IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jlands/v6y2017i3p61-d111726.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Fire Data as Proxy for Anthropogenic Landscape Change in the Yucatán

Author

Listed:
  • Marco Millones

    (Department of Geography, University of Mary Washington, 1301 College Ave, Fredericksburg, VA 23219, USA)

  • John Rogan

    (Graduate School of Geography, Clark University, 950 Main St. Worcester, MA 01610, USA)

  • B.L. Turner II

    (School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, and School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 88281-5302, USA)

  • Benoit Parmentier

    (Sustainability Solutions Initiative, Mitchell Center, 5710 Norman Smith Hall, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469, USA)

  • Robert Clary Harris

    (Independent Scholar)

  • Daniel A. Griffith

    (School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences, University of Texas at Dallas, 800 W Campbell Rd, Richardson, TX 75080, USA)

Abstract

Fire is one of the earliest and most common tools used by humans to modify the earth surface. Landscapes in the Yucatán Peninsula are composed of a mosaic of old growth subtropical forest, secondary vegetation, grasslands, and agricultural land that represent a well-documented example of anthropogenic intervention, much of which involves the use of fire. This research characterizes land use systems and land cover changes in the Yucatán during the 2000–2010 time period. We used an active fire remotely sensed data time series from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), in combination with forest loss, and anthrome map sources to (1) establish the association between fire and land use change in the region; and (2) explore links between the spatial and temporal patterns of fire and specific types of land use practices, including within- and between-anthromes variability. A spatial multinomial logit model was constructed using fire, landscape configuration, and a set of commonly used control variables to estimate forest persistence, non-forest persistence, and change. Cross-tabulations and descriptive statistics were used to explore the relationships between fire occurrence, location, and timing with respect to the geography of land use. We also compared fire frequencies within and between anthrome groups using a negative binomial model and Tukey pairwise comparisons. Results show that fire data broadly reproduce the geography and timing of anthropogenic land change. Findings indicate that fire and landscape configuration is useful in explaining forest change and non-forest persistence, especially in fragmented (mosaicked) landscapes. Absence of fire occurrence is related usefully to the persistence of spatially continuous core areas of older growth forest. Fire has a positive relationship with forest to non-forest change and a negative relationship with forest persistence. Fire is also a good indicator to distinguish between anthrome groups (e.g., croplands and villages). Our study suggests that active fire data series are a reasonable proxy for anthropogenic land persistence/change in the context of the Yucatán and are useful to differentiate quantitatively and qualitatively between and within anthromes.

