Sustainability in Natural Resources Management and Land Planning

The sixth benchmark for the Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6) was that by 2020 the world should be able to protect and restore all sorts of water-related ecosystems. This article looks at what it would have taken for the world to achieve that target at the end of 2020. After sketchily reviewing the current status of water across globe, the article concludes that the world’s waters are undergoing significant shifts and changes that will affect their geographical distribution, their intrinsic quality and their ecological functions. That made the achievement of the sixth benchmark of the SDG 6 could not have been possible by 2020; it also is why holistic and dedicated action is still needed to conserve what can be conserved and to restore the lost quality wherever that will be possible. The paper argues that even when action begins, the process will be long and needs continued efforts throughout several decades to come.

Across the globe, close to 2.2 billion people lack safely managed drinking water and 4.2 billion people lack safely managed sanitation. As such, the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 6—“To guarantee accessible and sustainable water and sanitation systems for all”—is not only an urgent task, but one that requires the development and widespread use of new technologies that might allow for providing infrastructure and services to more inhabitants at lower costs. Water is a threatened natural resource and its management is a great challenge for land planning in metropolitan areas, which contain many inhabitants in small territories, often with limited resources. Geospatial data and technologies started to be used mainly in the 1990s by water and sewage companies to support service management in urban areas. In this chapter, we present the evolution of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and describe their uses by water and sewage companies from five metropolitan areas: Sao Paulo (Brazil), Fortaleza (Brazil), Rome (Italy), Budapest (Hungary) and Nairobi (Kenya). GIS are applied in these cities for water and sanitation management, facing very different technological and urban challenges and their evolution has been proving beneficial for sustainability. GIS are applied for leakage control in pipelines, to preserve environmentally relevant areas for water supply near dams and wells and to provide information for many stakeholders.

Similar to the whole world, South America faces numerous water-related crises and challenges (e.g. water quantity and quality scarcity) due to climate change, land use, governance systems, and other such factors. This chapter deals with water governance in South America, specifically Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay. The objective was to analyse the recent water crises in three watersheds in terms of their consequences on drinking water supply—turbidity in the Chubut river (Patagonia, Argentina) in 2017, drought in the Piracicaba-Capivari-Jundiaí river basins (São Paulo, Brazil) in 2014–2015, and algal blooms in the Laguna del Sauce lake (Maldonado, Uruguay) in 2015—and the lessons learned. The methods used included semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders and document analyses. The consequences of the crises were diverse and included enhanced communication among actors at multiple levels (Argentinian and Uruguayan cases), incorporation of climate components in the basin management plan (Brazilian case), and emergence of social mistrust regarding the quality of drinking water (Uruguayan case). We discuss the findings in light of the need for adaptive and anticipatory water governance in the context of climate change and uncertainty.

Polycentric governance (PCG) and the management of common-pool resources (CPR) have been the main theoretical approaches elaborated by Elinor and Vincent Ostrom and adopted in numerous research projects by the Indiana School in Bloomington, having gained major influence in the field of natural resources management. However, their findings concerning local “communities of individuals”, being able to identify and struggle for their common interests, and moreover, to govern their commons autonomously on behalf of the collectivity, may encounter limits in more complex socio-political and institutional settings as we regularly find in huge metropolitan areas. In this chapter we explore the theoretical concept of PCG, in order to better understand the potentialities and the limits of the concept for water governance in metropolises in the Global South. Within this theoretical framework, we analyze the political and institutional transformation that occurred during the recent water crisis in the São Paulo Macrometropolis. Our research revealed, on the one hand, a weak resilience of the polycentric governance structure in this crisis situation and an insufficient integration of water governance with land use planning, and on the other, the state government falling back into traditional authoritarian governance patterns, favoring powerful economic interests, in detriment to democratic participation, as well as social, environmental and territorial justice. We conclude with some considerations on the possibilities and challenges of polycentric governance for transformational change in the Global South.

