Interconnections among rural practices and Food-Water-Energy Security Nexus in the Atlantic Forest biome

ABSTRACT Global agricultural production is expected to double by 2050 due to both global population increase and changes in diets as a consequence of growing incomes. This also means more pressure on water resources, as agriculture accounts for 70 % of global water withdrawal and for energy production as the entire food supply chain accounts for about 30 % of total global energy consumption. Although there are ongoing discussions related to the sustainability of food, water, and energy sectors, integrating these sectors is still rare and challenging. We investigated the effects of agricultural practices on the Food, Water and Energy (F-W-E) nexus security systems by evaluating the results reported in scientific literature. Focusing on the Brazilian Atlantic Forest biome as a study case, our main goals were 1) to elucidate the impacts of rural conservation practices on food, water, and energy production based on literature analysis, 2) to propose F-W-E attributes and evaluate how they are addressed by rural practices. Our findings demonstrated, in general, a positive impact of agricultural conservation practices on F-W-E security attributes. Indeed, 76 % of the combination between a conservational practice with a F-W-E attribute was positive. Some agricultural practices, such as no tillage are very well documented (45 % of all combinations), especially regarding their effects on soil quality parameters. We found few results connecting agricultural practice and energy aspects. These results are key elements that corroborate with the agriculture multifunctionality approach, and the results can better guide the planning of strategies in the agricultural sector and subsidize decision making.

摘要：受全球人口增长与收入提升引发的饮食结构改变双重影响，预计到2050年全球农业产量将翻倍。这同时也将给水资源带来更大压力：农业用水占全球总取水量的70%，而整个食品供应链的能源消耗约占全球总能耗的30%。尽管当前学界已围绕食品、水与能源领域的可持续性展开诸多讨论，但将这三大领域进行整合的研究仍较为罕见且颇具挑战。本研究通过梳理科学文献中的研究结果，探讨了农业生产实践对食品-水-能源（Food, Water and Energy, F-W-E）关联安全系统的影响。本研究以巴西大西洋森林生物群系为研究案例，核心目标有二：其一，通过文献分析阐明乡村保护实践对食品、水与能源生产的影响；其二，提出F-W-E关联的核心属性，并评估乡村实践对这些属性的优化情况。研究结果总体表明，农业保护实践对F-W-E安全属性具有积极影响。具体而言，76%的保护实践与F-W-E属性的组合效应均为正向。部分农业实践（如免耕法）已有大量研究记录（占所有组合案例的45%），尤其在其对土壤质量参数的影响方面。但本研究发现，关联农业实践与能源维度的研究成果较为匮乏。上述研究结果可为农业多功能性理论提供重要佐证，同时能够更好地指导农业领域的战略规划，并为决策制定提供有力支撑。