Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Multi-causal and integrated assessment of sustainability: the case of agriculturization in the Argentine Pampas

  • Published:
Environment, Development and Sustainability Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Assessing the sustainability of complex development processes requires multi-causal and integrated analyses. We develop a system-based methodology, rooted in interdisciplinary discussion and consensus building between 15 experts, to construct a multi-causal diagram which examines the sustainability of the Argentine Pampas´ process of agriculturization. The resulting diagram includes 25 factors and provides a big-picture of the multiple dimensions and interrelations affecting sustainability. According to this examination, the increasing concentration of production and the incorporation of technological innovations, triggered by economic and institutional factors, are the cause of environmental distresses and social changes, whose consequences for sustainability are still highly disputed. Nevertheless, the symptoms of both environmental and social unsustainability are more evident in the case of the extra-Pampean regions than in the Pampas. This suggests that the Pampean agriculture model should not be transferred to these regions without substantial modifications. The experts did not reach consensus on whether the agriculturization process is overall sustainable or unsustainable. Lack of consensus revolved mainly around opposing perspectives regarding the significance of the threats to environmental sustainability. The magnitude of socio-distributive unbalance and loss of rural jobs were also contentious. Yet, the paper shows how the exercise of building a joint causal diagram was undoubtedly helpful for linking piece-meal disciplinary facts, brought in from all fronts, into a comprehensive and coherent picture.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • AACREA (2001). Series de Precios Agropecuarios. Retrieved June 12, 2007, from Asociación Argentina de Consorcios Regionales de Experimentación Agrícola Web site: http://www.aacrea.org.ar/soft/series.htm.

  • Bilenca, D. (2000). Los agroecosistemas y la conservación de la biodiversidad: El caso del pastizal Pampeano. Gerencia Ambiental,67, 566. Retrieved May 13, 2007, from http://www.caece.edu.ar/investigacion/documentos/BIOPAMP2.DOC.

  • Bilenca, D., & Kravetz, F. O. (1995). Daños a maíz de roedores en la Región Pampeana (Argentina) y un plan para su control. Vida Silvestre Neotropical, 4, 51–57.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bisang, R. (2003, November). Diffusion process in networks: The case of transgenic soybean in Argentina. Paper presented at the First Globellics Conference, Río de Janeiro.

  • Blanco, M. (2005). La incorporación de la agricultura conservacionista en la region pampeana. Debate Agrario Análisis y Perspectivas, 3, 141–157.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blake, R., Fereres, E., Henzell, T., & Powell, W. (2002). CienciaHoy, 12(70), 31–51.

  • Branford, S. (2004). Argentina’s bitter harvest. New Scientist, 17th April, 40–43.

  • Carolan, M. S. (2005). Barriers to the adoption of sustainable agriculture on rented land: An examination of contesting social fields. Rural Sociology, 70, 387–413.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Casas, R. R. (2005). Efectos de la intensificación agrícola sobre los suelos. CienciaHoy, 15(87), 44–45.

    Google Scholar 

  • Costa, J., Massone, H., Martínez, D., Suero, E., Vidal, C., & Bedmar, F. (2002). Nitrate contamination of a rural aquifer and accumulation in the unsaturated zone. Agricultural Water Management, 57, 33–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Díaz-Zorita, M. (2001). Ciclado de nutrientes en sistemas pastoriles. Retrieved February 10, 2007, from Sitio Argentino de Producción Animal Web site: http://www.produccionbovina.com/suelos_ganaderos/52-ciclado_nutrientes.htm.

  • Díaz-Zorita, M. (2005). Cambios en el uso de pesticidas y fertilizantes. CienciaHoy, 15(87), 28–29.

