Land Resources - Now and for the Future

Paperback  332 pp, 7 diags, 21 illus, 21 tabs, 2 graphs  ISBN 0521785596      £35.00

This book provides an authoritative review of the resources of soils, water, climate, forests and pastures on which agriculture depends. It assesses the interactions between land resources and wider aspects of development, including population and poverty. Unless action is taken, the developing world will face recurrent problems of food security and conflict. The book gives some forcefully-expressed criticisms of current methods of assessing land degradation and placing an economic value on land. It should be read by all involved in rural development, including scientists, economists, geographers, sociologists, planners, and students of development studies. It provides a summary and perspective of the field of land resources, and suggests improvements needed to conserve resources for future generations. The hardback edition of the book received excellent reviews.

Contents

Preface; Acknowledgments; Note on acronyms and currency; 1. Concern for land; 2. Land resource issues; 3. Resource survey and land evaluation; 4. Competition for land; 5. Working with farmers; 6. Land use planning; 7. Land degradation; 8. Global issues: climatic change and biodiversity; 9. Monitoring change: land resource indicators; 10. Costing the earth: the economic value of land resources; 11. Land management: caring for resources; 12. Research and technology; 13. Land, food and people; 14. Population, poverty and conflict; 15. Awareness, attitudes and actions; Notes; References; Index.