Eco-sanitation and its benefits: an experimental demonstration program to raise awareness in central Nepal

This study focuses on awareness and an experimental demonstration about the use of human urine and wood ash as a fertilizer. This study was conducted in Chanauta, central Nepal, from November 2009 to February 2010. The villagers (N = 27) were asked about their awareness of eco-sanitation and fertilizer value of urine and ash. All the participants agreed that the use of urine and ash was a good idea. In the experimental study, the fertilizer value of urine+ash was compared with animal manure and no-fertilizer in the cultivation of radish, potato, broadleaf mustard, cauliflower, and cabbage. Different plants cultivated plots received 54–81 kgN/ha with urine+ash or manure fertilizer. The urine+ash fertilizer produced significantly (p < 0.05) higher broadleaf mustard biomass than obtained from animal manure and without fertilization. Urine+ash-fertilized plots growing radish, potato, cauliflower, and cabbage produced similar or slightly higher yields biomass compared to those achieved with manure fertilization. This might be because of high P, K as well as greater availability of N in applied urine compared to manure. It is concluded that urine+ash fertilizer can be used instead of animal manure; in this study, a dose of 4 L of urine was equal to 1 kg of dry cattle manure and produced a similar or greater yield of vegetable biomass than manure fertilization. To be able to generalize this conclusion, it is important to conduct these kinds of experiments with different seasonal crops and in other parts of the world.     

Soil management practices for sustainable agro-ecosystems

A doubling of the global food demand projected for the next 50 years poses a huge challenge for the sustainability of both food production and global and local environments. Today’s agricultural technologies may be increasing productivity to meet world food demand, but they may also be threatening agricultural ecosystems. For the global environment, agricultural systems provide both sources and sinks of greenhouse gases (GHGs), which include carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), and nitrous oxide (N₂O). This paper addresses the importance of soil organic carbon (SOC) for agro-ecosystems and GHG uptake and emission in agriculture, especially SOC changes associated with soil management. Soil management strategies have great potential to contribute to carbon sequestration, since the carbon sink capacity of the world’s agricultural and degraded soil is 50–66% of the historic carbon loss of 42–72 Pg (1 Pg=10¹⁵ g), although the actual carbon storage in cultivated soil may be smaller if climate changes lead to increasing mineralization. The importance of SOC in agricultural soil is, however, not controversial, as SOC helps to sustain soil fertility and conserve soil and water quality, and organic carbon compounds play a variety of roles in the nutrient, water, and biological cycles. No-tillage practices, cover crop management, and manure application are recommended to enhance SOC storage and to contribute to sustainable food production, which also improves soil quality. SOC sequestration could be increased at the expense of increasing the amount of non-CO₂ GHG emissions; however, soil testing, synchronized fertilization techniques, and optimum water control for flooding paddy fields, among other things, can reduce these emissions. Since increasing SOC may also be able to mitigate some local environmental problems, it will be necessary to have integrated soil management practices that are compatible with increasing SOM management and controlling soil residual nutrients. Cover crops would be a critical tool for sustainable soil management because they can scavenge soil residual nitrogen and their ecological functions can be utilized to establish an optimal nitrogen cycle. In addition to developing soil management strategies for sustainable agro-ecosystems, some political and social approaches will be needed, based on a common understanding that soil and agro-ecosystems are essential for a sustainable society.     

Are the parasiticidal avermectins resistant to dissipation in the environment? The case of eprinomectin