    Google Scholar 

  • Díaz-Zorita, M., Duarte, G. A., & Grove, J. H. (2002). A review of no-till systems and soil management for sustainable crop production in the subhuumid and semiarid Pampas of Argentina. Soil & Tillage Research, 65, 1–18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • FAO (2004). Fertilizer use by crop in Argentina. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Rome: Land and Plant Nutrition Management Service.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ferraro, D. O., Ghersa, C.M., & Sznaider, G.A. (2003). Evaluation of environmental impact indicators using fuzzy logic to assess the mixed cropping systems of the Inland Pampa, Argentina. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 96, 1–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flores, C. C., & Sarandon, J. (2002). Racionalidad económica versus sustentabilidad ecológica? El ejemplo del costo oculto de la pérdida de fertilidad del suelo durante el proceso de Agriculturización en la Región Pampeana argentina. Revista de la Facultad de Agronomía, La Plata, 105(1), 52–67.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ghersa, C. M., & Ghersa, M. A. M. (1991). Cambios Ecológicos en los Agroecosistemas de la Pampa Ondulada. Efectos de la Introducción de la Soja. Ciencia e Investigación, 5, 182–188.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hall, A. J., Rebella, C. M., Ghersa, C. M., & Culot, J. P. (1992). Field crop systems of the Pampas. In: C. J. Pearson (Ed.), Ecosystems of the world (pp. 413–430). Amsterdam: Elsevier.

    Google Scholar 

  • Irurtia, C. & Mon, R. (2000, October). Impacto de la erosión hídrica en la producción de granos en Argiudoles típicos de la pampa ondulada. Paper presented at the 11th. Conference of the International Soil Conservation Organization, Buenos Aires.

  • Jergentza, S., Mugnib, H., Bonetto, C., & Schulzc, R. (2005). Assessment of insecticide contamination in runoff and stream water of small agricultural streams in the main soybean area of Argentina. Chemosphere, 61, 817–826.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kates, R. W., Clark, W. C., Corell, R., Hall, J. M., Jaeger, C. C., Lowe, I., McCarthy, J. J., Schellnhuber, H. J., Bolin, B., Dickson, N. M., Faucheux, S., Gallopin, G. C., Gruebler, A., Huntley, B., Jäger, J., Jodha, N. S., Kasperson, R. E., Mabogunje, A., Matson, P., Mooney, H., Moore III, B., O’Riordan, T., & Svedin, U. (2001). Sustainability science. Science, 292, 641–642.

  • Leteinturier, B., Herman, J.L., Longueville, F., Quintin, L., & Oger, R. (2006). Adaptation of a crop sequence indicator based on a land parcel management system. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 112, 324–334.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lüdeke, M. K. B., Petschel-Held, G., & Schellnhuber, H. J. (2004). Syndromes of global change: The first panoramic view. Gaia, 13(1), 42–49.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maddonni, G., Urricariet, S., Ghersa, C., & Lavado, R. (1999). Assessing soil quality in the Rolling Pampa, using soil properties and maize characteristics. Agronomy Journal, 91, 280–287.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manuel-Navarrete, D., & Gallopín, G. (2007). Integración de políticas, sostenibilidad y agriculturización en la pampa argentina y áreas extrapampeanas. Seminars and Conferences Series 50. Santiago de Chile: ECLAC.

  • Manuel-Navarrete, D., Gallopín, G., Blanco, M., Díaz-Zorita, M., Ferraro, D., Herzer, H., Laterra, P., Morello, J., Murmis, M. R., Pengue, W., Piñeiro, M., Podestá, G., Satorre, E. H., Torrent, M., Torres, F., Viglizzo, E., Caputo, M. G., & A. Celis (2005). Análisis sistémico de la agriculturización en la pampa húmeda argentina y sus consecuencias en regiones extra-Pampeanas: sostenibilidad, brechas de conocimiento, e integración de políticas. Environment and Development Series 118. Santiago de Chile: ECLAC.

  • Manuel-Navarrete, D., Gómez, J. J., & Gallopín, G. (2007). Syndromes of sustainability of development for assessing the vulnerability of coupled human-environmental systems. The case of hydrometeorological disasters in Central America and the Caribbean. Global Environmental Change, 17(2), 207–217.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Messina, C. D. (1999). El Niño Southern oscillation y la Productividad de Cultivos en la Zona Pampeana: Evaluación de Estrategias para Mitigar el Riesgo Climático. Dissertation, Universidad de Buenos Aires.