Overexploitation of natural resources for national development has resulted in rapid land-use changes in Indonesia. The incompatibility of land-use changes in tropical watersheds on its designation can result in the degradation of natural resources, threaten land sustainability, increase greenhouse gas emissions, and impact global climate change. The amount, duration, and intensity of extreme rainfall impact the increasing number of hydrological disasters such as floods and landslides. This situation can be exacerbated by changes in land use that are incompatible with their sustainable watershed management function. This paper discusses the importance of sustainability in watershed management to ensure natural resource allocation for future generations. Integrated watershed management is required in natural resource management by integrating biophysical and socio-economic aspects to produce good water quality environmental services. This concept will harmonize the benefits of economic, environmental, and socio-cultural values to support natural resources management and live in a dignified and sustainable manner.

The geomorphology of Indonesia, which is part of the Ring of Fire, has 127 active volcanoes and mountainous areas, causing a steep gradient of the landscape from upstream to downstream of river basins. The upstream area of the watershed receives higher rainfall than the downstream area; therefore, it becomes the main rainwater catchment area that functions as a recharge area and a buffer for hydro-orological functions of the area below. The soil in the upper watershed is usually fertile because it contains volcanic ash as the primary material. Therefore, it is often used intensively for the farming of rain-fed non-irrigated vegetables and tubers. The steep topography of the upstream area, open land, and high rainfall cause land degradation owing to high erosion and landslide potential. In the downstream area, sedimentation occurs in rivers and dams. The land and water belonging to the community are relatively difficult to conserve because they are the primary sources of livelihood. Watershed management in the upstream area must conserve soil and water by considering the biophysical characteristics and socioeconomic conditions of local communities. Micro-watershed planning and management units are expected to empower local potential in an ideal and rational manner. The management of small areas (approximately 1000–5000 ha) by participatory and collaborative planning for soil and water conservation techniques must be adapted to specific environmental, economic, and socio-cultural characteristics. Micro-watershed management based on nature and local wisdom is essential to ensure the sustainability of watershed management from upstream to downstream areas. This chapter discusses participatory and collaborative planning in micro-watershed management based on local environmental, economic, and socio-cultural characteristics.

Local governments play key roles in climate strategy implementation. In this chapter we consider the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) by integrating the Energy and Urban Planning strategies for the São Paulo megacity. Currently there is no energy planning development at the city level. For this purpose, two studies were carried out, first a case study using the LEAP-SP model to simulate the implementation of 29 Urban Energy Planning (UEP) strategies for the Sao Paulo city (2014–2030 period) in order to quantify the possible energy savings, GHG emissions reduction, and local energy generation increase. In the second stage, a hierarchical strategy matrix was developed to verify UEP strategies performance in reaching SGDs according to four indices: comprehensiveness, effectiveness, completeness, and resoluteness. According to the study results, integrating urban and energy planning strategies helps to reach different SDGs; however, the tradeoffs in increasing SDGs comprehensiveness reduce SDG effectiveness.

Synthetic chemical pesticides are known to pose a danger to the natural environment and human health, mainly used in pest control in agriculture, agroforestry and maintenance of other areas such as public green spaces (e.g. gardens, parks, sports fields). Nevertheless, regulation on the use and application of these products has become increasingly restrictive, which has led to a growing search for other procedures/methods to control harmful organisms. The glyphosate, one of the world’s best-known herbicides, is planned to be banned by the European Union (EU) by 2022, and several European countries have already banned its use. Other active substances have seen their use reduced by up to 50%. Simultaneously, public concern about the effects of these chemicals on both the environment and human health has increased considerably. Therefore, it is essential to study sustainable alternatives to maintain and even increase productivity levels in agriculture and agroforestry while reducing the impacts of agrochemicals and comply with international commitments such as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In this sense, the EU has also established several measures to reduce risks to the environment and public health related to pesticide use, raise awareness and involve stakeholders on this topic through the Thematic Strategy on the Sustainable use of Pesticides (2006). However, much remains to be done to achieve the targets set by the EU. These circumstances, coincidentally with public pressure, have led biopesticides to emerge as potentially suitable alternatives. Their development is also supported by a remarkable increase in commercialisation in recent years, estimated to grow even further. This chapter addresses pesticide use issues and presents some recent researches on biopesticides as promising alternatives to address the harmful consequences of synthetic chemical pesticides. It also aims to raise public awareness, encouraging communities to take a closer look at environmental issues and become more engaged in finding sustainable and inclusive solutions.