Eprinomectin (EPM) is a veterinary drug currently licensed in many countries for the treatment of endo- and ecto-parasites in cattle. Despite the notable evidence for its high toxicity to the terrestrial and aquatic environment ecosystems, its environmental behavior and fate are currently unknown. In the present research, the dissipation of EPM was studied in three soils and in cattle manure by using the OECD 307 guideline and the recently developed European Medicines Agency (EMA/CVMP/ERA/430327) guideline, respectively. The procedure presented by the FOrum for Co-ordination of pesticide models and their USe (FOCUS) was adopted for estimating the EPM degradation kinetics in soil and cattle manure. The EPM dissipation in soil was best described by the SFO (Simple First Order) and the HS (Hockey Stick) models, under aerobic and anaerobic conditions, respectively. The EPM dissipation in cattle manure was best described by the FOMC (First Order Multi Compartment) model. The Dissipation Time for the 50% of the initial EPM mass (DT₅₀) range was 38–53 days under aerobic and 691–1491 days under anaerobic conditions. In addition, the DT₅₀ for EPM in cattle manure was 333 days. Therefore, EPM could be characterized as moderately to highly persistent to dissipation in soil, which depends on soil type, its oxygen content (aerobic or anaerobic conditions in soil) and the microbial activity. Moreover, the EPM resists dissipation in cattle manure, resulting to a high load in soil after manure application in agricultural land (or direct defecation in grassland). Consequently, the high possibility for EPM accumulation in soil and cattle manure should be considered when assessing the environmental risk of the drug.     

Linking perceived land and water resources degradation,scarcity and livelihood conflicts in southwestern Tanzania: implications for sustainable rural livelihood

In Africa, the land and water resources quality are key factors for sustainable development. The degradation of the quality of these resources leads to scarcities and conflicts, which together threaten the sustainability of rural livelihoods. This work investigated and analysed the livelihoods conflicts over the land and water resources and their scarcities, policies that contributed to the land and water scarcities and the livelihood conflicts and linkage of the conflicts to the resources scarcities and degradation. Implications of degradation of the resources, development policies and livelihoods conflicts on sustainable development are discussed. Literature study, visits and discussions, participatory assessments, observations and questionnaire survey were used tools to collect data. Interviews of the 266 households revealed that, those experiencing the land and water scarcities and conflicts over these resources are significantly (p < 0.001) higher than those not experiencing the scarcities and conflicts. Crop-livestock competition, over the land and water resources causes prominent conflicts. A significant, (p < 0.05) associations of livelihoods conflicts to water shortage and period of water shortage for crop and livestock production were found. Improved accessibility to soil and water management technologies, wildlife–livestock co-existence, recognition of needs and land rights for pastoralists are recommended to minimize scarcities and herders versus farmers’ conflicts.     

Extractable soil nutrient effects on feed quality traits of crop residues in the semiarid rainfed mixed crop–livestock farming systems of Southern India

In the mixed crop–livestock systems, while general relation among feed quality, productivity and soil nutrient management have been reported, information on the effects of extractable soil nutrients on crop residue (CR) feed quality traits is scarce (e.g. in semiarid regions of Karnataka, India). In view of the increasingly important role of CR as feed components, in these farming systems, generating such information is a relevant research issue for sustainable development. Here, we report the occurrence and strength of relationships among extractable nutrients in soils and CR feed quality traits, and the effects of improved nutrients input on feed availability and feed quality of CR. Soil samples were collected from farmers’ fields in the semiarid zone of Karnataka and analyzed for available phosphorus (P), potassium (K), sulphur (S), zinc (Zn) and boron (B) using standard laboratory methods. Soil test results were clustered as low, medium or high based on the level of nutrient concentration. Four major farming systems involving nine crops and 419 farms were selected for on-farm trials. Under every sample farm, a plot with farmer’s practice (control) and improved fertilizer inputs (combined application of nutrients found deficient by soil testing) were laid. Performance of crops was recorded. Samples were collected for CR feed quality trait analysis using Near Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy. The result showed that for cereal and oil crops, extractable soil S was significantly negatively associated with anti-feed quality traits such as neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibre (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL) (P < 0.01), but significantly positively related to metabolizable energy (ME) and in vitro digestibility (P < 0.01). Extractable B and K levels were associated positively and significantly with NDF, ADF and ADL for oil crops and cereals. Crop level associations, for most crops, showed similar trend. Improved fertilizer inputs affected CR yield much more than it did the quality. It increased ME productivity (ME ha^?1) and thereof the potential milk yield ha^?1 by as high as 40 % over the control. Therefore, balanced nutrient inputs on crop land positively impact productivity of the livestock compartment of mixed crop–livestock farming system, and this knowledge can build on the currently perceived need and benefits of balanced nutrient replenishment in crop–livestock system.     

