Article
Environmental Sciences
Naijing Liu, Xiang Zhao, Xin Zhang, Jiacheng Zhao, Haoyu Wang, Donghai Wu
Summary: This study uses remote sensing observations to analyze the impacts of wind farms in China and the United States on land surface temperature (LST). They found that wind farms generally lead to warming impacts in both countries, with stronger effects in the US. The impacts of wind farms on LST are influenced by factors such as cropland type, irrigation practices, and terrain.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Bojana Bajzelj, Federica Laguzzi, Elin Roos
Summary: Compared to protein, dietary fat has received less attention in the sustainability literature, although many populous regions in the world have fat consumption below recommended levels. To reach recommended fat consumption levels globally, an additional 45 million tons of dietary fat need to be produced and consumed annually, and various sustainable strategies have been proposed to bridge this gap, including shifting oils used for energy production to human consumption, increasing palm oil and peanut oil yields sustainably, and promoting the consumption of soybean products.
LANCET PLANETARY HEALTH
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Daniele De Rosa, Cristiano Ballabio, Emanuele Lugato, Matteo Fasiolo, Arwyn Jones, Panos Panagos
Summary: The EU Soil Strategy 2030 aims to increase soil organic carbon (SOC) to enhance soil health and offset greenhouse gas emissions. The study found that land use and changes were the main drivers of SOC changes, with converting cropland to grassland leading to the highest positive change in SOC. However, local soil and environmental conditions can affect the effectiveness of converting cropland to grassland.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Soil Science
Guillermo Hernandez-Ramirez, Thomas J. Sauer, Yury G. Chendev, Alexander N. Gennadiev
Summary: Land use conversions have significant impacts on soil organic matter storage and carbon sequestration, with annual cropping and afforestation affecting soil organic matter differently. This study focused on extracting the kinetics of soil carbon turnover rates and quantifying carbon sources. Results indicated that afforestation is an effective method for proactive mitigation of climate change through carbon sequestration.
Article
Environmental Sciences
J. Zachary Koehn, Edward H. Allison, Christopher D. Golden, Ray Hilborn
Summary: Recent discussions on healthy and sustainable diets often overlook seafood, but this paper examines the environmental costs of sourcing nutrients from seafood, animal-source foods, and plant-based foods. The study finds that certain types of fish and shellfish have low greenhouse gas emissions and should be considered in food systems policymaking for their potential to support a healthy and sustainable diet. However, other aquatic species and production methods have environmental costs as high as land-based meat production.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Ines Cherif, Eleni Kolintziki, Thomas K. Alexandridis
Summary: Land degradation processes are widespread in drylands worldwide and are accelerated by climate change. Monitoring these trends, especially in agricultural areas, is crucial for food security and livelihoods. Using the Trends.Earth plugin, this study mapped land degradation in Greece and Tunisia, finding that the percentage of degraded land decreased in both countries, highlighting the need for sustainable land management practices.
Article
Nutrition & Dietetics
Selena Ahmed, John de la Parra, Ismahane Elouafi, Bruce German, Andy Jarvis, Vincent Lal, Anna Lartey, T. Longvah, Carlos Malpica, Natalia Vazquez-Manjarrez, Jessica Prenni, Carlos A. Aguilar-Salinas, Warangkana Srichamnong, Maya Rajasekharan, Tracy Shafizadeh, Justin Bloomfield Siegel, Roy Steiner, Joe Tohme, Steve Watkins
Summary: Globally, there is a failure to meet various nutritional, health, and environmental targets in relation to food. Foodomics, the application of omics technology to understand food composition, has the potential to comprehensively analyze the diverse composition of food and its impact on nutrition, health, and sustainability. This article outlines the challenges in evaluating food composition, state-of-the-art omics technology for food analysis, and the use of foodomics as a data-driven approach to revolutionize nutrition and sustainable diets.
FRONTIERS IN NUTRITION
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Marco Carozzi, Raphael Martin, Katja Klumpp, Raia Silvia Massad
Summary: This study investigates the effects of climate perturbation on European crop and grassland production systems. The results show that rising temperatures will significantly reduce productivity and lead to an exponential increase in non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions. Despite the increase in water demand, the increase in yield will not substantially offset the carbon losses due to climate perturbation.
Article
Nutrition & Dietetics
Kevin B. Miller, James O. Eckberg, Eric A. Decker, Christopher P. F. Marinangeli
Summary: Sustainable food systems involve considerations of greenhouse gases, land use, biodiversity, and water use. Recently, there has been a focus on the relationship between diets and sustainability, with most models of 'sustainable diets' emphasizing public health, the environment, food affordability, and cultural relevance. The challenge lies in finding solutions that address all four domains simultaneously.
