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The objective of the study is to extend the existing literature by investigating the effects of foreign direct investment, gross domestic products and per capita and energy diversification on the nitrogen oxide emissions in Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) by using annual data during the period 1992-2019. As per our knowledge, the present study is a first of its kind to examine the impact of a new energy diversification index, based on Herfindahl-Hirschman framework on pollution. This study has adopted a new quantile regression augmented method of moments, which is capable of producing the total impacts of the independent variables across the entire distribution of nitrogen oxides emissions. The findings suggest that an increase in foreign direct investment leads to a decrease in nitrogen oxides emissions at the aggregate level and in both manufacturing and service sectors. We observe that foreign direct investment leads to an increase in nitrogen oxides emissions in the agricultural sector in most of the quantiles. Diversification towards renewable energy causes a decrease in nitrogen oxides emissions in most quantiles at aggregate level, agricultural and manufacturing sectors, whilst diversification leads to an increase in nitrogen oxides emissions in the service sector. The findings also suggest that GDP per capita leads to an increase in NOx emissions in all the quantiles. The study suggests the policy to use and attract more clean energy through foreign direct investment for towards the achievement of sustainable development., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Due to the anthropogenic pressures of expansion areas for livestock and agricultural production in the Brazilian Cerrado, it is of paramount importance to understand the dynamics of land use/land cover (LULC) changes in this region. Thus, we investigated LULC changes in two sub-basins of the Tocantins-Araguaia River basin from 1997 to 2015 and consequently projected future changes for the timespan between 2030 and 2050. The Formoso sub-basin experienced significant expansion of agricultural and pasture areas, whereas the Sono sub-basin limited farmland expansion (more stable native vegetation) due to substantial protected areas, trends that were also observed for future projections (2030 and 2050). Pastureland in the Formoso sub-basin increased by 5.8%, while the Sono sub-basin saw significant gains in cultivated land, according to change detection analyses during the 1997-2015 period. High stability probabilities of no change (> 70%) for grassland areas in the Sono River sub-basin and pasturelands in the Formoso River sub-basin were computed. The CA-Markov model demonstrated a high consistency level with actual LULC classes for both sub-basins, as indicated by an overall Kappa coefficient above 0.8. Future projections for 2030 and 2050 show a substantial expansion of agriculture and pasture in both sub-basins, driven by specific factors such as soil organic carbon stocks, distance from rural settlements, and proximity to rivers. Short- and mid-term simulations indicate substantial expansion of agriculture and pasture in both basins, with potential adverse impacts on water erosion. Consequently, developing policies for soil management and sustainable land use planning is essential for agroecosystem sustainability, promoting a balanced approach to economic development while addressing climate change and anthropogenic challenges., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

This paper aims to assess the sustainability of coffee production in Brazil by a framework at the farm level. The framework developed comprises four dimensions of sustainability structured from the literature review. Primary data were collected from 20 coffee farms selected from the most producing communities in the Planalto de Vitória da Conquista locality, sited in Centro-Sul Baiano middle region at the Bahia state. The main environmental issues identified related to coffee farmers are inadequate management of water consumption, influenced by the lack of knowledge about irrigation techniques in some cases, and the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. The economic evaluation of the activity revealed a low index of producers belonging to a class organization. In social aspects the issues are low level of technical/technological instruction for coffee producers, temporary workers are often used, the old age of most producers, the lack of family succession for the activity, low incomes, the high number of temporary workers, and the absence of the worker gains. As for the technical dimension, only half of the farmers invest in innovation, which causes high obsolescence of their equipment and machinery and a low participation rate in training courses. In the environmental dimension, the farmers return the packages of pesticides to the stores where they bought them. In the technical dimension, most farmers perform soil analysis. Besides addressing the identified challenges, the initiatives can help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, especially the 9th, 12th, and 13th., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

This work focuses on evaluating the spatial variability of chemical attributes of soils under different agricultural use and native forest, indicating which are the possible indicator attributes of changes in environmental, through the use and management of the soil. The study was carried out in the southern region of the Amazonas state, in an Argissolo Vermelho-Amarelo (Ultisol). Sampling grids were established measuring: 90 m × 70 m with regular soil collection spacing of 10 m for the guarana and forest areas; 90 m × 56 m spaced at 10 m × 8 m for annatto area; and 54 m × 42 m with spacing between points of 6 m for the cupuaçu area, totaling 80 sampling points in each area, with soil samples collected at depths of 0.0-0.05; 0.05-0.10 m and 0.10-0.20 m. The following attributes were determined: pH, Al3+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, P, H + Al, CEC, V% and m%. Descriptive, geostatistical and multivariate statistical analyzes were performed. The results show that it is possible to state that the descriptive, geostatistical and multivariate statistical techniques were able to identify the difference between the spatial variability of the attributes according to each specific use of individual soils. The multivariate analysis made it possible to select the attributes that most contribute to the variability of these soils, and with that, it was found that the forest showed less spatial variability in the surface layer, with higher reach values by scaled semivariograms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is a reflection on the processes of land regularization enacted by the section 68 of the Temporary Constitutional Provisions Act of 1988 in Brazil and its deployment in the State administrative routines.We believe that new elements have been imposed and we should consider them when thinking about reparation policies and recognition of the recipients of these constitutional provisions. We use the expression "the battle of papers" to refer to the negotiations obstructed by the State notarial procedures. Efforts will be made to show the situations in which the struggle for social recognition challenges the idea in which it is conceived that the runaway slaves demand is merely territorial. Observed in their various confrontations, these processes conceal a moral vocation, led by the runaway slaves, that overflows the logical demand for the "World of papers" and allows us to visualize the tensions on the ways of materializing, moved from orality to writing, conducted by notions of science and permeated by notary logic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aiming to assist the environmental sustainability of the Brazilian Amazonian agriculture, this article developed an eco-efficiency index, indicating the possible limits to maximize economic and environmental objectives, taking into account the best practices in the municipalities of the region. Shadow prices of degraded areas and forest preservation were also estimated using data envelopment analysis with directional distance functions. The results indicate that, on average, the analyzed municipalities are able to expand the production and the forest areas by 38% and reduce degraded areas and their inputs in the same proportion. The shadow prices allowed the estimation of the annual opportunity cost of the degraded areas and the preservation of the forest on the farms. The first, US$ 3,131,571, represented 0.04% of the annual output value, indicating that the internalization of that cost should be a low burden for the eco-efficient producer. The second, the total cost of preserving 80% of the area of property, represented US$ 120,890,662 or 1.7% of the annual income of the biome producers studied. Therefore, the main conclusion of this work is that the internalization of negative and positive externalities of agricultural production in the Amazonian biome does not make agricultural production economically unfeasible in the region. In addition, the reimbursement of damages avoided by carbon sequestration, through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) established by the Kyoto Conference, should further increase the economic and environmental sustainability of agriculture in the area., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

The first detection of Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in Brazil pointed to a gloomy future for South American agriculture in the 2012/2013 harvest, and insecticide sales increased exponentially during 2013 and 2014. However, after this outbreak, the population of this insect returned to manageable levels. This study documents data on H. armigera moth collection using light traps during the outbreak in two locations: (a) western region of the state of Bahia, including population levels of H. armigera and main noctuid pests during the big outbreak (February and March 2013); (b) Federal District, including monthly data for five growing seasons (July 2012-June 2017). During the outbreak, an average of 527.3 moths were collected per trap (cotton crop, March) in the western region of Bahia each night, while the maximum average in the Federal District was 75.4 moths (January). The number of moths decreased in the following growing seasons, and in October 2016, the maximum number was 2.8 moths per trap. Aspects related to the variations of H. armigera and Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) populations, including the study of phenology and relationship with climatic factors and Oceanic Niño Index, were analyzed and discussed. All aspects are approached to contribute to the management of lepidopteran pests, especially H. armigera, in the productive systems of the Brazilian Cerrado.