  • Miglioranza, K., Aizpun de Moreno, J., & Moreno, V. (2003). Dynamics of organochlorine pesticides in soils from a southeastern region of Argentina. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 22, 712–717.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Morales, C. (2001). Las nuevas fronteras tecnológicas: promesas, desafíos y amenazas de los transgénicos. Productive Development Series, 101. Santiago de Chile: ECLAC.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morello, J., Buzai, G., Baxendale, C., Rodríguez, A., Matteucci, S., Godagnone, R., & Casas, R. (2000). Urbanization and the consumption of fertile land and other ecological changes: The case of Buenos Aires. Environment and Urbanization, 12(2), 119–131.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paruelo, J. M., Guerschman, J. P., & Verón, S.R. (2005). Expansión agrícola y cambios en el uso del suelo. CienciaHoy, 15(87), 14–23.

    Google Scholar 

  • Paruelo, J. M., & Oesterheld, M. (2004). Patrones espaciales y temporales de la expansión de Soja en Argentina. Relación con factores socio-económicos y ambientales. Retrieved October 24, 2007, from Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Agronomía Web site: http://www.agro.uba.ar/users/lart/bancomundial/INFORME_final.pdf.

  • Pengue, W. (2005). Agricultura industrial y transnacionalización en América Latina. Mexico City: United Nations Environmental Programe.

    Google Scholar 

  • Piñeiro, M., & Villarreal, F. (2005). Modernización agrícola y nuevos actores sociales. CienciaHoy, 15(87), 32–36.

    Google Scholar 

  • Qaim, M., & Traxler, G. (2005). Roundup ready soybeans in Argentina: farm level and aggregate welfare effects. Agricultural Economics, 32, 73–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rabinovich, J., & Torres, F. (2004). Caracterización de los síndromes de sostenibilidad del desarrollo: El caso de Argentina. Seminars and Conferences Series 38. Santiago de Chile: ECLAC.

  • Reboratti, C. E. (2005). Efectos sociales de los cambios en la agricultura. CienciaHoy, 15(87), 52–61.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rodríguez, J. (2006). Los complejos agroalimentarios y el empleo: Una controversia teórica y empírica. Realidad Económica, 218, 107–135.

    Google Scholar 

  • SAGPyA (2002). Censo Nacional Agropecuario 2002, Retrieved May, 2007, from National Institute of Statistics and Census of Argentina Web site: http://www.indec.mecon.gov.ar/agropecuario/cna.asp.

  • SAGPyA (2005). Estadísticas Agrícolas. Retrieved May, 2007, from Secretaría de Agricultura, Ganadería, Pesca y Alimentos Web site: www.sagpya.gov.ar.

  • Salvador, C. (2001). The environmentally positive aspects of the agrochemical industry in Argentina. In O. T. Slbrig, R. Paarlberg, & F. di Castri (Eds.), Globalization and the rural environment (pp. 201–216). Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

  • Satorre, E. H. (2001). Production systems in the Argentine Pampas and their ecological impact. In O. T. Slbrig, R. Paarlberg, & F. di Castri (Eds.), Globalization and the rural environment (pp. 81–102). Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

  • Satorre, E. H. (2005). Cambios tecnológicos en la agricultura actual. Ciencia Hoy, 15, 24–31.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sierra, E. M., Hurtado, R. H., & Spescha, L. (1994). Corrimiento de las isoyietas anuales medias decenales en la región Pampeana 1941–1990. Revista de la Facultad de Agronomía, 14(2), 139–144.

    Google Scholar 

  • Trigo, E. (2005). Consecuencias Económicas de la Transformación Agrícola. CienciaHoy, 15, 46–51.

    Google Scholar 

  • Trigo, E. J., & Cap, E. J. (2003). The impact of the introduction of transgenic crops in Argentinean agriculture. AgBioForum, 6(3), 87–94.

