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Het ziet ernaar uit dat dit niet voor iedereen even gemakkelijk zal zijn. Tot 2000 zullen vooral de intensievere melkveebedrijven de gevolgen merken. In dit artikel ga ik kort in op de mogelijkheden die melkveehouders hebben om de financiële gevolgen van het mineralenaangiftesysteem (MINAS) te beperken. Uitgangspunt is hierbij de wet- en regelgeving tot het jaar 2000. Daarna wordt het gissen.

This strategic environmental assessment (SEA) is a technical piece intended to assist in the current and future identification of priority industrial pollutants and economic instruments to minimize industrial waste. This industrial sector SEA is one of six pieces of technical support envisioned by the Himachal Pradesh (HP) inclusive green growth (IGG) development policy loan (DPL) to fill knowledge gaps and strengthen operational success of the DPL. The DPL acknowledges that industrial development is an important economic driver within HP, and that such development must be consistent with maintaining the integrity of other natural resource assets on which human health depend. The general objectives of the SEA study are: (i) to assist in identification of priority pollutants and industries; (ii) to review existing institutional structures that address these pollutants; (iii) to identify and recommend potential reform options through the introduction of new policy approaches; and (iv) to identify complementary institutional support necessary to implement such a program. The SEA was undertaken from April to December 2013 based on secondary data collection, existing literature, various consultative meetings with key stakeholders, and diagnostic analyses of this information. The purpose of the consultations was to discuss the findings, issues, and preliminary directions suggested by the desk reviews, and to initiate a work plan for amassing additional information. The SEA has included participatory approaches to ensure that presented policy changes are designed and implemented in a way that is responsive to the different segments of HP society. This report is presented in three parts. Part one forms a foundation for focusing subsequent diagnostic work by providing more extensive detail on the institutional context, pollution situation, health and environmental linkages, and opportunities for using economic instruments. Part two performs additional diagnostic analyses to inform the core recommendations relating to options for new economic instruments, institutional reforms, and capacity building; these recommendations are presented in part three.

Maatregelen voor compensatie van verloren gegane natuurwaarden zijn binnen milieu-effectrapportage een nog onbekend verschijnsel. Dat zal gaan veranderen nu er een compensatieregeling in de Wet Natuurbeheer is opgenomen

De aanvoer van N en P moet dan gelijk zijn aan de afvoer plus het toelaatbare overschot. Hiervoor is inzicht nodig in wat nodig is voor het halen van de milieudoelstellingen en wat landbouwkundig mogelijk is.

Uit de rapportages van de afgelopen jaren (2005 en later) komt een beeld naar voren over de naleving in die periode, dat over de sectoren vergelijkbaar is. De naleving op de onderzoekspunten spuitlicentie, zorgvuldigheid, hygiëneverordening is in alle onderzochte sectoren groter dan 90%. De toepassingscontroles binnen de 14-meterzone vanaf de sloot, waar het Lozingenbesluit Open Teelt en Veehouderij (LOTV) van toepassing is, laten een veel lagere naleving zien, namelijk tussen de 50% en 70%.

Uit de rapportages van de afgelopen jaren (2005 en later) komt een beeld naar voren over de naleving in die periode, dat over de sectoren vergelijkbaar is. De naleving op de onderzoekspunten spuitlicentie, zorgvuldigheid, hygiëneverordening is in alle onderzochte sectoren groter dan 90%. De toepassingscontroles binnen de 14-meterzone vanaf de sloot, waar het Lozingenbesluit Open Teelt en Veehouderij (LOTV) van toepassing is, laten een veel lagere naleving zien, namelijk tussen de 50% en 70%.

Pig farms in the Netherlands pay a zero or low price for using the environment. As a consequence, the environment is overused. The Dutch government wants to reduce the emissions of nitrogen and phosphorus. Possible instruments are regulation and levies. In this study a levy on feed and a levy on the nitrogen surplus are investigated, by incorporating a bad output in the production model. The model is estimated using panel data of Dutch pig farms over the period 1975-1989. Levies on nitrogen turn out to be more cost-effective than levies on feed.

