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A Multi-Criteria Index for Ecological Evaluation of Tropical Agriculture in Southeastern Mexico

  • Esperanza Huerta ,

    ehuerta@ecosur.mx

    Affiliation El Colegio de la Frontera Sur, Unidad Campeche, Dpto. Agroecología, Campeche, México

  • Christian Kampichler,

    Affiliations Universidad Juárez Autónoma de Tabasco, División de Ciencias Biológicas, Villahermosa, Tabasco, México, Sovon Dutch Centre for Field Ornithology, Natuurplaza (Mercator 3), Nijmegen, The Netherlands

  • Susana Ochoa-Gaona,

    Affiliation El Colegio de la Frontera Sur, Unidad Campeche, Dpto. Sustainability Sciences, Campeche, México

  • Ben De Jong,

    Affiliation El Colegio de la Frontera Sur, Unidad Campeche, Dpto. Sustainability Sciences, Campeche, México

  • Salvador Hernandez-Daumas,

    Affiliation El Colegio de la Frontera Sur, Unidad Campeche, Dpto. Agroecología, Campeche, México

  • Violette Geissen

    Affiliations University of Bonn - INRES, Bonn, Germany, Wageningen University and Research Center – Alterra, Wageningen, Gelderland, Netherlands

Abstract

The aim of this study was to generate an easy to use index to evaluate the ecological state of agricultural land from a sustainability perspective. We selected environmental indicators, such as the use of organic soil amendments (green manure) versus chemical fertilizers, plant biodiversity (including crop associations), variables which characterize soil conservation of conventional agricultural systems, pesticide use, method and frequency of tillage. We monitored the ecological state of 52 agricultural plots to test the performance of the index. The variables were hierarchically aggregated with simple mathematical algorithms, if-then rules, and rule-based fuzzy models, yielding the final multi-criteria index with values from 0 (worst) to 1 (best conditions). We validated the model through independent evaluation by experts, and we obtained a linear regression with an r2 = 0.61 (p = 2.4e-06, d.f. = 49) between index output and the experts’ evaluation.

Introduction

In the past 60 years, degradation and deforestation of tropical forests worldwide have occurred much faster and more extensively than in any other period in history [1], [2]. Furthermore, countries like Mexico have been undergoing drastic land use changes. In the tropics of Mexico large parts of its lowland rainforest areas have been converted into pasture and cropland. In the state of Tabasco, for example, only 3.4% of the state is covered with original forest [3], whereas 76.4% of the surface was used for cattle production in 2000 [4] and 15.6% was used for agriculture, principally sugarcane and fruit plantations [3]. The ecological consequences of these land-use changes in Tabasco are well documented. Soil losses in hilly regions are very high up to 200 t ha−1 year−1 [5]; high pesticide and fertilizer inputs to crops that have replaced forests have caused considerable environmental contamination [6], [7], and soil fertility is decreasing [8], [5], [9].

It is of the utmost importance to identify sustainable land use strategies which are economically attractive for the region's farmers and which may also reconcile the need for food production with that of soil conservation. In order to assist a variety of stakeholders at the local and regional level in making land use decisions, simple evaluation tools are needed. This is even more needed since a high percentage of the population consists of immigrants from other Mexican states, who are unfamiliar with the conditions of the humid tropics and use intensive techniques for farming the land. This is mostly due to large-scale agricultural development projects, such as “Plan Balancán-Tenosique,” named after the two municipalities involved, in which, in the 1970 s, over 1100 km2 of lowland rain forest was destroyed and converted into crop and pasture land. Ecological values of the 1970 s were very different from those of the present, and government representatives were willing to deforest in order to grant land to farmers [10].

