Land-Use Dynamics and Water Quality in Andean Basins

Diana Marcela Ruiz-Ordóñez (), Yady Tatiana Solano-Correa, Rachael Maysels and Apolinar Figueroa-Casas
Additional contact information
Diana Marcela Ruiz-Ordóñez: Environmental Research Group, Biology Department, University of Cauca, Popayán 190003, Colombia
Yady Tatiana Solano-Correa: Environmental Research Group, Biology Department, University of Cauca, Popayán 190003, Colombia
Rachael Maysels: Environmental Research Group, Biology Department, University of Cauca, Popayán 190003, Colombia
Apolinar Figueroa-Casas: Environmental Research Group, Biology Department, University of Cauca, Popayán 190003, Colombia

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 22, 1-24

Abstract: Conventional agricultural practices, such as the use of agrochemicals, implementation of monocultures, and the expansion of crops in strategic ecosystems, have significant impacts in Andean basins, directly increasing nutrient inputs to waterways, and contributing to ecological fragility and socioeconomic vulnerability. This complex dynamic is related to land-use change and production activities that affect the provision of hydrological ecosystem services. This study presents an integrated analysis of socioecological interactions related to water quality in the Las Piedras River basin (LPRB), a water supply basin located in the Andean region of southwestern Colombia. The analysis was conducted over a five-year monitoring period to assess the spatiotemporal variation and correlation of water quality between streams and agricultural runoff water within the LPRB. Furthermore, water quality indices were calculated based on physicochemical and biological parameters to evaluate the impact of land-use/land-cover changes and agricultural activities within the basin. Results demonstrate that different types of actors, productive logics, mechanisms of use, and access to water within the basin affect water quality and uncertainty for water management, while facing socioecological conflicts between actors.

Keywords: water pollution; agriculture; drinking water; land use/land cover; monitoring (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/22/15965/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/22/15965/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:22:p:15965-:d:1280746

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().