Een globaal overzicht van de verschillende stappen in de internationale onderhandelingen over maatregelen tot vermindering van de SO2-uitstoot

ÖZETBÜYÜKÇEKMECE GÖLÜ’NÜN MİKROBİYOLOJİK VE KİMYASAL KİRLİLİK DÜZEYİNİN BELİRLENMESİBu çalışmada İstanbul’un önemli bir su kaynağı olan Büyükçekmece Gölü’nün kirlilik durumu mikrobiyolojik ve kimyasal yönden araştırılmıştır. Büyükçekmece Gölü’nün mikrobiyolojik ve kimyasal kirlilik seviyesinin tespiti çalışmaları Ağustos 2009 - Temmuz 2010 tarihleri arasında yapılmış ve seçilen 8 ayrı noktadan mikrobiyolojik analizler için her ay, kimyasal analizler için üç ayda bir su örneği alınmıştır. Suların mikrobiyolojik ve kimyasal analizleri Marmara Üniversitesi Doğa Bitkileri ve Su Ürünleri Araştırma ve Uygulama Merkezi Laboratuvarında yapılmıştır. Mikrobiyolojik analizler Membran Filtrasyon Tekniği kullanılarak yapılmış ve Toplam koliform, Fekal koliform, Streptococcus faecalis sayısı saptanmıştır. Kimyasal kirliliği tespit etmek için pH, Sıcaklık, İletkenlik, Toplam Çözünmüş Madde, Toplam Sertlik, Klorür, Organik Madde, Renk, Bulanıklık, Amonyak, Nitrit, Nitrat, Fosfor, Fosfat, Sülfat, Bikarbonat, Kalsiyum, Magnezyum, Toplam Demir, Biyolojik Oksijen İhtiyacı, Kimyasal Oksijen İhtiyacı, Alüminyum, Krom, Kadmiyum, Kurşun ve Deterjan parametrelerinin analizleri yapılmıştır. Bütün bu tespitlerde Amerikan Halk Sağlığı Birliği (APHA) Standart Method Kuralları’na uyulmuştur. Bulunan değerler, Su Kirliliği Kontrolü Yönetmeliği içinde yer alan, Kıta İçi Su Kaynaklarının Sınıflarına Göre Kalite Kriterleri standartlarıyla karşılaştırılmıştır. Sonuçlar incelendiğinde mikrobiyolojik ve bazı kimyasal analizlerde standartların üzerinde değerlerle karşılaşılmıştır. Bu tez çalışması Büyükçekmece Gölü’nün bugünkü kirlilik durumunu ortaya koymaktadır. ABSTRACTDETERMINATION OF THE MICROBIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL POLLUTION DEGREE IN BUYUKCEKMECE LAKEIn this study, the microbiological and chemical pollution levels of Buyukcekmece Lake, which is the drinking and using water of İstanbul, investigated. The research for determination of the microbiological and chemical pollution degree was done between August 2009 and July 2010. The samples were taken from 8 sample points on monthly for microbiological analysis and tri-monthly for chemical analysis from the pre-designated sample locations. Microbiological and chemical analysis were made at Marmara University Natural Plants and Water Products Research and Application Center Laboratory. The microbiological analysis were performed to determine the number of total coliform, fecal coliform and Streptococcus faecalis by using Membrane Filtration Technique. To determine chemical pollution, the analysis of Lead, Cadmium, Chrome, Detergent, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, Phosphorus, Phosphate, Sulfate, Total Iron, Aluminon, Organic Substance, Chlorur, Calcium, Magnesium, Alkalinity, Total Hardness, TDS, KOI, BOI, Conductivity, Color, Turbidity and pH were performed APHA Standard Method Rules have been observed for all studies. The results were compared with Quality Criteria of Inland Water Resources Based on Classes. When the results were analyzed, microbiological and some chemical aspects were exceeded the standard limits. This study shows the present pollution levels in Buyukcekmece Lake.

Geschetst wordt hoe de bedrijven binnen het project omgaan met mineralen en welke inspanning dit vraagt bij het management.

