Ecosystem Services: Lessons From the Past for a Sustainable Future - Biodiversity Conservation and Environmental Change - page 130

biodiversity and resilience (also see Chapter 7). There is now a growing recognition that skil-
ful management in some cultural landscapes can increase heterogeneity, biodiversity and
ecosystem services (Niamir 1990, Wu 2011, 2012). Breakdown of traditional systems can lead
to biodiversity loss, through land abandonment and homogenization of the landscape, or
through loss of the cultural constraints that safeguarded the sustainability of land-use
(Hammi et al. 2010, Shakesby 2011, Weissteiner et al. 2011).
Fortunately, there are still examples of successful traditional management of multi-
functional landscapes that can provide inspiration for management elsewhere. The Atlas
Mountains of Morocco provide stressful growing conditions and sensitive ecosystems; steep
topography, low rainfall, extremes of temperature and poor soils create fragile woodlands
and pastures that are easily degraded by over-exploitation (Hammi et al. 2010). The vulnera-
bility of ecosystems, as well as their importance as reservoirs of resources for local popula-
tions, led to the control of forest and pastoral areas through communally developed rules that
limit access and resource use. These traditional management systems, known as agdals, have
been practised for over 3,000 years and are still strong in some areas (Hammi et al. 2010,
Auclair et al. 2011).
Management of agdals involves the regulation of access to, and use of, natural resources
in designated areas, preventing over-exploitation and creating critical reserves that sus-
tain populations through hard times, thereby building resilience and contributing to sus-
tainability. Access rules change over time in response to environmental and social
drivers; for example, decisions about when to close and open agdals , when to harvest
and how much, are made on an annual basis. Seasonal movements between highland
grazing areas and valley farms helps to maintain a landscape mosaic, while resting some
agdals in spring and early summer encourages plants to re-seed, both safeguarding plant
diversity and providing a grazing resource for later in the summer season (Domínguez
2013). Opening and closing of grazing areas and the timing of harvesting of important
crops like walnuts provides a hub for social and cultural activities, thus fostering social
cohesion. The inhabitants themselves notice an overexploitation of the agdals , and
decide whether to modify boundaries. Competition for forest resources between neigh-
bouring villages may also trigger the creation of agdals ; legal claims provide a means of
better controlling any intrusions. The institutional structures and process of decision
making helps to ensure social justice, fair sharing of resources, and foster a sense of
belonging (Domínguez 2013).
These traditional management techniques are proving successful in maintaining canopy
cover and regenerating tree species, as well as providing grazing and forest resources (Hammi
et al. 2010). The reasons for the effectiveness of the agdals are that they respond adaptively and
rapidly to changing environmental conditions and are embedded in local society and culture.
In common with many agro-pastoral traditions throughout the world, agdals are complex,
adaptive socioecological systems (see Chapter 7), that are flexible and responsive to environ-
mental changes, social needs, and ecological integrity (Hammi et al. 2010, Auclair et al. 2011).
Such systems create and maintain multi-functional mosaic landscapes with high biodiversity,
which support a range of ecosystem services. For example, Colombaroli and Tinner (2013)