Implications of expansion and management intensification on soil ecosystem services

Abstract

Soil is natural capital that performs multiple functions and provides essential ecosystem services to people. Therefore, to assess the effects of agriculture expansion and intensification on "Soil Ecosystem Services" (i.e., flux of benefits people obtain from soil) is an emergent, strategic and priority research topic towards sustainable development in the next decades. In Brazil, it is a novel topic, thus, there is a large avenue of research opportunities to be explored. The objective of this project is to assess the impact of expansion and management intensification of sugarcane on provision of multiples soil ecosystem service. The sugarcane production system will be used as a "study case" due to its social, economic and environmental relevance to Brazil coupled to the team's experience with this crop. Two main sugarcane scenarios will be assessed: i) land-use change to sugarcane expansion; ii) management change through sugarcane straw removal to bioenergy production. Initially, study fields that representing these scenarios, in central-southern Brazil, will be identified and selected with the support of the team' members and collaborators. Then, different approaches (statistical, minimum dataset, expert opinion etc) will be applied to define a suitable indicator dataset associated with each soil ecosystem service. Secondary data will be used to perform these analyses. Afterwards, field campaigns will be conducted to collect primary data of soil and plant. The next step is the most challenging, and aim to develop a soil ecosystem service assessment framework. This framework will link properties (measured) to soil functions and then to the services delivered by soil. These relationships will be assessed within different complexity levels using methods, specific frameworks, indexes and models. The combined use of these tools allows evaluating from specific soil property/function changes to integrated (holistic) assessment that reach wider audiences. We expect the results help to understand better the effects of sugarcane expansion /intensification on soil ecosystem services, and consequently, to guide more sustainable use and management that being aligned with global challenges, such as energy security, climate changes and human well-being. It is worth mentioning that the approach and framework developed through sugarcane case study can be later applied to other key agricultural production systems to national sustainable development. Finally, the implementation of this project will be strategic to consolidate a new research line in the institution, allowing us to nucleate professors, researchers and students interested in this topic. (AU)