The implementation of sustainable practices in agriculture will be crucial for the economy, the environment and society in the next decades. However, numerous barriers hinder more sustainable agricultural practices around the world. This research aims to identify and group the barriers to adoption of Sustainable Development in agriculture, from the perspective of Brazilian organic family farmers. To achieve that goal, exploratory and qualitative research was adopted. For data collection, 13 semi-structured interviews were conducted with organic farmers. The results of the interviews identified 20 barriers to Sustainable Development (SD) in agriculture. These 20 barriers were grouped by similarity into six factors: (i) perceived semantic barriers; (ii) perceived regulation barriers; (iii) perceived individual barriers; (iv) perceived macro-systemic barriers; (v) perceived capital/financial barriers; (iv) perceived administrative/organizational barriers.

The major force influencing organic agricultural growth in Ghana is the increased demand for organic products by consumers in industrialized countries. Low chemical use in Ghanaian agriculture due to fertile soils and good weather conditions make Ghana particularly suitable for developing environmentally friendly forms of farming but Ghanaian farmers are not taking advantage of these factors. This study explores the sustainability practices and motivations for adopting organic farming by the pineapple farmers in the Ekumfi district of the central region of Ghana. Organic farming practices that are laced with indigenous knowledge, cultural practices and farmer’s motivations are studied in this study. Qualitative research method is used for this study. The findings shows that the pineapple farmers do not burn the vegetation before clearing the field, they also do not use synthetic chemicals as a requirement for undertaking organic farming. Non-economic motivations for organic pineapple farming are health and environmental stewardship. The study recommends that government agencies, processors, research institutions and Universities work with farmers to develop manures, organic pesticides and farming techniques that are adaptable to the local weather conditions and mirrors traditional farming to increase output and returns on investment.

This chapter identifies significant transformations in agricultural land in terms of land use and land-use changes, analyses major drivers and trade-offs, and describes substantial policy interventions to arrest negative trends. The rapidly growing population and their needs constitute one of the significant drivers of land-use changes in the Asia region. Intensive farming practices have put pressure on ecosystems leading to declining total factor productivity, land degradation, soil erosion, loss of soil fertility, and GHG emissions. Policy measures to address unsustainable land transformations have been minimal, and countries are yet to be successful in halting negative trends. Through coordinated land management and integrated land decision support systems, governments can address food-fuel conflicts, stop negative environmental consequences, and enhance rural prosperity.

Sustainable Land Management (SLM) is one of the transformative pillars for agricultural development and environment conservation for food, forage, fuel and fiber security. It aims at the tripartite benefits of high yields, environment protection and income security. The success of SLM is a function of adopting appropriate nutrient and water management practices. Several land management practices have been practiced by smallholder farms in the Great Lakes Region of Africa. However, there is still limited understanding of the level of acceptability of the various technologies in mitigating soil water shortage and nutrient depletion. This paper evaluates the SLM concept with focus on assessing sustainability in the use of various soil water and nutrient management technologies and practices. Nutrient management technologies assessed included a range of common inputs and practices in tropical farming systems. Soil water conservation technologies assessed included the physical, biological and agronomic measures. Analysis conducted suggest that few land users can afford to adopt most of the available technologies that define a full package for realization of the pillars of SLM. Integrated use of technologies remains the appropriate approach to responding to the alarming challenge of land degradation. Inclusion of social-cultural and economic factors in the application of SLM technologies of soil, water and nutrients is fundamental for increased adoption. Policies for SLM should target integrated technologies centered on people in order to achieve the ultimate goal of enhanced agricultural productivity, environment conservation and income in the Great Lakes Region of Africa.