The direct impact of farming is difficult to measure due to methodological difficulties (impossibility of measurement, complexity of the system) or practical reasons (time, costs) [11]. Therefore, the use of indicators appears to be an alternative way of guiding land use decisions [12], [13]. However, the “indicator explosion” [14], that is, the use of an exaggerated number of indicators aimed at assessing environmental impacts of agricultural activities, has been of little use to local decision-makers. Particularly in the tropics, land use decisions are still based on the informal opinion of local experts rather than on implementation of Decision Support Systems for environmentally sound resource management [15]. On the one hand, this is due to farmers’ restricted access to modern communications and information technologies; on the other, application of indicators is often beyond the capability of local farmers. For example, the agricultural sustainability index proposed by Nambiar et al. [16], which aims to measure agricultural sustainability as a function of biophysical, chemical, economic, and social indicators, would require considerable training of government stakeholders and farmers in order to be applied, and such training is rarely available.

Thus, any tool which local farmers or regional decision makers may use to support their decision making must be as simple as possible. Agroecosystems (like any other ecosystem) are too complex to be precisely measured and evaluated [17]. We agree with the view of Darnhofer et al. [18] in favour of developing less precise rules of thumb which may be used by farmers as well as to guide local land-use decisions toward a more environmentally friendly system of agriculture.

This index may provide farmers and others involved with a tool to evaluate the sustainability of their management of crop land which is oriented toward diminishing soil damage and conserving soil fertility. The index, exclusively based on terms which describe the environmental conditions of the crop system, is accessible to most farmers, and may be calculated using a simple internet application. In this paper we present a simple, easy-to-use index in order to evaluate the ecological state of farms in south-eastern Mexico. We applied the indicator system to 52 crop production systems in south-eastern Mexico and compared the results of the indicator system with expert opinions.

Human knowledge of how to efficiently and sustainably manage complex systems (including agricultural systems) is incomplete and much of what is thought to be known about this topic is actually incorrect. Yet, decisions must be made by policy makers, agricultural extension agents, and farmers despite uncertainty and knowledge gaps [19]. Therefore, tools to support local decision-makers must be flexible, should not enter into too much detail or precision, and should allow for an adaptive strategy which promotes “learning through management” [19]. Consequently, our rationale for developing an index which aids farmers in making environmentally friendly land-use decisions is based on basic, simplified ecological concepts, i.e. the presence of trees, since trees within an agroecosystem enhance soil microclimate in terms of radiation partitioning (shading), evapotranspiration partitioning, and rain interception/redistribution [20]. These factors all help to retain soil moisture. Branches, bark, roots, and living and dead leaf surfaces provide shelter [21] for soil micro-, meso-, and macro-invertebrates. Tree cover for instance, enhances above- and below-ground diversity, serving to support agricultural sustainability [22].

Materials and Methods

1. Rationale of index composition

We define conventional agriculture as a cropping system, typically promoted by government development programs, that is “capital-intensive, large-scale, highly mechanized agriculture with monocropping and extensive use of synthetic fertilizers, and pesticides” [23], [24]. Furthermore, we acknowledge that farming systems are sustainable only if “they minimize the use of external inputs and maximize the use of internal inputs already present on the farm” [25], [26]. The strategy most frequently linked to sustainability is reduction or elimination of agrochemicals, particularly chemical fertilizers and pesticides [25], [27], [28], [29], [30], [31]. Another key to sustained productivity of agricultural systems is the maintenance of soil functions, such as organic matter and nutrient cycling [32], based on organic inputs [33], above-and below-ground biodiversity [22], and diversifying crop systems with nitrogen-fixing legumes [34]. The principal role of the index we propose is to characterize methods of tillage, external inputs, and crop structure.

2. Primary indicators

We chose 12 field variables as primary indicators related to the above mentioned aspects of ecologically sound agricultural land use based on farmer’s practices. These are easy to evaluate in the field and characterize plot structure (primary indicators: tree cover, tree density, tree diversity), crop structure and crop conditions (primary indicators: crop type, crop rotation, crop density, crop colour), tillage (primary indicators: type of tillage, timing of tillage), the use of fertilizers (chemical versus organic) and pesticide application.

2.1 Tree cover.

Tree cover is defined as the canopy of trees, measured in the field, and recorded as percentage classes of tree cover in three height classes (trees >15 m, 10–15 m, <10 m). Thus, this variable characterized one aspect of agroecosystem management: the farmers’ decision to maintain the canopy of the trees in his or her agroecosystem.

