<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><xml><records><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>7</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Herrero, Sergio Tirado</style></author></authors><secondary-authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kepner, W G</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Rubio, Jose L</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Mouat, David A</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Pedrazzini, F</style></author></secondary-authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">DESERTIFICATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL SECURITY . THE CASE OF CONFLICTS BETWEEN FARMERS AND HERDERS IN THE ARID ENVIRONMENTS OF THE SAHEL</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Desertification in the Mediterranean Region a Security Issue</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">conflict and collaboration</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">desertification</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">environmental security</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">farmers and herders</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">sahel</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">scarcity</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Submitted</style></year></dates><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Springer Netherlands</style></publisher><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">109-132</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Traditional production systems in the Sahel are based on the integration of activities sharing and competing for renewable resources (water and soil fertility) under threat of desertification. A framework of relationships ranking from conflict to collaboration between human groups devoted to agriculture and pastoralism has been developed throughout history and has proven to be successful in sustaining the livelihood of the region’s population. Changes in the economic, social and political structure of the Sahel related to the process of colonization and de-colonization substantially altered the way in which resource scarcity was dealt previously. In a context of widespread social tension and political instability, this is thought to have increased the likelihood of farmers-herders conflicts. In this paper, we explore the worsening security conditions of the rural Sahel in the light of the new environmental security theories, which help to widen the focus of conflict analysis bringing in social, political, economical and environmental issues that were formerly disregarded</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>7</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Mouat, David A</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Bassett, Scott</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Lancaster, Judith</style></author></authors><secondary-authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kepner, W G</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Rubio, Jose L</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Mouat, David A</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Pedrazzini, F</style></author></secondary-authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">THE USE OF ALTERNATIVE FUTURES IN A STRATEGY TO ASSESS THE LIKELIHOOD OF LAND DEGRADATION LEADING TO INCREASED SUBSEQUENT POLITICAL INSTABILITY</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Desertification in the Mediterranean Region a Security Issue</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">alternative futures analysis</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">desertification</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Land degradation</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">land use</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">security risk (voyant)</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">social stability</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Submitted</style></year></dates><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Springer Netherlands</style></publisher><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">601-614</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">As stated by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), desertification or land degradation is at the root of political and socio-economic problems and poses a threat to the environmental equilibrium in affected regions. That desertification and political instability are interlinked should not be a surprise, the UN states that half of the 50 armed conflicts in 1994 had environmental causal factors characteristic of drylands (i.e., land degradation). One example cited states that the land’s loss of productivity exacerbates poverty in the drylands, forcing its farmers to seek a way of living in more fertile land or cities. In fact, over one billion people are affected as a direct consequence of desertification including 135 million people who are at risk of being displaced. The physical, biological and social causes of desertification that lead to grave human impacts are interlinked with significant feedback mechanisms. Soil salinization, for example, may result from unsuitable irrigation practices. Changes of vegetation from perennial grasses to shrubs and to annual grasses and forbs might result from overgrazing. Increases in poverty and human out-migration might result from declining agricultural productivity caused by salinization and overgrazing. Because poverty forces the people who depend on land for their livelihood to overexploit the land for food, energy, housing and source of income, desertification can be seen as both the cause and consequence of poverty. Any effective mitigation strategy must address poverty at its very center. It must take into account the social structures and land ownership as well as pay proper attention to education, training and communications in order to provide the fully integrated approach which alone can effectively combat desertification. Seeking solutions to such complex problems requires appropriate technologies and common sense. This paper suggests a technique, alternative futures analysis, to model the likelihood of future land uses in a given region undergoing desertification or at great risk to desertification and to develop an understanding of the risk to political instability coming from each of the alternatives. Furthermore, alternative futures analysis provides a technique (and communication strategy) for illustrating possible conflicts as well their causes and potential solutions. Such a strategy would help local, national and regional land managers, working with their constituent stakeholders to mitigate such effects. A framework for a pilot project employing this technique is presented.