In recent decades, we have observed an intensification of science, technology and innovation activities in Brazil. The increase in production of scientific papers indexed in international databases, however, has not been accompanied by an equivalent increase in the impact of publications. This paper presents a methodology for analyzing production and the impact of certain research areas in Brazil related to two aspects: the origin of the journals (national or foreign) and international collaboration. These two variables were selected for being of particular importance in understanding the context of scientific production and communication in countries with emerging economies. The sample consisted of papers written by Brazilian researchers in 19 subfields of knowledge published from 2002 to 2011, totaling 85,082 papers. To calculate the impact, we adopted a normalized indicator called the relative subfield citedness (Rw) using a window of 5 years to obtain measurements evaluated in 2 different years: 2007 and 2012. The data on papers and citations were collected from the Web of Science database. From the results, we note that most of the subfields have presented, from one quinquennium to another, improved performance in the world production rankings. Regarding publication in national and foreign journals, we observed a trend in the distribution maintenance of production of the subfields based on the origin of the journal. Specifically, for impact, we identified a lower Rw pattern for Brazilian papers when they were published in national journals in all subfields. When Brazilian products are published in foreign journals, we observed a higher impact for those papers, even surpassing the average global impact in some subfields. For international collaboration, we analyzed the percentage of participation of foreign researchers and the connection between collaboration and the impact of papers, especially emphasizing the distinction of hyperauthorship papers in terms of production and impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biomass is an important indicator of the ability of tropical forests to deliver ecosystem services, but little attention has been given to belowground biomass and its drivers in human-modified landscapes. Here, we investigated the belowground biomass and nutrient concentration/stocks (C, P, and N) across regenerating forest stands with varying ages (10-76 years old) and old-growth forests in the Caatinga dry forest (northeastern Brazil) in the context of slash-and-burn agriculture. Belowground biomass ranged from 1.89 ± 0.33 Mg ha -1 to 17.53 ± 2.28 Mg ha -1 (mean ± SE) across regenerating forest stands and averaged 8.33 ± 1.59 Mg ha -1 , with no differences compared to old-growth stands. However, regenerating stands exhibited a higher root/shoot ratio with biomass concentrated in the superficial soil layer and in large-sized roots, regardless of the successional stage. Root nutrient concentration and stocks were highly variable across forest stands with fine roots supporting a higher concentration of N and P, while regenerating stands supported lower nutrient stocks as compared to old-growth forests. Finally, precipitation and chronic disturbance emerged as the most important drivers of belowground biomass and nutrient concentrations/stocks, while aboveground biomass played a negligible role. Our results indicate that, in human-modified landscapes of tropical dry forests, belowground biomass and nutrients play important roles in ecosystem functions in regenerated forests after slash-and-burn agriculture. Forest resilience and provision of ecosystem services (e.g., nutrient cycling) appear to be very sensitive to increased aridity and exploitation of forest resources., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), including microplastics, have been the focus of many studies due to their environmental impact, affecting biota and human health. The diverse land uses and occupation of watersheds are important parameters driving the occurrence of these contaminants. CECs such as pesticides, drugs, hormones, and industrial-origin substances were analyzed in urban/industrial (Atibaia) and agricultural (Preto/Turvo) watersheds located in São Paulo state, Brazil. A total of 24 CECs were investigated, and, as a result, only 5 (caffeine, carbendazim, atrazine, ametrine and 2-hydroxytrazine) were responsible for 81.73 % of the statistical difference between watersheds contamination profile. The Atibaia watershed presented considerable concentrations of caffeine (ranging from 75 to 2025 ng L -1 ), while carbendazim (44 to 1144 ng L -1 ) and atrazine (3 to 266 ng L -1 ) presented highest levels in Preto/Turvo watershed. In all sampling points, the cumulative potential aquatic life risk assessed by the NORMAN database indicates some level of environmental concern associated to pesticides and caffeine (risk quotient >1). Microplastics had been analyzed in both watersheds, being the white/transparent fragments in size between 100 and 250 μm the most detected in this study. The estimated abundance in the Atibaia watershed ranged from 349 to 2898 items m -3 presenting some influence of pluviosity, while in Rio Preto/Turvo ranged from 169 to 6370 items m -3 , being more abundant in the dam area without a clear influence of pluviosity. In both basins, polyethylene and polypropylene were the most detected polymers, probably due to the intense use of single-use plastics in urban areas. Possibly, due to the distinct physic-chemical properties of microplastics and organic CECs, no correlations were observed between their occurrence, which makes us conclude that they have different transport mechanism, behavior, and fate in the environment., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The conversion of native vegetation to agricultural areas leads to a natural process of carbon loss but these systems can stabilize in terms of carbon dynamics depending on the management and conversion time, presenting potential to both store and stabilize this carbon in the soil, resulting in lower soil respiration rates. In this context, this study aimed to investigate the effect of converting native Cerrado forest areas to agricultural systems with a forest planted with Eucalyptus camaldulensis and silvopastoral systems on the dynamics of CO 2 emission and carbon stock at different soil depths. The experimental sites are located in the Midwest of Brazil, in the coordinates 20°22'31″ S and 51°24'12″ W. Were evaluated soil CO 2 emission (FCO 2 ), soil organic carbon, the degree of humification of soil organic matter (HLIFS), soil temperature, soil moisture, and soil chemical and physical attributes. The soil of the area is classified as an Oxisol (Haplic Acrustox). Soil samples were collected at depths of 0.00-0.10, 0.10-0.20, 0.20-0.30, and 0.30-0.40 m. The lowest FCO 2 values were found in the silvopastoral system (1.05 μmol m -2  s -1 ), followed by the native forest (1.65 μmol m -2  s -1 ) and the eucalyptus system (1.96 μmol m -2  s -1 ), indicating a 36% reduction in FCO 2 compared to the conversion of the native forest to the silvopastoral system and an increase of 19% when converting the native forest to the eucalyptus system. The soil chemical attributes (N, K + , Ca 2+ , H + +Al 3+ , CEC, and organic carbon) showed a decrease along the profile. The shallowest depths (0.00-0.10 and 0.10-0.20 m) presented no differences between systems but the subsequent depths (0.20-0.30 and 0.30-0.40 m) had a difference (95% confidence interval), relative to N, Ca 2+ , H + +Al 3 , CEC, and organic carbon stock (OCS), and the soil under silvopastoral system showed a higher