PMID- 18491183
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20081231
LR  - 20211020
IS  - 0364-152X (Print)
IS  - 0364-152X (Linking)
VI  - 42
IP  - 2
DP  - 2008 Aug
TI  - An experts survey on sustainability across twenty-seven extensive European 
      systems of grassland management.
PG  - 190-9
LID - 10.1007/s00267-008-9134-2 [doi]
AB  - European Large Scale Grazing Systems (LSGS) are at a crossroad with 
      environmental, agronomic, and social factors interacting on their future 
      viability. This research assesses the current environmental and socio-economic 
      status of a wide range of European LSGS according to an agreed subset of 
      sustainability criteria and indicators, which have been recognized by 
      corresponding experts and privileged observers on their respective case-study 
      system. A survey questionnaire was drafted containing five main criteria 
      (pastoral use, environmental, economic, social, and market and development), with 
      four conceptual-scored variables (indicators) within each criterion. Descriptive, 
      analytical and clustering statistical techniques helped to draw a synthesis of 
      the main result and to standardize sustainability variables across different 
      biogeographical regions and management situations. The results show large 
      multicollinearity among the 20 variables proposed. This dependence was revealed 
      by the reduction to six main factor-components, which accounted for about 73% of 
      the total variance in responses. Aggregation of point-score indicators across 
      criteria to obtain a sustainability index can be of less policy relevance than 
      responses to specific criteria or indicators. Affinity between case-study 
      systems, as judged by collaborative-expert responses, was not related to 
      biogeographical location, operating livestock sector, or population density in 
      their areas. The results show larger weaknesses and constraints in the economic 
      and social criteria than in the pastoral and environmental criteria, and the 
      large heterogeneity of responses appears in the social criterion.
FAU - Caballero, Rafael
AU  - Caballero R
AD  - Centro de Ciencias Medioambientales (CSIC), Finca Experimental La Poveda, Ctra. 
      de Campo Real km 1, 28500 Arganda del Rey, Madrid, Spain. rcaballero@iai.csic.es
FAU - Gil, Angel
AU  - Gil A
FAU - Fernandez-Santos, Xavier
AU  - Fernandez-Santos X
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
DEP - 20080520
PL  - United States
TA  - Environ Manage
JT  - Environmental management
JID - 7703893
SB  - IM
MH  - Agriculture
MH  - Conservation of Natural Resources/*methods
MH  - Data Collection
MH  - *Ecosystem
MH  - Environmental Monitoring
MH  - Europe
MH  - Human Activities
MH  - *Poaceae
MH  - Socioeconomic Factors
MH  - Surveys and Questionnaires
EDAT- 2008/05/21 09:00
MHDA- 2009/01/01 09:00
CRDT- 2008/05/21 09:00
PHST- 2007/06/08 00:00 [received]
PHST- 2008/04/14 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2008/02/18 00:00 [revised]
PHST- 2008/05/21 09:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2009/01/01 09:00 [medline]
PHST- 2008/05/21 09:00 [entrez]
AID - 10.1007/s00267-008-9134-2 [doi]
PST - ppublish
SO  - Environ Manage. 2008 Aug;42(2):190-9. doi: 10.1007/s00267-008-9134-2. Epub 2008 
      May 20.