Purpose. The differences in 20-year tree cover dynamics were analysed for the three experimental strata, which correspond to former administrative districts and are located along landscape socio-ecological gradient on territory of Chernivtsi region. Methods. System analysis, statistical geospatial database Global Forest Watch service used. Results. Three strata have been identified region inter...

Use of new techniques to evaluate irrigation areas can enhance water use efficiency in agriculture. In this study, the fuzzy analytic hierarchy Process (FAHP) was used to qualitative land suitability for sprinkler irrigation and was compared with the parametric method. Evaluation based on parametric method showed that an area of about 1597.83 hectares (31%) of the lands was highly suitable (S1)...

Joint assessment of groundwater-surface water resources can help develop sustainable regional water management plans for intensive agriculture. In this study, we estimated allowable groundwater and surface water quantities using a water balance model, WetSpass-GMS, for the Sanjiang Plain (10.9 × 104 km2), one of the most important grain production bases in China. We then applied a double contro...

This paper presents an exhaustive review of global croplands and their water use, for the end of last millennium, mapped using remote sensing and non-remote sensing approaches by world’s leading researchers on the subject. A comparison at country scale of global cropland area estimated by these studies had a high R-value of 0.89–0.94. The global cropland area estimates amongst different studies...

Human pressure threatens many species and ecosystems, so conservation efforts necessarily prioritize saving them. However, conservation should clearly be proactive wherever possible. In this article, we assess the biodiversity conservation value, and specifically the irreplaceability in terms of species endemism, of those of the planet's ecosystems that remain intact. We find that 24 wilderness...

Southern Appalachian forests are recognized as a biodiversity hot spot of global significance, particularly for endemic aquatic salamanders and mussels. The dominant driver of land-cover and land-use change in this region is surface mining, with an ever-increasing proportion occurring as mountaintop mining with valley fill operations (MTVF). In MTVF, seams of coal are exposed using explosives, ...

Monsanto, the world's largest seed producer, which is the focus of European opposition to genetically modified crops still banned from commercial planting throughout the European Union, has flagged up a new conventional variety of broccoli set to win awards at a major European show this month. The company is hoping that the new broccoli, Bellaverde, will sway the judges at the Fruit Logistica s...

In their Perspective in this issue of PLOS Biology, Blomqvist et al. [1] set out to demonstrate that ‘‘Ecological Footprint measurements, as currently constructed, are so misleading as to preclude their use in any serious science or policy context.’’ Should the reader be confident in this assessment or are Ecological Footprint methods and results adequate to guide sustainability policy? Their P...