Land use planning: A potential force for retaining habitat connectivity in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and Beyond

AbstractThe grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) population in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) is perceived to have been isolated from the population in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem for a century. Better land use planning is needed to thwart progressive intra- and inter-ecosystem habitat fragmentation, especially due to private land development. The dilemma of private lands being intermixed in large landscapes is addressed. This review attempts to identify some land use planning levels and tools which might facilitate dispersal by the grizzly bear and other large mammals. The planning levels discussed include national, regional, state, county and municipal, and federal land management agency. Specific potential federal tools mentioned include zoning, Landscape Conservation Cooperatives, the Endangered Species Act, beyond boundary authority, land exchanges, less-than-fee acquisition and other incentives, the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act, and federal land annexation. Besides summarizing existing recommendations, some derived observations are offered

Multiple Roles for Landscape Ecology in Future Farming Systems

This book is a printed edition of the Special Issue “Multiple Roles for Landscape Ecology in Future Farming Systems” that was published in Land. This book aims to inspire landscape ecologists to explore theories and practical tools that can assist in the planning, design, modification, and development of new farming landscapes with the best environmental, economic, and social outcomes in mind. It is also hoped that it will contribute toward developing land systems and land management practices for specific landscapes that meet the goals of increased nutritious food production in the face of market and climatic variability whilst reducing environmental impacts and enhancing natural capital and assisting to drive and support the transformative changes in the socioeconomic and environmental systems of rural areas required for future food production

Environmental sustainability and ecosystem services : a strategy for evaluating buffer zones of protected landscapes - the case of the Forest Reserve of Morro Grande / SP

Orientador: Rozely Ferreira dos SantosTese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Civil, Arquitetura e UrbanismoResumo: Alcançar a conservação de áreas que abrigam importante legado ecológico e cultural, legalmente protegidas, em um contexto urbano é um desafio, que pode ser obtido se consideradas estratégias que efetivem a paisagem ao seu redor como uma zona de amortecimento. Paisagens altamente dinâmicas e multifuncionais, como se configuram as zonas de amortecimento, exigem estratégias de gestão que considerem a importância da conservação da integridade da paisagem e das atividades humanas na busca por reduzir os conflitos inerentes a essa integração. Nessa linha, acredita-se que há um limiar de qualidade ambiental a partir do qual a ZA deixa de cumprir o seu papel. A pergunta que segue é como reconhecer esse limiar? Ainda não encontramos essa resposta efetivamente aplicada nos planejamentos de áreas protegidas. Desse modo, este estudo pretende contribuir para tal resposta aplicando a abordagem de avaliação de serviços ecossistêmicos capaz de indicar sobre a qualidade ambiental esperada para uma ZA, dado em um contexto específico: Reserva Florestal do Morro Grande. Partindo do pressuposto de que quanto mais próximo dos limites da área protegida, melhor deve ser a qualidade de uma ZA, os critérios foram aplicados em seis municípios que envolvem a reserva e em buffers de 1 a 10km. A avaliação sobre os serviços ecossistêmicos é aplicada em cada município e em faixas de distanciamento da Reserva, sob dois enfoques, o da análise da paisagem e o da perspectiva da gestão desses municípios, por meio de seus planos municipais diretores. Os resultados dessas análises foram comparados com os valores de referência obtidos a partir de especialistas em serviços ecossistêmicos. A estratégia foi o de avaliar as coberturas da terra e usos humanos por sua capacidade de ofertar serviços ecossistêmicos. As respostas obtidas foram representadas espacialmente, de forma a compreender e comparar o gradiente de proteção dado por cada município. Acredita-se que essa abordagem, é capaz de fornecer uma estratégia metodológica de avaliação sobre a efetividade de ZA, indicando limiares técnicos e, ao mesmo tempo, de maneira compreensível e facilmente replicável, para a população de forma a fortalecer os processos participativos de planejamento ambientalAbstract: Conserving areas with significant ecological and cultural values, protected under environmental legislation, in an urban context is a challenge. Conservation can be achieved with strategic actions with the implementation of buffer zones, comprising the surrounding landscape. Landscapes, or buffer zones, are highly dynamic and multifunctional. They require management strategies that should consider the conservation of the landscape as well as human activities, seeking ways to minimize conflicts which are inherent to this interface. It is believed that there is a threshold for environmental quality from which the buffer zone can no longer play its role. The main question is: how to identify this threshold? Protected area planning does not seem to provide an answer to this question. This thesis aims to contribute in searching that answer. This research is based upon an approach which looks at ecosystem services as expected indicators of environmental quality in buffer zones. This approach was tested in the Morro Grande Forrest Reserve, as the study area. The main assumption was that the closer to the protected area, the better the environmental quality of the buffer zone should be. The assessment criteria was applied in buffers of 1 to 10 km surrounding the study area, with a total area comprising six Local Government Areas (LGA). The assessment of ecosystem services was applied to each LGA and in the buffers surrounding the study area. Two different perspectives were applied to the assessment: landscape analysis and Local government management, based on analysis of LGA¿s strategic and business plans. The results were compared to benchmarking values, obtained in the literature. The strategy was based on the analysis of land cover and human activities, and its ability to enable ecosystem services. The findings have been mapped to enable better understanding of the different levels of protection provided by each LGA. It is believed that this approach provided a suitable methodology for the assessment of the effectiveness of buffer zones, identifying technical thresholds. Moreover, it is believed that the proposed methodology can be easily applied in participatory planning, empowering local communities to participate in and strengthen environmental planningDoutoradoRecursos Hidricos, Energeticos e AmbientaisDoutora em Engenharia Civil01-P-02213/2012CAPE

