• Energy Research
• 15. Life on land close
• 11. Sustainability close
• PT close
• AO close
• UTL Repository close

The aim of this paper is to investigate the threshold effect of foreign direct investment (FDI) on environmental degradation. In empirical analysis, FDI and environmental degradation are jointly determined under the given threshold variable and other exogenous variables. Using carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions per capita as a proxy for environmental degradation, the results show that increasing FDI worsens CO2 emissions after a threshold level of corruption has been reached. Our results demonstrate that increasing FDI will increase CO2 emissions when the degree of corruptibility is relatively high. The study suggests that further FDI and improved environmental quality are competing rather than compatible objectives in high-corruption countries and are compatible rather than competing objectives in low-corruption countries. Higher trade liberalization in low-corruption countries could contribute to negative environmental consequences because of the increased output or economic activity which results from increased trade. The robustness estimation confirms the evidence that pollution and economic development increase together up to a certain income level, after which the trend reverses.

Sustainable nitrogen (N) management in agriculture is one of the most important issues affecting the environmental performance of modern agriculture. It is actually well perceived that coordinated efforts and holistic approaches are required to regulate N use by farmers. The purpose of this study was to provide an initial examination of stakeholders’ views in Japan regarding N use in agriculture and challenges to increase its sustainability. The analysis was based on a questionnaire study of five types of stakeholders (farmers, advisors, researchers, suppliers, policy makers). By means of multivariate analysis techniques it was revealed that consensus was lacking either in the acknowledgment of the causes and effects of unsustainable N management or in the challenges that need to be addressed. N losses from farms and the effects of N use were perceived but not conceived equally by all stakeholders. Organic farming and mandatory measures were the most controversial challenges, while those involving awareness, training and advisory were the most popular. This study cannot provide safe conclusions that can be generalized in the Japanese context, but it indicates domains where further research is required and orientations for future policy design towards more sustainable N use.

Water scarcity is a driver for society to rethink water management and change the paradigm of use to a fit-for-purpose approach—i.e., separating potable water for human consumption (drinking, cooking or personal hygiene) from all non-potable uses that do not require the same quality level. In this context, urban water reuse is a relevant tool for municipalities and metropolitan areas when dealing with pressure on water resources, among several alternative water sources that can be considered in a site-specific and integrated manner. Through the available literature and specific case studies in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, this paper explores the benefits and barriers of water reuse and intends to support local authorities in including water reuse in their water management strategies. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper focusing on Portugal and the Lisbon Metropolitan Area that globally examines governance, economic, legislative and social aspects regarding water reuse and presents specific implementation examples covering potable and non-potable as well as direct and indirect reuse.

Shrub encroachment influences several ecosystem services in drylands worldwide. Yet, commonly used strategies to reduce encroachment show a low medium-term success, calling for a better understanding of its causes. Previous works identified multiple drivers responsible for this phenomenon, including anthropogenic and environmental causes. However, the relative effect of climate, topography and edaphic factors on shrub encroachment is not fully understood nor has been properly quantified in Mediterranean Basin drylands. Also, understanding how these drivers lead to changes in plant communities' functional traits associated to shrub encroachment is crucial, considering traits influence ecosystem processes and associated ecosystem services. Here, we studied the understory of a Mediterranean dryland ecosystem composed of savanna-like Holm-oak woodlands, along a regional climatic gradient. We specifically assessed (i) how climatic, topographic and edaphic factors influence understory relative shrub cover (RSC) and (ii) their direct and indirect effects (via RSC) on plant functional traits. We studied the mean and diversity of 12 functional traits related to plant regeneration, establishment, and dispersal, at the community-level. We found that, under similar low-intensity land use, topographic and edaphic factors, namely slope variations and soil C:N ratio, were the most important predictors of shrub encroachment, determining communities' functional characteristics. Climate, namely summer precipitation, had a much lesser influence. Our model explained 52% of the variation in relative shrub cover. Climate had a stronger effect on a set of functional traits weakly involved in shrub encroachment, related to flowering and dispersal strategies. We show that shrub encroachment is largely predicted by topo-edaphic factors in Mediterranean drylands subject to conventional low-intensity land use. Hence, management strategies to reduce encroachment need to take these drivers into account for efficient forecasting and higher cost-effectiveness. Our results suggest that climate change might not greatly impact shrub encroachment in the Mediterranean Basin, but may affect functional structure and reduce functional diversity of plant communities, thus affecting ecosystem functioning.

