Evaluation and comparison of ecological health in three arid rangeland using Landscape Function Analysis (LFA) (Case study: Kalateh Roudbar, Damghan)

Abstract

Human pressures on the world’s landscapes are accelerating at unprecedented rates. In response to these pressures, making the need for sustainable landscape management and planning even more urgent. To have a continuous and sustainable utilization of rangelands these changes must be recognized and managed. Landscape Function Analysis (LFA) is a monitoring procedure that assesses the degradation of landscapes, as brought about by human, animal and natural activities, through rapidly assessing certain soil surface indicators which indicate the biophysical functionality of the system. Indicators of soil surface characteristics and rangeland functional attributes assist researchers in judging the effects of their applied management activities. In this research, three rangelands with similar ecological characteristics were studied in order to compare their health and stability. The aim is to determine qualification of sustainability and rangeland health attribute by the LFA method. It was tried to answer this question that similar ecological and climatic conditions, different management practices how affect on sustainability and health indicators? This purpose was done by three indices of stability, permeability and nutrient cycle for each study region. The differences between these indices was significant. The results showed that Espiro rangeland is stable than two others. Changi rangeland need more reformative activities that rangeland managers have to recognize these relations and proceed.

Keywords

• landscape function analysis
• stability
• permeability
• nutrient cycle
• espiro rangeland
• changi rangeland