SMAC: spatial optimisation model for analysing catchment management

This paper deals with world experience of Land Management achieving sustainable use of agricultural land. The study of foreign models on functioning of Land Management mechanism of sustainable use of agricultural land have shown that in most developed countries, rural areas are separate facilities of management. The author has discovered main positive ways of implementing international experience in the process of environmental and economic security of Land Management mechanism of sustainable use of agricultural land in Ukraine.

In today's conditions of European integration processes, the problem of the formation of agricultural land use in accordance with the strategy of sustainable development of Ukraine is of considerable interest to the study. In view of the imperfection of the functioning of the regulatory and legal framework and the instability of the political situation in the country, the problem of preservation of rational use and protection of agricultural land use becomes especially relevant. In our opinion, one of the factors contributing to the formation of sustainable agricultural land use is the agrochemical passport of the field, land, agrochemical certification. The purpose of this work is to conduct an analysis of the regulation of relations in the field of agrochemical certification in the formation of sustainable agricultural land use. The study used general scientific and special methods: analysis and synthesis, analogies and comparisons, generalizations, statistics, etc. The methodological basis of the study is an integrated approach, system-structural analysis and a dialectical method of scientific knowledge. The work substantiates that agrochemical certification of a particular site is an important tool in the formation of sustainable development of agricultural land use through the prism of interaction between the legal, technological, ecological and economic environment. The algorithm of agrochemical certification is improved, which gives a systematic representation of the process of certification. The proposed algorithm involves the structuring of nine stages of its implementation. Based on the research of the current state of agrochemical certification, its principles and tasks were generalized, as well as the functional possibilities of its carrying out, which can be taken into account when developing the Law of Ukraine "On state agrochemical certification of agricultural land".

Land Fund in Ukraine is experiencing excessive human impact, which is reflected in its performance exceeding the allowable agricultural development and land structure imbalance. The environmental condition of land resources close to critical. Among the largest land area occupied by agricultural land (71% of which - 76% is arable land). Violation environmentally acceptable ratio of arable land, natural grasslands and forests negatively affected the sustainability of agricultural landscapes. Throughout the widespread land degradation processes, among which the most ambitious is the erosion (about 57.5% of the territory), pollution (20% of the territory), flooding (about 12% of the territory). Sustainable (balanced) land is one of the key factors of sustainable nature of territorial entities and may be formed of a priority, taking into account environmental factors. In ecological optimization based on value criteria ekolohostabilizuyuchyh and anthropogenic pressures lands should necessarily provide for withdrawal of intensive land use, which in its modal properties can not ensure sustainability of land use. However, today in Ukraine within the territories of communities no project development to optimize land use on the basis of sustainable development. Accordingly, the purpose of the article was the study of certain aspects of Land Management sustainable development of agricultural land within the territories of local communities. The current structure of the land fund of Ukraine was actually formed in the Soviet period, under the influence of policies of extensive agricultural development. Violation environmentally acceptable ratio of arable land, natural grasslands and forests negatively affected the stability and condition of land, which is confirmed by relevant research. In such circumstances, balancing the land proposed to carry out in two stages - the ecological and economic. In ecological optimization criteria based on land value necessarily should include withdrawal from intensive land use, which in its modal properties can not ensure sustainability of land use. In this respect, proposed to use as a criterion factor environmental sustainability of land use and anthropogenic load factor. Assessing the impact of land in the sustainability area council, which depends on the stability of agricultural development area, and tillage intensity of land, construction work is characterized by a coefficient of environmental sustainability of land use. Proved that the crucial part of the ecological optimization of land use on the territory of local communities is a balanced structure of land on the basis of ecologically appropriate use. It is important that quality indicators improve the structure of agricultural land in the optimization occurs within the environmental feasibility, increases the stability of land use and contributes to sustainable and balanced agrolandscapes territory. Economic optimization based on the requirements of the environmental is the next stage will determine on the basis of performance indicators such structure of land crops, which will be harmonized achieved high performance, yield and profitability management. Keywords : sustainable development, environmental sustainability, economic optimization, ecological optimization, environmental sustainability factor, the factor of human activity.