concentration of these attributes than the native forest. The multivariate analysis showed that the eucalyptus and silvopastoral systems did not differ from the forest in the shallowest soil layer but differed from each other. This behavior changed from the second assessed depth (0.10-0.20 m), in which the silvopastoral system stands out, differing both from the eucalyptus system and from the native forest, and this behavior is maintained at the following depths (0.20-0.30 and 0.30-0.40 m). OCS, H + +Al 3 , CEC, and nitrogen are strongly related to land use change for silvopastoral system. Regarding the behavior/relationship of attributes as a function of depth, the silvopastoral system contributed to soil carbon accumulation and stability over consecutive years., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Organic carbon performs essential functions in soils, which act as sources or sinks of atmospheric organic carbon. Agricultural management affects the carbon cycle in the soil, with effects on climate change. One of the crops most vulnerable to climate change is coffee. Brazil is the world’s largest coffee producer, with a predominance of management under a conventional system, with sloping terrain and the absence of conservationist practices. The absence of conservationist practices increases in soil loss rates due to water management and carbon emissions, as well as a reduction in coffee production. This paper intended to estimate soil and organic carbon losses by RUSLE in coffee farms in southern Minas Gerais, south-eastern Brazil. Data were obtained from fieldwork, laboratory analysis, and cartographic products. The results indicated, exclusively for coffee crops, soil and carbon losses between 7 and 32 Mg ha−1 year−1 and 87 and 460kg ha−1 year−1, respectively. However, the highest soil losses occurred on sloping terrains with eucalyptus plantations located downhill, and the lowest losses occurred on flat land with native forests. Organic carbon losses were linked directly to soil losses, as a result from the land practices, slope and agricultural management adopted. These results can be used for the planning and priority definition of areas needing conservationist practices, such as green manuring, planting in contour and maintaining of vegetation between coffee rows, which are already used in some sites of the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Brazilian Amazon faces three dominant governance challenges that have become increasingly interconnected over time and now affect each other: managing agricultural expansion, reducing deforestation, and mitigating urban floods. This region exemplifies that the governance of one social-ecological system (SES) in the Anthropocene can no longer be thought of in isolation of others because, together, they form a complex network of flows and spillovers to manage. Studying the interconnection of different decision-making areas, however, calls for an intertemporal examination of governance that integrates different methodological approaches. We use the Network of Adjacent Action Situations (NAS), Combined IAD-SES (CIS) framework, and the telecoupling framework to study these three interrelated processes in the Amazon. Employing mixed-methods research, including fieldwork covering each of these processes, we demonstrate how the governance of multiple SESs represents an intertemporal governance challenge. Our paper contributes to the SES governance and NAS literature by linking governance issues generally looked at separately and offering an understanding of the governance connections between telecoupled processes. Beyond its contribution to Brazilian Amazon governance, this paper offers an integrated framework that may be useful to study the interconnection of governance of NAS in other places. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Campos de Palmas Wildlife Refuge (CPWR) (Brazil) is a full protection Conservation Unit (CU) formed by private properties, where the use of land and natural resources are allowed sustainably according to the rules of the CU Management Plan. Inadequate practices of land use and occupation within this CU can affect its quality and the organisms that depend on them. Considering the above, the objective of the present study was to biomonitor different land uses and occupations within the CPWR and its surroundings, during the four seasons of a year, using the bioindicators Allium cepa (cytotoxicity and genotoxicity tests) and Eisenia fetida (leakage test). The soil samples were collected in areas of silviculture, agriculture, and native grasslands within the CU and agriculture outside the limits of the CPWR. The use by silviculture (spring) and native grassland (summer) showed cytotoxic effects for A. cepa. The use by agriculture outside the CPWR (spring) showed genotoxic effect and stimulation of mitotic cell division. For the animal bioindicator, the use by agriculture within the CPWR (winter), native grassland (autumn and spring), silviculture (autumn and spring), and agriculture outside the CU (spring) showed a toxic effect. A PCA analysis showed a correlation between the results of toxicity, cytotoxicity, and genotoxicity with the presence of macronutrients and metals in the evaluated soil samples. Possibly influenced by their soil composition characteristics (silviculture and native grassland) or the management of agricultural areas. In addition, samples from the rainy season (spring) showed higher ecotoxicity. These results show that biomonitoring through different organisms is important for evaluating environmental quality and indicate the need for the implementation of preventive measures in the CPWR to avoid the toxic, cytotoxic, and genotoxic effects found. They also ensure the integrity of this CU and the active protection of the environment and biodiversity., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Due to the increasing population worldwide, in recent years, an exponential increase in agricultural practices has occurred in order to attend to the growing demand for food. Unfortunately, this increase is not associated with the supply of foodstuffs free of environmental pollutants. In Brazil, agriculture is one of the most important economic pillars, making the country one of the largest consumers of pesticides around the world. The intense use of pesticides, mainly glyphosate, 2,4-D, and atrazine, constitutes an essential factor in the viability of this great agricultural productivity. Sugarcane, corn, soybean, and citrus crops consume around 66% of the total pesticides worldwide, representing 76% of the planted area. Pesticide residues have been frequently detected in food and the environment, becoming a significant concern for human health. Monitoring programs for pesticide use are essential to reduce the potential negative impacts on the environment and improve the overall efficiency and sustainability of their use. However, in Brazil, the approval status of pesticide-active ingredients is very discrepant compared to other agricultural countries. Moreover, the duality of benefits and risks of pesticide application creates an economic and toxicological conflict. In this paper, we have critically reviewed the duality of risks-benefits of the use of pesticides in agriculture and the current Brazilian legislation issues. We have also compared this flawed legislation with other countries with high economic potential. Due to the negative environmental impacts on soil and water by the high levels of pesticides, remediation techniques, sustainable agriculture, and the development of new technologies can be considered some viable alternatives to reduce the levels