Review
Food Science & Technology
Maite M. Aldaya, Francisco C. Ibanez, Paula Dominguez-Lacueva, Maria Teresa Murillo-Arbizu, Mar Rubio-Varas, Beatriz Soret, Maria Jose Beriain
Summary: Research on the relationship between human nutrition and sustainability is crucial for guiding government policies, but current studies tend to focus on limited aspects and overlook potential impacts in other areas. To identify the best food options, a comprehensive analysis from health, environmental, and socio-economic perspectives is necessary.
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Jill Nicholls, Adam Drewnowski
Summary: The United Nations emphasizes the importance of balancing social, economic, and environmental priorities for public health in sustainable development. Sustainable diets are often defined by their impact on health, society, economics, and the environment. While research has primarily focused on health and the environment, the social and economic dimensions of sustainable diets and food systems should also be considered.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Azam Khosravi Mashizi, Mohsen Sharafatmandrad
Summary: Ecosystem services have a significant impact on social systems, with sustainable management requiring considerations of spatial relationships between supply, demand, and use. It is important to identify management priorities in order to simplify and address the complex relationships between ecological and social systems. The study in Iran's semiarid landscapes revealed a synergy between supply, demand, and use of ecosystem services in highlands, while deficit zones were concentrated in lowlands, with provisioning services being crucial for social well-being.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2021)
Article
Food Science & Technology
Ligia Reyes, Shilpa Constantinides, Shiva Bhandari, Edward A. Frongillo, Pepijn Schreinemachers, Sigrid Wertheim-Heck, Helen Walls, Michelle Holdsworth, Amos Laar, Tuan Nguyen, Christopher Turner, Kate Wellard, Christine E. Blake
Summary: This study found that multiple global nutrition initiatives focus on improving food environments and food choice, with strategies targeting food environments and their drivers being more emphasized than strategies targeting food choice. Less attention has been given to individual food choice and sustainability in these initiatives.
GLOBAL FOOD SECURITY-AGRICULTURE POLICY ECONOMICS AND ENVIRONMENT
(2021)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Giovanny M. Mosquera, Franklin Marin, Margaret Stern, Vivien Bonnesoeur, Boris F. Ochoa-Tocachi, Francisco Roman-Danobeytia, Patricio Crespo
Summary: High-elevation grasslands play a crucial role in providing hydrological services, but research on the hydrological function of grasslands in montane regions is still limited. Most hydrological studies have focused on paramos in the Andean region, especially in Ecuador, while research on punas and jalcas is scarce.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Sandra Mueller, Martin M. Gossner, Caterina Penone, Kirsten Jung, Swen C. Renner, Almo Farina, Lisa Anhaeuser, Manfred Ayasse, Steffen Boch, Falk Haensel, Janine Heitzmann, Christoph Kleinn, Paul Magdon, David J. Perovic, Nadia Pieretti, Taylor Shaw, Juliane Steckel, Marco Tschapka, Juliane Vogt, Catrin Westphal, Michael Scherer-Lorenzen
Summary: Understanding drivers and monitoring changes of biodiversity is crucial for evidence-based management and policy recommendations. Ecoacoustic monitoring offers the potential for resource-efficient ecosystem monitoring. Acoustic diversity has been shown to correlate with species richness and vegetation and landscape structure. This study found that land-use intensity and landscape structure affect species richness and composition of birds and orthopterans, indirectly impacting acoustic diversity and composition.
AGRICULTURE ECOSYSTEMS & ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Philipp Semenchuk, Gerald Kalt, Lisa Kaufmann, Thomas Kastner, Sarah Matej, Giorgio Bidoglio, Karl -Heinz Erb, Franz Essl, Helmut Haberl, Stefan Dullinger, Fridolin Krausmann
Summary: By quantifying the global biodiversity footprint (BDF) of Vienna's biomass consumption, we found that food consumption (58%), biomass for material applications (28%), and bioenergy consumption (13%) contribute significantly to the loss of biodiversity. Although Vienna's per capita biomass consumption is above the global average, the per capita BDE in Vienna is roughly equal to the global average, indicating that Vienna sources its products from regions with efficient production systems and relatively low native species richness. It is concluded that dietary changes offer a key leverage point to reduce the urban BDF, while expanding the use of biomass for material and energy may increase the BDF and requires appropriate monitoring.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Environmental Studies
Perrine C. S. J. Laroche, Catharina J. E. Schulp, Thomas Kastner, Peter H. Verburg
Summary: Leisure travel within the European Union has a significant impact on the global tourism carbon footprint. This study examines the role of tourists' holiday preferences in shaping this impact and finds that visiting relatives, nature tourism, and sea, sun, and sand tourism contribute equally to the carbon footprint, but the latter has a higher carbon intensity per trip. Additionally, international travel within the EU is more carbon intensive than domestic travel. These insights suggest that leveraging tourists' holiday preferences can contribute to the sustainable development of leisure travel within the EU.