2.2 Tree density.

Tree density is defined as the number of trees per area. To measure this, we distinguished three categories of tree density: high density (abundant), medium density, and low density (isolated or no trees). A high number of trees per area guarantee carbon sequestration [35] while a stable microclimate is maintained. This variable, measured in the field, is one the variables that characterize the effect of trees in the agroecosystem.

2.3 Tree diversity.

This variable was measured in the field by counting the number of trees species within the plot. In agroecosystems, biodiversity may; (i) contribute to constant biomass production and reduce the risk of crop failure in unpredictable environments, (ii) restore disturbed ecosystem services such as water and nutrient cycling, and (iii) reduce risks of pests and diseases through enhanced biological control or direct pest control [36], [20], [22].

2.4 Crop type.

This variable indicates whether the crop is annual, seasonal, or perennial. We obtained this information by observing the type of crop. Annual crops in general have higher environmental impacts, ie: greenhouse emissions, and nutrient leaching, than perennial crops [37].

2.5 Crop rotation.

In sustainable farm systems leguminous crops are increasingly used in crop rotations as a source of nutrients, particularly nitrogen for crop growth [38], [39], nitrogen-fixing legumes, contribute to maintaining biodiversity above and in the soil, contribute nitrogen to the soil/plant system, and help avoid the build-up of pest populations [34]. In this study, we asked farmers whether they planted another crop before planting the main crop and whether they practice crop rotation, as crop rotation may assist with weed and pest control [40], [34]. According to Bellon [41], an activity which leads into the maintenance or increase of renewable resources in agroecosystems, is considered as an ecological technology. This variable helped us to characterize the technology used in the agroecosystem.

2.6 Crop density.

Crop density is defined as the number of plants (individuals) per area. Three categories were recorded in the field: abundant (high density: 3,000 plants/ha), medium density (1000–1600 plants/ha), and sparse (<1000 plants/ha). This variable also indicated the level of technology applied to the crop, as less intensive techniques typically yield lower densities [42].

2.7 Crop colour.

The colour of a crop indicates the nutritional status of the plants; green plants generally have sufficient nutrients, while yellow plants lack nitrogen [43].

2.8 Type of tillage.

Type of tillage was categorized into no tillage, manual tillage, and mechanical tillage using machinery, the latter of which generally indicates high disturbance of the soil surface and rapid loss of soil organic carbon and other nutrients [44]. In the field, we asked the farmers how they prepared the land for crop planting.

2.9 Frequency of tillage.

This variable indicates frequency of tillage - every year or every 2 years. With this information, it was possible to estimate the frequency of soil disturbance due to tillage.

2.10 Chemical input.

Searching for sustainable productions, it is recommended no or low or use of inorganic fertilizers and pesticides [45], [46]. Long term use of some pesticides, as glifosate can decrease earthworm species number, density and biomass [47], [48]. This information allowed us to estimate the amount of chemical fertilizers and pesticides applied within a given area. These variables (chemical fertilizers and pesticides) are included in the indicator for chemical disturbance.

2.11 Green manure.

Is defined as the presence or absence of leguminous crops mixed with the principal crop, generally used to increase total soil nitrogen content. Green manures should always be intercropped, as it has been proven that growing legumes with cereal crops decreases N20 emissions [49], and therefore is a sustainable, environmentally friendly practice. Examples of green manure use have been observed in traditional Mesoamerican cultures, for example, intercropping beans, as well as other edible plants, within the milpa or traditional maize cropping system [50].

3. Index development

Primary indicators were hierarchically aggregated into higher levels, forming intermediate variables, which in turn are structured into a single index that evaluates the ecological condition of a given plot on a scale from 0 (worst) to 1 (best). An index close to zero either would mean that a more environmentally friendly farming techniques need to be implemented or that the plot should be subjected to a fundamental change in land-use, e.g., reforestation, in order to return to a more ecologically sound state. An index close to one, on the other hand, would indicate an ecologically sound land-use. Methods applied in indicator aggregation were (i) simple mathematical operations, ii) sets of if-then rules, and (iii) sets of if -then rules combined with fuzzy logic.