</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>7</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">González, O</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Andreu, V</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Rubio, J L</style></author></authors><secondary-authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kepner, W G</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Rubio, Jose L</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Mouat, David A</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Pedrazzini, F</style></author></secondary-authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">IMPACT OF FOREST FIRES ON HYDROLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF A TYPICAL MEDITERRANEAN FOREST SOIL</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Desertification in the Mediterranean Region a Security Issue</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">desertification</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">experimental fire</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">hydrology</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Mediterranean</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">pF curve</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">water retention capacity</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2006</style></year></dates><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Springer Netherlands</style></publisher><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">489-507</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Fire is one of the most important determining factors in the evolution of Mediterranean ecosystems. Its effects on soil are plural and diverse, acting on structure, chemical and physical properties, biota etc. Among them, the induced variations on soil water dynamics are of key importance for the recovery of the entire ecosystem and in the soil response to erosion processes. Forest fires are also a factor, triggering the risk of desertification. The aim of this study is to assess the impact effect of different fire intensities on soil hydrology and on runoff generation. This work was developed in the Permanent Experimental Field Station of La Concordia with nine plots (4 x 20 m), installed in a calcareous hillside, representative of Mediterranean shrubland areas. Experimental fires, of two intensity levels were carried out. Three plots were burned reaching high fire intensity and three other plots were burned with moderate intensity and the remaining plots were left undisturbed as control. Soil water content, water retention capacity and pF curves were measured together with runoff generation dynamics, in the different plots. The intrinsic characteristics of each rain event occurred up until a year after the fires and runoff generated on them was monitored. The data obtained was compared with the state of the plots after seven years, during the 2000-2002 period. In this period 24 rain events with runoff generation occurred, with average rainfall intensities (I30) around 10mm h-1. Both fire treatments show significant differences with respect to the Control plots, which are reflected in a value of runoff production of 76.84% as an average, less than the burned plots. Between fire treatments, the plots that burned with high intensity, show the highest values of runoff yield. However, infiltration rates do not give significant differences between fire treatments. In the same way, plots that suffer a high intensity fire show greater values (22.50 cm3 cm-3) on water retention capacity than the other treatments, giving significant differences with the Moderate intensity plots and Control plots. Differences on this parameter between plots burned with Moderate intensity and the Control plots were observed but they were not statistically significant. The obtained pF curves show the same tendencies, being the greatest water content retained at pF of 2 in the burned plots and in the Control plots at pF of 4.2. The effect of fire degrading the vegetation cover and by means of the temperature impact on soil, produce changes in its structural characteristics and porosity, affecting soil water distribution and the effective response on water erosion processes.</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>7</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kapur, S</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Akça, E</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kapur, B</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Öztürk, A</style></author></authors><secondary-authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kepner, W G</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Rubio, Jose L</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Mouat, David A</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Pedrazzini, F</style></author></secondary-authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">MIGRATION : AN IRREVERSIBLE IMPACT OF LAND DEGRADATION IN TURKEY</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Desertification in the Mediterranean Region a Security Issue</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Land degradation</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">land management</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Migration (voyant)</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Soil sealing</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Turkey</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2006</style></year></dates><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Springer Netherlands</style></publisher><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">291-301</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">The total arable land in Turkey is 28.054.000 ha. However, the prime soils cover only 17.5% of the total land surface and the productivity of the remaining soils is mainly limited by topography, depleted organic matter and high clay contents. The long standing deforestation, unsuitable tillage and irrigation management have induced the rate of erosion since historical periods. The majority of the country’s soil (76.5%) are prone to erosion risk due to the dominant steep slopes (&gt;6%), and 72% of the soils are more or less affected from water and wind erosion (CCD-Turkey, 2003). Soil sealing and extraction of raw material together with overuse of fertilizers and irrigation have led to the improper use of traditional environmental friendly agroscape (agroecosystem), thus constantly degrading the soils of the country. Secondary salinity builds up in the primary saline zones as well as the fertile alluvial planes of Turkey, which are actually the gene zones of many crops particularly cereals, legumes and halophytes, pointing out to the reality that irrigation management plans should not only be based on the concept of conventional cash crop production but also for the crop present on the indigenous agroescapes. This necessitates the incorporation of the halophyte production in the central Anatolian steppes and the olive/carod/vine production in the semi-arid Mediterranean karstic region together with the south east Anatolians calcrete agroscapes. This paradigm is sustainable land use management aims to increase the welfare of the urban people and decrease the threat of excess water use in fragile steppe, karstic and calcrete topographies, which are also the carbon pools of the world. Hence, the concept of agroscapes based on landuse assessment should primarily be considered in the development of sustainable land management strategies particularly with the incorporation of indigenous environmental friendly technical knowledge to combat land degradation and desertification. The high population increase in the urban regions and conversely the decrease in the rural, cause the intensive use of arable land around the former inducing desertification. According to the census of 2000, 40%of the country’s population live in rural area (23.797.653 out of the total 67.803.927) with an average of 1.21 ha/man arable land, mostly allocated for cereal production (country average ~2000Kg/ha.). This is equivalent to a low net income rate, which results to migration from the rural areas to urban, particularly from the east of the country to the west. The Government Statistics Institute (2003)date reveals that from 1990 to 2000, the urban population increased by 30%, ie from 33.656.275 to 44.006.274, whereas the rural increased at much lower rate (4.3%). This data reveals the pressure of both natural and human induced factors on soils and land urgently in need of sustainable land management policies along the legislations, since, the rate of quality loss of land and soil, ie desertification in the coming decades will ultimately be the common jeopardy in the country.