height) on the fine root distribution as compared with the environmental properties may contribute partly to the similar pattern found in the two sites. The fine root biomass increased with stand age in both sites. In contrast to the evident difference in fine root biomass, there was no clear trend in the fine root vertical distribution pattern with stand age. Our results indicate that fine roots are likely to respond to changes in soil physicochemical properties and stand age by changing fine root biomass rather than by varying rooting pattern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The radial growth of eight individuals of Picea crassifolia and environmental factors were monitored by Dendrometer and automatic meteorological station in the western Qilian Mountains. The Gompertz function fitted results showed that the radial growth of P. crassifolia started on April 19, April 17, and April 10 in 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively, and that the radial growth started when daily mean temperature exceeded 5.5 ℃. The radial growth of P. crassifolia ended on August 17, August 21, and July 19 in the three years, respectively. The ending time of radial growth was related to precipitation at the end of growing season. The radial growth of P. crassifolia was strongly inhibited by drought, and it had the strongest correlation with daily mean temperature (negative correlation) and daily precipitation (positive correlation) in July. The correlation of radial growth with the daily precipitation in the early growing season (May) showed significant inter-annual variation.