Land-use and land degradation processes affecting soil resources: Evidence from a traditional Mediterranean cropland (Greece)

Karamesouti, Mina; Detsis, Vassilis; Kounalaki, A.; Vasiliou, Pantelitsa; Salvati, Luca; Kosmas, C.

doi:10.1016/j.catena.2015.04.010

Cited by 147 publications

(93 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…The extent of land exposed to intense degradation has risen markedly with the shift of cropland management towards more intense practices and the consequent change in the use of land [55]. Karamesouti et al [14] emphasized the relevance of comprehensive socio-ecological indicators to identify the peculiarity of rural systems characterized by crop mosaics, land-use diversification and natural biodiversity. The present study contributes to the analysis of land-use complex dynamics in Italian agro-forest districts and provides information for fine-tuned, sustainable land-management policies in a context of land degradation for the Mediterranean region.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Fifty-Year Sustainability Assessment of Italian Agro-Forest Districts

et al. 2015

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Abstract:As cropland management and land use shifted towards more intensive practices, global land degradation increased drastically. Understanding relationships between ecological and socioeconomic drivers of soil and landscape degradation within these landscapes in economically dynamic contexts such as the Mediterranean region, requires multi-target and multi-scalar approaches covering long-term periods. This study provides an original approach for identifying desertification risk drivers and sustainable land management strategies within Italian agro-forest districts. An Environmental Sensitivity Area (ESA) approach, based on four thematic indicators (climate, soil, vegetation and land-use) and a composite index of desertification risk (ESAI), was used to evaluate changes in soil vulnerability and landscape degradation between the years 1960 and 2010. A multivariate model was developed to identify the most relevant drivers causing changes in land susceptibility at the district scale. Larger districts, and those with a higher proportion of their total surface area classified as agro-forest, had a significantly lower increase in land susceptibility to degradation during the 50 years when compared with the remaining districts. We conclude that preserving economic viability and ecological connectivity of traditional, extensive agricultural systems is a key measure to mitigate the desertification risk in the Mediterranean region.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Fifty-Year Sustainability Assessment of Italian Agro-Forest Districts

et al. 2015

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“…The simplification of local multifunctional land-use systems to intensive livestock grazing changed ecosystem equilibrium towards environmental, soil, vegetation and biodiversity degradation processes [68][69][70][71][72][73]. In fact, Greece is one of the European countries suffering from soil erosion and desertification, loss of organic matter, salinization and soil compaction [74][75][76], with about 20% of its land surface exposed to erosion risk [77,78].…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Rural Districts between Urbanization and Land Abandonment: Undermining Long-Term Changes in Mediterranean Landscapes

Zambon

Ferrara

Salvia³

et al. 2018

Sustainability

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Abstract:The present study investigates changes in the rural landscapes of a Mediterranean country (Greece) over a long time period encompassing economic expansions and recessions. Using a spatial distribution of 5 basic agricultural land-use classes (arable land, garden crop, vineyards, tree crop and fallow land) derived from official statistics at 6 years (1970, 1979, 1988, 1997, 2006, 2015), a quantitative analysis based on correlation and multivariate techniques was carried out to identify recent changes in the Greek agricultural landscape at prefectural level during different economic waves. Empirical results evidenced both intuitive and counter-intuitive landscape transformations, including: (i) a progressive, spatially-homogeneous reduction of cropland; (ii) a (more or less) rapid decrease in the surface of high-input crops, including arable land, horticulture and vineyards; (iii) a parallel increase in the surface of tree crops, especially olive; (iv) a spatially-heterogeneous decrease of fallow land concentrated in metropolitan and tourism districts, especially in the last decade; and, finally, (v) increasingly diversified landscapes in rural, accessible areas close to the sea coast. Based on a correlation analysis with background socioeconomic indicators, our findings reflect the multiple impacts of urbanization and land abandonment on the composition and diversity of rural landscapes. Changes in agricultural land-use were moulded by multiple drivers depending on latent transformations in rural systems and inherent conflicts with expanding urban regions. Together with market conditions and the Common Agricultural Policy subsidy regime, social contexts and the economic cycle are important when identifying long-term changes in agricultural landscapes, especially in transitional socio-ecological systems.

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“…Quantitative and qualitative data were obtained from secondary sources (Hellenic Statistical Authority, other official statistical sources and reports, grey literature), interviews with locals and regional/local level officials and field observations (see also [32]). Higher level data were used when SES-level data were not directly available.…”

Section: Human Responses In a Land Degradation-affected Region: The Mmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the beginning of the study period, circa 1950, rain-fed cereal cultivation was an attractive economic activity and major land use [32] that served local needs and the Cretan market. Limited grapevine, olive tree and vegetable cultivation and animal husbandry mostly served household needs.…”

Section: Evolution Of the Dominant Human Responses In The Messara Valmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Greenhouse cultivation also contributed to increased soil and water resources use. Overall, the consequences of intensive agriculture started to be felt at the beginning of 1980's but the balance was still positive due to the benefits of the widespread land use change towards olive groves [32].…”

Section: Evolution Of the Dominant Human Responses In The Messara Valmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Socio-Ecological Dynamics of Human Responses in a Land Degradation-Affected Region: The Messara Valley (Crete, Greece)

Detsis

Briassoulis

Kosmas

2017

Land

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This paper applies a resilience-and assemblage-based methodology to study the socio-ecological dynamics of human responses in the land degradation-affected Messara Valley (Crete, Greece) socio-ecological system, from 1950 to 2010. It posits that thesedynamics aredriven by changes in their effectiveness, called 'socio-ecological fit', to serve place-and time-specific goals. The socio-ecological fit expresses the degree to which the match among all the biophysical and human components of a Response Assemblage emerging in a socio-ecological system, maintains the socio-ecological resilience of this Assemblage. The socio-ecological resilience results is gauged by synthesizing three system-level properties (Resilience, Adaptability, Transformability) shaped by lower level properties that are assessed from available data. The reported application revealed that human responses (traditional land management, agricultural modernization and subsidized agriculture) and their effectiveness were driven by prioritizing economic and technological considerations that shaped the properties, socio-ecological resilience and fit of three main Response Assemblages formed over the study period, rather than combating land degradation. Agricultural modernization did not uniformly and necessarily lead to land degradation; the situated relationships among the components of the Response Assemblages determined its effects. The fit of future options can be assessed also to support rational land use planning. Refinements in the methodology include the development of techniques to: (a) assess and synthesize the properties of different components in order to improve assessments of socio-ecological resilience and fit and (b) study relationships among the properties of Response Assemblages emerging at different levels.

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Land-use and land degradation processes affecting soil resources: Evidence from a traditional Mediterranean cropland (Greece)

Cited by 147 publications

References 30 publications

A Fifty-Year Sustainability Assessment of Italian Agro-Forest Districts

A Fifty-Year Sustainability Assessment of Italian Agro-Forest Districts

Rural Districts between Urbanization and Land Abandonment: Undermining Long-Term Changes in Mediterranean Landscapes

The Socio-Ecological Dynamics of Human Responses in a Land Degradation-Affected Region: The Messara Valley (Crete, Greece)

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