Soil erosion tolerance and water runoff control: minimum environmental standards

Council Regulations (EC) No 1257/1999 and the EU Soil Thematic Strategy give great importance to soil and land conservation to develop knowledge driven governance for rural development. In the hilly areas of Italy cultivated intensively, and especially in the ones devoted to viticulture, agricultural practices determine high loss of soil with consequent degradation of the soil resource. In addition to it, offsite effects of soil erosion can be unsustainable, due to sediment transfer to the channel network and infrastructures. In order to achieve a sustainable rural development there is a need for tools and instruments to allow European regional administrations, to develop, implement, manage and monitor rural development plans. To counteract the environmental threats intensified by agricultural activity, the environmental functions “soil erosion control” and “water runoff control” were investigated in the Chianti area by using GIS. To determine the EMR (Environmental Minimum Requirements) values for soil erosion the “regeneration” capability of soils was considered, and the value of estimated soil loss was compared with the value of soil reformation. A scenario analysis was also performed to evaluate the effectiveness of the agroenvironmental measure “grass cover” in reducing erosion. The concept of tolerable erosion based on soil productivity and soil reformation rate only is reductive and off-site effects of soil erosion should be also taken into account. For this reason, it was proposed to extend the concept of hydrogeological risk to soil erosion by implementing the notion of soil erosion tolerance (T) with the new concept of environmental risk of soil erosion (ERSE). The new ERSE index takes into account all the in- and off-farm externalities of soil erosion. For this reason, it can be considered an aggregated environmental indicator that enables policy makers to evaluate the impacts of soil erosion by following an holistic approach.     

我国耕地生态安全评价及障碍因子诊断

耕地生态安全评价及障碍因子诊断是改善耕地生态系统状况、促进耕地可持续利用的重要基础。在界定耕地生态安全内涵的基础上,构建了基于PSR模型的评价指标体系,采用熵值法和障碍度模型,对我国耕地生态安全进行了评价。研究表明：（1）1996~2010年我国耕地生态安全水平总体不断提高,综合指数从0484 4增加到0626 9,安全等级经历了“临界安全-较安全”的演变历程;（2）压力指数总体上呈现下降趋势,状态指数和响应指数总体上呈现上升趋势;（3）长远来看,系统压力是影响耕地生态安全的首要因素,1996~2010年系统压力和系统状态的障碍度分别以年均533%和052%的速度增加,而系统响应的障碍度以年均802%的速度下降;（4）影响耕地生态安全的主要障碍因子包括单位耕地面积农药负荷、单位耕地面积化肥负荷、人均耕地面积、土地垦殖率、水土流失程度等。为了促进耕地生态安全水平不断提高,需要进一步转变经济发展方式,加强土地利用监督管理,降低经济增长对土地资源的过度消耗;大力发展绿色农业,合理施用农药、化肥;积极开展农村土地整治,加强高标准基本农田建设;加大环境治理力度,有效控制水土流失程度     

Population dynamics,rural livelihoods and environmental degradation: some experiences from Tanzania

Population growth and environmental degradation are closely linked. Increasing population has in many rural areas of Tanzania contributed to changes in land use/cover patterns, land fragmentation and livelihood insecurity. Increasing demand for food, energy and other environmental services has contributed to expansion of agriculture, including marginal areas, and deforestation often leading to environmental degradation. Increased reliance on natural resources for rural livelihoods, subsistence nature of the agricultural sector and limited economic opportunities in rural areas are among the factors leading to rural–rural and rural–urban migrations searching for better livelihood opportunities. The high urban demand for food and biomass energy from rural areas has also contributed to rural deforestation and overall environmental degradation. This paper addresses the linkages between population and environmental degradation in Tanzania. It argues that effective implementation of development and resources management policies can lead to environmental sustainability even with growing populations. It provides evidence from successful land management interventions such as HADO, HASHI and SECAP, which support the argument that with effective implementation of resource management initiatives even larger populations can be supported by the available resources. Such successful interventions ought to be emulated elsewhere with similar environmental problems.     