Energy and carbon budgeting of the pearl millet-wheat cropping system for environmentally sustainable agricultural land use planning in the rainfed semi-arid agro-ecosystem of Aravalli foothills

Abstract. The ability of the economic system to meet the growing needs of society without losing natural resources or significantly reducing their quality properties can be predicted by the factor of ecological capacity of agricultural land use, which harmonizes economic and environmental components of agricultural land use by harmonizing social welfare and resource potential. The implementation of this approach should lead to the reconciliation of differences in the growth rates of economic prosperity and environmental decline, which is the quintessence in the practice of sustainable agricultural land use, as an essential norm in long-term exploitation of natural resources by current and future generations. Therefore, taking into account the factor of ecological capacity of lands as a criterion of productivity of agricultural lands is not in doubt. Purpose. The goal of this research is substantiation of the essence of the factor of ecological capacity of lands, determination of its components and the need for its forecasting in order to preserve the productive properties of lands. Results. It is proved that unreasonable human actions year after year lead to the transformation of qualitative properties of productive soils. Direct depletion of lands occurs due to insufficient application of organic fertilizers, excessive plowing of landscapes, neglect of field crop rotations, and excessive removal of nutrients by commercial crops, reduction of organic residues entering the soil, and so on. In this situation, the system of agricultural land use needs to be restructured as soon as possible in order to increase human welfare as long as possible, and in the long run to significantly reduce the pressure on the environment. In this context, the available natural resources should be directed not only to the development of the current economy, but also to serve as a basis for a guaranteed extension of the life cycle of ecologically dependent human civilization. The introduction of the factor of ecological capacity of lands will allow warning landowners and landing users about the danger of crisis phenomena associated with the emergence of threatening facts or the emergence of dangerous conditions. Conclusions. After conducting research, we conclude that the factor of ecological capacity of lands is the ability of the system of agricultural land use, its constituent subsystems or individual elements to synthesize, identify, update, accumulate and multiply the value properties of land. This ensures the required level of productivity in the face of ever-increasing anthropogenic pressure from individual actors.

Current intensification and changes in agricultural land use practices increase environmental impact that can be reduced by bridging the gap between socio-economic demands and scientific justification of sustainable agricultural land use. This can be achieved by replacing the goal of maximum crop yields with the goal of minimal environmental impact. This paper presents results of integrated crop simulation system development for analysis of alternative planning strategies in agricultural land use, with focus on the crop rotation influence on environmental sustainability. The effective tools used in analysis include (1) long-term analysis of changes in agricultural land using a dynamic crop model with daily time step; (2) justification of arbitrary crop rotation scheme of different agro-technologies and sparing measures; and (3) analysis of modern farming management methods using model-oriented approach. The results of study also include estimation of two alternative practices of crop harvesting including remaining or removing whole crop residues from the agricultural field and their influence on basic parameters of soil fertility. In addition, we analyzed comparative efficiency of different agricultural measures neglecting the negative influence of possible climate changes in long-term consequences. Corresponding efficiency rating is the following: organic fertilizer, green manure legume sparing harvesting, winter catch crop, and rotation scheme.

In modern conditions before each landowner and land user raises questions of environmental and economic effects of business activities, finding the most reasonable in terms of environmental protection, forms and methods of economic and environmentally sustainable use of agricultural land. One solution to these issues is the introduction of ecologically land. Environmentally safety agricultural land use land use process that involves the conservation and improvement of soil fertility through the use of measures for the land protection, which include: improving the structure of agricultural land and acreage, soil-tilling land, evidence-based standards of fertilizer applying, mainly use of biological methods of plant protection and modern agricultural machinery. Theoretical foundations of the formation and development of environmentally safety use of agricultural land are investigated. The ways of rational use and protection of land resources and reproduction of land resource potential of agricultural enterprises are grounded. It is established that environmentally safety agricultural land use requires consideration of territorial, economic, environmental and social factors that significantly affect the condition of land, their performance, and at the same time the efficiency of agricultural enterprises.