AbstractElectrocution on power lines is an important human‐related cause of bird mortality and an important conservation issue worldwide. Besides impacts on bird populations, electrocutions cause power outages, resulting in damage to power line network integrity. However, there is a general lack of knowledge on the risk of bird electrocution, especially in developing countries. Generating information over large scales without resorting to local mortality data can be useful for the development of regional management strategies, particularly in countries where electrocution is poorly documented. Here, we developed a framework to model the risk of bird electrocution as an interaction between the species‐specific exposure to power lines (pole density within a species distribution range) and susceptibility (morphological and behavioral traits associated with electrocution hazards). We applied this framework to Brazil, identifying 283 species that face a risk of electrocution, of which 38 were classified as higher risk, mostly raptors (76%). The Pantanal (a large wetland biome) concentrates the greatest cumulative susceptibility due to the high number of species vulnerable to electrocution (i.e. large species using power lines for perching or nesting), while the Atlantic Forest region has a higher risk for electrocution, due to the spatial overlap between the presence of vulnerable species and high exposure to power lines. Furthermore, our study identified spatial patterns of bird electrocution, highlighting priority areas for electrocution susceptibility and electrocution risk to be further investigated, and where measures to mitigate bird electrocutions should be applied on new and existing power lines. Our framework allows a preliminary assessment aimed at identifying areas of higher risk of electrocution, to highlight species vulnerable to this threat and to improve power line routing. This approach can be replicated to other understudied areas of the world where the same information is available.

As climate change increasingly affects forest ecosystems, detailed understanding of major effects is important to anticipate their consequences under future climate scenarios. The Mediterranean region is a prominent climate change hotspot, and evergreen cork oak (Quercus suber L.) woodlands are particularly climatically sensitive due to cork (bark) harvesting. Cork oak’s drought avoidance strategy is well-known and includes structural and physiological adaptations that maximise soil water uptake and transport and limit water use, potentially leading to reduced stem and cork growth. Trees’ responses to cope with water-limited conditions have been extensively described based on cork-rings width and, more recently, on cork-rings density, in dendroecological studies. However, so far, tree functional attributes and physiological strategies, namely photosynthetic metabolism adjustments affecting cork formation, have never been addressed and/or integrated on these previous cork-rings-based studies. In this study, we address the relation between carbon and oxygen stable isotopes of cork rings and precipitation and temperature, in two distinct locations of southwestern Portugal–the (wetter) Tagus basin peneplain and the (drier) Grândola mountains. We aimed at assessing whether the two climatic factors affect cork-ring isotopic composition under contrasting conditions of water availability, and, therefore, if carbon and oxygen signatures in cork can reflect tree functional (physiological and structural) responses to stressful conditions, which might be aggravated by climate change. Our results indicate differences between the study areas. At the drier site, the stronger statistically significant negative cork δ13C correlations were found with mean temperature, whereas strong positive cork δ18O correlations were fewer and found only with precipitation. Moreover, at the wetter site, cork rings are enriched in 18O and depleted in 13C, indicating, respectively, shallow groundwater as the water source for physiological processes related with biosynthesis of non-photosynthetic secondary tissues, such as suberin, and a weak stomatal regulation under high water availability, consistent with non-existent water availability constrains. In contrast, at the drier site, trees use water from deeper ground layers, depleted in 18O, and strongly regulate stomatal conductance under water stress, thus reducing photosynthetic carbon uptake and probably relying on stored carbon reserves for cork ring formation. These results suggest that although stable isotopes signatures in cork rings are not proxies for net growth, they may be (fairly) robust indicators of trees’ physiological and structural adjustments to climate and environmental changes in Mediterranean environments.

Water is a scarce resource in the Mediterranean region where adverse climatic conditions promoting water shortages tend to increase with climate change. Under water scarcity conditions and high atmosphere evaporative demand, the risks of decreased water quality, and land salinization are major threats to the sustainability of irrigated agriculture in this region. The assessment of the quality of irrigation water is increasingly important to ensure the maintenance of long-term salt balance at a crop, farm, and regional scale. This study is focused on the spatial and temporal variability of water quality for irrigation in the Alqueva reservoir (Southern Portugal). The assessment was performed every 2 months during a distinctive drought year (2017) and included inorganic ions (Na+, Ca2+, Mg2+, K+, NH4+, Cl-, F-, SO42-, NO3-, and NO2-), pH, and electric conductivity (ECW) of water. Sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) was calculated, and potential soil permeability problems were estimated. The assessment showed significantly higher values of the physicochemical parameters in the most upstream sites, located near tributaries inflows, and an upward trend in ion concentrations throughout the year, with significantly higher concentrations of Na+, Mg2+, Cl-, and SO42, registered through May to November, reflecting the severe drought felt in the summer, autumn, and winter. The evaluation of water quality for irrigation indicated a slight to moderate risk of reduced infiltration rates, which should be considered whenever sprinkler irrigation is used, mainly in fine-textured soils, which are prevalent in the irrigated area. The multivariate statistical approach, using principal component analysis and factor analysis, identified two principal components related to salinity and nutrient concentrations. The cluster analysis revealed three groups of similarity between samples pointing to a more time- than space-controlled pattern. Overall, the temporal dynamics of the water physicochemical parameters could indicate that an abnormal annual distribution of precipitation and temperature may distort seasonal differences. To prevent water and soil degradation, a more frequent assessment of the water quality should be considered, allowing for the selection of appropriate soil and water management measures in irrigated areas.