Resultaten ervan zijn gebruikt in een studie naar de kosten van deze systemen en de mogelijke vermindering van de ammoniakemissie.

Man-made climate change is affecting water infrastructure in all regions of the world, affecting large numbers of people in their daily life and the development of their societies. As part of the World Bank Water Anchor's analytical and advisory work on water and climate change, consultants have investigated how private sector services to infrastructure may address the challenges related to climate change while, at the same time, improving development opportunities for people. This report, which is one of the outcomes of the work, addresses the role of private providers of non-financial climate change-related services with relevance for water infrastructure. This report investigates to need for additional services with regard to climate change and analyzes the potential for the private sector in providing these services. The analysis focuses on the water sectors likely to be affected by climate change, that is, water resources management, irrigation and drainage, hydropower, coastal protection, flood protection, urban water supply, and sanitation as well as water quality. In addition, opportunities for mutual engagement of public and private agencies are analyzed and the perspectives of market development are explored. The central aim of the report is to deepen our understanding of the opportunities for engaging private providers of climate change services in climate change adaptation combined with socioeconomic development opportunities.

Voor enkele duizenden varkensbedrijven zullen de extra milieukosten zo zwaar drukken op de financiële resultaten, dat deze bedrijven in continuoteitsgevaar zullen komen. Het zijn vooral de bedrijven met hoge financieringslasten, die door de extra milieukosten in continuoteitsgevaar komen.

Bespreking van de regelgeving van het Besluit gebruik dierlijke meststoffen voor de periode 1991-'95

Excess: een milieu-economisch expertsysteem voor varkenshouders

Uit het in 2007/2008 uitgevoerde onderzoek bij prei en spruiten bleek dat bijbemesting van stikstof na 15 september het stikstofverlies niet verhoogde ten opzichte van toediening van alle stikstof vóór 15 september (bij gelijke N-totaalgift). De stikstof die in oktober werd gegeven, werd in dezelfde mate door het gewas opgenomen als de stikstof die vlak vóór 15 september was gegeven. Toepassing van een stikstofbijmestsysteem voorkomt overdosering van stikstof, waardoor het stikstofverlies zo klein mogelijk wordt gehouden. Echter, er moet dan wel na 15 september kunnen worden bijbemest als dat nodig is. Een verbod op stikstofbemesting na 15 september zal waarschijnlijk niet leiden tot minder stikstofverlies, maar wel tot economische derving.

Uit het in 2007/2008 uitgevoerde onderzoek bij prei en spruiten bleek dat bijbemesting van stikstof na 15 september het stikstofverlies niet verhoogde ten opzichte van toediening van alle stikstof vóór 15 september (bij gelijke N-totaalgift). De stikstof die in oktober werd gegeven, werd in dezelfde mate door het gewas opgenomen als de stikstof die vlak vóór 15 september was gegeven. Toepassing van een stikstofbijmestsysteem voorkomt overdosering van stikstof, waardoor het stikstofverlies zo klein mogelijk wordt gehouden. Echter, er moet dan wel na 15 september kunnen worden bijbemest als dat nodig is. Een verbod op stikstofbemesting na 15 september zal waarschijnlijk niet leiden tot minder stikstofverlies, maar wel tot economische derving.

WUR Glastuinbouw voert een project uit dat gericht is op het terugdringen van de emissie van gewasbeschermingsmiddelen door glastuinbouwbedrijven. Dit is nodig om op termijn te kunnen voldoen aan de Europese Kaderrichtlijn Water. Onderdelen van het project zijn het kwantificeren van de emissiestromen, het inventariseren van de sturingsmogelijkheden en het aanreiken van oplossingsrichtingen voor de telers

WUR Glastuinbouw voert een project uit dat gericht is op het terugdringen van de emissie van gewasbeschermingsmiddelen door glastuinbouwbedrijven. Dit is nodig om op termijn te kunnen voldoen aan de Europese Kaderrichtlijn Water. Onderdelen van het project zijn het kwantificeren van de emissiestromen, het inventariseren van de sturingsmogelijkheden en het aanreiken van oplossingsrichtingen voor de telers

