Browsing by Author "Perera, Ajith H."
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- Assessment of fire hazard regulation ecosystem service in a mountain area in northeastern PortugalPublication . Sil, Ângelo Filipe; Fernandes, Paulo M.; Marta-Pedroso, Cristina; Alonso, Joaquim; Honrado, João P.; Perera, Ajith H.; Azevedo, JoãoThe fire hazard regulation ecosystem service (ES) is the capacity of ecosystems and landscapes to maintain the frequency and intensity of fire events. Assessing how ecosystems and landscapes regulate fire hazard is of utmost importance to avoid or mitigate negative environmental and socioeconomic impacts as well as to understand the benefits that human societies can obtain and their value. This study aimed to understand how landscape change affects fire behavior at the landscape level and to understand how these changes in fire impact human communities, i.e., what is the role of the landscape structure in the provision of the fire hazard regulation ES and what is the value of this service. This allows the identification of trends in present landscapes that can be used in future planning and management. The study was conducted in the Sabor River’s upper basin in northeastern Portugal. The assessment was based on fire behavior modeling in the study area under five landscape scenarios (1990, 2006 and three future alternative landscapes). Modeling was conducted with BFOLDS (Fire Regime Model, v2.0). Simulations ran under extreme weather conditions, from thirty ignition points randomly located. The valuation assessment was based in the potential effects of fire on timber, firewood and mushrooms production, based on the relationship between average burned area and the economic value of ES. Between 1990 and 2006 the simulated average burned area increased while the average fire intensity decreased over time. Regarding the three alternative scenarios, the forest expansion scenario showed, on average, larger and more intense fires when compared with the rural abandonment and the shrubland expansion scenarios, as well as with previous dates. The potential losses in ES in monetary units followed the trends observed for fire behavior. In spite of this, the forest expansion scenario shows the highest supply and value of ES.
- Exploring the concept of fire protection ecosystem service in changing forested landscapesPublication . Sil, Ângelo Filipe; Fernandes, Paulo M.; Rodrigues, Ana Paula; Alonso, Joaquim; Honrado, João P.; Perera, Ajith H.; Azevedo, JoãoLandscapes and ecosystems play an important role in fire regulation and in the mitigation of potential negative effects of extreme fire events. Fire protection regulated by ecosystems and landscapes can thus be considered as an ecosystem service with significant benefits for humans’ safety, health and economy. Although fire is an important ecological process in most of the planet, fire regulating and protection by ecosystems and landscapes from an ecosystem service conceptual framework perspective have been insufficiently addressed in the literature. In this research we explore the concept of Fire Protection Ecosystem Service (FPES) based on the Fire Regulation Capacity (FRC) and their application in the assessment of socioecological effects of landscape change in mountains landscapes facing rural abandonment. We analyzed responses of FRC and FPES to changes in the landscape structure based on modeling using BFOLDS-FRM for years 1990 and 2006, and three landscape scenarios for 2020 under extreme fire weather conditions. FPES supply and economic value were assessed based on proxies of FRC (burned area and fire intensity) and economic damage caused by fire. Fire events over 100 ha increased in the area since 1990, indicating a reduction in the capacity of the landscape to regulate large and extreme fires, which may decline further in future landscape scenarios. The supply in the FPES is expected to decrease in the area, particularly when fuel builds up and becomes spatially connected in the landscape. The economic value of the FPES is also expected to decrease over time, despite the differences observed among scenarios. Planning and Management of mountains regions experiencing change through abandonment (aggravated by future climatic conditions) must take into account trends and patterns in fire regulation and protection to sustain and enhance the provision of ecosystem services in general and promote sustainability in Mediterranean mountain areas.
- Farmland abandonment decreases the fire regulation capacity and the fire protection ecosystem service in mountain landscapesPublication . Sil, Ângelo Filipe; Fernandes, Paulo M.; Rodrigues, Ana Paula; Alonso, Joaquim; Honrado, João P.; Perera, Ajith H.; Azevedo, JoãoThis study explored and applied the concepts of Fire Regulation Capacity (FRC) and Fire Protection Ecosystem Service (FPES) in the assessment of the effects of landscape change in a mountain fire-prone landscape in Portugal. We adopted a modeling and simulation approach using BFOLDS-FRM with landscape data for years 1990 and 2006 (observed) and with three landscape scenarios for 2020. Proxy indicators for FRC (burned area and fire intensity) and for economic damage by fire (loss of provisioning ES) were used to establish trends in the supply and value of FPES. We found decreased FRC to restrain simulated fires burning over 100 ha from 1990 on and to regulate Very High and Extreme fire intensity levels, particularly under our 2020 scenario of Forest expansion. FPES is also expected to decrease, as indicated by higher fire-related damages, particularly if fuel hazard increases in the landscape. However, there were differences among scenarios, suggesting potential tradeoffs between FPES and the supply of provisioning ES. Planning and management in this and similar areas experiencing farmland abandonment must consider fire trends and patterns, since landscape change is a major driver affecting FRC and FPES, which may further be decreased by future climatic conditions.
