Sostenibilidad y territorio. Propuesta para la evaluación y gestión sostenible de los servicios de los ecosistemas en la región suroriental de Puerto Rico

Abstract

The purpose of this dissertation is to propose methods of assessing sustainability in an ecological or eco-social sense, which also incorporate estimates of the capacity of ecosystems to provide services for human well-being, in accordance with the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment scheme. The study area is the south-central eastern region of Puerto Rico. Different procedures of analysis and proposal of solutions are tested that have in common the relation between sustainability and territorial planning. The selection of cases studied was performed according to its importance for the country, for the region studied and for being representation of different types of ecosystem services. The distinct chapters present the following studies: a method for representing sustainability scenarios in the territory and their role in the prevention of natural hazards; the relationship between land use and regulation of erosion in a river basin; the ability of the territory to accommodate different types of sustainable agroecosystems, capable of supplying the most demanded commodities and lastly a procedure to include the dimensions of eco-social sustainability (with a socio-ecosystem approach) in municipal strategic planning. In order to diagnose the sustainability of land use and to relate it to flood risk areas or strong winds, traditional, sensible, unsustainable and impoverished sustainability models were identified. The analysis shows that within the areas which represent danger of flooding, the model of land uses that predominates corresponds to the "unsustainable" scenario. However, the areas with the greatest potential to suffer damage due to strong winds have a significant vegetation cover, which corresponds to the sensible and effective sustainable scenario for mitigation of damage to human settlements. The results allow recommending strategies for the Hazard Mitigation Plan. The analysis of the erosion regulation service in a river basin was based on the comparison of two scenarios, one with the current vegetation cover and the other with the maximum territorial changes allowed by the PR Land Use Plan. A 28% increase in erosion due to changes in land use was identified, without conservation measures, which represents a high sedimentation rate in the important reservoir to which the basin is supplied and an increase in dredging remediation costs. The methodology to generate combinations of cultivable species (potential agroecosystems) capable of supplying the most demanded products, took into account the need to preserve the services of the existing ecosystems (mainly regulation) that were evaluated. For this purpose, a methodology with GIS tools, multivariate and conventional statistics, were used to manage the optimal variables for the sowing of 10 species of local consumption and to establish territorial proficiency classes for different theoretical agroecosystems. Seven groups were identified with combinations of species that will act as a reference for the creation of new agroecosystems, in order to be compatible with the preservation of the ecoservices of the ecosystems currently evaluated. Finally, a strategy for incorporating the eco-social perspective of sustainable development into strategic planning at the local level is analyzed. Setting goals based on the dimensions of eco-social sustainability describes how the process of democratic governance and the progress towards ecological sustainability in the municipality of Caguas was carried out. The objective was to promote sustainable development at the local scale, considering the compatibility of production systems with social and ecological values, and fostering an economy in the service of this model of development. Through a broad collaborative effort between local society and public administration, six strategic guidelines were created from the chosen ecological sustainability model. From these, the Strategic Plan of New Generation of the City of Caguas is born, which contains the management strategies that forge the future of the City.