Water and nutrients are the two most limiting factors to productivity especially under rain-fed agriculture. This chapter highlights novel climate smart technologies and techniques for conserving water and nutrients within plant root zones of typically marginal coarse-textured soils rapidly permeable to water. These technologies enable multi-season and off-season production of high value crops resulting in more than doubling of production with about 40–60% supplemental irrigation requirements. From a case study, we hypothesized higher tomato yields under coupled soil subsurface water and nutrient retention than under either factor in isolation. Our field experimental design enabled us to disaggregate and aggregate the effects of both water and nutrient stresses to quantify their relative importance to tomato yields. Highest mean fruit yield (68.7 ± 7.7 Mg ha−1) was from double-dug beds installed with impermeable polythene sheets which received a combined application of NPK and vermicompost. Mean fruit yield for this same treatment was 46.6 ± 4.9 Mg ha−1 under conventional tillage and 46.3 ± 5.2 Mg ha−1 under double-dug beds without polythene sheets installed. Water did not limit tomato yields significantly because the rainfall was above normal throughout this particular experiment. With increasing frequency and severity of climate change-exacerbated droughts intensifying competition for the already stressed freshwater resources, these technologies must be urgently disseminated to foster resilience to climate change especially for agro-environments with marginal coarse-textured soils.

This chapter advances a debate for rural land-use planning by making a nuanced analysis of the dynamics surrounding livelihoods by households under the impact of climate change, economic stress and urbanisation in Zimbabwe post-2000. It is argued that the period has seen many changes in the rural landscape with the general net effect that has pushed households to damage their environment, destroying biodiversity and making it difficult for the practice of sustainable land-use planning as espoused in various policy and legislative -instruments of the country. Using archival data and case studies, the examines the concepts and realities of the interface of climate change and urbanisation. the research employed a desktop review of published documents and governmental papers. Climate change is both a cause and effect, particularly with respect to drought and famine that has caused households to resort to various strategies including migration to rural business centres, growth points and to intermediate and major cities and towns within the country or outside. Remittances now play a major role in cushioning the rural households. A community-based resilience model is suggested under these circumstances.

The Amazon region contains a mosaic of different traditional communities. The role of traditional peoples in environmental conservation efforts has been much discussed in the literature. This article aims to synthesise some of this work by answering a central question: how have traditional communities come to play such an important role in environmental conservation in the Amazon? To answer this question, we focus on the history of occupation and the political, social and cultural resistance of indigenous, riverine and quilombola groups. We also discuss the status of territorial occupation, the forms of organisation and the legal mechanisms currently in effect for protecting traditional communities. The rural population of the Legal Amazon numbers over 4 million, which includes riverine communities and other groups. There are 424 Indigenous territories, representing 23% (1,153,444 km2) of the Legal Amazon. Approximately 0.3% (16,238 km2) of the territory corresponds to quilombola communities, descendants of enslaved Africans who make up around 81 communities. While nuanced debate about the essentialisation of traditional identities is necessary for casting off some Eurocentric notions, we argue that the political urgency of the situation in Brazil demands a recognition of the crucial role of traditional communities in environmental preservation.

Ecosystems services are at the base of the pyramid, strategy, and survival of rural communities in many developing countries such as Mozambique. Its massive decline has been widely announced and the future of rural communities is severely threatened. However, directing policies or decision-making to protect the local ecosystems services will involve deeply understanding the way and lifestyle of communities, understanding their needs, exploring perceptions about the values and importance of services as well as recognising pro and cons attitudes the implementation of sustainable actions. Thus, these perceptions can illuminate paths to redefine new paradigms for the protection and sustainability of local ecosystem services. Our research examines the perception of the different ways of use, exploitation, importance, and attitude of the rural communities of northern Mozambique on the local ecosystems services as a way of contributing to sustainable strategies. We favoured the application of questionnaires as the quantitative assessment procedure of respondents (N = 1000). Pearson’s chi-square test (χ2) was applied to assess the association between variables. However, the Person test revealed positive correspondences or associations between the variables tested. We have found limitations to the recognition and attribution of the importance and value of local ecosystem services by communities. The considerable reduction in provisioning services is pointed out as the main threats to the reduction of local ecosystem services by communities. Nevertheless, ways to protect and sustain local ecosystem services have been identified and discussed.