Political ecology des engrillagements de Sologne - Tentative de défragmentation du paysage écologique, politique et disciplinaire

Quoi de plus naturel qu’une clôture ? Parmi les images d’Epinal qui nous viennent spontanément à l’esprit, le bocage avec ses haies bien ordonnées, évoque une relation apaisée, rationnelle, arcadienne avec une nature nourricière et bienveillante. Pourtant, la prolifération des clôtures en milieu rural depuis un siècle a suscité la curiosité de nombreux chercheurs dans des disciplines variées. Qu’il s’agisse de protéger la nature de dégradations engendrées par les populations humaines - dans le cas d’espaces protégés -, ou à l’inverse de protéger les humains contre des dangers « naturels » - comme dans le cas de la prévention routière, ces clôtures semblent répondre à une nécessité absolue de ségrégation spatiale entre les hommes et la nature : Quoi de moins naturel qu’une clôture ? Vu sous cet angle, le conflit politico-environnemental engendré par la propagation récente des engrillagements forestiers en Sologne reflète assez bien l’ambiguïté de nos perceptions vis-à-vis du caractère naturel ou non de ces clôtures. La Sologne est une région naturelle Française couvrant près de 500 000 hectares délimitée au nord par la vallée de la Loire et au sud par la vallée du Cher. Fruit d’une occupation humaine attestée depuis le XIe siècle, conjuguée à des contraintes écologiques spécifiques, le paysage Solognot est aujourd’hui caractérisé par son couvert boisé important (environ 50% de la surface) et ses populations importantes de grand gibier, qui entretiennent la longue réputation cynégétique de cette région ; la propriété privée y est largement majoritaire (plus de 90% de la surface forestière). En 2012, une agitation médiatique (film, articles de presse, sites internet) cristallisent un conflit environnemental latente, faisant intervenir des éléments écologiques – les effets supposés bénéfiques ou néfastes de ces engrillagements sur la grande faune, mais aussi politiques – la nécessité de réglementer les engrillagements, et culturels - la sauvegarde du « paysage Solognot ». Afin d’analyser ce conflit, une approche interdisciplinaire de type Political Ecology a été menée, mêlant travail d’enquête auprès de la population et étude du fonctionnement écologique des espaces engrillagés. Ces travaux ont montré que les engrillagements modifient la répartition spatiale des cerfs. La recherche d’effets cascades sur les oiseaux forestiers - résultants des surdensités locales de cerfs en espace engrillagé - n’a cependant pas mis en évidence d’effet négatif. A partir des enquêtes, il apparaît que le conflit est pluridimensionnel et que l’aspect écologique – bien réel – ne suffit pas à lui seul pour comprendre l’enjeu de ce débat au sujet des engrillagements. Ces résultats génèrent une réflexion sur la complexité des conflits environnementaux, et la nécessité d’envisager ces conflits sous des angles différents. Cela implique d’utiliser des outils et des approches issues de plusieurs disciplines, mais aussi et surtout de parvenir à mettre en résonance le matériel hétérogène ainsi obtenu, afin de proposer une approche multifacette mais cohérente. Dans ce cas d’étude, les résultats sur les effets cascades se sont par exemple révélés extrêmement marginaux, alors qu’une étude parallèle sur le comportement du sanglier en milieu engrillagé aurait probablement été très pertinente. Cela amène plus largement à réfléchir sur le « cadrage » des problèmes environnementaux, et sur les choix conscients ou non que nous faisons lorsque nous décrivons une situation comme problématique pour « la nature ». Plus généralement, ces résultats incitent à (re)placer le politique au cœur de nos réflexions sur ce qu’est la « nature », y compris dans la façon dont nous écologues posons nos questions de recherches