in these compartments. Besides, this paper includes some recommendations that can be included in the coming years., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: The soybean market is representative of the world. Brazil is the largest producer and exporter of this crop and has low production costs but high logistical costs, which are influenced mainly by transport costs. Added to these characteristics, the disputed grain supply, the possibility of crop failure, and the randomness of some parameters that influence the soybean supply chain make decisions even more challenging. Methods: To mathematically model this problem, we carried out an analysis of the scientific production related to grain supply chain and the models used to address the problem, as well as a document analysis and a case study. Results: This paper proposes a new two-stage stochastic linear programming model with fixed recourse for tactical planning in the soybean supply chain from the perspective of the shipper under take or pay contracts over a one-year time horizon. The first-stage variables are the grain purchasing decisions and the volumes of rail and road transportation hired in advance. The model addresses 243 scenarios derived from four uncertainty sources: the purchase and sale prices of raw agricultural products on the spot market, the probability of crop failure, and the external demand. Conclusions: The model is successfully applied to a soybean trade firm in Brazil with expected gain of US$4,299,720 when using the stochastic model instead of the deterministic model. The stochastic model protected the firm from take or pay fines and crop failures, contracting a smaller volume of rail transport than what the company does. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Desenvolvimento e Meio Ambiente is the property of Universidade Federal do Parana and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Unlike the linear model "take-make-use-dispose", the circular economy model "grow-make-use-restore" intends to potentiate material and energy flows within a system with the premise of increasing environmental gains. Moreover, circular economy practices can be alternatives for closing loops in companies from different sectors, with material-, waste-, and energy-related initiatives towards promoting greater internal value-adding. However, the lack of consistent tools for measuring circularity of processes and companies is a gap yet to be covered. To tackle this gap, this paper's aims are: (i) to build a new tool, called Circular Flow, for generating greater internal value and competitive advantage in organizations and identify potential circular economy-related opportunities for closing loops based on external flows, (ii) to apply the tool in a case study, an organization that presents material and energy (electricity) flows and exchanges with other organizations, and (iii) to discuss the integration and potential opportunities for the tool in organizations. The novel, Circular Flow, tool is based on a set of circular graph visualizations, and quantitative circularity indicators. For the graphical visualization, the software tool R (using the Circlize package) was used. The graphs aid the visualization of several interconnected pieces of information, allowing to show all quantitative flows of inputs and outputs, intuitively showing the paths (origin and destination of each flow) within the boundaries of the system under study. The quantitative indicators, e.g. Circularity of the organization (Circ p) and Circularity of each process (Circ o), show a circularity index ranging from 0% to 100%, which can be assessed at different levels. The criteria to select these indicators are based on quantities of inputs and outputs regarding mass and electricity. The tool has been applied in a case study of a rural property in southern Brazil, which region holds a tradition for milk and pig farming. The use of the tool showed the involvement of the rural property with its neighbors and with an agroindustrial cooperative. Keeping these flows within the system may increase environmental gains by reducing transportation, using renewable sources of energy, reducing costs, and boosting the generation of jobs and income in the region due to new market opportunities and business models., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The deforestation of tropical forests raises environmental concerns worldwide. Removing the pristine forest impacts the soil, consequently affecting the environmental services it provides. Within this context, the main goal of this study was to determine how the conversion of the tropical rainforest to pasture affects soil fertility across an extended range of soil heterogeneity, including different soil types. We sampled 13 sites, among forests, recent pastures (≤7-year-old), and old pastures (≥10-year-old), on Acrisols, Ferralsols, Plinthosols, and Luvisols, across a ± 800 km geographical range in the Western Brazilian Amazon. Soils were classified taxonomically, and their superficial layer's chemical and physical properties (0-10 cm) were analyzed. Furthermore, we tested the sensibility of Actinobacteria and Proteobacteria to detect changes in these soil properties based on their ecological habitat. An inter-regional gradient of soil fertility was observed, and the sampling sites were clustered mostly by soil type and associated land use than by spatial distance. The Sum of bases, Ca + Mg, base saturation, Al saturation, and pH were consistently affected by land use, increasing after conversion to pasture, at different degrees and with a more pronounced effect on oxidic soils. The Sum of bases was the only property that increased significantly among the study sites (R adj = 0.860, p < 0.001), being able to detect the effect of anthropic land use on a larger coverage of soil types. Finally, the Actinobacteria:Proteobacteria ratio was also sensitive to the impact of forest-to-pasture conversion, with a higher ratio observed in pasture systems, and it was positively correlated with soil pH (rho = 0.469, p < 0.001). Our results consistently show that the forest-to-pasture conversion leads to strong alterations in the soil environment, with varying intensities depending on soil type., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Copyright of Geosul is the property of Geosul and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In the 1990s and 2000s, soybean farming grew sharply, particularly in states located in Brazil's mid-west region. To curb deforestation, the Federal Government implemented command and control policies and, at the same time, soy-buying companies and Civil Society Organizations implemented the Soy Moratorium. This paper focused on the major role of these initiatives in decreasing soybean farming in areas deforested after 2006 and their importance in achieving this result. We considered rich database deforestation, and soybean planted area based on highly detailed remote sensing images, combined with explanatory variables of different sources, forming a panel data of 287 municipalities over 8 years. Spatial panel data models are implemented to avoid any spatial correlation problems and to analyze relationships through regional units and time. The results confirm that lower deforestation rates in the biome laid the foundation for reducing soybean farming in the Amazon biome. However, since 2008, when the Soy Moratorium was launched, there was a structural decline in this relationship that was decisive for a decoupling of soybean farming from deforestation. Therefore, government programs to reduce deforestation made room for a new environment for