WSSD 2002, Latin America and Brazil: Biodiversity and Indigenous People

Latin America comprehends notable variations in terms of natural environment, availability of natural resources, living standards, and demographic patterns. Latin America is a mosaic of cultures, post- and pre-Columbian. The rich variety of life forms discovered and described by chroniclers and traveling naturalists in the Neotropics contributed to the proposal, in mid-XVIIIth century, of a new system of classification and a scientific code of nomenclature for all organisms. Biodiversity was, for many centuries, a source of resources to be exploited in natura. In scientific circles, its inventory became the domain of taxonomists. But modern technology showed how important the miriad of life forms really are as sources of chemical molecules to be engineered as drugs and reassembled as novel manufactured products. We are on the brink of a new agricultural and medical revolution, thanks to the techniques of genetic engineering, which will lead eventually to the elimination of hunger and malnutrition.In this essay, the Brazilian environmental and social heterogeneity will serve as an example to illustrate some key points, which have influenced sustainability policies. The Amazon deforestation and indigenous knowledge (IK), subjects often associated with areas of high biodiversity, are usually the focus of environmental debates. The importance of IK in integrating development, reducing poverty and sustainability are considered together with the intellectual property rights of native populations.In the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) Implementation Plan, a few paragraphs were dedicated to Latin America, because of the pre-existing Action Platform on the Road to Johannesburg 2002, approved in Rio de Janeiro in October 2001. This paper calls attention to the need to draw up specific environmental policies for a region which shows an extremely high cultural and biological diversity, associated with a high availability of forests and water, among other resources.     

实现林业可持续发展的财政政策取向

林业的可持续发展，既体现了林业生产力发展水平和生态文明社会，又承载着满足社会日益增长的多样化需求，在人与自然和谐发展以及建设环境友好型社会中居于十分重要地位。分类经营是实现林业可持续发展的重要途径。国家应当制定以公共财政为主全社会多渠道投入支持林业建设的财政政策。     

我国粮食安全保障中改善农业环境的途径

本文分析了我国粮食安全及粮食持续生产所依托的农业环境状况。从我国粮食生产状况与经济发展水平看,全国粮食生产处于结构性过剩与低水平安全中,区域性粮食安全与不安全并存;耕地资源、水资源以及农民的经济收入状况等均不容乐观,加之自然灾害加重,粮食生产的环境成本将随之增加,这将影响我国未来粮食安全。为此,本文提出了走农业集约化道路是解决我国粮食安全与改善环境的基本途径。     

Agricultural land use efficiency and food crop production in Ghana

Despite the low productivity of the extensive agriculture system, Ghana recorded the largest reduction of undernourishment in the past two decades. We used biophysical analysis to determine the efficiency and potentials of the extensive system and its future sustainability. The results indicate that food production in Ghana has increased steadily over the past two decades and correlated highly with cropped area and population (R ² < 0.85 and 0.82), but not with fertilizer (R ² = 0.06). Sufficient food production could be sustained in the short term. In the longer term, however, the food situation in Ghana appears precarious if population growth continues while land remains the same.     