3.1. Aggregation through mathematical operations.

Mathematical operations include calculating averages, weighed averages, minimum values, and maximum values. For example, if primary indicator A has the value a and primary indicator B has the value b, then the value x of the intermediate variable X is determined as x = (a+b)/2, x = (w1*a+w2*b), where w1 and w2 are weights, or x = min(a, b) or max(a, b).

3.2. Aggregation by IF-THEN rules.

If primary indicator A can have the discrete values a1, a2, and a3, and primary indicator B can have the discrete values b1, b2, and b3, then the value x of the intermediate variable X is determined by a set of nine (number of levels of A x number of levels of B) rules. For example, IF A = a1 and B = b1 THEN X = x1.

3.3. Aggregation by IF-THEN rules and fuzzy logic.

We used small fuzzy rule-based models for aggregation in the case of non-linear interactions among indicators using a continuous numerical scale or an ordinal scale with a large number of possible values. In classic set theory, an object can either be a member (membership = 1) or not (membership = 0) of a given set. The central idea of fuzzy set theory is that an object may have a partial membership of a set, which consequently may possess all possible values between 0 and 1. The closer an element is to 1, the more it belongs to the set; the closer the element is to 0, the less it belongs to the set. To apply the fuzzy set theory, three steps are involved in calculating the model's output. First, for any observed value of the primary indicators, its corresponding membership value in the fuzzy set domain is calculated (fuzzification); second, the memberships of the intermediate variable X are calculated, applying the rules in the fuzzy set theory (fuzzy inference); third, the fuzzy results are converted into a discrete numerical output (defuzzification; see Wieland 2008 for an introduction to fuzzy models). Fuzzy rule-based models have become popular in ecological modelling [51], [52], and several examples exist of its usefulness in the context of ecosystem evaluation, bioindication, and sustainable management [15], [53], [54]. Here, if both primary indicators A and B can have numerical values from 0 to 1, then the value x of the intermediate variable X is determined by a series of fuzzy set rules representing the linguistic variables “low A”, “medium A”, “high A”, and “low B”, “medium B”, and “high B”, as well as the output “low X”, “medium X”, and “high X”. The value of the intermediate variable X is determined by nine levels of A x the number of levels of B; for example: If A = low and B = low Then X = [low, medium, or high].

To maintain the number of rules as well as their complexity as low as possible, we aggregated only two variables at a time. A simple example shows the reasoning behind this decision; if there are three primary variables, A, B, and C with three categories for each variable, a single rule node requires 3*3*3 = 27 If-Then rules of the type “If A = a1, a2, or a3 and If B = b1, b2, or b3 and if C = c1, c2, or c3 Then…”, whereas if an additional intermediate variable X is introduced to the model, only 18 rules are needed: 3*3 = 9 rules to aggregate A and B to X (If A = a1, a2, or a3 and If B = b1, b2, or b3), and 3*3 = 9 rules to aggregate X and C (If X = x1, x2, or x3 and If C = c1, c2, or c3).

4. Study area and application of the index

The state of Tabasco in south-eastern Mexico is characterized by a humid tropical climate with a mean annual rainfall between 1200 and 4000 mm and a mean annual temperature of 27°C [55]. Predominant soils are Gleysols and Fluvisols over alluvial sediments in the plains, Vertisols, Cambisols, Luvisols, and Acrisols over Miocene or Oligocene sediments, and Leptosols and Regosols over limestone mountains [9], [56]. We chose the municipalities Balancán and Tenosique in western Tabasco (17°81′50′′–18°81′00′′ N, 91°80′10′′–91°84′60′′ W) as a study area (Figure 1), we worked with private, ejidal (multipurpose land, where owners can or cannot sell the property according to their legal status in the National Agrarian File), and communal lands (coordinates of each plot are shown in Table 1). The region is mainly a plain towards the North (67% of area has an elevation <20 m. a. s. l.) with hills (29%, 20–200 m. a. s. l.), and mountains (4%, max. 640 m. a. s. l.) in the South, comprising a total area of 5474 km2. These municipalities have undergone a high degree of land use change over the past 40 years. Until the early 1970 s, this region was still covered by lowland rain forest. The principal form of land use is pastureland, and covers 60% of the land [57]. An additional 30% is cropland, mainly cultivated under small-medium holder systems with seasonal conventional agriculture using high levels of agrochemical inputs (Table 2 & 3). Common crops are maize (Zea mays), a variety of hot peppers (Capsicum sp), cucumbers (Cucurbita argyrosperma), watermelon (Citrullus lanatus), perennial fruit crops such as papaya (Carica papaya), and biannual crops such as sugar cane (Saccharum officinarum) [58].