</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>7</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kosmas, C</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Tsara, M</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Moustakas, N</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kosma, D</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Yassoglou, N</style></author></authors><secondary-authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kepner, W G</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Rubio, Jose L</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Mouat, David A</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Pedrazzini, F</style></author></secondary-authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">PART . VI Desertification Indicators and Forecasting Techniques ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE AREAS AND INDICATORS OF DESERTIFICATION</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Desertification in the Mediterranean Region a Security Issue</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">desertification indicators</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">land management</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">land use type</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">soil erosion</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">water quality (voyant)</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2006</style></year></dates><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Springer Netherlands</style></publisher><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">527-547</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Desertification is the consequence of a series of important processes in the Mediterranean environments, especially in semi-arid and arid regions, where water is the main limiting factor of land use performance on ecosystems. Among the most important processes of desertification are soil erosion and salinization particularly affecting hilly areas and lowlands, respectively. Various methodologies have been developed in identifying and mapping environmentally sensitive areas (ESAs) to desertification. Studies have shown that the various types of ESAs have different behavior on crop production, plant growth, grazing capacity, and soil erosion rates. For example, olive oil and cereal production decreased as the type of ESA changes from non-threatened to critical areas. Soil erosion measures have shown that soil erosion rates increased as the sensitivity of land to desertification increased. Loss in land productivity greatly affects farmer’s income and measures applied for protecting the land from further degradation and desertification. The necessity of elaborating indicators is one of the priorities identified by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The use of indicators can generally simplify complex processes and provide appropriate tools for combating desertification. Indicators can be classified to those related a) to the physical environment (soil, vegetation, climate), b) to the land management (tillage operations, irrigation practices, animal density grazing the land, forest fire protection, erosion measures, etc), and c) to the socio-economic characteristics (farmer age, family size, farm size, subsidies, farmer income, etc). Indicators can be better used for defining land desertification risk if they are classified according to the land use type. For example important indicators for defining desertification risk for vineyards are related to land management as well as to land characteristics such as tillage operations, tillage direction, slope gradient, parent material, plant cover, etc. Studies, conducted in areas in which the main process of desertification was salinization, showed that important indicators for defining desertification risk were ground water depth, drainage, water quality, frequency of flooding, distance from the seashore, type of land use, rainfall, etc.</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>7</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Muñoz, A</style></author></authors><secondary-authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kepner, W G</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Rubio, Jose L</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Mouat, David A</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Pedrazzini, F</style></author></secondary-authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">USING A GIS FOR SUSTAINABLE USE AND MANAGEMENT OF AN IRRIGATION AREA IN THE SPANISH - PORTUGUESE BORDER THREATENED BY DESERTIFICATION</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Desertification in the Mediterranean Region a Security Issue</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Caia Irrigation Perimeter</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">desertification</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">management (voyant)</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">organic matter</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">soil properties</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2006</style></year></dates><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">451-473</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Inappropriate management of agricultural irrigated land, using excessive amounts of production factors – pesticides and fertilizers in particular – can lead to rapid and irreversible soil degradation and the corresponding decrease in production capacity. The method presented here, applicable to the entire Mediterranean region, was designed to support the sustainable management of a 12540 ha irrigated area located in the Spanish- Portuguese border, with special emphasis on the prevention of desertification. This specific tool, incorporates a data collection from 1428 georeferenced points and respective topsoil samples, describing soil type, depth, slope, drainage, pH, organic matter content, electrical conductivity, exchangeable sodium content, and available phosphorus and potassium. Parameterized maps were prepared for all these soil properties using Geographic Information System (GIS) software to store, manage, analyze, and display the georeferenced information. Predictive maps for organic amendments need were elaborated for use in the sustainable and integrated land management of the area. The higher risk zones were identified on the basis of their soil depth, slope, drainage, organic matter, electrical conductivity, and sodium saturation percentage.</style></abstract></record></records></xml>