绿色技术进步、农业经济增长与污染空间溢出——来自中国农业水资源利用的证据

基于2002～2016年的省级面板数据,以农业水资源利用过程中的化肥源面源污染、厩肥源面源污染、灌溉过程碳排放及农药流失作为非合意产出,构建了以"蓝水-绿水"为中心的水资源分析框架,借助SBM模型和Malmquist-Luenberger指数,探析我国农业水资源利用过程的绿色技术进步情况,利用空间面板模型重点考察绿色技术进步、农业经济发展水平与农业水资源利用过程的污染排放之间的关系。化肥源面源污染排放量和农药流失量均表现出空间聚集的特性;在其他投入和产出不变的的既定条件下,促进农业水资源利用过程中的绿色技术进步能够缓解农业污染的局面;将农药流失污染作为非合意产出的农业水资源利用绿色技术进步带来的环境污染减排积极影响更强;农业经济发展水平与4类污染排放分别体现为倒N型、倒U型、正N型和倒N型的关系,随着农业经济发展水平的提升,我国绝大多数地区仍处于农药、化肥粗放使用的倒N型的上升阶段,农药流失和化肥施用引起的面源污染情况仍在加剧,农业经济发展水平与厩肥还田造成的面源污染相分离的状态逐渐消失,而农业水资源利用过程中产生的碳排放污染情况则不容乐观,大部分地区农业灌溉所产生的碳排放面临快速上升的趋势。     

鲁西北地区农户家庭农地规模经营行为分析

本文根据1986-2001年鲁西北地区农村固定观察点陵县和阳谷县2个村共80户（1993年以前为120户、115户或141户）跟踪观察资料，对鲁西北地区农户经济活动行为及不同规律农户分布、农户家庭纯收入水平、农地生产率等加以分析，研究结果和结论可为区域农业和农村经济可持续发展有关政策的制定提供科学依据。     

Community-based natural resources management (CBNRM) in Xinhui, Guangdong Province, China

Using institutional appraisal focused groups (FG) and participatory appraisals with Dillman Total Design Method (TDM), this study examines community interaction with and utilization of wetland resources in Xinhui, Guangdong Province, China. Field results show high commercial activities and corresponding impacts on coastal environment. Other interacting factors identified include: legislation and ecosystem management, stakeholders’ participation, international guidelines criteria, and utilization of mangrove resources in the region. Sensitivity index and community-based natural resources management collaboration comparison percentile showed significant differences between cumulative distributions of respondents (D = 0.2568, P = 0.078). Likert statement of 11 sensitivity optional indexes in EMS of K–S test at 0.05 level of P = 0.078 also show significant differences in interaction between respondent groups and sensitivity factors. This indicates a dysfunction between regional environmental management systems and CBNRM in Xinhui coastal district. Considering the high tourism potential and economic quest of the region, there is the need for coordinated community enlightenment and further studies on the social, ecological and economic value of wetland resources. Readers should send their comments on this paper to: BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.     

Soil degradation and agricultural sustainability: an overview from Iran

During the past six decades, agriculture as a main sector in Iran’s economy has been affected by economic development, land-use policies, and population growth and its pressures. From the 1940s until 2010, the percentage of the total urban population of Iran increased from about 21?% to around 72?%. Urbanization, industrialization, and intensive cultivation have dramatically affected soil and water resources. The exploitation of groundwater has been increased around fourfold from the 1970s to the mid-2000s. Total water resources per capita reduced around 23?% from 1956 to 2008. The average annual decrease in the groundwater table in Iran during the last two decades is 0.51?m. In 2008, the groundwater table fell around ?1.14?m in average in Iran. The average use of chemical fertilizers increased from around 2.1?million tons in 1990s to about 3.7?million tons in 2009. During that period, fertilizer use efficiency decreased from around 28?% to around 21?%. Approximately 77?% of the agricultural land under irrigation suffers from different levels of salinity. According to the quantification of four indices, such as soil erosion, fall in groundwater levels, salinity, and use of chemical fertilizer, that are directly related to agricultural land use, the results show that agricultural management in Iran needs special attention to reach sustainable conditions. The total cost of soil and water degradation and use of fertilizers in agriculture are estimated around than US $12.8?billion (about 157,000?billion IRRials)—approximately 4?% of the total gross domestic product (GDP) and approximately 35?% of the GDP of the agricultural sector in Iran.     