Introduction. Issues related to increasing the sustainability of agricultural land in the Altai Krai are very relevant, modern and practically significant, since about 90 % of the territory is more or less subject to degradation processes. They reduce soil fertility and, as a result, the productivity of agricultural land, which is largely due to the landscape specificity of the territory. The solution to the problem is possible on the basis of adaptive landscape land management, which is the basis for organizing sustainable agricultural land use. When designing agricultural landscapes, on the one hand, we take into account and preserve the natural properties of the territory, and on the other hand, we limit the anthropogenic impact on it. By designing sustainable, capable of self-regulation and self-reproduction of agricultural landscapes, it is possible to optimize agricultural land use. The purpose of the study: to conduct an agro-ecological typology of agricultural lands (agro-landscapes) of the arid steppe of the Altai Krai to optimize the existing agricultural land use and increase its sustainability. Research methods. System analysis has become the main scientific method for analyzing the relationships and mutual influences within landscapes. When studying and comparing the physical and geographical characteristics of the territory, comparative geographical and ecological landscape methods were used using the cartographic method and GIS technologies. Research results. The allocation of agro-ecological groups of lands is based on the leading agro-ecological factors (moisture supply, erosion, waterlogging, periodic flooding, salinization, alkalinity), the degree of their manifestation and related limiting factors. As a zonal agro-ecological group, we identified upland lands, which occupy 22 % of the study area. Slope (or erosional) lands in the arid steppe occupy a significant proportion (59 % of the area) and are located on slopes with a steepness of up to 3°, in some places 5°. Taking into account the wide spatial development of deflation processes (44 % of the subzone area), the authors of the work singled out a special agroecological group of lands – deflationary lands in the composition of eroded lands. The deflationary lands were divided into three agro-ecological groups: weakly, medium and strongly deflated lands. Insignificant territories (less than 1% of the subzone area) are combined into a group of waterlogged lands, which differ in the degree of hydromorphism and have a common feature – ecological waterlogging, which makes it difficult or excludes the possibility of cultivating crops. The territories in the soil cover of which solonets occupy more than 10 % of the area are combined into a group of solonetz lands, which occupy slightly more than 4 % of the area of the zone. The group of solonetzic lands is divided into two parts – solonetzic-automorphic and solonetzic-hydromorphic. Also, a group of lands of the ravine-beam complex was identified, which are limited, since the depth of the dissection of the territory does not exceed 10 m, and the density is insignificant or weak (1-2,5 km and more than 2,5 km). In nine municipal districts that are part of the arid steppe, the identified types of land are found in different proportions. For the sustainable development of agricultural land use, its optimization is necessary, associated with a reduction in the area of agricultural land by 14,5 thousand hectares with fluctuations in districts from 0,7 (Suetsky district) to 2.3 thousand hectares (in Blagoveshchensky and Rubtsovsky districts) and an increase in the area of industrial land (by 12,4 thousand hectares) due to the allocation of protected zones along railways and roads, green protective zones around settlements, as well as shelterbelt forest belts. Conclusions 1. An agro-ecological typology of agricultural lands in the arid steppe of the Altai Krai was produced; 2. It has been established that the main limiting factors affecting the productivity of agricultural land are the degree of deflation, relief, the presence and density of hydrographic objects, the degree of waterlogging and salinity, which significantly affect landscapes under different management conditions; 3. For the municipal districts of the arid steppe, the change in the ratio of lands was calculated, taking into account limiting factors, as well as the stability of agricultural landscapes as a result of the transformation of the structure of sown areas, lands, and crop rotations; 4. The obtained research results can be used by regional and municipal authorities in long-term planning and management of land resources, their economic assessment, and collection of fiscal payments, as well as agricultural producers in the organization and optimization of agricultural landscapes.