agricultural expansion in line with Brazilian law and environmental commitments. The Soy Moratorium reinforced this new order, and this production chain became a case study on public and private governance, given its importance in reducing soybean farming in deforested areas after the cut-off date. These public and private effects stress the importance of coordinated actions to achieve efficient results, especially in a large social and environmentally complex region as the Brazilian Amazon, to halt biodiversity degradation and increase participation in value added markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the seasonal patterns and influencing factors of nitrogen atmospheric deposition is essential to evaluate human impacts on the air quality and nitrogen biogeochemical cycle. However, evaluation of the nitrogen deposition flux, especially in South America agricultural regions, has not been fully investigated. In this paper, we quantified the atmospheric wet deposition fluxes of total dissolved nitrogen (TDN), dissolved organic nitrogen (DON), and dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN), in a region with agricultural and livestock predominance in the Southern Minas Gerais region, Brazil, from May 2018 to April 2019. Deposition fluxes of nitrogen species in the wet season (October–March) were on average 4.8-fold higher than those in the dry season, which revealed significant seasonal variations driven largely by the seasonality of rainfall and agricultural operations. We also found high NO3−/NH4+ ratios (average = 8.25), with higher values in dry season (NO3−/NH4+ = 12.8) in comparison with wet season (NO3−/NH4+ = 4.48), which revealed a higher relative contribution of NOx emissions from traffic sources in dry season. We also estimated the influence of atmospheric deposition of inorganic nitrogen (N-DIN) on environmental ecosystems, being 2.01 kgNha−1 year−1 with potential risk of acidification and eutrophication of 30%. Therefore, attention should be paid to the role of wet atmospheric deposition of nitrogen as a source of nitrogen environmental pollution in agricultural regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biochar is considered a promising option for the development of sustainable agroecosystems, due to its diverse agronomic and environmental benefits. In this context, the aim of this study was to carry out a bibliometric analysis on biochar research in Brazil within an agricultural context, including investigating the raw materials most employed for its production in the country. The analysis was conducted based on a search for scientific articles (peer-reviewed papers) at the Web of Science database (WoS Core Collection) from 2003 to 2020 specifically in Brazil. A performance analysis was carried out by applying a descriptive and metric approach concerning research constituents (authors, institutions, countries and keywords) and science mapping to clarify scientific collaborations and cognitive and intellectual structure patterns regarding the biochar domain in Brazilian research, using the VOSviewer software. The obtained studies were also analyzed individually to classify the different raw materials employed in biochar production. A total of 261 scientific articles met the screening criteria, indicating that the beginning of biochar publications in Brazil took place in 2003, increasing until 2015 and peaking in 2021. Institutions and authors with the highest publication contributions were the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (EMBRAPA) (Novotny E.), São Paulo University (USP) (Cerri C.) and Federal Lavras University (UFLA) (Melo L.). The United States, Spain, Australia, Germany and the Netherlands present the most collaborations on biochar research with Brazil. The biochar domain was highly associated with the following keywords: biochar, pyrogenic carbon, pyrolysis, charcoal, immobilization, black carbon, soil fertility and soil and characterization. Raw materials of plant origin were the most employed in biochar research in Brazil, with wood residues being the most studied and residues originated from the sugar-energy industry (straw, bagasse and filter cake) identified as exhibiting high potential for future studies. Poultry litter is the most promising animal waste for biochar production, while the use of biosolids can be innovative, contributing to the consolidation of biochar as an option for serious urban waste sanitary management problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Memoria em Rede is the property of Revista Memoria em Rede and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista Ciência e Natura is the property of Revista Ciencia e Natura and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper examines the impact of foetal exposure to air pollution from agricultural fires on Brazilian students' cognitive performance later in life. We rely on comparisons across children who were upwind and downwind of the fires while in utero to address concerns around sorting and temporary income shocks. Our findings show that agricultural fires increase PM2.5$$ {\mathrm{PM}}_{2.5} $$, resulting in significant negative effects on pupils' scores in Portuguese and Maths in the 5th$$ 5\mathrm{th} $$ grade through prenatal exposure. Back‐of‐the‐envelope calculations suggest that a 1% reduction in PM2.5$$ {\mathrm{PM}}_{2.5} $$ from agricultural burning has the potential to increase later life wages by 2.6%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hunting has been banned in Brazil by a Federal Law (No. 5197), except in a few cases where it has been regulated, for over 50 years now. Since then, the country suffered dramatic land use change, especially in its Central-South region. In this study we investigate the possible influence of land use change on hunters' socioeconomic profile (e.g., education, income) and motivation (e.g., leisure or subsistence) in the Central-South Brazil since the implementation of the ban policy. On a systematic literature review we found 18 papers about hunting activities and hunters' profile in this region, one third of which presented evidence of change in hunting activities or in hunters' profile somehow related to land use change since 1967. With this small number of articles, it was not possible to fully assess whether there was a change in hunting culture in the target region as a result of changes in land use. However, the found studies present consistent evidence of changes in hunting culture, especially in regard to a trade on the hunted species, hunting techniques and hunters' profile. Considering the relevance of hunting in agricultural landscapes for wildlife conservation, we hope the present results stimulate further studies on this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agriculture is the economic activity which uses water the most in Brazil, particularly in São Francisco River Basin, where water withdrawals for irrigation granted by water authorities amount to 22.3 billion m3 per year, a number which is close to 81% of the total withdrawal. On the other hand, bulk water in Brazil is underpriced. Water charges for agricultural users neither reflect the economic value of water nor induce a rational and efficient use of water resources, two key concepts of the Brazilian water law. Even so, it is common for irrigators to complain about the water prices charged for their use of bulk water. To throw some light on the real impact of charging water in the agriculture sector, this article evaluates the economic value of irrigation water in the São Francisco River basin through the shadow price approach, calculated by using the Residual