绿洲农区土地可持续利用初步研究——以河西走廊临泽样区为例

土地可持续利用就是实现土地生产力的持续增长和稳定性 ,保证土地资源潜力和防止土地退化 ,并具有良好的社会效益和经济效益。本文以河西走廊临泽样区为例 ,以根据土系划分出的三种土地利用方式为研究对象 ,对其在土地可持续利用方面进行了定量化评价研究 ,在此基础上 ,提出了绿洲农区土地可持续利用途径     

Controlling non-point-source pollution by rural resource recycling. Nitrogen runoff in Tai Lake valley, China, as an example

Agricultural non-point-source (NPS) pollution is regarded as the dominant contributor to water quality degradation and eutrophication in China. Nitrogen (N) is a primary source of pollution in fresh water bodies. In this work a linear programming model was developed to simulate the effectiveness of different nitrogen runoff control policies, using Pinghu City in Tai Lake valley as an example. Four policy scenarios were tested: a tax at a rate equivalent to 50% of the cost of nitrogen fertilizer (S1); a ban on summer fertilizer applications to make the most use of fertilizer applied in the spring (S2); mandatory substitution of regular fertilizers by controlled-release fertilizers (S3); and a subsidy of US$300 ha⁻¹ (RMB￥150 mu⁻¹) for using compost (S4). The results indicate that all four policies would effectively reduce nitrogen runoff—by 9.8, 26.8, 14.4, and 80.0%, respectively. A subsidy for recycling domestic animal manure and utilizing compost had the most significant effect on the reduction of nitrogen runoff without reducing household income. This research suggests that measures to control agricultural NPS pollution should be combined with a policy to promote recycling of bio-resources and that financial support for NPS pollution control combined with bio-resource recycling should be regarded as one aspect of public investment in regional sustainable development.     

南水北调中线丹江口库区土地生产潜力估算

以土地生产潜力与承载力理论为基础,以南水北调中线工程主要淹没区和水源地——丹江口库区耕地为研究对象,在遥感影像、DEM、气象、土壤等数据支持下建立模型,利用潜力递减法估算丹江口库区的土地生产潜力,同时对土地资源人口承载力进行研究。估算结果表明:研究区不同作物、不同耕作制度下的最大生产潜力与现实生产力有很大差距,在现有粮食生产水平下,库区未淹没耕地的情况下,库区的人口承载力现状已经很差,当水位达到170 m后,库区人口承载力将进一步恶化。但是,研究区作物的现实生产力还有很大的提高余地,若在移民的前提下,深入挖掘土地生产潜力,因地制宜的选择合适的耕作制度,库区的土地承载力还可以有所提高。     

Influencing factors on sustainable development: a case study in Quang Tri province,Vietnam

Background Sustainable development (SD) is a common concept. Knowledge and attitudes are essential in the SD process. This study assesses the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of local people about SD. Aim To study the factors that influence the understanding of the concept, contents, and indicators of different aspects affecting the health and environmental issues. Methods A cross-sectional study was carried out from June to July 2007 among 546 households in the Quang Tri province. Data were gathered on basis of socio-demographic variables, namely age, gender, education, occupation, income, and region. Chi square tests and multivariate analysis were performed on the obtained data. The data were cleaned and analysed using SPSS 15.0 for windows. Results Occupation is related to knowledge, attitude, or practice. Income is related to knowledge or practice. Gender related to only attitude. Lastly, region is related to attitude or practice. The proportion of wrong understanding about SD is 2.0 times (95% CI: 1.3; 3.1, p < 0.001) higher than that of the people who have good understanding about it. The rate of willingness to do any related SD programmes of the people who understanding is 2.1 times (95% CI: 1.4; 3.2, p < 0.001) higher than that of the people who have bad one. Conclusions This study shows that knowledge on sustainability of the local communities is low. Occupation and income influence understanding of SD more than region, age, gender, and education. Most of the local people who do not understand SD in general, do not want to participate or act in SD programmes.