Envisioning Present and Future Land-Use Change under Varying Ecological Regimes and Their Influence on Landscape Stability

Marcela Prokopová, Luca Salvati, Gianluca Egidi, Ondřej Cudlín, Renata Včeláková, Radek Plch and Pavel Cudlín
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Marcela Prokopová: Global Change Research Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, Lipová 9, CZ-37005 České Budějovice, Czech Republic
Luca Salvati: Global Change Research Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, Lipová 9, CZ-37005 České Budějovice, Czech Republic
Gianluca Egidi: Department of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences (DAFNE), Tuscia University, Via San Camillo de Lellis, I-01100 Viterbo, Italy
Ondřej Cudlín: Global Change Research Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, Lipová 9, CZ-37005 České Budějovice, Czech Republic
Renata Včeláková: Global Change Research Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, Lipová 9, CZ-37005 České Budějovice, Czech Republic
Radek Plch: Global Change Research Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, Lipová 9, CZ-37005 České Budějovice, Czech Republic
Pavel Cudlín: Global Change Research Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, Lipová 9, CZ-37005 České Budějovice, Czech Republic

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 17, 1-24

Abstract: Climate change plays an important role in shaping ecological stability of landscape systems. Increasing weather fluctuations such as droughts threaten the ecological stability of natural and anthropogenic landscapes. Uncertainty exists regarding the validity of traditional landscape assessment schemes under climate change. This commentary debates the main factors that threaten ecological stability, discussing basic approaches to interpret landscape functioning. To address this pivotal issue, the intimate linkage between ecological stability and landscape diversity is explored, considering different approaches to landscape stability assessment. The impact of land-use changes on landscape stability is finally discussed. Assessment methodologies and indicators are reviewed and grouped into homogeneous classes based on a specific nomenclature of stability aspects which include landscape composition, fragmentation and connectivity, thermodynamic and functional issues, biodiversity, soil degradation, and ecological disturbance. By considering land-use change as one of the most important factors underlying climate change, individual components of landscape stability are finally delineated and commented upon. In this regard, specific trajectories of land-use change (including agricultural intensification, land abandonment, and urbanization) are investigated for their effects on ecological stability. A better understanding of land-use impacts on landscape stability is crucial for a better knowledge of processes leading to land degradation.

Keywords: disturbances; landscape structure; desertification; resilience; Europe (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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