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Figure 1. Distribution of 52 evaluated agricultural plots in tropical South-East Mexico.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0112493.g001

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Table 3. Crop land preparation and inputs characterization.

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We chose 52 farms in the study area (Table 1), and selected those farms whose main economic activity (100%) is agriculture and chose one agricultural plot from each farm for evaluation. There were annual and biannual crops with or without trees (Table 2). Average plot size was 32.4±55.1 ha, and the average time that the plot had been used for a given crop system was 2.5±3.0 years.

We questioned farmers as to frequency, amount and type of chemical fertilizers and pesticides applied per area of cropland. After their verbal consent, farmers gave us their complete name and signed next to their name on the record sheet, validating all the information. Due to the fact that we only asked about the use of fertilizers and management of the land, the procedure approval from the Ethics Committee was not required.

Between March and October 2004, for each plot, the values of the primary indicators were determined and the index of ecological condition was calculated. Prior to index calculation, the plots were also evaluated by experts (2 scientists, each with over 15 years of experience in agroecology) on a scale from 0 (poor condition) to 1 (good condition) in order to test the correlation between the experts’ opinions and the index.

Data was normalized for carrying out multiple regression with plot size, altitude of plot site, or previous vegetation cover and the ecological index.

Finally we located the index in this public web address: http://201.116.78.102/~modelo/Index.html, where farmers in the near future can introduce independent data sets and evaluate or monitor their own agro ecosystems.

Results

1. Index structure

Ten nodes were used to aggregate primary indicators to the final index of ecological conditions of agricultural systems (Figure 2). Six of these used simple mathematical operations; two were based on rule sets, and two on fuzzy rule-based models (Table 4).

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Figure 2. Structure of the Index of ecological condition of tropical agroecosystems.

Primary indicators are shaded in grey. Circles represent simple mathematic algorithms, white triangles represent rule sets, and grey triangles represent rule sets, and grey triangles represent rule sets based on fuzzy logic. This index was presented together with other indexes within a frame of Indicators of environmentally sound land use in the humid tropics [15].

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0112493.g002

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Table 4. Description of the measurement levels of the variables.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0112493.t004

2. Index application

2.1. General characterization of sampled plots.

A total of 67% of the plots were cultivated after cutting of primary lowland forest, 24% after cutting secondary forests of various ages, and 1.5% after cutting riparian vegetation, the rest conversion from pastureland (livestock production) to crop system. On 63% of the farms, maize, beans and pumpkins were cultivated, 13% sugar cane, 12% watermelon, 9% rice and 3% pepper. On 68.5% of the plots, trees were scattered among the crops. Conventional tillage was used on 55.5% of the plots, and pesticides were used on 79.4%, green manure was used on 21% of the plots and chemical fertilizers on 67%. All farmers understood the meaning of the variables evaluated for their plots (for a complete list of plots, see Table 5).

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Table 5. Normalized Ecological Index for plots evaluated (52).

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0112493.t005

2.2. Plot evaluation with the index.

Ecological condition of the plots ranges from 0.0 to 0.8125 (Figure 3; Table 5). One plot which was intercropped with timber and fruit trees presented the highest value. This site was characterized by an absence of agrochemical use, use of green manure, presence of annual crop rotation, and high tree diversity. We found 18 plots with index values of 0–0.25, 7 plots with values of 0.3–0.5, and 26 plots with values of 0.5–0.7. Thus, the majority of the plots evaluated in this study had an intermediate index value. 50% of the plots with this intermediate index are ejidal property, 38% private land, and 12% is under another type of ownership (smallholder or communal). 80% of these intermediate plots were lowland rain forest before being converted into agricultural land, 12% were secondary vegetation, and 8% were pastureland (Table 1). One might believe that a prior forest condition implies a more environmentally friendly agroecosystem that allows for preserving a more diverse system. However, plots with low index values were also lowland rain forest before being turned into agricultural land (Table 5). In this case, the land managers or owners decided to deforest the land to subsequently plant annual crops. 13 plots were larger than 40 ha (Table 1). All of these were previously covered with lowland rain forest; the ecological index ranges from 0.5–0.56 for 46% of these plots, and another 23% have an ecological index of 0.37–0.43. 10 plots fell under the smallest size category (0.25–3 ha) and had an ecological index of 0.5–0.68 (4 plots), 0 to 0.18 (5 plots), and 0.39 (1 plot).

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Figure 3. Frequency histogram of values of the index of ecological condition applied to 52 plots in South-East Mexico.

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Carrying out multiple regression with normalized data, we did not observe significant correlations between plot size, altitude of plot site, or previous vegetation cover and the ecological index (Kendall’s Tau, T = 0.016 p = 0.98, T = 0.11 p = 0.90, T = −0.31 p = 0.75, respectively). Therefore, in this study, it seems that neither size nor location of the plot determines the type of plot management; rather, plot management is likely determined by government development programs and traditional farming techniques.

3. Correlation between index and expert opinion

We obtained a Pearson correlation coefficient of r2 = 0.61 (p = 2.4e-06, d.f. = 49) between the index and the values determined by independent experts, indicating a satisfactory correspondence (Figure 4). However, the experts systematically awarded higher scores to the plots than did the index. Moreover, they suggested to include additional variables to the index which would yield better information regarding (i) type of organic inputs to the crop system, (ii) types of pest and disease control used, (iii) number of native plant species among the crop, (iv) origin of crop seeds, (v) vegetation surrounding the crop, (vi) presence of vertebrate fauna, and (vii) diversity of soil macroinvertebrates.

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Figure 4. Scatterplot of the values of the index of ecological condition applied to 52 plots in South-East Mexico (x-axis) versus quality values between 0 (worst) and 1 (best) assigned by experts to the same plots (y-axis).

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Discussion

Since the Rio Earth Summit, there has been a concerted effort to construct indicators to monitor progress toward sustainable development [59]. Most of these indicators have been developed in Europe (10) and Asia (2) [60]. In Latin America, sustainable indicators have been developed by Astier et al. [61]; this index mainly focuses on subsistence level agriculture, and evaluates the sustainability of a system.

Our index is geared toward small and medium scale producers who principally grow for market and have a fairly large crop area (32.4 ha on average). According to Bockstaller and Girardin [62], indicators must be elaborated according to a scientific approach, and one of the important steps in this elaboration is validation.

Our index was developed according to the consensus of a group of scientists, with knowledge in agroecology, and was validated independently by 2 scientists, each with over15 years of experience in agroecology. The evaluation included 3 important steps: design validation, output validation, and end use validation [62].

In previous studies, only seven indicators have been used to evaluate farm systems: crop diversity, crop succession, pesticide use, nitrogen level, phosphorus level, soil organic matter, and irrigation methods [63]. All of these practices depend on the farmer's decision, and to a large extent they impact the environment.

Our index is based on qualitative and quantitative concrete data and includes most of these 7 indicators, except nitrogen and phosphorus, both of which are observed indirectly via plant health, through the crop colour indicator (according to whether plants have a greenish or yellowish colour); organic matter, which is indirectly characterized by the technology applied in the system (green manure indicator, Figure 2); and irrigation, which in this study was not evaluated, given that all plots evaluated were only used for seasonal rainfed agriculture, according to local rainfall patterns.

At the farm level there are indicators that evaluate the environmental impact of the agricultural practices and indicators that evaluate the effect of those practices at the local and global level [60].

