Agroecosystem Service Management and Environmental Sustainability

Abstract

Agroecosystem means improving the agricultural ecosystem by human-induced management of trees, crops, and livestock in any land use system. Resource conservations, soil health management, minimizing environmental footprints, and climate change mitigation are key services through a healthy agroecosystem. Food demands due to burgeoning populations necessitated agricultural land expansion and intensive agricultural practices. Conversion of forest and other land use systems into agricultural land induces land degradation and leads to an increase in environmental footprints. Deforestation and other unsustainable land use practices ensure soil degradation and environmental pollutions. These unscientific and intensive agroecosystem practices lead to GHG emissions into the atmosphere causes carbon footprints. Thus, strategies for enhancing food production along with maintaining environmental health and quality are a smart choice of the modern day. High synthetic inputs and heavy mechanizations ensure higher production but at the cost of environmental health. Agroecosystem land expansionand practices affect other land use systems and related ecological services. These harsh and unscientific practices affect soil-food-climate security at a global scale. Thus, applying ecology-oriented sustainable agroecosystem practices ensures environmental sustainability and ecological stability. A sustainable modeling of agroecosystem will enhance biodiversity that intensifies uncountable ecosystem services. Agriculture, agroforestry, forestry, rangeland, etc. are different land use practices that build our sustainable environment. Applying eco-modeling and sustainable agroecosystem practices ensure higher production and profitability along with a healthy ecosystem. Climate-resilient agroecosystem practices and their ecological modeling enhance plant biomass productivity and soil health maintenance. These practices ensure soil fertility, higher SOC pools, healthy rhizosphere biology, and microbial populations on which entire biodiversitydepends. Thus, maintaining a healthy and productive agroecosystem is the pillar of a sustainable environment that ensure a healthier world. In lieu of the above, this chapter represents the potential, perspective, and management of the agroecosystem. A principle and practices of sustainable-based agroecosystem are also discussed. A rigorous discussion is also made on climate-resilient agroecosystem practices and modeling for minimizing carbon footprint to ensure environmental sustainability at a global scale. A bit of discussion on soil-foodclimate security through agroecosystem management makes this chapter more informative for policy makers worldwide. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021.