Value Method. The analysis was performed for the top ten major São Francisco River basin crops in water use terms, namely corn, soybean, mango, beans, coffee bean, banana, cotton, sugar cane, papaya and rice. Results for the 2019 harvests show that except for sugar cane, all water shadow prices were positive, notably mango, beans and papaya. This paper also evaluated water shadow prices interannual variation from 2014 to 2019 for six crops. Except for sugarcane, the other crops have been profitable most of the time in the last 6 years. A wide fluctuation in the shadow price of water was observed over these years due to variations in sales prices and costs of production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Identifying agricultural disaster risk regions before the occurrence of climate-related disasters is critical for early mitigation planning. This paper aims to identify these regions based on data from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the bilateral and multilateral trade network data of the World Integrated Trade Solution(WITS) and the agent-based economic model Acclimate. By applying a uniform forcing across agricultural sectors of some breadbasket regions (US, EU and China), when single and simultaneous extreme weather events occur, such as the 2018 European heatwave, production and consumption value losses and gains are calculated at regional and global levels. Comparing the FAO data sets, WITS, and Acclimate's production value losses, the results show a strong dependence of agricultural production losses on a region's output and connectivity level in the global supply and trade network. While India, Brazil, Russia, Canada, Australia, and Iran are highly vulnerable, the imposition of export restrictions to compensate for demand shortfalls makes Sub-Saharan Africa the most vulnerable region, as it is heavily dependent on agricultural imports. In addition, simultaneous extreme weather events can exacerbate the loss of value of agricultural production relative to single extreme weather events. Agricultural practices to increase production such as smart farming, increased investment in plantation agriculture, and diversification of trading partners can help mitigate future food security risks in Sub-Saharan Africa and other agricultural import-dependent regions., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Copyright of Eutopía: Revista de Desarrollo Económico Territorial is the property of Eutopia: Revista de Desarrollo Economico Territorial and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Coffee farms receive ecosystem services that rely on pollinators and pest predators. Landscape-scale processes regulate the flow of these biodiversity-based services. Consequently, the coffee farms' surrounding landscape impacts coffee production. This paper investigates how landscape structure can influence coffee production at different scales. We also evaluated the predictive utility of landscape metrics in a spatial (farm level) and aspatial approach (municipality level). We tested the effect of landscape structure on coffee production for 25 farms and 30 municipalities in southern Brazil. We used seven landscape metrics at landscape and class levels to measure the effect of landscape structure. At the farm level, we calculated metrics in five buffers from 1 to 5 km from the farm centroid to measure their scale of effect. We conducted a model selection using the generalized linear model (GLM) with a Gamma error distribution and inverse link function to evaluate the impact of landscape metrics on coffee production in both spatial and aspatial approaches. The landscape intensity index had a negative effect on coffee production (AICc = 375.59, p < 0.001). The native forest patch density (AICc = 390.14, p = 0.011) and landscape diversity (AICc = 391.18, p = 0.023) had a positive effect on production. All significant factors had effects at the farm level in the 2 km buffer but no effects at the municipality level. Our findings suggest that the landscape composition in the immediate surroundings of coffee farms helps predict production in a spatially explicit approach. However, these metrics cannot detect the impact of the landscape when analyzed in an aspatial approach. These findings highlight the importance of the landscape spatial structure, mainly the natural one, in the stability of coffee production. This study enhanced the knowledge of coffee production dependence on landscape-level processes. This advance can help to improve the sustainability of land use and better planning of agriculture, ensuring food and economic safety. Furthermore, our framework provides a method that can be useful to scrutinize any cropping system with census data that is either spatialized or not. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper documents an externality from the agricultural use of the most widely applied herbicide in the world—glyphosate—on birth outcomes of surrounding populations. We focus on the subclinical effects of water contamination in areas distant from the original locations of application. Our identification relies on: (i) the regulation allowing the introduction of genetically modified seeds in Brazil; (ii) the potential gain in municipality-level productivity from adoption of genetically modified soybean seeds and the strong complementary between these seeds and glyphosate; and (iii) the direction of water flow within water basins. We document a significant deterioration in birth outcomes for populations downstream from locations that are likely to have increased relatively more the use of glyphosate. According to our preferred specification, the average increase in glyphosate use in the sample during 2000–10 period led to an increase of 5% of the average in infant mortality rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Despite substantial efforts made by Brazil's government to increase the adoption rate of sustainable agricultural practices (SAP), many of them have not been adopted by the farmers. This paper explores the factors influencing the adoption of SAP in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, one of the largest Brazilian grain producers. Design/methodology/approach: Using four logistic models, the authors test a conceptual framework that provides a systemic view of farmers' adoption decisions from a sample of 172 farmers. Findings: The findings show that the adoption of SAP is influenced by farmers' socioeconomic characteristics (e.g. gender, level of education, farm size, asset values and farm income), attributes of SAP (compatibility of agricultural practice) and psychological factors (ecocentrism, anthropocentrism, and beliefs about climate change). Research limitations/implications: The results presented may not reflect the characteristics of the region studied because random sampling was not employed. Also, other psychological statements should be used in the questionnaire. Originality/value: Little attention has been given to the analysis of farmers' psychological factors in studies on the adoption of agricultural conservation practices. This study provides a "systemic approach" that measures both socioeconomic and psychological factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past two decades, the expansion of agriculture in Brazil, along with indigenous peoples' growing claims for land, has increased the tension between indigenous groups and farmers. This paper addresses the dispute for land between Kaingangs and family farmers in southern Brazil, aiming to reveal tensions, disagreements and coalitions – that is, the frictions – demonstrated by these subjects when they