TOURISM MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Review
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Filippo Milazzo, Richard M. Francksen, Laura Zavattaro, Mohamed Abdalla, Stanislav Hejduk, Simone Ravetto Enri, Marco Pittarello, Paul Newell Price, Rene L. M. Schils, Pete Smith, Tom Vanwalleghem
Summary: Permanent grasslands play a crucial role in protecting the landscape from soil erosion and flooding, but this role has not been fully quantified. The degradation of grasslands is quickly increasing, leading to erosion and runoff. This study aims to quantify the erosion and flooding mitigation effect of permanent grasslands compared to other land uses, as well as review the soil erosion processes affecting grasslands in the EU.
AGRICULTURE ECOSYSTEMS & ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Agronomy
Juan Pablo Inamagua-Uyaguari, Nuala Fitton, Pete Smith
Summary: Ecuador aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by increasing tree coverage in livestock landscapes. The study utilizes land cover datasets to identify suitable areas for tree cover expansion, with the conversion of steepland pastures into forests potentially offsetting 1.8-10% of Ecuador's annual agricultural sector emissions. However, this conversion may result in a significant decrease in pasture biomass production. The transformation of riparian and steepland pastures into silvopastoral systems offers carbon sequestration opportunities with less impact on pasture biomass production.
AGROFORESTRY SYSTEMS
(2023)
Article
Biology
Jiao Feng, Dailin Yu, Robert L. L. Sinsabaugh, Daryl L. L. Moorhead, Mathias Neumann Andersen, Pete Smith, Yanting Song, Xinqi Li, Qiaoyun Huang, Yu-Rong Liu, Ji Chen
Summary: Biochar amendment is a promising agricultural approach to combat climate change by enhancing soil carbon sequestration. It was found that biochar addition increased soil ligninase activity targeting complex phenolic macromolecules, but suppressed cellulase activity degrading simpler polysaccharides. These shifts in enzyme activities explained variations in soil carbon sequestration in different conditions, and the ligninase:cellulase ratio correlated negatively with soil C sequestration. Short-term biochar addition reduced cellulase activity and increased soil organic C sequestration, while long-term addition enhanced ligninase activity and ligninase:cellulase ratio, resulting in a smaller increase in soil organic C sequestration. This research provides evidence for the diminished long-term soil C sequestration with biochar addition.
BIOLOGICAL REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Rachel Bezner Kerr, Julio C. Postigo, Pete Smith, Annette Cowie, Pramod K. Singh, Marta Rivera-Ferre, Maria Cristina Tirado-von der Pahlen, Donovan Campbell, Henry Neufeldt
Summary: Agroecology is proposed as a transformative approach to climate change mitigation and adaptation by applying ecological and humanistic principles. It is a holistic systems approach to producing food that incorporates social, economic, and political dimensions. This review paper examines the recent evidence and potential for agroecology as a transformative approach to meet key societal goals such as healthy ecosystems, food security, and nutrition.
CURRENT OPINION IN ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Xiuzhi Chen, Yue Hou, Thomas Kastner, Liu Liu, Yuqian Zhang, Tuo Yin, Mo Li, Arunima Malik, Mengyu Li, Kelly R. Thorp, Siqi Han, Yaoze Liu, Tahir Muhammad, Jianguo Liu, Yunkai Li
Summary: This study identifies and quantifies the flows of physical and virtual nutrients within the global agricultural trade network. The study shows that these flows have varying effects on natural resources in different countries. The findings suggest that reducing inefficient trade flows can enhance resource conservation and environmental sustainability. These results are important for understanding the global nutrient dynamics and improving nutrient use efficiency in a hyper-globalized world.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Zewei Jiang, Shihong Yang, Shide Dong, Qingqing Pang, Pete Smith, Mohamed Abdalla, Jie Zhang, Guangmei Wang, Yi Xu
Summary: Cotton is widely used in various industries but faces threats from soil salinization. Drip irrigation plays a crucial role in improving water and fertilization efficiency. Accurate prediction of soil salinity and crop evapotranspiration is important for water management in arid and saline regions. We proposed a method based on machine learning to simulate soil salinity, evapotranspiration, and cotton yield using a global dataset.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Food Science & Technology
Longlong Xia, Liang Cao, Yi Yang, Chaopu Ti, Yize Liu, Pete Smith, Kees Jan van Groenigen, Johannes Lehmann, Rattan Lal, Klaus Butterbach-Bahl, Ralf Kiese, Minghao Zhuang, Xi Lu, Xiaoyuan Yan