Suggested Citation

  • Marco Millones & John Rogan & B.L. Turner II & Benoit Parmentier & Robert Clary Harris & Daniel A. Griffith, 2017. "Fire Data as Proxy for Anthropogenic Landscape Change in the Yucatán," Land, MDPI, vol. 6(3), pages 1-19, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:6:y:2017:i:3:p:61-:d:111726
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/6/3/61/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/6/3/61/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. W. Lutz & L. Prieto & W.C. Sanderson, 2000. "Population, Development, and Environment on the Yucatan Peninsula: From Ancient Maya to 2030," Working Papers rr00014, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis.
    2. David Griggs & Mark Stafford-Smith & Owen Gaffney & Johan Rockström & Marcus C. Öhman & Priya Shyamsundar & Will Steffen & Gisbert Glaser & Norichika Kanie & Ian Noble, 2013. "Sustainable development goals for people and planet," Nature, Nature, vol. 495(7441), pages 305-307, March.
    3. Walker, Robert & Moran, Emilio & Anselin, Luc, 2000. "Deforestation and Cattle Ranching in the Brazilian Amazon: External Capital and Household Processes," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 683-699, April.
    4. Pfaff, Alexander S. P., 1999. "What Drives Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon?: Evidence from Satellite and Socioeconomic Data," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 26-43, January.
    5. Daniel A. Griffith, 2003. "Spatial Autocorrelation and Spatial Filtering," Advances in Spatial Science, Springer, number 978-3-540-24806-4, Fall.
    6. Kates, Robert, et al., 2000. "Sustainability Science," Working Paper Series rwp00-018, Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government.
    7. Van Butsic & Maggi Kelly & Max A. Moritz, 2015. "Land Use and Wildfire: A Review of Local Interactions and Teleconnections," Land, MDPI, vol. 4(1), pages 1-17, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Araujo, Claudio & Bonjean, Catherine Araujo & Combes, Jean-Louis & Combes Motel, Pascale & Reis, Eustaquio J., 2009. "Property rights and deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(8-9), pages 2461-2468, June.
    2. Pascale COMBES MOTEL & Jean-Louis COMBES & Catherine ARAUJO BONJEAN & Claudio ARAUJO & Eustaquio J. REIS, 2010. "Does Land Tenure Insecurity Drive Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon?," Working Papers 201013, CERDI.
    3. Sonia SCHWARTZ & Jean Galbert ONGONO OLINGA & Eric Nazindigouba KERE & Pascale COMBES MOTEL & Jean-Louis COMBES & Johanna CHOUMERT & Ariane Manuela AMIN, 2014. "A spatial econometric approach to spillover effects between protected areas and deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon," Working Papers 201406, CERDI.
    4. Claudio Ferraz, 2015. "Explaining Agriculture Expansion and Deforestation: Evidence from the Brazilian Amazon – 1980/98," Discussion Papers 0106, Instituto de Pesquisa Econômica Aplicada - IPEA.
    5. Danilo Camargo Igliori, 2006. "Deforestation, Growth And Agglomeration Effects: Evidence From Agriculture In The Brazilian Amazon," Anais do XXXIV Encontro Nacional de Economia [Proceedings of the 34th Brazilian Economics Meeting] 102, ANPEC - Associação Nacional dos Centros de Pós-Graduação em Economia [Brazilian Association of Graduate Programs in Economics].
    6. Weslem Faria & Alexandre Almeida, 2011. "Agricultural Expansion, Openness to Trade and Deforestation at the Brazilian Amazon: A Spatial Econometric Analysis," ERSA conference papers ersa11p1013, European Regional Science Association.
    7. Danilo Camargo Igliori, 2005. "Determinants Of Technical Efficiency In Agriculture And Cattle Ranching: A Spatial Analysis For The Brazilian Amazon," Anais do XXXIII Encontro Nacional de Economia [Proceedings of the 33rd Brazilian Economics Meeting] 137, ANPEC - Associação Nacional dos Centros de Pós-Graduação em Economia [Brazilian Association of Graduate Programs in Economics].
    8. Bowman, Maria S., 2016. "Impact of foot-and-mouth disease status on deforestation in Brazilian Amazon and cerrado municipalities between 2000 and 2010," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 25-40.
    9. Araujo, Claudio & Bonjean, Catherine Araujo & Combes, Jean Louis & Motel, Pascal Combes & Reis, Eustaquio Jose, 2008. "Land Reform And Deforestation In The Brazilian Amazonia," 46th Congress, July 20-23, 2008, Rio Branco, Acre, Brazil 108618, Sociedade Brasileira de Economia, Administracao e Sociologia Rural (SOBER).
    10. Paul Voss & David Long & Roger Hammer & Samantha Friedman, 2006. "County child poverty rates in the US: a spatial regression approach," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 25(4), pages 369-391, August.
    11. Claudio ARAUJO & Catherine ARAUJO BONJEAN & Jean-Louis COMBES & Pascale COMBES MOTEL & Eustaquio J. REIS, 2005. "Insécurité foncière et déforestation dans l'Amazonie brésilienne," Working Papers 200516, CERDI.
    12. Caviglia-Harris, Jill L., 2005. "Cattle Accumulation and Land Use Intensification by Households in the Brazilian Amazon," Agricultural and Resource Economics Review, Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association, vol. 34(2), pages 1-18, October.
    13. Mena, Carlos F. & Barbieri, Alisson F. & Walsh, Stephen J. & Erlien, Christine M. & Holt, Flora L. & Bilsborrow, Richard E., 2006. "Pressure on the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve: Development and Land Use/Cover Change in the Northern Ecuadorian Amazon," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 34(10), pages 1831-1849, October.
    14. Aguiar, Ana Paula Dutra & Câmara, Gilberto & Escada, Maria Isabel Sobral, 2007. "Spatial statistical analysis of land-use determinants in the Brazilian Amazonia: Exploring intra-regional heterogeneity," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 209(2), pages 169-188.
    15. Nan Jing & Wenxue Cai, 2010. "Analysis on the spatial distribution of logistics industry in the developed East Coast Area in China," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 45(2), pages 331-350, October.
    16. Sergio Margulis, 2004. "Causes of Deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 15060, December.
    17. Claudio ARAUJO & Catherine ARAUJO BONJEAN & Jean-Louis COMBES & Pascale COMBES MOTEL & Eustaquio J. REIS, 2006. "Land tenure insecurity and deforestation in the Brazilian Amazonia," Working Papers 200615, CERDI.
    18. Mertens, B. & Poccard-Chapuis, R. & Piketty, M. -G. & Lacques, A. -E. & Venturieri, A., 2002. "Crossing spatial analyses and livestock economics to understand deforestation processes in the Brazilian Amazon: the case of Sao Felix do Xingu in South Para," Agricultural Economics, Blackwell, vol. 27(3), pages 269-294, November.
    19. Sébastien Marchand, 2011. "Technical Efficiency, Farm Size and Tropical Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazonian Forest," CERDI Working papers halshs-00552981, HAL.
    20. Lina O Anderson & Samantha De Martino & Torfinn Harding & Karlygash Kuralbayeva & Andre Lima, 2016. "The Effects of Land Use Regulation on Deforestation:," OxCarre Working Papers 172, Oxford Centre for the Analysis of Resource Rich Economies, University of Oxford.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:6:y:2017:i:3:p:61-:d:111726. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.