De commerciele konijnenhouderij is volop in beweging. Door de lage vleesprijzen in de afgelopen jaren komt de nadruk steeds meer te liggen op het efficient produceren. De rol van het management wordt hierbij steeds belangrijker. Tevens wordt de sector geconfronteerd met regelgevingen op het gebied van milieu en welzijn. In het lopende onderzoek in 1996 wordt aan deze aspecten dan ook de nodige aandacht besteed

Het PR geeft met bedrijfsspecifieke begrotingen aan dat ingrijpende veranderingen in de bedrijfsvoering nodig zijn om aan het toekomstige milieubeleid te voldoen.

Voor de nadere uitwerking van de Mestwetgeving, die vanaf 2006 zal worden ingevoerd en welke is gebaseerd op de invoering van gebruiksnormen, is in opdracht van de rijksoverheid in het kader van de evaluatie van de Meststoffenwet 2004 een ex-ante milieu-evaluatie uitgevoerd, waarbij is nagegaan wat de gevolgen zijn van verschillende niveaus in fosfaat- en stikstofgebruiksnormen op de nutriëntenemissies naar het grond- en oppervlaktewater vanuit landbouwgronden. De beoordeelde stikstofnormen leiden tot een verbetering van de grond- en oppervlaktewaterkwaliteit, echter in alle gevallen treedt op een deel van het areaal (20-25%) nog een overschrijding van de grondwaterkwaliteitdoelstellingen op. De stikstofemissies naar het oppervlaktewater dalen met ca. 20% ten opzichte van de situatie eind jaren negentig. De beoordeelde fosfaatnormen leiden nog steeds tot een toename van de fosfaatophoping in de bodem. Verwacht wordt dat in eerste instantie de fosfaatuitspoeling in 2030 vermindert met 10 tot 15 %, maar dat door de toename van de fosfaatophoping in de bodem, en daarmee de mate van fosfaatverzadiging van de landbouwgronden, op langere termijn (eind 21e eeuw) de situatie weer verslechtert tot het niveau van 2000.

Voor de nadere uitwerking van de Mestwetgeving, die vanaf 2006 zal worden ingevoerd en welke is gebaseerd op de invoering van gebruiksnormen, is in opdracht van de rijksoverheid in het kader van de evaluatie van de Meststoffenwet 2004 een ex-ante milieu-evaluatie uitgevoerd, waarbij is nagegaan wat de gevolgen zijn van verschillende niveaus in fosfaat- en stikstofgebruiksnormen op de nutriëntenemissies naar het grond- en oppervlaktewater vanuit landbouwgronden. De beoordeelde stikstofnormen leiden tot een verbetering van de grond- en oppervlaktewaterkwaliteit, echter in alle gevallen treedt op een deel van het areaal (20-25%) nog een overschrijding van de grondwaterkwaliteitdoelstellingen op. De stikstofemissies naar het oppervlaktewater dalen met ca. 20% ten opzichte van de situatie eind jaren negentig. De beoordeelde fosfaatnormen leiden nog steeds tot een toename van de fosfaatophoping in de bodem. Verwacht wordt dat in eerste instantie de fosfaatuitspoeling in 2030 vermindert met 10 tot 15 %, maar dat door de toename van de fosfaatophoping in de bodem, en daarmee de mate van fosfaatverzadiging van de landbouwgronden, op langere termijn (eind 21e eeuw) de situatie weer verslechtert tot het niveau van 2000.

Met ingang van 1 januari 1995 is de 30%-kortingsregeling op de niet-grondgebonden mestproductierechten ingegaan. Met name hoogproductieve zeugenbedrijven zullen ingrijpende maatregelen moeten treffen om aan deze regeling te kunnen voldoen

In veel gemeenten moet de pH van het afvalwater, dat wordt geloosd op de riolering, tussen 6,5 en 10 liggen.

Met ingang van 1 januari 1995 wordt de 30% kortingsregeling op de niet-grondgebonden mestproductierechten toegepast. Met behulp van de kwartaaloverzichten die de mengvoederfabrikanten sturen en het gemiddeld aantal aanwezige dieren op het bedrijf, kansnel en eenvoudig berekend worden of een varkenshouder maatregelen zal moeten treffen.

