Addressing Regional Agro-ecological Boundaries: An Integrated Environmental Footprint Framework for Revealing Sustainability Gaps in Agroecosystems

TY - JOUR

T1 - Addressing Regional Agro-ecological Boundaries

T2 - An Integrated Environmental Footprint Framework for Revealing Sustainability Gaps in Agroecosystems

AU - Wu, Linxiu

AU - Huang, Kai

AU - Yu, Yajuan

AU - Ridoutt, Bradley G.

AU - Qu, Shen

AU - Xu, Ming

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2025 American Chemical Society.

PY - 2025/3/11

Y1 - 2025/3/11

N2 - Overexploiting ecosystems to meet growing food demands threatens global agricultural sustainability and food security. Addressing these challenges requires solutions tailored to regional agro-ecological boundaries (AEBs) and overall agro-ecological risks. Here, we propose a globally consistent and regionally adapted approach for quantifying regional AEBs. Based on this approach, we develop a region-specific integrated Footprint-AEB framework that combines six environmental footprints (EFs) with AEBs to capture the overall environmental impacts on China’s regional agro-ecosystems. Results indicate that individual EFs cannot reliably reveal the complexity of agro-ecological stressors without comprehensive assessment relative to regionally determined boundaries. For example, Northwest China faces higher water boundary stress despite lower water footprints compared to Central China, and regions such as Qinghai and Ningxia exhibit higher integrated AEB stress driven by combined water, land, and biodiversity stresses. Additionally, imbalanced integrated AEB stress transfer via trade, mainly from industrialized eastern to vulnerable western regions, is identified as a key driver of AEB exceedance in Northwest China. This fosters a nuanced understanding of environmental responsibility and equity. The integrated Footprint-AEB framework provides new insights into agro-ecosystem dynamics and supports targeted interventions to avoid shifting environmental stressors. These challenges confront agro-ecosystems worldwide.

AB - Overexploiting ecosystems to meet growing food demands threatens global agricultural sustainability and food security. Addressing these challenges requires solutions tailored to regional agro-ecological boundaries (AEBs) and overall agro-ecological risks. Here, we propose a globally consistent and regionally adapted approach for quantifying regional AEBs. Based on this approach, we develop a region-specific integrated Footprint-AEB framework that combines six environmental footprints (EFs) with AEBs to capture the overall environmental impacts on China’s regional agro-ecosystems. Results indicate that individual EFs cannot reliably reveal the complexity of agro-ecological stressors without comprehensive assessment relative to regionally determined boundaries. For example, Northwest China faces higher water boundary stress despite lower water footprints compared to Central China, and regions such as Qinghai and Ningxia exhibit higher integrated AEB stress driven by combined water, land, and biodiversity stresses. Additionally, imbalanced integrated AEB stress transfer via trade, mainly from industrialized eastern to vulnerable western regions, is identified as a key driver of AEB exceedance in Northwest China. This fosters a nuanced understanding of environmental responsibility and equity. The integrated Footprint-AEB framework provides new insights into agro-ecosystem dynamics and supports targeted interventions to avoid shifting environmental stressors. These challenges confront agro-ecosystems worldwide.

KW - Downscaled Planetary Boundaries

KW - Environmental Footprints

KW - Food Security

KW - Integrated Impact Assessment

KW - Regional Heterogeneity

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85215660213

U2 - 10.1021/acs.est.4c08025

DO - 10.1021/acs.est.4c08025

M3 - Article

C2 - 39813149

AN - SCOPUS:85215660213

SN - 0013-936X

VL - 59

SP - 4418

EP - 4431

JO - Environmental Science and Technology

JF - Environmental Science and Technology

IS - 9

ER -