Global climate change challenges the lives and survival of rural communities. Mozambique is one of the Southern African countries most vulnerable to extreme climatic events, such as floods, storms, cyclones, and droughts. The future of rural communities and their generations could be jeopardised if sustainable and long-term actions are not implemented to alleviate local shocks. Nevertheless, barriers and failures in implementing winning actions are relatively related to (1) lack of scientific studies and knowledge regarding risk perceptions, responses, and adaptation strategies; (2) Standardisation of strategies without before understanding the complexities, characteristics, and the specific realities of rural communities. In this study, we investigate the sensitivity to climate change, the perception of Cabo Delgado communities and attitudes towards adaptation that influence their decisions to adopt adaptation strategies. Through structured interviews with 1000 (F = 31%, M = 69%) community respondents, we collected both qualitative and quantitative data. We provided useful information to increase local social understanding, with the aim of providing tools for local planning and natural resources management for risk and vulnerability reduction to climate change/extreme events. We found that perceptions of climate change vary substantially between gender and education. The study found that communities have noticed changes such as reduced rainfall, increased droughts, storms, cyclones, and increased temperature. The gradual loss of income, properties, declining agricultural production, and increased hunger were identified as indicators of sensitivity to climate change. Even so, adaptive capacities are low and about 90% of respondents do not use any adaptation strategy to deal with climate changes. We conclude that communities are very susceptible to possible shocks from climate change. Therefore, income diversification, strong education system, awareness on climate change matter, and advanced agricultural policy should be considered as priorities for adaptation strategies.

Located solely in the northern hemisphere, boreal forests contain an estimated one-third of Earth’s forested land. The purpose of this work aimed at reviewing the evolution of approaches in land planning and management of boreal forests in Finland and Northern Sweden, while comparing these to those developed in Minnesota. The nature of this work is historical research of forests use and management during the last 200 years. The knowledge from past histories is valuable to improve management approaches that aim at retaining the economic viability of logging, without jeopardizing the regenerative capabilities of forest ecosystems. Various methods and restoration efforts aimed at recovering from unsustainable biodiversity losses, created by past, uncontrolled tree harvesting, were assessed. Challenges and successes were presented in this work from both geographic regions, highlighting policy making and effective management approaches. Also, a new model framed within ecological memory to improve management practices toward sustainability of boreal forests was proposed.

Many segments of society have turned their attention to environmental issues. This leads to the development of studies on sustainability, proposals for sustainable use of natural areas, and policies for creating conservation areas. This chapter uses the Cantareira System Environmental Protected Area (EPA Cantareira) and the upper portion of the Atibaia River Basin located in São Paulo, Brazil as its area of study. The region contains water sources of regional and state importance and this factor, combined with the region’s natural beauty, has made it a target for real estate speculation and a disorderly process of land occupation. Despite restrictions imposed by environmental legislation, varying and often inappropriate types of land occupation have generated great social and environmental impact. This creates a need for the proper analysis and evaluation of this impact. This chapter looks at a study that revealed a very rapid growth of land occupation—approximately 170% between 2005 and 2019. Conflicts over land use in the area highlighted the varied perceptions and approaches among regional social groups regarding environmental issues. These differences were reflected in the proposals for regional development. Within this context, this chapter seeks to describe current environmental changes and their effects on the transformation processes of the Cantareira EPA and in the Atibaia River Basin; and to indicate environmentally appropriate measures that can be taken in this region.