Het kabinet wil het mogelijk maken dat huishoudens een rekening krijgen voor waterverbruik, rioolrechten en zuiveringsheffing. De hoogte van die rekening moet geheel afhankelijk zijn van de hoeveelheid water die het huishouden verbruikt. De achterliggende gedachte hierbij is dat dit mensen ertoe zal aanzetten zuiniger met water om te springen. Hoe prijsgevoelig is het huishoudelijk waterverbruik?

Centraal in dit artikel staan de eerste resultaten van een studie naar het effect van het toekomstig milieubeleid op de economische waarden. Nagegaan wordt of economische waarden veranderen t.g.v. milieumaatregelen. Daarnaast is gekeken naar de effecten van het genetisch verbeteren van kenmerken op het stikstofverlies

Op 'het Spelderholt' worden in diverse stallen ammoniakmetingen verricht. Enerzijds is dit ten behoeve van het milieu-onderzoek, anderzijds om te voldoen aan de voorwaarden voor de hinderwetvergunning.

Het doel van deze studie is om modelmatig de economische gevolgen van afzonderlijke milieumaatregelen in beeld te brengen door maatregelen na elkaar toe te passen. Dus het effect van een nieuwe maatregel is bepaald na toepassing van de vorige.

Het doel van deze studie is om modelmatig de economische gevolgen van afzonderlijke milieumaatregelen in beeld te brengen door maatregelen na elkaar toe te passen. Dus het effect van een nieuwe maatregel is bepaald na toepassing van de vorige.

De regels met betrekking tot de kortlopende pacht met hoofdlijnen van de Meststoffenwet. Naar aanleiding van een beschikking, waarbij een pachtovereenkomstvoor de duur van vijf jaar werd gewijzigd in die zin, dat de duur van de overeenkomst werd bepaald op zes jaar

IntroductionSince the publication of 'Our Common Future' (1987) by the World Commission on Environment and Development, sustainability or sustainable development has become one of the most important aims of environmental policy throughout the world. But it has proved difficult to work out in a definition, in policy targets and in policy instruments. There are many definitions of sustainability for rural and urban regions, as well as for activities such as agriculture, nature conservation, outdoor recreation and water resource management; there seems to be no need for yet another.In this thesis, sustainability is defined as a task of planning. The central topic is, therefore, how sustainability is defined in planning, practice and implemented in plans. But what are planning practices lid what are plans? To answer these questions an analytical tool was developed by looking for a definition of Planning that can accommodate new developments in the relation between Dutch government and society. Inspired by Friedmann planning is defined in this thesis as an attempt to link knowledge to action in the public domain; this was elaborated for land use planning in Dutch rural areas. A distinction is made between three task: rural development, steering and planning. The first concerns the knowledge about the physical environment and the action (design and evaluation) taken to achieve the desired situation in the physical environment. The second involves transforming the visions of private actors and the concepts of policy makers into claims on the physical environment, so that it can be decided which claims are legitimate and feasible in relation to development. The third involves the making a plan by organizing the interaction between the development and the steering tasks within the framework of political institutions and regulations. It can be defined in different ways because the content of the tasks can vary. In this thesis, the term 'planning style' is used to describe this. A distinction is made between four such styles: planning as reform, planning as policy analysis, planning as a learning process and planning as exchange process. These styles are elaborated for the tasks of steering and of development, the definition of the plan and the relation between design and implementationTable I Styles of planningSource: this theses table 2.4Three planning systems deal with the physical environment in the Netherlands: spatial planning, environmental planning and water management They have a common goal: to achieve a sustainable physical environment.But their definitions of the tasks of steering and development differ, as do their planning traditions. These differences are not a problem as long as the planning systems have distinct planning practices. However, intensive land use in the rural areas (agriculture, bulb growing and horticulture) and a high population density is causing the planning practices to converge, bringing about the need for coordination and integration of planning practices and their concepts.Central topicThis thesis is a contribution to the debate about the opportunities and likelihood of coordinating and integrating of the existing planning traditions, embodied in the planning systems, into a new planning practice directed to sustainable development in Dutch rural areas. The central topic is to clarify the differences between the concepts of steering and the concepts of development and to construct a model for assessing and designing of integrated planning practices. To this end, the following research questions are posed:1. what are the features of the planning systems?2. what are the dominant concepts about the physical environment?3. what are the dominant concepts of steering in relation to the physical environment?4. who are the adressees of these planning systems?5. what conditions apply to the integrated planning practices and what are the main aspects for assessing existing planning practices?6. what conclusions can be drawn about the task of planning in the future and the usefulness of the evalution model?MethodSeveral methods were used to answer these questions. To detect the features of the planning systems the literature was studied, planning practices were evaluated and interviews were conducted. In an attempt to find possible connections between the dominant concepts of development an analysis was done of the water system approach (Ministerie Verkeer en Waterstaat, 1985), the 'environmental utilisztion space' (Opschoor, 1990) and the model of the spatial organization (Kleefmann, 1990), drawing on scientific literature and documents produced by the Dutch government. The same procedure was followed for the dominant concepts of steering: the classic model, the network model and the market model (Koppenjan et al. 1993) in relation to the adressees: the 'active citizen' in spatial planning, the 'target group' in environmental planning and the 'user of the land' in (regional) water management. A model based on these analyses was built for assessing and designing of integrated planning practices.Model for assessment and designThe relation between Dutch government and society has changed in the last decade and forms of network steering are becoming more important. As a result integrated planning practices can only succeed when there is a need to cope with diffuse pollution and a change in behaviour. Three changes have come about a) private actors are participating in the planning process, b) the existing concepts of development and steering are being transformed into wholly of partically new concepts and c) the plan is now a joint product containing a vision of how the region should develop. These aspects are elaborated in Table 11. In short, the planning process ought to have the signature of two styles: planning as learning process and/or planning as exchange process. Planning as policy analysis and planning as reform are less suitable.Table II. Aspects for assessing and designing planning practicesSource: this thesis table 9.3CasesA wide range of cases is needed in order to analyse the state of the art of integrated planning practices in the Netherlands. The cases were selected according to the following criteria. The plans had to express the willingness of government (national, provincial or local) to construct integrated planning practices. The selection had to contain plans of all three tiers government. The plans had to embody a relation between at least two concepts of development and a change in the concept of steering, compared with the pre- plan situation. Both regular and non-regular plans had to be included. This resulted in the following cases being selected (Table Ill): The National Memorandum on Environmental Policy II (Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and Environment, 1993); The Management Plan for the Waters of national importance (Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, 1992); especially for the IJsselmeergebied (Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, 1991), North Sea (Ministry of Traffic and Water Management, 1991) and the Rijntakken (Ministry of Transport, Public Work and Water Management, 1994); The Ammonia Reduction Plans for Southeast Friesland (forthcoming) and the Gelder Valley (1994); The coordination and integration between the Water Management Plan, the Environmental Policy Plan and the Spatial Plan of Gelderland Province (Provincie Gelderland, 1996abc); The vision for the Regge river basin (Goossensen et al., 1997).In cases one, two and three, seven plans were analysed and assessed. Cases four and five differ because the researcher participated in the planning processes. As a result the aspect of the design of integrated planning practices received more emphasis; an insider's assessment.Table III Cases of integrated planning practicesResultsThe results of the assessment have been compiled in Table IV. This overview shows that some planning practices can be classified as integrated: the Ammonia Reduction Plans and the vision for the Regge river basin. In the Ammonia Reduction Plans a combination of spatial zoning and a bulb (marketable emission rights) for the reduction of ammonia creates a new balance between agricultural development and protection of the nature conservation areas. The vision on the Regge river basin combines spatial hydrological zoning and the water management area defined as a bulb in which the problems of eutrophication and the fall in hydraulic head can be solved. In both planning practices, the participation of private actors is important in the discussion about the vision and the relation between this joint vision and the opportunities for fitting this in with the evryday practices of the private actors.Conclusions and discussion1. The three planning systems, current in the Netherlands today each have their own signature. In the last decade the development task has changed as a result of new insights into the relation between the components of the physical environment. The task of steering has changed too, as a result of a changing relation between Dutch government and society. The planning systems have reacted differently to these changes. The system of spatial planning is evolving from planning as policy analysis into planning as a learning process; environmental planning is evolving from planning as reform to planning as exchange process; water management is evolving from planning as reform to planning as policy analysis. The modernisation of the systems is proceeding in different directions.2. Interesting experiments are going on in Dutch planning practice in the countryside, where private and public actors are looking for a practical definition of sustainable development. It can be concluded that integrated planning practices can only succeed when public and private actors are able to achieve a creative combination of elements of the concepts of development and the concepts of steering and when this combination is based on clear relation between the steering and development task.3. The distinction between the planning task, the development task and the steering task and the combination in different styles of planning turns out to be a promising analytical tool for analysing planning practices with regard to the physical environment. But despite this there is a need for elaboration in more detail.

The social and biophysical processes entailed in environmental deterioration are the subject of intense debate in Honduras, one of the poorest countries of Latin America. This book analyses the political ecology of precarious farming in mountainous areas. The author evaluates a rich array of social and agronomic data in order to assess existing theories that purport to explain environmental deterioration and agrarian change in Honduras. It explores the relationships between land tenure patterns, shifting agricultural practices, changing social relations of production, and producers' knowledge. Special attention is given to differential perceptions and responses of producers to environmental deterioration, and to the broader knowledge struggles of different actors about issues such as burning, the fallow crisis, biocide use, and deforestation. This detailed case study draws on political economy, human ecology, critical realism, and social constructionism and constitutes an original contribution to current debates on political ecology.The central argument of this book is that land degradation through present agricultural practices is not simply an effect of poverty, inconsiderate acting or a direct consequence of a modernisation process which is orchestrated and imposed upon the Honduran peasantry by external capitalist development. Instead, the social causation of environmental change in mountainous areas of Honduras should be understood in terms of a complex mixture of local patterns of access to resources, forms of state intervention, the heterogeneous paths of technological change and knowledge generation, divisions of labour, and the specific interactions of emerging commodity markets and the organization of production.Chapter two focuses on issues of land tenure and property rights. It compares local histories of land distribution in El Zapote with widely used models of the latifundio-minifundio complex and the colonial legacy of the large landholding. Subsequently, it explores how local rules and cultural notions, local government and state laws, and state interventions through land reform and land titling projects, mediate the relation between people and the land. Conclusions deal with the multiple land histories which explain the complexity of conflicts, and with the many factors shaping the meaning villagers attribute to the value of land.Chapter three explores technological changes in crop production and cattle husbandry and compares the findings in El Zapote with recent studies dealing with heterogeneity and diversity in agriculture, thus criticizing approaches which maintain a duality of traditional and modern agricultural technology. It stresses the recognition of the multiplicity of factors causing technological change.This exploration of technological change serves as a starting point for the discussion of how different environmental problems are perceived by different actors. Chapter four identifies different perspectives on the fallow crisis, the use of fire to clear fields, vegetation and climatic change, and the use of new agro-chemicals. It deals with the paradox that agronomy cannot encompass the many factors involved in environmental deterioration, but that an alternative strategy of validating producers' environmental perceptions cannot provide a coherent theory of the causes of environmental deterioration as well.In Chapters two, three, and four, it will be shown that environmental behaviour and perceptions about environmental change relate to access to, and distribution of, resources. Chapter five gives further consideration to the different aspects of the social relations of production in El Zapote, in order to understand the processes of social differentiation.Chapter six broadens the issue of social differentiation with a discussion of local agricultural knowledge. The argument is put forward that we need an understanding of both the practical character of knowledge, (that local knowledge generation responds to environment and social context), and its discursive character. Knowledge is not only embedded in narratives on the epistemological level, but also in concrete natural environments and social relations. An important conclusion is that current `local knowledge approaches' overestimate the potential of local knowledge for environmental conservation or restoration.The concluding chapter starts by commenting on various explanations of environmental deterioration in Honduran mountain agriculture. Using the case study of El Zapote it presents an alternative explanation with the main argument that a linear relation between the distribution of the means of production and labour relations on the one hand, and use of the environment on the other, cannot be justified, but that, nevertheless, an inquiry into changing patterns of social differentiation may provide insight into important mechanisms of human interaction with nature. The final section challenges theoretical (epistemological and ontological) confusions about social and biophysical causation of environmental deterioration in environmental social science.

The social and biophysical processes entailed in environmental deterioration are the subject of intense debate in Honduras, one of the poorest countries of Latin America. This book analyses the political ecology of precarious farming in mountainous areas. The author evaluates a rich array of social and agronomic data in order to assess existing theories that purport to explain environmental deterioration and agrarian change in Honduras. It explores the relationships between land tenure patterns, shifting agricultural practices, changing social relations of production, and producers' knowledge. Special attention is given to differential perceptions and responses of producers to environmental deterioration, and to the broader knowledge struggles of different actors about issues such as burning, the fallow crisis, biocide use, and deforestation. This detailed case study draws on political economy, human ecology, critical realism, and social constructionism and constitutes an original contribution to current debates on political ecology.The central argument of this book is that land degradation through present agricultural practices is not simply an effect of poverty, inconsiderate acting or a direct consequence of a modernisation process which is orchestrated and imposed upon the Honduran peasantry by external capitalist development. Instead, the social causation of environmental change in mountainous areas of Honduras should be understood in terms of a complex mixture of local patterns of access to resources, forms of state intervention, the heterogeneous paths of technological change and knowledge generation, divisions of labour, and the specific interactions of emerging commodity markets and the organization of production.Chapter two focuses on issues of land tenure and property rights. It compares local histories of land distribution in El Zapote with widely used models of the latifundio-minifundio complex and the colonial legacy of the large landholding. Subsequently, it explores how local rules and cultural notions, local government and state laws, and state interventions through land reform and land titling projects, mediate the relation between people and the land. Conclusions deal with the multiple land histories which explain the complexity of conflicts, and with the many factors shaping the meaning villagers attribute to the value of land.Chapter three explores technological changes in crop production and cattle husbandry and compares the findings in El Zapote with recent studies dealing with heterogeneity and diversity in agriculture, thus criticizing approaches which maintain a duality of traditional and modern agricultural technology. It stresses the recognition of the multiplicity of factors causing technological change.This exploration of technological change serves as a starting point for the discussion of how different environmental problems are perceived by different actors. Chapter four identifies different perspectives on the fallow crisis, the use of fire to clear fields, vegetation and climatic change, and the use of new agro-chemicals. It deals with the paradox that agronomy cannot encompass the many factors involved in environmental deterioration, but that an alternative strategy of validating producers' environmental perceptions cannot provide a coherent theory of the causes of environmental deterioration as well.In Chapters two, three, and four, it will be shown that environmental behaviour and perceptions about environmental change relate to access to, and distribution of, resources. Chapter five gives further consideration to the different aspects of the social relations of production in El Zapote, in order to understand the processes of social differentiation.Chapter six broadens the issue of social differentiation with a discussion of local agricultural knowledge. The argument is put forward that we need an understanding of both the practical character of knowledge, (that local knowledge generation responds to environment and social context), and its discursive character. Knowledge is not only embedded in narratives on the epistemological level, but also in concrete natural environments and social relations. An important conclusion is that current `local knowledge approaches' overestimate the potential of local knowledge for environmental conservation or restoration.The concluding chapter starts by commenting on various explanations of environmental deterioration in Honduran mountain agriculture. Using the case study of El Zapote it presents an alternative explanation with the main argument that a linear relation between the distribution of the means of production and labour relations on the one hand, and use of the environment on the other, cannot be justified, but that, nevertheless, an inquiry into changing patterns of social differentiation may provide insight into important mechanisms of human interaction with nature. The final section challenges theoretical (epistemological and ontological) confusions about social and biophysical causation of environmental deterioration in environmental social science.