Title: Upland agricultural and forestry development in the Amazon:
sustainability, criticality and resilience
Author: Serrão, Emmanuel Adilson S., Nepstad, Daniel, Walker, Robert
Date: 1996
Source: Ecological Economics 18 (1996) 3-13
Description: This paper provides an overview of agricultural and forestry development in the Amazon basin, and presents and
discusses the main land use systems in evidence today in that region. These are logging, shifting-cultivation and ranching.
The issue of sustainability is addressed, and current Amazonian land use is interpreted in light of ecological impacts and
long-run viability. Also considered are the ecological notions of criticality, endangerment, impoverishment and resilience.
After addressing the threats of land use encroachment to the forest resource base, the paper identifies sufficient conditions
for regional ecosystem sustainability and considers desirable technological and policy-oriented responses in this regard. The
paper concludes with a call to future research on land use systems, noting, however, that the greatest challenge is the design
of equitable government policy for the adoption of sustainable systems.
Keywords: Amazon basin; Agricultural development; Forestry development; Land use; Criticality; Resilience; Sustainability
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Citation
Serrão, Emmanuel Adilson S., Nepstad, Daniel, Walker, Robert 1996. Upland agricultural and forestry development in the Amazon:
sustainability, criticality and resilience. Ecological Economics 18 (1996) 3-13.