Our index includes both types of indicators; evaluating agricultural practices: those variables taken in the field: type and frequency of tillage, pesticide application, fertilizer use, crop rotation, tree cover and density, green manure, crop density (see Table 2 & 3). Effect indicators used were disturbance (mainly soil disturbance) measured by tillage (frequency and type) and chemical inputs, technology used, and crop structure (see index, Figure 2). Some existing indexes focus on evaluation or evolution of environmental performance, thus encouraging environmentally sound practices [60], such as crop rotation, organic fertilizers, and no-tillage. Meanwhile, our index identifies the indicator that has the highest environmental impacts in each plot evaluated, with the idea that the farmer could potentially improve these with a given practice, ie. to monitor the soil ecological condition via the use of a soil macroinvertebrates index [64], where the lack of macroinvertebrates informs of a severe negative activity as pollution or conventional tillage.

In developing the variables to be included in our index, we reviewed bibliographic studies and carried out field work obtaining data which we hoped would reflect the negative and environmentally friendly practices commonly used in agro ecosystems of south-eastern Mexico. The index can be used by farmers, using the following web address: http://201.116.78.102/~modelo/Index.html.

However, we did not evaluate certain indicators such as water use, and water quality, as did - for example - the index (monitoring tool) of ecological indicators used on a Flemish dairy farm [65]. Nor did we evaluate environmental impacts due to energy consumption [66]. Within a tropical framework, in south-eastern Mexico, the priorities were to identify those practices that were soil perturbing and environment polluting, practices that can be modified by the farmers, by an attitude changing. Nambiar et al. [16], proposed an agricultural sustainability index (ASI) to measure sustainability as a function of biophysical, chemical, economic, and social indicators, our index only measures the ecological state of the agroecosystem, and provides easy to use tools for improving those practices which negatively impact the environment. Van der Werf and Petit [60], state that indicators based on farmer practices cost less in data collection but do not allow for an actual evaluation of environmental impact. In the case of our study, the experts’ evaluation correlated satisfactorily with the index, although the index rendered more penalizing scores than did the experts. Some improvements must be made to our index, relating quality and quantity of the applied inputs for instance; the index should specify the kind of manures used and then to evaluate their effect when added to the systems. The consulted experts found important to integrate this information into the index, they also found that the possible relations among different crops and environmental effects of using cow manure, vermicompost, or traditional compost have to be considered. Another variable which the experts suggested should be added to the index is the presence of natural vegetation surrounding the crop. Farmers see advantages of having crops surrounded by secondary forest, diversity in the agricultural area can be increased, ie when different pollinators arrive.

The advantages of using this index is that the common agricultural practices (mechanized land preparation and use of common pesticides ie. Carbofuran, Chlorpyrifos), evaluated in this study as indicators are used throughout the world; over time, through practice, the index may be improved. Farmers and other land owners may realize which of the practices they use are disturbing the environment, due to the fact that these practices generate a value in each of the evaluated indicators. The variables obtained in the field contribute to the information of each of the indicators, and the index is the compendium of all the indicators. Our index doesn’t give a sustainability measure, because it does not include socioeconomic indicators of the farms. Further studies are required in order to observe the acceptance of this index by farmers in a regional scale.

Supporting Information

Figure S1.

Indicators of environmentally sound land use in the humid tropics [15].

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0112493.s001

(PDF)

Acknowledgments

We thank Lorena Soto and Guillermo Jimenez for participating in the evaluation of the plots. We thank Simon Hernandez de la Cruz, Alejandra Sepulveda Lozada, Lauritania Ibarra Hernandez, and Marcelo Rodriguez Ricardes, who helped to collect data in the field. We are also thankful to Lorena Reyes for bibliographic support. El Colegio de la Frontera Sur provided infrastructural resources. Language revision was done by Ann Greenberg.

Author Contributions

Conceived and designed the experiments: EH CK SOG BDJ SHD VG. Performed the experiments: EH CK. Analyzed the data: EH CK. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: EH CK SOG BDJ SHD VG. Contributed to the writing of the manuscript: EH CK SOG BDJ VG. Figures elaboration: CK SOG.

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