Elderly populations are growing in worldwide cities. Their health conditions and longevity depend on several social and environmental factors. These populations are especially vulnerable to heatwaves, which frequency is increasing due to climate change. There is an increasing number of studies showing that the presence of walkable green spaces (WGS) in highly urbanized spaces can benefit human health and mitigate the effects of heatwaves. By combining social-environmental data and GIS data processing, we developed a method to identify and prioritize areas in highly populated cities to implement WGS focusing on reducing vulnerability and exposure of the elderly population to high temperatures. We applied this method to São Paulo megacity and measured the proportion of WGS available for use in each urban census tract. The results demonstrate that the central districts, which are historically occupied by high-income social classes, concentrate most of the WGS. The history of the urbanization process and the influence of the real estate market played a huge role in determining the current situation. Urban planning linked to public policies aimed at improving social and environmental conditions can reduce the exposure and vulnerability of the elderly population during heatwaves, promoting benefits to public health in large cities.

Approximately 200,397,5 km2 (~25%) of the Mozambique territory have been declared a protected and biodiversity conservation area. Unprecedented efforts to protect biodiversity have placed the country on the upper list of the main African biodiversity conservation references. Nevertheless, the COVID-19 pandemic created significant disruptions in the biodiversity conservation efforts, as well as unleashing unprecedented implications on global biodiversity conservation actions. To date (07 March 2021), almost 116,639,024 people were infected and more than 2,590,159 died by COVID-19. This research evaluated the practical impacts on the COVID-19 pandemic on biodiversity conservation action in Mozambique. The online transverse survey was performed to government entities, civil society, NGOs, donors, research centre, and key stakeholders that working on biodiversity conservation. More than 90% (corresponding to 31) of the institutions that work strictly on the biodiversity conservation were assessed. Therefore, almost 90% were considerable impacted with disruptions on fieldwork. Efforts to protect biodiversity reduced up to 50% for the 2020 year. An increase of COVID-19 cases will hit hard the local communities located on the border with the conservation areas. We note that the armed conflicts in northern Mozambique, and reduction of enforcement, patrolling could cause a surge of illegal killing of wildlife in Quirimbas National Park and spread of zoonotic diseases. Thus, as a contribution we present and discuss the possible strategies and pathways to cope the present and future zoonotic disease impacts.

Low elevated coastal regions across the globe faces sea-level rise as a greatest threat. Sustainable management of coastal natural resources and land planning warrants urgent attention in response to the impacts of rising sea-levels by planning suitable coastal adaptation strategies. Vulnerability of the coastal regions is determined by the elevation of the coastal lands from the mean sea-level. High-resolution elevation data provide hands-on information to map vulnerable coastal land to effectively plan the land use and land cover and to sustainably manage the coastal natural resources. In this context, this chapter outlines the importance of sustainable natural resources management and land planning in the midst of changing climate and rising sea-levels through the lens of sustainable development goals. This study also addresses the importance of the accuracy of the coastal elevation data to assess the impacts of the sea-level rise to plan suitable coastal adaptation strategies with the Pichavaram mangrove region in the east coast of Tamil Nadu, India as a case study. The study has adopted land use and land cover mapping followed by sea-level rise impact assessment based on a digital elevation model using various satellite images and real-time elevation datasets are compared. The findings of the study reveal that real-time elevation datasets provide more precise information than the former, however, the hybrid of both real-time and satellite datasets will provide holistic information about the elevation of the study area to effectively map the land planning to the impacts of the sea-level rise and adapt sustainable. Thus, the information garnered from this study emphasizes the importance of the elevation based coastal land use planning and to sustainably manage and adapt the coastal natural resources to the impacts of sea-level rise.

The United States is a coastal nation. More than two-thirds of its population live within coastal states. Many of these developed coastal areas are low-lying, subject to flooding and similar hazards related to sea level rise. Historical policies have incentivized coastal development and redevelopment. And today, as a direct result of sea level rise, ecologically important coastal attributes are being eroded. This paper examines historical and current policies associated with coastal development in the United States. Using a policy evolution analytical framework, specific policies are identified that have incentivized coastal development while simultaneously discounting existing and emerging coastal hazard risks. It then explores the kinds of policy evolutions required to better internalize emerging climate change risks to coastal areas while also supporting the ecological integrity of coastlines. Findings indicate key existing policies supporting coastal development aid in discounting the increasing risks to coastal areas, while also incentivizing the flow of capital for development purposes. The recommendations from this analysis can be generally applied to coastal areas under the dual considerations of development and coastal ecosystem integrity in an era of climate change.