narrate their current experiences and practices. Our proposal is to look at these conflicts from a cosmopolitical perspective. The research is inspired by multilocal ethnographies, using open interviews with Kaingangs, farmers and local authorities as its main methodological procedure. We also discuss the main historical-political characteristics of recent decades, situating the action of the State regarding conflicts involving indigenous peoples, as well as how this situation may develop in the current context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tobacco use is associated with an annual global economic cost of two trillion dollars and mortality of half of its regular users. Tobacco leaf cultivation is the starting point of the tobacco cycle. Tobacco farming employs millions of small-scale tobacco farmers around the globe, most of whom are out growers who rely on the tobacco industry. This paper aims to map the regions of greatest tobacco production globally (i.e., the US, Brazil, China, Indonesia, India, and Zambia) and tobacco use rates in these locations. Smoking rates were higher in those areas, except for India, where important population subgroups reported an upward trend for tobacco smoking. In general, there was a relationship between tobacco farming and tobacco smoking. Tobacco farming may lead to a higher risk of tobacco use and lower adherence to tobacco control policies. Therefore, promoting viable alternative livelihoods for tobacco farmers must have dual benefits. Additionally, specific health prevention policies might be necessary for those populations reporting higher tobacco use and lower perception of tobacco-related health risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Iniciação Científica Cesumar is the property of Iniciacao Científica Cesumar and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Redes (1414-7106) is the property of Associacao Pro-Ensino em Santa Cruz do Sul - APESC and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper attempts to do a quantitative analysis of open access journals in the field of agriculture and allied sciences indexed by the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) which indexes over 17,200 peer-reviewed open access journals covering all branches of knowledge published by 130 countries in 80 languages. The study revealed that out of 17,282 open access journals indexed by the DOAJ (as on 31.12.2021), 458 journals (2.65%) are publishing articles related to agriculture and allied sciences. Brazil and Indonesia are the top countries publishing higher number of OA journals in agriculture and allied sciences with 74 titles each (16.16%) followed United Kingdom with 26 titles (5.68%), Out of 458 journals, 179 journals (39.08%) are published in English language. About 62.28% (285 journals) are published in monolingual followed by bilingual (124 journals; 7.07%), trilingual (44 journals; 9.61%), quadrilingual (3 journals; 0.65%) and each journal in pentalingual and multilingual. Creative Common licensing is followed by 447 (97.60%) journals. While 230 journals (50.22%) permit the authors to hold complete copyright 228 journals (49.78%) restrict the same. Double blind peer review is followed by 243 journals (53.06%) and 'Blind peer review' by 115 journals (25.11%). While 272 journals (59.39%) don't collect article processing charges (APC) from the authors, 186 journals (40.61%) collect APC. Most of the journal publishers i.e. 119 (25.98%) take 9-12 weeks for publication and 3 journals take more than 52 weeks for the same. The study revealed that 164 OA journals (35.81%) provide access to below 100 articles and only one journal provide access to more than 5000 articles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Economia e Sociologia Rural is the property of Sociedade Brasileira de Economia e Sociologia Rural and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The relationship between the productivity of crops of agricultural interest and their interactions with physicochemical soil properties is widely explored. However, there is still a gap concerning the contribution of biological soil attributes and especially the relationship between crop productivity and the structures of organism communities within the soil, such as the enchytraeids. This paper aimed to evaluate the diversity and structures of enchytraeids communities in subtropical soils and their relationship with soybean productivity and soil properties within a no‐tillage system. This study was conducted in soybean growing grounds working under no‐till farming systems in southern Brazil. Samples were collected according to ISO 23611‐3 and extracted with the hot–wet methodology. The organisms were identified up to their genus level. Enchytraeids density increased with the increase of soybean productivity for both evaluated crops. Enchytraeus, Fridericia, and Hemienchytraeus were more abundant in high productivity and genus Achaeta was only found in the second crop and was not a sensitive indicator toward changes in soybean productivity. Regarding the relationship between the enchytraeid community and soil attributes, the variables clay, phosphorus, moisture contents, pH, Ca/Mg as well as carbon and nitrogen from soil and litter, affected Enchytraeidae distribution. Enchytreids showed significant correlations with soybean productivity in the no‐tillage system for subtropical soils in Brazil, demonstrating potential bioindicators of soil quality and consequently of soybean productivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aimed to support the rational crop expansion in agricultural-growing regions. MODIS satellite images are used together with gridded weather data to model biometeorological parameters at the Fruit Circuit region, state of São Paulo, Southeast Brazil. This region has experienced some cases of drought, while arising rainfall water excess in some periods, demanding large-scale water and energy balance studies to subsidize water resource policies. The SAFER (Simple Algorithm for Evapotranspiration Retrieving) algorithm was applied together with the radiation-use efficiency (RUE) model for biometeorological index assessments. The highest latent heat fluxes (λE), above 8.0 MJ m -2  d -1 , at the end of the year, coincide with the progressive increases on both rainfall and global solar radiation (R G ) levels, and drop to below 5.0 MJ m -2  d -1 in the middle of the year, during the driest conditions. The same tendencies along the year are verified for sensible heat fluxes (H), for which mean pixel values are above 3.5 MJ m -2  d -1 at the end of the year. On the one hand, the highest values for water productivity (WP), which is considered the ratio of actual evapotranspiration (ET) to biomass production (BIO), above 4.0 kg m -3 , are verified in April, period under increasing BIO and low ET rates. On the other hand, the lowest WP values (below 2.0 kg m -3 ) occur between August and October, when BIO is low, and ET is high. Although the area featuring good WP levels under high precipitation (P), with rainfalls generally above ET, supplementary irrigation may benefit agriculture in some periods of the year. The results of the large-scale modeling showed applicability of the models for monitoring water and vegetation dynamics over 16-day timescale and at a 250-m spatial resolution in areas experiencing climate and land-use changes by combining climate data and MODIS images. Application of these tools enables to indicate the best options for expanding the agriculture activities, being of great potential for rational natural resources management, in regions under environmental vulnerability conditions.

