A Scale-Explicit Framework for Conceptualizing the Environmental Impacts of Agricultural Land Use Changes

Iago Lowe Hale, Wilfred M. Wollheim, Richard G. Smith, Heidi Asbjornsen, André F. Brito, Kirk Broders, A. Stuart Grandy and Rebecca Rowe
Additional contact information
Iago Lowe Hale: Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA
Wilfred M. Wollheim: Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA
Richard G. Smith: Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA
Heidi Asbjornsen: Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA
André F. Brito: Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA
Kirk Broders: Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA
A. Stuart Grandy: Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA
Rebecca Rowe: Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA

Sustainability, 2014, vol. 6, issue 12, 1-20

Abstract: Demand for locally-produced food is growing in areas outside traditionally dominant agricultural regions due to concerns over food safety, quality, and sovereignty; rural livelihoods; and environmental integrity. Strategies for meeting this demand rely upon agricultural land use change, in various forms of either intensification or extensification (converting non-agricultural land, including native landforms, to agricultural use). The nature and extent of the impacts of these changes on non-food-provisioning ecosystem services are determined by a complex suite of scale-dependent interactions among farming practices, site-specific characteristics, and the ecosystem services under consideration. Ecosystem modeling strategies which honor such complexity are often impenetrable by non-experts, resulting in a prevalent conceptual gap between ecosystem sciences and the field of sustainable agriculture. Referencing heavily forested New England as an example, we present a conceptual framework designed to synthesize and convey understanding of the scale- and landscape-dependent nature of the relationship between agriculture and various ecosystem services. By accounting for the total impact of multiple disturbances across a landscape while considering the effects of scale, the framework is intended to stimulate and support the collaborative efforts of land managers, scientists, citizen stakeholders, and policy makers as they address the challenges of expanding local agriculture.

Keywords: agriculture; sustainability; land use change; ecosystem services; nitrogen; water quality; carbon sequestration; landscape; impacts; scale; iSIDES (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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