Last year saw a significant increase in wildlife fires throughout the world. Global warming, climate change, dry weather and droughts are the main reasons for wildlife fires. Hot and dry tropical air mass penetrates into middle latitudes more often, causing severe droughts and hazardous fire situations. The role of the stratosphere in surface weather processes has now been shown to be significant. The all atmosphere is single both vertically and horizontally. Total ozone distribution, in particular sudden stratospheric warming, is a key factor in the distribution of atmosphere cells, as well as the tropopause position in winter/early spring. This article will present cases of the influence of stratospheric processes on surface weather conditions, and the methods of monitoring, control and prediction of the wildfires; looking particularly in the Siberia in 2019 and 2020.

This chapter deals with wildfires in Paraguay and their environmental and human impacts. Wildfires are a significant threat, both for the loss of forest area and the resulting environmental, recreational and productive services, as well as for damage to public health and property. Wildfires are a cyclical and recurring risk, increasing in intensity from July to October. The number of fire sources, from 2005 to 2020, in the Western or Chaco region, totalised 1,221,445, and in the Eastern Region 471,448. Although the National Emergency Secretariat reported in October 2019 that the wildfires affected 325,000 in the Chaco or Western Region and 10,929 wildfire foci existed in the humid Eastern Region, recent estimates based on NPP-Suomi satellite data suggest a total closer to one million ha. The Ministry of Health assisted more than 1,500 people for respiratory symptoms and conjunctivitis. Wildfires can lead to the proliferation of vector-borne diseases, loss of biodiversity and climate modification. Analysis of exposure and vulnerability elements of wildfires (e.g. occurrence and climate scenarios), will allow for management options (e.g. education, early warning, climate-based decision-support systems, equipping and training firefighters, prescribed burning, and ecosystem restoration)

In the gallery forests and palm swamps of the Orinoco region of Colombia, fire is present as both an anthropogenic and a natural disturbance. These natural formations are impacted by recurrent fires, which typically originate in the savannas. Although interactions among various factors influence the natural regeneration of the swamp palm Mauritia flexuosa, the role of fire in the dynamics of its communities remains unclear. In order to evaluate the post-fire regeneration response of this species, seedlings and fertile individuals, together with its habitat, were mapped in transects across palm swamps in the Vichada Department. Information of the time since last burn was used to establish burning categories (0–2, 2–4, >4 years). The data were processed via Point Pattern Analysis techniques. Effects of distance to mother palm, of microhabitat, and time since last burn were tested using a generalized linear mixed model. The highest regeneration intensities occurred in plots aged 2–4 years since last burn. This range may indicate how fire frequency impacts the regeneration of the species and ecosystems within the savanna landscape. We discuss how fire management and “fire non-suppression”, are related to mitigation actions, including the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and ecosystem risk impact. Furthermore, we discuss how our results could assist conservation programs and long-term prescribed fire planning in the savannas of the region.

Climate, a primary driver for fire activity, is important for fire management. Climate information is necessary for understanding and predicting fire regimes, seasonal and inter-annual variability, and future trends. Most wildfires are up to tens of kilometers in size, while global climate models usually have horizontal resolutions of hundreds of kilometers. Therefore, downscaling is required to provide high-resolution climate information for fire management applications. The climate and fire communities have made great strides in developing and applying climate downscaling techniques. Here we introduce fire managers and researchers to available techniques and products in this active field and their significance for fire management. Dynamical downscaling (running regional climate models with boundary conditions provided by global climate modeling or from measurements) and statistical downscaling (applying statistical tools such as regression and spatial analyses to connect historical meteorological measurements and global climate model data) are described. Their strengths and weaknesses are compared to provide a basis for selecting the products needed to achieve the specific fire management goals. A number of downscaling tools and products are described. Examples of actual fire applications are illustrated.

