This paper employs a systems framework to explore sustainable agriculture as a source of food in Buffalo, NY and other Rust Belt cities that exhibit an abundance of abandoned property and vacant lots in core urban areas. Considering land as a common stock proves helpful for determining whether or not a system is sustainable, such that stocks of natural resources are not depleted faster than the...

William J. Andrews, Jason R. Masoner, Oklahoma Water Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey The abandoned Picher mining district of northeastern Oklahoma was the largest source of lead and zinc in the world in the 1920s. After abandonment in the late 1960s, the district continued to be affected by severe environmental degradation, such as subsidence and metals such as cadmium and lead seeping f...

Despite the looming land scarcity suited for agricultural expansion, farmland abandonment is widespread globally. The recultivation of some abandoned farmlands could unlock untapped potential. Yet, little known about determinants recultivation. To better understand behavioral intentions farmers regarding lands, we concentrated on Buryat Republic in Russia, where and with different ethnicities c...

Millions of hectares of tropical forests have been converted to agricultural land and abandoned, so it is important that we understand the process of forest recovery and comprehend how pathways are modified by different types of disturbance in different geographic regions. In a 4-year case study, we quantified the pattern of forest recovery following clearing and 3 years of cultivation of a moi...

Sustainable land use in post-mining areas has received more attention only recently. This study examined landscape characteristics and post-mining land use in 51 metal mining sites in Finland. Studied mines were closed during the period of 1924–2016, and over half of them had been active more than 10 years. Mines were typically located in sparsely populated forest landscapes. Cultural and recre...

Natural gas explosions and fire destroyed two businesses in downtown Hutchinson and two residents of a mobile-home park also died of injuries from explosions. Gas geyser eruptions spewing a mixture of natural gas and saltwater in the area forced the evacuation of hundreds of people. The pathways to the land surface at both the explosion sites and the geysers were abandoned brine wells used for ...

Soil bacterial community structures in terraced rice fields and abandoned lands in a hilly and mountainous area were analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequences. The DGGE band patterns of each soil were similar. Based on pyrosequencing data, the richness and diversity of bacterial species were slightly higher in paddy fields than in other soils. A beta-diversity analysis clearly indicated that the b...

Large areas of tropical forests have been converted to agricultural land and subsequently abandoned. If restoration can occur on these abandoned lands, it offers great potential for biodiversity recovery, carbon sequestration, and enhanced ecosystem services. To understand the interaction between different forms of anthropogenic degradation and restoration strategies we examined biomass accumul...

B rownfield sites are a common eyesore on the edges of many cities; the abandoned, decaying hulks of industrial or commercial structures sit rusting and forgotten while they leach harmful chemicals such as asbestos, solvents or heavy metals into the soil. Some brownfields lie virtually untouched for years because it is often cheaper to expand cities into virgin territory than to demolish large ...