    Google Scholar 

  • Viglizzo, E. F., & Frank, F. C. (2006). Land use options for Del Plata Basin in South America: Tradeoffs analysis based on ecosystem service provision. Ecological Economics, 57, 140–151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Viglizzo, E. F., Frank, F. C., Bernardos, J., Buschiazzo, D. E., & Cabo, S. (2006). A rapid method for assessing the environmental performance of commercial farms in the Pampas of Argentina. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 117, 109–134.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Viglizzo, E. F., Lértora, F., Pordomingo, A. J., Bernardos, J. N., Roberto, Z. E., & Del Valle, H. (2001). Ecological lessons and applications from one century of low external-input farming in the Pampas of Argentina. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 83, 65–81.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Viglizzo, E. F., Pordomingo, A. J., Castro, M. G., & Lértora, F. (2003). Environmental assessment of agriculture at a regional scale in the pampas of Argentina. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 87, 169–195.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Viglizzo, E. F., Roberto, Z. E., Lértora, F. A., Gay, E. L., & Bernardos, J. N. (1997). Climate and land use change in field-crop ecosystems of Argentina. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 66, 61–70.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This material is based upon work supported by the U. S. National Science Foundation under Biocomplexity in the Environment Grant No. 0410348. This article is also based on research supported in part by a grant from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Program Office (formerly the Office of Global Programs) through the Environment, Science and Development Program for the Knowledge Systems for Sustainable Development Project. Part of the ideas developed in this paper was partially published in Serie Medio Ambiente y Desarrollo 118 of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, King´s College London, Strand, London, WC2R 2LS, UK

    David Manuel-Navarrete

  2. Tte. Gral J.D. Perón, Piso 5, Buenos Aires, 1040, Argentina

    Gilberto C. Gallopín

  3. Centro de Estudios e Investigaciones Laborales (CEIL-PIETTE) CONICET, Saavedra 15 piso 4°, Capital Federal, CP: 1083, Argentina

    Mariela Blanco

  4. CONICET and Department of Plant Production, Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, (1417) Av. San Martín 4457, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Martín Díaz-Zorita

  5. IFEVA, Cátedra de Cerealicultura, Departamento de Producción Vegetal, Facultad de Agronomía, UBA/CONICET, Av. San Martín, 4453, C1417DSE, Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Diego O. Ferraro

  6. CENTRO estudios sociales y ambientales, Av. Pte. Roque Saenz Peña 1142, 5°, 1035, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Hilda Herzer

  7. Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, National University of Mar del Plata-INTA Balcarce, CC 276, 7620, Balcarce, Argentina

    Pedro Laterra

  8. Apoyo al Programa de Medianas Donaciones del GEF en Argentina, GEF/PNUD, Piedras 482, 2 “G”, Buenos Aires, C1070AAJ, Argentina

    María R. Murmis

  9. University of Miami, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL, 33149-1098, USA

    Guillermo P. Podestá

  10. Center for the Study of Parasites and Vectors (CEPAVE), National University of La Plata, Calle 2 No. 584, 1900, La Plata, Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Jorge Rabinovich

  11. Cátedra de Cerealicultura, Facultad de Agronomía, University of Buenos Aires, Av. San Martín 4453, P. O. Box C1417DSE, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Emilio H. Satorre

  12. CEO Group (Consultants on Economy and Organization), Hipólito Yrigoyen 785-5 M, 1086, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Filemón Torres

  13. Environmental Management Program, National Institute for Agricultural Technology (INTA La Pampa), Av. Spinetto 785, 6300, Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina

    Ernesto F. Viglizzo

Authors
  1. David Manuel-Navarrete
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Gilberto C. Gallopín
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Mariela Blanco
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Martín Díaz-Zorita
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Diego O. Ferraro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Hilda Herzer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Pedro Laterra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. María R. Murmis
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Guillermo P. Podestá
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. Jorge Rabinovich
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. Emilio H. Satorre
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. Filemón Torres
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  13. Ernesto F. Viglizzo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to David Manuel-Navarrete.

Additional information

Readers should send their comments on this paper to: BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Manuel-Navarrete, D., Gallopín, G.C., Blanco, M. et al. Multi-causal and integrated assessment of sustainability: the case of agriculturization in the Argentine Pampas. Environ Dev Sustain 11, 621–638 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-007-9133-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-007-9133-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation