Introduction to ILWIS GIS tool
ILWIS for Windows is a Windows-based, integrated GIS and Remote Sensing application consisting of: (i) Display of raster and multiple vector maps in map windows; (ii) Display of tables in table windows; (iii) Interactive retrieval of attribute information, (iv) Image processing facilities, (v) Manipulation of maps in a Map Calculator; (vi) Manipulation of tables in a Table Calculator; (vii) GIS analysis tools and (viii) Script language to perform \'batch\' jobs. With Windows, you can start one operation and keep it running while you start one or more additional applications.
Trialling a web-based spatial information management tool with Land Managers in Victoria, Australia
A prototype web-based spatial information management tool (called eFarmer) was tested for its useability and usefulness by 46 Land Managers and 5 extension staff in Victoria, Australia. Participants had a range of enterprises (dairy, beef/sheep grazing, cropping, lifestyle land use), property sizes and computer ownership and expertise. A follow up study was conducted with 12 dairy farmers, where features regarding assessment of nutrient losses from paddocks (Farm Nutrient Loss Index, FNLI) were added to eFarmer.
Quantifying nutrient transfer pathways in agricultural catchments using high temporal resolution data
There are uncertainties in the definition of phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N) transfer pathways within agricultural river catchments due to spatiotemporal variations such as water recharge and the farming calendar, or catchment soil and hydrogeological properties. This can have implications for mitigation policies. This study combined detailed pathway studies with catchment integrated studies to characterise N and P transfer pathways for four agricultural catchments with different land management, soil drainage and geology.
Improving landscape connectivity in forest districts: A two-stage process for prioritizing agricultural patches for reforestation
Connectivity is a key concern in natural resource planning. Many studies have focused on the development of methods, tools and indices for the assessment of both components of connectivity: structural and functional. In particular, approaches based on graph theory principles have been recently proposed and are being increasingly applied to guide landscape connectivity conservation. However, forest planners and managers still need effective and operational methodologies to detect those landscapes where connectivity should be treated as a particularly critical conservation concern.
Canadian agricultural land-use and land management data for Kyoto reporting
attribute-based approach to contingent valuation of forest protection programs
The hemlock woolly adelgid is an invasive insect that is damaging hemlock forests in the eastern United States. Several control methods are available but forest managers are constrained by cost, availability, and environmental concerns. As a result forest managers must decide how to allocate limited conservation resources over heterogeneous landscapes.
Assessing and mapping biomass potential productivity from poplar-dominated riparian forests: A case study
River systems are subjected to continuous physical changes as a result of their sediment transport. River dynamics is mainly determined by the seasonal variation of weather conditions and, together with the nature of the catchment and land management, affects flow patterns on a local scale. Riparian vegetation is well adapted to this periodical disturbance. It naturally regenerates on the new mineral soil created by the redistribution of river sediments during floods, playing an important role in the maintenance of streams and riverbanks stability.
Land use change for flood protection - a prospective study for the restoration of the river Jelašnica watershed [Serbia]
Serbia’s hilly-mountainous regions are extremely vulnerable to flooding as a consequence of their natural characteristics and human impacts. Land mismanagement influences the development of erosion processes, and causes soil degradation that significantly reduces the land’s capacity to infiltrate and retain rainwater. Inappropriate land use as well as development activities replace permeable with impervious surfaces in the watershed. This leads to more rapid runoff generation and the more frequent appearance of torrential floods and bed-load deposits on downstream sections.
Effects of a simulated agricultural runoff event on sediment toxicity in a managed backwater wetland
We examined the effects of an amended mixture of three pesticides, atrazine (72.7 g), S-metolachlor (54.5 g), and permethrin (both cis and trans isomers; 11.4 g), on 10-day sediment toxicity to Hyalella azteca in a managed natural backwater wetland after a simulated agricultural runoff event. Sediment samples were collected at 10, 40, 100, 300, and 500 m from inflow 13 days prior to amendment and 1, 5, 12, 22, and 36 days post-amendment. Background pesticide concentrations ranged from
Frequent fire protects shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata) from introgression by loblolly pine (P. taeda)
Across much of the globe, fire is a major disturbance agent of forest and grassland communities. The removal of fire from previously fire-maintained ecosystems, which has occurred in many areas, changes species composition, favoring later less fire tolerant species over fire-adapted ones. A recent measured increase in the rate of hybridization between the fire-adapted shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata) and less fire-adapted loblolly pine (P. taeda) suggests that introgression may be an emerging threat to shortleaf pine as a genetically distinct species.
Use of Fire in the Cerrado and Amazonian Rainforests of Brazil: Past and Present
Humans have been changing the natural fire regimes in most Brazilian vegetation types for over 4000 years. Natural lightning fires can easily happen in savannas and grasslands, but they are rare in the moist rainforests. Today, anthropogenic fires are frequent in both the fire-adapted cerrado (Brazilian savanna) and the fire-sensitive rainforest. In this paper, I compare two very different biomes concerning their susceptibilities and responses to fire: the Amazon rainforest and the cerrado.