The article examines the current issues of accounting for land resources in agriculture, which are caused by the lack of unified methodological approaches to their classification, valuation, and representation in financial reporting. The current state of land accounting is analyzed, including shortcomings in regulatory and legal frameworks, the lack of detailed analytical accounting, and inconsistencies between accounting and cadastral records. Particular attention is given to the impact of military actions on the land resource accounting system, specifically issues related to landmine contamination, physical damage to land, the occupation of certain territories, and the inability to conduct inventory assessments in regions of active combat. The necessity of introducing specialized sub-accounts in the working chart of accounts is identified, which would allow for the recording of temporarily occupied land plots, lands that have suffered destruction or contamination, as well as plots requiring restoration after military actions. The need to improve the methodology for land valuation, considering modern conditions, including updating the normative monetary valuation and introducing adjustment coefficients that account for the degree of damage or land use restrictions, is substantiated. Furthermore, the article highlights the need to develop a unified methodology for accounting for land resources that considers the specifics of land use in agriculture, their legal status, and usage restrictions. The integration of digital technologies, particularly geographic information systems (GIS), is proposed to enhance analytical accounting and land monitoring, enabling real-time data updates and increasing the efficiency of land resource management. In the long term, the implementation of such approaches will contribute to greater transparency in the accounting system, improved financial control, and the sustainable use of agricultural land. The article also proposes the development of new forms of accounting and statistical reporting that include detailed information on the degree of land use, normative monetary valuation, classification by land categories, legal status, level of physical damage, and potential threats such as landmine contamination. The necessity of aligning accounting records with cadastral data is substantiated, which will enhance the accuracy of financial and managerial information, ensure effective monitoring, and support strategic decision-making regarding the restoration and rational use of land resources in agriculture.

Indonesian Government needs to implement an appropriate rice policy to achieve the food security and poverty alleviation. Therefore, this study aims to investigate how Indonesian government can achieve the policy targets such as global competitiveness of rice sector and food security under more liberalized trade regime. This dissertation comprises six main chapters. Chapter I presents the introduction of the study. The author describes the background of the study, the research topics, the originality, and the organization of the dissertation. Chapter II provides the overview of the general situation of the rice sector in Indonesia. This chapter describes the rice production both at the national level andat the provincial level. Moreover, this chapter also illustrates the importance of the rice sector in Indonesian agriculture. Chapter III examines the competitiveness and cost efficiency of rice farming in Indonesia. This chapter attempts to test the cost efficiency of rice farming in the main rice producing areas, and confirms the competitiveness of each area. Chapter IV focuses on the economies of scale in Indonesian rice production. This chapter tests the existence of scale economies via three different methodologies: the cost elasticity of production, the cost function derived from the production function of rice, and the profit function derived from the maximization problem of the rice farmer. Chapter V investigates the constraint of farm size enlargement in the rice sector of Central Java. This chapter captures the result of a field survey in Central Java, which examines the surplus labor in the rural labor market, characteristics of land tenure, fragmentation of land, agricultural land law that discourages land transaction, and expectation for the conversion of agricultural land to non-agricultural land. Finally, Chapter VI is the conclusion. This chapter provides the major findings and conclusions of the study. Then, the author derives the policy recommendations to help the Indonesian Government improve the Indonesian rice sector. The results of investigation in this study imply that if Indonesian Government liberalizes the rice policy, rice farmers in the major rice growing areas, such as Central Java and East Java will have the largest negative effects because they do not have global competitiveness due to small farm sizes. This study also found some evidences about the existence of scale economies in the study area and the benefit of enlarging the farm size. It may implement an alternative mix policy to promote farm-size enlargement such as facilitating the development of off-farm jobs in rural area, controlling land conversion, and considering the role of hamlets and villages for efficient and sustainable agricultural land use.[Key words: Rice Farming, Competitiveness, Cost Efficiency, Economies of Scale, Farm Size Enlargement]