Summary: This study, using data from China, shows that an integrated biomass pyrolysis and electricity generation system combined with methane and nitrogen mitigation measures can significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from staple crops. The reductions are mainly achieved through carbon sequestration from biochar application and displacement of fossil fuels by bio-energy. The integrated system also has various environmental and economic benefits, such as increased crop yield and decreased air pollutant emissions.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Vincent Chaplot, Pete Smith
Summary: Compared to virgin land, croplands have lower organic carbon storage due to soil tillage and decreased plant inputs. Cover crops grown in-between crops appear to be the most effective method for increasing cropland organic carbon stocks. However, existing studies have limitations and more research is needed for better design and understanding.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Weilu Wang, Dongling Ji, Shaobing Peng, Irakli Loladze, Matthew Tom Harrison, William J. Davies, Pete Smith, Longlong Xia, Bin Wang, Ke Liu, Kuanyu Zhu, Wen Zhang, Linhan Ouyang, Lijun Liu, Junfei Gu, Hao Zhang, Jianchang Yang, Fei Wang
Summary: Field experiments were conducted to evaluate the yield and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) of different rice genotypes. Among the studied genotypes, 47 were classified as high yield with high NUE. These genotypes showed better performance in yield and NUE under high temperature, but had higher methane emissions and lower nitrous oxide emissions, resulting in a reduced yield-scaled greenhouse gas balance.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Fabio Sporchia, Alessandro Galli, Thomas Kastner, Federico M. Pulselli, Dario Caro
Summary: Chicken meat production in the EU has significant environmental impacts due to feed consumption. A shift towards poultry meat increases the demand for chicken feeds and its associated environmental burden. Analysis shows that cropland use increased by 17% from 2007 to 2018, while CO2 emissions linked to feed demand decreased by about 45%. The EU chicken meat industry needs to address policy gaps to achieve sustainability targets.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Ulysse Gaudare, Matthias Kuhnert, Pete Smith, Manuel Martin, Pietro Barbieri, Sylvain Pellerin, Thomas Nesme
Summary: The authors simulated the impact of organic farming expansion on soil organic carbon and found that without additional practices such as cover cropping and residue recycling, there may be a decline in soil organic carbon stock. Expanding organic farming without these practices could result in a 40% reduction in global soil carbon input and 9% decline in SOC stock. However, implementing widespread cover cropping and residue recycling can preserve SOC after conversion to organic farming.
NATURE CLIMATE CHANGE
(2023)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Aled Jones, Sarah Bridle, Katherine Denby, Riaz Bhunnoo, Daniel Morton, Lucy Stanbrough, Barnaby Coupe, Vanessa Pilley, Tim Benton, Pete Falloon, Tom K. Matthews, Saher Hasnain, John S. Heslop-Harrison, Simon Beard, Julie Pierce, Jules Pretty, Monika Zurek, Alexandra Johnstone, Pete Smith, Neil Gunn, Molly Watson, Edward Pope, Asaf Tzachor, Caitlin Douglas, Christian Reynolds, Neil Ward, Jez Fredenburgh, Clare Pettinger, Tom Quested, Juan Pablo Cordero, Clive Mitchell, Carrie Bewick, Cameron Brown, Christopher Brown, Paul J. Burgess, Andy Challinor, Andrew Cottrell, Thomas Crocker, Thomas George, Charles J. Godfray, Rosie S. Hails, John Ingram, Tim Lang, Fergus Lyon, Simon Lusher, Tom Macmillan, Sue Newton, Simon Pearson, Sue Pritchard, Dale Sanders, Angelina Sanderson Bellamy, Megan Steven, Alastair Trickett, Andrew Voysey, Christine Watson, Darren Whitby, Kerry Whiteside, Michael S. Carolan
Summary: This study reports the most likely routes to civil unrest in the UK through a structured expert elicitation. Experts identified food distribution problems as the most likely scenario for unrest within the next 10 years, while a lack of total food in the UK was considered the most probable scenario over a 50-year timeframe.
Article
Food Science & Technology
Davy Vanham, Martin Bruckner, Florian Schwarzmueller, Joep Schyns, Thomas Kastner
Summary: Food systems have a significant impact on global land and water resources, with the European Union (EU) alone consuming a substantial amount. This study calculates that the EU's land footprint is between 140-222 Mha yr(-1), and the water footprint is between 569-918 km(3) yr(-1), making up a significant portion of global agricultural footprints. The need for a consistent methodology in monitoring and reducing these footprints is emphasized.