Niger—with the world’s fastest growing population, its highest total fertility rate (TFR), a small and diminishing amount of arable land, low annual rainfall, a high level of malnutrition, extremely low levels of education, gross gender inequities and an uncertain future in the face of climate change—is the most extreme example of a catastrophe that is likely to overtake the Sahel. The policies...

Cyanobacteria have great potential as a platform for biofuel production because of their fast growth, ability to fix carbon dioxide gas, and their genetic tractability. Furthermore they do not require fermentable sugars or arable land for growth and so competition with cropland would be greatly reduced. In this perspective we discuss the challenges and areas for improvement most pertinent for a...

Drought is the main abiotic factor limiting more than 70% of the arable land around the world. Ethylene, a plant hormone, has often been observed to increase under environmentally unfavorable conditions, resulting in abscission of leaves and fruiting forms and ultimately in yield reduction. Concerning cotton, however, the effects of water-deficit stress on ethylene production have been uncertai...

The population of the southeast United States has experienced the highest growth rate in the nation in recent decades. Florida, in particular, has seen a dramatic population increase since the late 1970s, which has led to increased urbanization and more intense utilization of arable land for agriculture. One consequence of increased agriculture and population growth in South Florida is the pote...

Some marvel at these massive structures as engineering wonders that provide inestimable public benefit – things like flood control, water supply, hydroelectric power, improved navigation and water recreation. Yet others don’t share this appreciation and have doubts about the ability of humankind to effectively harness nature, particularly the power of the world’s mighty rivers. They decry the d...

The Netherlands is facing a Q fever epidemic in which dairy goats are implicated. People living close to an affected farm have an increased risk. However, no human cases were reported around a number of farms with serious Q fever problems. To assess the role of local environmental conditions which may add to the transmission or risk of Q fever, we gathered datasets on vegetation, land use, soil...

Land degradation and poverty caused by traditional arable agriculture have been serious problems in the ecologically fragile and economically backward mountains of Nepal. There is a prospect to address both of these problems to some extent by promoting livestock raising. However, a large livestock population exceeding the carrying capacity of land resources will risk undermining the sustainabil...

Rural housing land accounted for 67.3% of China’s total construction land in 2000. While there are numerous studies analyzing the loss of arable land due to urban sprawl, less attention has been paid to the study of rural housing land in China. This paper develops a theoretical framework for rural housing land transition in China. It introduces a research method, which is using the spatial diff...