Exploring the relationship between new-type urbanization and sustainable urban land use: Evidence from prefecture-level cities in China

Generating land capability class guidelines at a watershed scale has become a priority in sustainable agricultural land use. This study analyzed the area of cultivated land use situated on the non-arable land-capability class in the Jema watershed in the Upper Blue Nile River Basin. Soil surveys, meteorological ground observations, a digital elevation model (DEM) at 30 m, Meteosat at 10 km × 10 km and Landsat at 30 m were used to generate the sample soil texture class, average annual total rainfall (ATRF in mm), terrain, slope (%), elevation (m a.s.l) and land-use land cover (%). The land capability class was analyzed by considering raster layers of terrain, the average ATRF and soil texture. Geo-statistics was employed to fit a surface of soil texture and average ATRF estimates. An overlay technique was used to compute the proportion of cultivated land placed on non-arable land. As per the results of the terrain analysis, the elevation (m a.s.l) of the watershed is in the range of 1895 to 3518 m. The slope was found to be in the range of 0 to 45%. The amount of estimated rainfall ranged from 1640 to 131 mm with value declined from the lower to the higher elevation. Clay loam, clay and heavy clay were found to be the major soil texture classes. Four land capability classes, i.e., II, III, IV (arable) and V (non-arable), were identified with proportions of 28.56%, 45.74%, 22.16% and 3.54%, respectively. Seven land-use land covers were identified, i.e., annual crop land, grazing land, bush land, bare land, settlement land, forestland and water bodies, with proportions of 42.1, 35.9, 8.90, 8.3, 2.6, 2.1, and 0.2, respectively. Around 1707.7 ha of land in the watershed is categorized under non-arable land that cannot be used for annual crop cultivation at any level of intensity. Around 437 ha (3.5%) of land was cultivated on non-arable land. To conclude, the observed unsustainable crop land use could maximize soil loss in upstream regions and siltation and flooding downstream. The annual crop land use that was observed on non-arable land needs to be replaced with perennial crops, pasture and/or forest land uses.

