Abstract

The purpose of this review is to discuss the role of agroforestry systems in providing environmental services, including more diverse and sustainable agricultural production, increased carbon stocks and enhanced biodiversity conservation, plus improved soil fertility, methane emission mitigation, and water and air quality. There is evidence that agroforestry systems have an important role in providing environmental services, as approximately 20 % of the world's population, primarily in rural and urban areas of developing countries, depends directly on agroforestry products. The adoption of agroforestry contributes to reduced greenhouse gas emissions (carbon dioxide and methane), diminishes the pressure on vulnerable ecosystems, and improves the livelihoods of rural communities.

Keywords

Biodiversity; carbon sequestration; methane emissions; soil fertility; water conservation

Published in

Revista Chapingo serie ciencias forestales y del ambiente
2016, Volume: 22, number: 3, pages: 269-284

UKÄ Subject classification

Forest Science


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5154/r.rchscfa.2015.06.029

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/127263