CONTEXT

The ecosystem services (ES) concept has brought together research on ecosystems, biodiversity and human well-being, but critical challenges remain to make ES operational. ES assessments are relevant tools in multi-purpose landscapes, such as agricultural landscapes situated within natural protected areas where the challenge is to meet both local livelihoods and conservations goals. La Sepultura Biosphere Reserve in south-eastern Mexico has evidenced tensions among social actors due to territorial disputes; local farmers and conservation institutions contest the landscape’s land use and ES benefits.

OBJECTIVE

We conducted an empirical study in the territory of a small mountain community within this biosphere reserve. We assessed ES in alternative land use scenarios with the aim to generate knowledge in support of local land use and management decisions.

METHODS

We first characterised local land use using mixed methods research and quantified six locally relevant ES: Livelihood ES valued by farmers including forage production, firewood stocks, and resin production, and ES valued by conservation institutions including tree cover, riparian corridor, and tree diversity. Next, four alternative land use scenarios were built based on expert knowledge and stakeholder participation, with a different balance and integration of production and conservation objectives. We then estimated these ES in the four scenarios and assessed ES trade-offs at the farm and landscape level.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS

We found that farm diversity mattered. Though farms presented similar trade-offs in each of the scenarios, the magnitude of these trade-offs varied considerably among small vs. large farms. At the landscape level, the intensive cattle ranching and forest restoration scenarios presented hard trade-offs, compared to the more moderate integrated agroforestry practices scenario. Moreover, the land use zoning scenario, a management strategy promoted by conservation institutions, did not differ from the current landscape nor offer an improvement in conservation indicators. Livestock played a key role in the land system, and trade-offs between forage production and other ES were recurrent across scenarios and spatial scales. Still, management practices that harness biodiversity and ES can improve sustainability of cattle ranching, and thus reconcile production and conservation goals.

SIGNIFICANCE

Relevant ES assessments in agricultural landscapes support local land management decisions, integrate the social–ecological context, and scale up land use scenarios from the farm (fine scale) to the landscape level.

中文翻译：

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农场多样性和精细尺度在评估生态系统服务和土地利用场景中很重要

语境

生态系统服务 (ES) 概念汇集了对生态系统、生物多样性和人类福祉的研究，但要使 ES 发挥作用，仍然存在重大挑战。ES 评估是多用途景观中的相关工具，例如位于自然保护区内的农业景观，其挑战是满足当地生计和保护目标。由于领土争端，墨西哥东南部的 La Sepultura 生物圈保护区证明了社会行为者之间的紧张关系；当地农民和保护机构争夺景观的土地利用和 ES 收益。

客观的

我们在该生物圈保护区内的一个小型山区社区进行了实证研究。我们评估了替代土地使用情景中的 ES，目的是产生支持当地土地使用和管理决策的知识。

方法

我们首先使用混合方法研究表征了当地土地利用，并量化了六个与当地相关的 ES：农民重视的生计 ES，包括草料生产、木柴库存和树脂生产，以及保护机构重视的 ES，包括树木覆盖、河岸走廊和树木多样性。接下来，基于专家知识和利益相关者的参与，构建了四种替代的土地利用场景，具有不同的平衡和生产和保护目标的整合。然后，我们在四种情景中估计了这些 ES，并评估了农场和景观级别的 ES 权衡。

结果和结论

我们发现农场多样性很重要。尽管农场在每种情况下都表现出类似的权衡，但这些权衡的大小在小型农场和大型农场之间差异很大。在景观层面，与较为温和的综合农林业实践情景相比，集约化养牛场和森林恢复情景呈现出艰难的权衡。此外，土地利用分区方案是保护机构推动的一种管理策略，与当前的景观没有区别，保护指标也没有改善。牲畜在土地系统中发挥着关键作用，草料生产和其他生态系统之间的权衡在不同情景和空间尺度上反复出现。尽管如此，利用生物多样性和 ES 的管理实践可以提高养牛场的可持续性，

意义

农业景观中的相关 ES 评估支持当地土地管理决策，整合社会-生态环境，并将土地利用场景从农场（精细规模）扩大到景观层面。