Climate change impact, along with the spreading, frequency and conflagrations of wildfires has increased recently due to the increases in population growth. The centralised approaches to natural resources management have failed dismally and so is the participatory approach that, instead of enhancing the management of resources, has given disappointing and unexpected results towards the sustainable management of natural resources. Before the 2000 fast-track land resettlement programme (FTLRP) in Zimbabwe,it was a misnomer in wildlife zones (game and nature reserves), communal, resettlement and commercial farming areas to have rampancy in wildfires out of hand. The state of affairs then can be attributed to attitudes and perceptions that encouraged good practice by the stakeholders. One could call that an environmental stewardship ethic anchored by state and voluntary institutions that meant for good towards the protection of common-pool resources. Environmental education that was instilled in the school curricula and informal education assisted immensely in environmental stewardship. With the FTLRP, practices like preparing fire guards by communities and grass cutting, have generally disappeared. It could be a matter of the tragedy of the commons or prisoner’s dilemma at play to the detriment of the environmental resources and beneficiaries at large. Using case studies of selected wildlife zones, communal, resettlement and commercial farming areas in Zimbabwe, the present paper seeks to assess the change on the monitoring, control and management of wildlife fires seeking to justify it as a priority area in Zimbabwe. The chapter uses a desktop approach to explore literature relevant to the debates presented in the chapter and to concretise the arguments. A look to the ancient practices of environmental and wildlife fire management is relevant towards sustainable development.

Sugarcane is an important agro-industrial crop for the production of food, biofuels and bioproducts. However, the agricultural management of this crop generates significant socioeconomic and environmental impacts. The burning of sugarcane-cultivated fields, a practice used to facilitate planting and harvesting, is used extensively in Mexico and other sugarcane-producing countries but causes nitrogen volatilization, a decrease in microorganisms and organic material in the soils, and increased wildfires in forest ecosystems and respiratory health problems in surrounding areas. Academic evidence has shown that sugarcane harvesting with biomass burning is associated with the generation of GHGs and an increase in extreme weather conditions, such as rising temperatures and more frequent and prolonged droughts. These effects, in turn, have modified the structure of vegetation communities and ecosystems, as well as affected carbon and water cycles and the regional climate system and therefore the productivity and profitability of crops. The objective of this work was to determine the distribution patterns of wildfires and their impact on forest and rainforest areas near sugarcane crops in the Huasteca Potosina region, Mexico, during the period 2010–2020, using high and low spatial resolution satellite images. MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) MCD64A1 satellite images were used to evaluate sugarcane-burnt areas impacted by drought to assess thermal anomalies, whereas Landsat 8 OLI images were used to calculate and monitor burned areas, both in sugarcane crops and in perimeter forests and rainforests. The products generated will serve to demonstrate the impact of sugarcane burning and help establish proposals for agroforestry sustainability to prevent, monitor, control and manage future wildfires.

Globally our ecosystems and biodiversity are vulnerable to ongoing climate change including weather and climate extremes. Within a country as vast as Australia, sustainable land management is paramount and Wildfire (bushfire) risk mitigation can significantly contribute to reducing the negative impacts of multiple stressors, including climate change, on ecosystems and communities. Highlighted by the increasingly devastating bushfires experienced across Australia current risk mitigation practices must be viewed as one element of a complex adaptive system. Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) have recognised that bushfire risk mitigation is part of a dynamic system that must adapt in and evolve with the changing environment to remain proactive and effective. A range of initiatives have been undertaken such as being at the forefront of land use planning bushfire risk mitigation, being the first in the country to develop a position on climate change, the unique development of the Queensland Emergency Risk Management Framework and the Emergency Management Sector Adaptation Plan which explicitly lead the incorporation of climate science into risk assessment and risk-based planning across Queensland. QFES will be seeking to exploit emergent networks and relationships to enhance the interconnectedness between localised activities, global strategies and enhance mitigation effectiveness.

This final paper presents an overview of future challenges on sustainable land use management.