IntroductionThe challenge for land use management in the nineties is to initiate a people- centered development process which creates opportunities for local people to make their own choices about which development strategy to follow. This need is felt in particular for upland areas where government initiated blue- print programmes for land use management have a record of failure. The major reason is that these programmes are often not adjusted to cope with the complexity and diversity of the uplands. Land use management encompasses both short-term and longterm benefits and is confronted with rapid changes. The differing role of private, state and communal lands in combination with a complex system of control and utilization makes land use management difficult to fully understand. This study responds with the development of an alternative strategy for planning sustainable land use programmes at local level and has the following objectives:- to develop a strategic model for people-centered planning of sustainable land use programmes;- to develop a flexible planning method that can serve as land use management tool at local level;- to test the feasibility of the strategy for the uplands of East Java, Indonesia.Strategic modelThe two major principles of the strategic model are:- Programmes are planned and implemented through a learning process in a local and organizational dimension. The local dimension includes a learning process of planning, implementing and monitoring of small scale programmes. The planning process is short, but planned interventions are regularly adjusted based on new insights and changing conditions. In the organizational dimension the learning process proceeds through three different phases of trial, development and expansion. In this dimension, the government can learn how to manage the strategy of implementing local level planning and how to change attitudes, norms and organizational competence of organizations in order to do so. This dimension embraces local, regional and national governments.- Three major variables have to be considered in programme planning: land use system; interventions and organizations. Sustainable land use programmes are only possible if a good fit between these variables is achieved.In the strategic model these two principles are combined; a fit between the variables is achieved through a learning process. Because achieving a fit between the three variables is a complicated matter, it requires a phased approach which consists of the following three steps: a trial phase, a development phase and an expansion phase. In the trial phase, the focus is on achieving a fit between interventions and land use system in the local dimension. This is achieved through the implementation of trial cases in local level planning in which villagers, field workers of organizations and local leaders become acquainted with this new approach of planning sustainable land use programmes at a local level. In the development phase, attention is focused on achieving a fit between organizations and land use system. Through the development of human resources and extension processes the skills and attitudes of those involved may gradually change to become more people-oriented. In the expansion phase the focus is on achieving a fit between interventions and organization. In this phase the planning approach is accepted and applied at a national level. Changes in government structures and procedures, such as decentralization and strengthening of local leadership need to be achieved. By dividing the process into phases, the complex problems associated with planning sustainable land use become manageable, and step by step the ultimate goal of achieving a fit between all three variables can be reached.Planning methodIn order to reach an optimal fit between the three variables of the strategic model in the trial phase, a planning method should be applied to collect and analyse data that can be transformed into the design of effective programmes. No 'off-the-peg' planning method is available, instead a combination of existing approaches, methods and techniques is needed.Three development approaches can be distinguished to this end: planning of land use development; extension approaches and project management approaches. Generally speaking, each approach covers a different side of the strategic model. Land use development focuses on achieving a fit between interventions and land use system; extension processes can be used in achieving a fit between land use system and organizations; and the fit between interventions and organizations can be accomplished with the help of project management techniques.For planning land use development in the trial phase a number of current methods and techniques are discussed. These are Farming System Analysis, Land Evaluation, Agroecosystem Analysis, Landscape Planning, Rapid Rural Appraisal and Gender Analysis. The criteria set by the strategic model determine which aspects of these present planning methods and techniques are useful for the development of a new planning method. None of these methods and techniques as such are ideal as an operational planning method for realizing the first phase of the strategic model. A synthesis of all useful features into a new land use planning method is proposed.For the trial phase the focus is on planning land use development while opportunities to develop extension processes and to influence project management are limited. Therefore plans should basically be tailored to the existing competence of organizations. Within these limitations some attention can be paid to extension processes and management techniques by introducing an additional step to land use planning, called programming which includes the preparation of a detailed design and a programme planning matrix.Planning environment on JavaThe environment for the planning of land use development programmes is diverse and complex in the uplands of East Java. Farmers react to the wide diversity in the land use system by developing a large number of different land use strategies. By contrast, government organizations use standardized programmes with uniform and mostly inflexible procedures for planning and implementation. Village development planning procedures exist, but do not yet function properly. Local organizations responsible for village development planning do not yet possess the skills and capability to develop such plans, and centrally organized sectoral agencies still dominate this 'bottom-up' planning process. The dominance of the central government can be explained by the incorporation of a number of socio-cultural features in their policy, such as the principles of 'sole authority', consensus, and harmony. The government uses these principles to encapsulate autonomous local organizations in the government administration, orienting the local leaders more to government rules and procedures than to the needs of the local population.This orientation towards government administration has two major implications for the current planning of interventions. Firstly, the interventions are adjusted to the competence of implementing organizations rather than letting the organizations develop their competence to implement the tasks of locally planned interventions. Secondly little more than lip-service is paid to the participation of villagers in planning.Notwithstanding these shortcomings in the present village development planning process, official government policy has some room for improvement. This may allow for a more balanced planning process new approach.Secondly, constraints which can be expected while applying the model on Java are described. The feasibility of the trial phase of the strategy is evaluated based on experiences with implementing the trial cases on Java. In this evaluation the question is raised as to what extent the results of local level planning on Java can respond to the research objectives as formulated at the start of this study. No experience has been gained as yet with implementing the development and expansion phase. One programme that provides some valuable lessons for the feasibility of the phased learning process of the strategic model is the Java Social Forestry Programme (JSFP). This programme has followed a comparable phasing strategy and has already reached the expansion phase.Conclusions and policy recommendationsThis evaluation results in a number of conclusions on conditions to be fulfilled for successful implementation of the strategy. To sum up:- although the strategy is aimed at the local level, it cannot be realized at local level only as it requires involvement of regional and national government organizations to deal with changing communication processes and organizational structure;- objectives in village development planning should be set realistically in the knowledge that short term results will always dominate long term benefits, tangible results will get higher priority than social changes, while top-down influences from sectoral agencies will prevail;- in addressing the organizational dimension a choice should be made between following an approach of 'decentralized trial cases' versus 'centrally guided bottom-up process'. Whichever strategy is chosen it needs careful management to avoid difficulties in institutionalization or a too rapid expansion respectively;- it is necessary for the government to be shown better results in terms of sustainable land use development programmes at local level implemented by highly committed villagers. Only then may they be motivated to accept such a participatory approach at the cost of losing some power or consensus;- implementing a participatory planning process is an initially slow process, to which government agencies need to be committed.These conditions are translated into a number of policy recommendations for donor agencies and governments pertaining to: long-term and continuous commitment; development of the management capacity and motivation of people involved; and strengthening the competence of a government organization for responsive governance.Experiences in Java have illustrated the importance of congruence between the design of land use interventions; the development of communication processes and the development of organizational competence. The whole range of actors involved who strive for sustainable land use - from villagers to programme managers - will have to contribute to achieving this fit. They will only be able so when they view PLANNING AS A LEARNING PROCESS.