Coffee is considered an important source of organic nutrients and minerals, and these resources are strongly affected by agricultural management. Among the minerals, the element Mg is important, which is essential for both plants and humans. In this work, the effects of agricultural management on the absorption and storage of Mg by commercial, ground, roasted Arabica coffee were investigated. For this purpose, some Mg and P fractions were evaluated. It was observed that Mg stored in the grain was concentrated in the inorganic fraction, with an average extraction of 102% and in conventional samples and 119% in organic samples. These results suggest that in these samples Mg is probably largely presented as different inorganic salts. Phytate and organic acid salts are two possibilities discussed in this work that could explain this hypothesis. This can be corroborated by the extraction of Mg in the infusion of hot water., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

In this paper we assess the potential economic effects of climate change on Brazilian agriculture scenarios in different regions in a general equilibrium framework, using a detailed regional economic database for the year 2005. Two different climate change impact scenarios are simulated. This paper extends the Brazilian literature in three different ways: by considering detailed shocks by product and region; by highlighting the connections between the potential impacts of climate change on agriculture and the labor market, with an inter-regional focus; and by specifying the links between climate change forecasts for agriculture and household expenditures. Results show that climate change impacts on Brazilian agriculture would have a relatively small economic effect on the Brazilian economy in aggregate terms, but with severe consequences at the regional level, making a strong case for losses that would be concentrated in the poorest regions and for the poorest workers and households in those regions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The UN Sustainable Development Goals constitute a bench of directives with a universal scope to establish actions to mitigate poverty and protect the environment. Benefiting from the Environmental-Economic Accounting for Water recently published in Brazil, it is possible to harmonize the demand of water and the economic sectors. To this end, this study conducted an input-output analysis and structural decomposition analysis to explore the water consumption of the Brazilian Economy and its driving forces during an unprecedented drought and economic recession between 2013 and 2015. The results indicate that the total variation of the water consumption in the period is 15%. Between 2013 and 2014, the total effect was positive, causing an increase of 45% in the embodied water consumption, having as main driver the final demand and the intensity effect. In the second period, the total intensity effect was negative, provoking a decrease of -10% in the total water consumption. The "Agriculture, livestock, forestry and fishing" is the main sector responsible for these positive and negative results, while the "Energy and gas natural supply" sector has a strategic position to avoid a structural increase on the economic water demand., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Copyright of Amazônia, Organizações e Sustentabilidade (AOS) is the property of Amazon, Organizations & Sustainability - AOS / Amazônia, Organizações e Sustentabilidade (AOS) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Cropland expansion threatens biodiversity by driving habitat loss and impacts carbon storage through loss of biomass and soil carbon (C). There is a growing concern land-use change (LUC) to cropland will result in a loss of ecosystem function and various ecosystem services essential for human health and well-being. This paper examines projections of future cropland expansion from an integrated assessment model IMAGE 3.0 under a "business as usual" scenario and the direct impact on both biodiversity and C storage. By focusing on biodiversity hotspots and Alliance for Zero Extinction (AZE) sites, loss of habitat as well as potential impacts on endangered and critically endangered species are explored. With regards to C storage, the impact on both soil and vegetation standing C stocks are examined. We show that if projected trends are realized, there are likely to be severe consequences for these resources. Substantial loss of habitat in biodiversity hotspots such as Indo-Burma, and the Philippians is expected as well as 50% of species in AZE sites losing part of their last remaining habitat. An estimated 13.7% of vegetation standing C stocks and 4.6% of soil C stocks are also projected to be lost in areas affected with Brazil and Mexico being identified as priorities in terms of both biodiversity and C losses from cropland expansion. Changes in policy to regulate projected cropland expansion, and increased measures to protect natural resources, are highly likely to be required to prevent these biodiversity and C losses in the future., (© 2018 The Authors. Global Change Biology Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Studies of the anticipated consequences of climate change suggest that among all economic sectors, agriculture would be the most affected. In Brazil, this issue is particularly relevant, since the agricultural sector and its related activities account for a significant share of the country's GDP and employment. Using a fixed effects panel model and data from 1990 through 2012, this paper empirically analyzes the vulnerability of agriculture to climate variables in Brazil's ten main agricultural states and the possible resulting loss of agricultural value in the face of future climate change. Our work is differentiated from prior studies in that it employs state level annual data series, which allows the aggregation of a great deal of relevant current information to the analysis. The results indicate that climate variables have a significant impact on most of these states' agricultural production, especially air temperature, whose effects showed higher estimated magnitude than those from rainfall. Considering the estimated elasticities and climatic projections, the most severe damage to agriculture is expected in Espírito Santo, Minas Gerais, and Rio Grande do Sul. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The vulnerability of the agriculture sector to climate change in developing countries and it's risks to Brazilian Northeast farmers are very discussed issues on environmental agenda. In this sense, this paper put forward an understanding of the factors that drive individuals to adopt adaptive strategies to cope changing environments as a fundamental issue for the direction and effective formulation of well-targeted public policies. Mediation models were estimated considering two distinct specifications, based in two different groups of variables: (1) adoption of adaptive practices by farmers based only on the impact of climate perception, mediated by belief in the occurrence of climate change; (2) the socioeconomic conditions of the farmers and their properties were additionally included. The main results demonstrated that the Rio das Contas basin farmers' perceptions about the negative effects of climate change, despite being the main driver, will only affect adaptation behavior when the farmers have believe in the occurrence of climate change. Socioeconomic conditions are overshadowed in predictive power of adaptation by belief on climate change. This outcome may be directly related to the farmers' cultural aspects, nevertheless, the importance of technical assistance or rural extension services should be also emphasized as an impressive part of farmers is no longer adapted due to lack of knowledge of suitable techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to its low share of energy-related emissions, energy systems models have overlooked the implications of technological transition in the agricultural sector and its interaction in the wider energy system. This paper explores the role of agriculture intensification by using a novel agricultural-based energy systems model. The aim is to explore the future role of Brazil's agriculture and its dynamics with other energy sectors under two carbon constraint scenarios. The main focus has been to study resource competition between sugarcane and natural gas at a country level. Results show that in order to meet the future food and bioenergy demand, the agricultural sector would start intensifying by 2030, improving productivity at the expense of higher energy demand, however, land-related emissions would be minimised due to freed-up pasture land and reduction in deforestation rates. Additionally, the development of balanced bioenergy and natural gas markets may help limit the sugarcane expansion rates, preserving up to 12.6 million hectares of forest land, with significant emissions benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]