Environmental & Socio-economic Studies

Szkop, Zbigniew

2022 Environmental & Socio-economic Studies

doi: 10.2478/environ-2022-0012

AbstractThis study assessed, in monetary terms, the ecosystem services provided by trees growing in public parks and garden squares in Warsaw, Poland. It focused on the valuation of two services: air purification (measured as an annual benefit stream in EUR/year) and carbon storage (measured as a fixed value at a given point in time in EUR). The study was conducted using the Avoided Cost Method with i-Tree Eco software. The initial calculations were based on data obtained from 41 selected green spaces in Warsaw. Subsequently, the results were extrapolated to all public parks and garden squares. The findings indicate that the average economic value of the NO2, SO2 and PM2.5 pollution removal ecosystem service provided by trees in Warsaw is around 3 EUR/tree/year. On average, one hectare of a public park in Warsaw provides this service at a value of 408 EUR/ha/year, while one hectare of a garden square provides this service at a value of 347 EUR/ha/year. With regards to the carbon storage ecosystem service, the results showed that the average economic value of this service is around 170 EUR/tree. On average, one hectare of a public park provides this service at a value of 22.4 thousand EUR/ha, and one hectare of a garden square provides this service at an average value of 18.9 thousand EUR/ha. By extrapolating these results, the total value of the air pollution removal ecosystem service provided by trees growing in all public parks and garden squares in Warsaw was estimated to range from 393 to 560 thousand EUR/year. The value of the carbon storage service ranges from 23.3 to 30.2 million EUR.

Tymochko, Ihor Ya.; Solomakha, Ihor V.; Shevchyk, Vasyl L.; Maliarenko, Valentyna M.; Solomakha, Volodymyr A.

2022 Environmental & Socio-economic Studies

doi: 10.2478/environ-2022-0013

AbstractA number of studies were undertaken in the territory of the “Syrovatka river basin of the Emerald Network of Ukraine (UA0000428 Syrovatka river basin). Based on the data gathered from field work surveys of the area, the characteristics of the habitats (C1.222, C1.224, C1.32, C1.33, C2.33+, С2.34, C3.4, C3.51, D5.2, E1.2, E2.2, E3.4, E5.4, F3.247, F9.1+G1.11, G1.21+G1.41, G1.A1, G1.7, G1.8, G1.A4) are presented according to the area covered and their ecological features. Phytosociological characteristics of habitats were given. As a result of the analysis of the distribution of certain species of sozophytes, a brief description of the status of the identified populations was presented. Populations of vascular plant species protected in Europe (Ostericum palustre, Iris hungarica), Ukraine (Epipactis helleborine, Lilium martagon, Platanthera bifolia), and at the regional level (Carpinus betulus, Campanula persicifolia, Calla palustris, Dryopteris cristata, Inula helenium, Utricularia vulgaris) have been studied in detail. The main threats to the existence of the natural complex of this area, which may appear in the situation of increasing economic impact are drainage and ploughing of floodplains, terracing, and afforestation of meadow-steppe slopes of the ravine. The typological characteristics of artificial and natural forest plantations of the territory were described based on the generalization of details gathered from information on their local management.

Chari, Felix; Ngcamu, Bethuel Sibongiseni

2022 Environmental & Socio-economic Studies

doi: 10.2478/environ-2022-0014

AbstractRecent surveys have shown that the global urban population is increasing at an accelerated rate. As a result, the associated increased demand for food items has pushed up the overall cost of living for urban dwellers. To mitigate this increased cost of living urban dwellers increasingly find solace in agricultural activities. This surge in urban agricultural activities comes at a time characterized by long term shifts in temperatures, rainfall patterns and general weather conditions. While many researchers have presented evidence of increased urban agricultural activities, there remains a paucity of integrated literature that summarizes climate change issues on urban agriculture. This research reviewed literature on the influence of climate change on urban agricultural operations in sub-Saharan African cities. A narrative review approach was employed to summarize and synthesize findings and make recommendations for future research. The review employed the key terms ‘urban farming’, ‘urban agriculture’, ‘climate change’, ‘peri-urban agriculture’, and ‘urban agricultural production’ to search relevant literature indexed in databases: Scopus, Directory of Open Access Journals, Web of Science, Google Scholar and Academic Search (EBSCO). The choice of these keywords was informed by the authors’ specialist understanding of urban agriculture and climate change. There is consensus among the reviewed literature that climate change affects urban agriculture from production to processing, storage, and distribution. This study also established that the extent and magnitude of climate change impacts differ from one region to another. Therefore, adaptation and mitigation strategies ought to be context specific and not universally applicable. This is important because Africa is a climatologically diverse continent so that the impact of climate change faced by one sub-Saharan African city may be different from that for other cities in other regions. A framework that simplifies the effects of climate change on urban agriculture-dependent households in sub-Saharan Africa was produced. More specifically, this framework is recommended to those urban farmers and policymakers that are involved in mitigating the consequences of climate change as well as achieving food and nutritional security. The authors also recommend this framework for unpacking the knowledge of the influence of climate change on urban agriculture as well as exposing directions for future research. This work adds to the growing body of knowledge in the domain of climate change on urban agriculture-dependent households.