- Forest landscape ecology and global change: an introductionPublication . Azevedo, João; Pinto, M. Alice; Perera, Ajith H.Forest landscape ecology examines broad-scale patterns and processes and their interactions in forested systems and informs the management of these ecosystems. Beyond being among the richest and the most complex terrestrial systems, forest landscapes serve society by providing an array of products and services and, if managed properly, can do so sustainably. In this chapter, we provide an overview of the field of forest landscape ecology, including major historical and present topics of research, approaches, scales, and applications, particularly those concerning edges, fragmentation, connectivity, disturbance, and biodiversity. In addition, we discuss causes of change in forest landscapes, particularly land-use and management changes, and the expected structural and functional consequences that may result from these drivers. This chapter is intended to set the context and provide an overview for the remainder of the book and poses a broad set of questions related to forest landscape ecology and global change that need answers.
- Forest landscape ecology and global change: what are the next steps?Publication . Azevedo, João; Pinto, M. Alice; Perera, Ajith H.In this chapter, we summarize current trends and challenges and future research directions in forest landscape ecology and in management related to global change. We discuss the available knowledge in forest landscape ecology and the possibilities of using this knowledge to support management under changing conditions. We also discuss the forest sector’s preparedness to deal with changes in management and how forest landscape ecology can guide this management. Forest landscape ecology has gathered substantial knowledge on patterns, processes, tools, and methods that can support forest and landscape management during changing scenarios. We recognize that existing knowledge is incomplete and that a substantial portion of our knowledge is uncertain, that variability in landscape conditions and various forms of error compound the problem, that we still lack considerable knowledge in some fields, and that there are likely to be knowledge gaps we are not aware of. We nonetheless face the challenge of responding to change based on the available knowledge.
- Forest landscapes and global change: Challenges for research and managementPublication . Azevedo, João; Perera, Ajith H.; Pinto, M. AliceClimate change, urban sprawl, abandonment of agriculture, intensifi cation of forestry and agriculture, changes in energy generation and use, expansion of infrastructure networks, habitat destruction and degradation, and other drivers and pressures of change are occurring at increasing rates globally. They affect ecological patterns and processes in forest landscapes and modify ecosystem services derived from those ecosystems. Consequently, the landscapes that are rapidly changing in response to these pressures present many new challenges to scientists and managers. Although it is not uncommon to encounter the terms “global change” and “landscape” together in the ecological literature, there has been no adequate global analysis of drivers of change in forest landscapes and their ecological consequences. Providing such an analysis is the goal of this volume: an exploration of the state of knowledge of global changes in forested landscapes, with an emphasis on their causes and effects, and the challenges faced by researchers and land managers who must cope with these changes. This book was based on the IUFRO Landscape Ecology Working Group International Conference that took place in Bragança, Portugal, in September 2010 under the theme “Forest Landscapes and Global Change: New Frontiers in Management, Conservation and Restoration”. The event brought together more than 300 landscape ecologists from almost 50 countries and 5 continents, who came to expand their knowledge and awareness of global changes in forest landscapes. We hope that the syntheses in this book, prepared by a diverse group of scientists who participated in the conference, will enhance the global understanding of a range of topics relevant to change in forest landscapes and stimulate new research to answer the questions raised by these authors. First, we introduce the broad topic of forest landscape ecology and global change. This is followed by chapters that identify and describe major agents of landscape change: climate (Iverson et al.), wildfi re (Rego and Silva), and human activities (Farinaci et al.). The next chapters address implications of change for ecosystem services (Marta-Pedroso et al.), carbon fl uxes (Chen et al.), and biodiversity conservation (Saura et al.). A subsequent chapter describes methodologies for detecting and monitoring landscape changes (Gómez-Sanz et al.) and is followed by a chapter that highlights the many challenges facing forest landscape managers amidst global change (Coulson et al.). Finally, we present a summary and a synthesis of the main points presented in the book (Azevedo et al.). Each chapter was inspired by the research experience of the authors, augmented by a review and synthesis of the global scientifi c literature on relevant topics, as well as critical input from multiple peer reviewers. The intended audience for this book includes graduate students, educators, and researchers in landscape ecology, conservation biology, and forestry, as well as land-use planners and managers. We trust that the wide range of topics, addressed from a global perspective by a geographically diverse group of contributing authors from Europe, North America, and South America, will make this volume attractive to a broad readership.