The article is devoted to justifying agrarian enterprises’ organizational and economic principles of land resource management. The main blocks of the land resources management mechanism are defined, and their interrelationship is outlined. It was established that in the context of the regional sustainable development strategy, the key elements are the concept of sustainable land use and its impact on the effective use of land resources. Land use regulation and agrarian policy act as methods of ensuring sustainable development. Preserving natural resources and ecological potential is also an important aspect that requires increasing land use efficiency and preserving valuable natural territories. Limiting land use conditions, particularly in private ownership, is necessary to ensure the protection of natural resources and the well-being of local communities, especially in rural areas. The study confirms the possibility of implementing a set of measures to implement the principles of sustainable land use in the land resource management system at agricultural enterprises. These measures include improving the state of land resources, limiting the influence of non-agricultural industries, effective use of accessible land areas, and rational use of land funds with an orientation towards increasing the efficiency of agricultural production. It was established that the main directions for improving the efficiency of agricultural land use management are: observance of technological discipline, when all agrotechnical requirements for the quality of field processing, the timing of agricultural works, and the implementation of qualitative changes in the land use technology itself are strictly observed. Keywords: land resources, management mechanism, sustainable development, assessment, monitoring.

SummaryLakes and reservoirs bury large quantities of organic carbon (C) and nutrients (nitrogen,N; phosphorus,P) in their sediments, especially when expressed relative to the small area they occupy. Global estimates ofCand nutrient burial rates in reservoirs require a quantitative understanding of the wide variation in the rates and ratios at whichC,NandPare sequestered in sediments.We examined how catchment and reservoir characteristics relate to sediment organicC,NandPconcentrations, stoichiometric burial ratios (C : P,C : N,N : P) and burial rates in 13 small reservoirs across a catchment land use gradient in theMidwesternUnitedStates.SedimentPconcentrations were positively correlated with urban catchment land use and negatively correlated with agricultural catchment land use. Stoichiometric burial ratios varied with catchment land use. BothN : PandC : Pwere positively correlated with agricultural land use, while these ratios were negatively correlated with urban land use and forested land use.In general, rates ofC,NandPburial per unit lake area were not related to land use in the catchment, but were all positively correlated with catchment area to lake area ratios. Results from our study reservoirs suggest that reservoir burial rates are more tightly coupled with morphometric catchment characteristics than with land use.Our results suggest that small reservoirs are regionally and globally significant for biogeochemical processing. However, regional variation requires that much more comprehensive sampling is needed for accurate estimates of global element burial rates.