Celemin, Juan Pablo; Arias, Maria Eugenia

2022 Environmental & Socio-economic Studies

doi: 10.2478/environ-2022-0015

AbstractLatin American cities are amongst those with the highest rates of urbanization in the world. This process has involved their territorial expansion as well as the densification of some of its neighborhoods, in mainly central areas. This is the case of the city of Santiago del Estero (Argentina) that increased its population by 33% between 1991 and 2010 with the consequent transformations of the local space. In this context, this study analyzes the evolution of vegetated areas and densification of the central area of the city using satellite data. We analyzed two indices: normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and Urban Index (UI) time-series data, for the 1992–2011 year period, using the Google Earth Engine for processing Landsat 5 TM images. We found that the NDVI showed a decreasing trend in the timelapse under consideration, while the UI performance registered the opposite trend. The mean NDVI decreased from 0.161 (1992) to 0.103 (2011) while the UI mean increased from 0.003 to 0.036 in the same timelapse. Further, the NDVI has a strong negative correlation with UI (R-squared = -0.862). The results are consistent with the census information that recorded an important demographic and housing growth for the entire city in this period.

Kouassi, Jean-Luc; Wandan, Narcisse; Mbow, Cheikh

2022 Environmental & Socio-economic Studies

doi: 10.2478/environ-2022-0016

AbstractClimate change is a serious threat to local communities in West Africa. This study evaluated climatic trends and the perceptions of farmers to climate change in central Côte d’Ivoire. We surveyed 259 households across three agro-ecological zones. The knowledge of farmers about climate change was compared to observed trends of various climatic parameters from meteorological records (1973-2016). Results from trend analysis and descriptive analysis showed that the minimum, maximum and mean temperatures and rainfall showed a significant upward trend in all ecoregions. The average temperature and amount of rainfall increased by 3.2% (0.89°C) and 166.58% (645.5 mm) respectively over the 44 years. Local farmers perceived an increasing trend in temperature (all respondents) and a decreasing trend in rainfall (91.51%). Most of the respondents identified deforestation (76.83%), natural climate variation (50.97%) and wildfires (31.27%) as the main causes of these climatic disturbances, which induced plant dieback (92.66%), poor crop growth (59.46%) and crop loss (20.46%). The impacts on people and their assets encompassed a decrease in household income (63.71%), demolition of roofs (44..4%) and walls (43.91%) of houses, the scarcity of water points (39.38%) and the emergence of new diseases (30.89%). These climatic disturbances resulted in specific endogenous on-farm and off-farm strategies to adapt to the impacts of observed changes on their livelihoods.

Rai, Prabhat Kumar; Vanlalruati,

2022 Environmental & Socio-economic Studies

doi: 10.2478/environ-2022-0017

AbstractTithonia diversifolia (Hemsl.) A. Gray is an emerging and little studied plant invader in North East India, an Indo-Burma biodiversity hotspot. Identifying the impacts of its invasiveness in terms of both harmful and economically beneficial facets is required for the formulation and implementation of sustainable management options. An environmental and socio-economic implication survey through the pragmatic questionnaire method is a useful approach to explicitly elucidate the holistic influence of T. diversifolia on ecosystem resilience. The interaction of T. diversifolia with the local people of Mizoram was assessed in this study in terms of its effects on their livelihoods, socio-economic, and ecological factors. Results of the survey in relation to agricultural implications revealed that 42.68% of the respondents opined that the dried litter of T. diversifolia can improve soil fertility. Also, 63.41% people during their interview perceived T. diversifolia as an effective tool to prevent. However, 70.73% of rural people did not consider T. diversifolia to be a good source of livelihood for income generation or socio-economic status. Since, the respondents were not aware of chemical and biological control measures to regulate the spread of invasive alien plant species, physical methods such as slashing (46.34%), burning (13.41%), chopping and burning (29.27%) were widely applied for the control and management of invaded areas of T. diversifolia at selected study sites. Thus, the survey gave a brief idea to the other local people, farmers, and agriculturists of Mizoram to control the invasive spread of T. diversifolia in forestry and agroforestry systems. Also, other Himalayan landscapes infested with T. diversifolia can generate awareness and identify the sustainable strategy for their management to conserve the indigenous biodiversity.

Dulias, Renata

2022 Environmental & Socio-economic Studies

doi: 10.2478/environ-2022-0018

AbstractThe article presents anthropogenic and natural factors influencing African World Heritage sites. The analysis was based on the data contained in the Conservation Outlook Assessments for 2020, including all sites on the African continent where natural values are protected, i.e., both natural (38) and mixed sites – natural and cultural (6). The assessment of current and potential threats and effectiveness of protection and management included 57 items, each of which was analyzed concerning all African properties. The results show that the African World Heritage sites are subject to various pressures from human activity and natural factors. The most common current threat is hunting and trapping, found in 33 sites. The spread of invasive (alien) species in 21 areas is second. Common threats (reported in 15-17 sites) include livestock farming and grazing, logging and wood collecting, fires, tourism, mining, and crops. The most frequently mentioned potential threats are mining, oil/gas exploration, construction of dams, and various effects of climate change – droughts, flooding, temperature extremes, and habitat shifting. The effectiveness of protection and management is not satisfactory. There are serious concerns related to law enforcement, sustainable finance, staff capacity, training, and development. Some concerns are directed to monitoring, tourism and visitation management, boundaries, and effectiveness of the management system. Results of a review show that, of all natural and mixed World Heritage sites in Africa for three areas, the conservation outlook is assessed as good, 15 – good with some concerns, 14 – significant concerns, and 12 – critical. In 2020, as many as 11 “in danger” sites were listed in Africa. At that time, there were 17 sites around the World in danger, i.e. as many as 70% of them were in Africa.