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1. Trade openness and the nutrient use of nations

   https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/aaebcb  

   Dang, Qian; Konar, Megan; Debaere, Peter (December 2018, Environmental Research Letters)
2. Trade-off of ecosystem productivity and water use related to afforestation in southcentral USA under climate change

   https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170255  

   Zhang, Tian; Yang, Jia; Winrich, Abigail; Will, Rodney E.; Zou, Chris B. (March 2024, Science of The Total Environment)

   The increase of tree canopy cover due to woody plant encroachment and tree plantations modifies both carbon and water dynamics. The tradeoffs between ecosystem net primary productivity (NPP) and water use with increasing tree cover in different climate conditions, particularly under future climate scenarios, are not well understood. Within the climate transition zone of the southern Great Plains, USA, we used the Soil and Water Assessment Tool+ (SWAT+) to investigate the combined impacts of increasing tree cover and climate change on carbon and water dynamics in three watersheds representing semiarid, subhumid, and humid climates. Model simulations incorporated two land use modifications (Baseline: existing tree cover; Forest +: increasing evergreen tree cover), in conjunction with two climate change projections (the RCP45 and the RCP85), spanning two time periods (historic: 1991-2020; future: 2070-2099). With climate change, the subhumid and humid watersheds exhibited a greater increase in evapotranspiration (ET) and a corresponding reduction in runoff compared to the semi-arid watershed, while the semi-arid and subhumid watersheds encountered pronounced losses in water availability for streams (>200 mm/year) due to increasing tree cover and climate change. With every 1 % increase in tree cover, both NPP and water use efficiency were projected to increase in all three watersheds under both climate change scenarios, with the subhumid watershed demonstrating the largest increases (>0.16 Mg/ha/year and 170 %, respectively). Increasing tree cover within grasslands, either through woody plant expansion or afforestation, boosts ecosystem NPP, particularly in subhumid regions. Nevertheless, this comes with a notable decrease in water resources, a concern made worse by future climate change. While afforestation offers the potential for greater NPP, it also brings heightened water scarcity concerns, highlighting the importance of tailoring carbon sequestration strategies within specific regions to mitigate unintended repercussions on water availability. 

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3. Synergies and trade-offs of multi-use solar landscapes

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-025-01600-1  

   Merheb, Caroline; Macknick, Jordan; Davatzes, Nicholas; Ravi, Sujith (July 2025, Nature Sustainability)

   Research on multi-use solar—combining solar energy with agriculture (agrivoltaics) or natural vegetation (ecovoltaics)—is developing rapidly, but interdisciplinary integration is needed to better address management issues and to guide future research. Agrivoltaics allows farmers to develop and manage microclimates, which can help to retain or expand agricultural production in the context of changing climate and land-water limitations. However, improvements in food–energy production and other co-benefits are often site-specific, depending on background climate, soil conditions and system design. To optimize multi-use systems, it is essential to consider local economic impacts, ecosystem services and stakeholder perspectives in design and implementation. 

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4. Land-use emissions embodied in international trade

   https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abj1572  

   Hong, Chaopeng; Zhao, Hongyan; Qin, Yue; Burney, Jennifer A.; Pongratz, Julia; Hartung, Kerstin; Liu, Yu; Moore, Frances C.; Jackson, Robert B.; Zhang, Qiang; et al (May 2022, Science)

   Consumption in industrialized regions contributes to land-use change and greenhouse gas emissions in low-income regions. 

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5. Trends and environmental impacts of virtual water trade

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-024-00605-2  

   Mekonnen, Mesfin M; Kebede, Mahlet M; Demeke, Betelhem W; Carr, Joel A; Chapagain, Ashok; Dalin, Carole; Debaere, Peter; D’Odorico, Paolo; Marston, Landon; Ray, Chittaranjan; et al (December 2024, Nature Reviews Earth & Environment)

   Virtual water describes water embedded in the production of goods and offers meaningful insights about the complex interplay between water, trade, and sustainability. In this Review, we examine the trends, major players, traded products, and key drivers of virtual water trade (VWT). Roughly 20% of water used in global food production is traded virtually rather than domestically consumed. As such, agriculture dominates VWT, with livestock products, wheat, maize, soybean, oil palm, coffee, and cocoa contributing over 70% of total VWT. These products are also driving VWT growth, the volume of which has increased 2.9 times from 1986 to 2022. However, the countries leading VWT contributions (with China, the United States, the Netherlands, Germany, and India, accounting for 34% of the global VWT in 2022) have remained relatively stable over time, albeit with China becoming an increasingly important importer. VWT can mitigate the effects of water scarcity and food insecurity, although there are concerns about the disconnect between consumers and the environmental impacts of their choices, and unsustainable resource exploitation. Indeed, approximately 16% of unsustainable water use and 11% of global groundwater depletion are virtually traded. Future VWT analyses must consider factors such as water renewability, water quality, climate change impacts, and socio-economic implications. 

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