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Towards indicators of sustainable development for soybeans productive units: a multicriteria perspective for the Ecuadorian coast

Abstract:

The challenges of food security rely on highly technical productive systems. Monocultures, on the other hand, are reliant on a high input load, negatively impact soil conservation, affecting edaphic biota and generating biological degradation. The study aimed to evaluate the sustainability of Agricultural Productive Units (APU) dedicated to soybean cultivation in Los Rios province, Ecuador, and compare these results with benefits from Ecosystem Services calculated with a geographic information system (GIS) protocol. Through surveys, social, economic and ecological dimensions were evaluated via a multicriteria model. In addition, macrofauna and soil physicochemical conditions were analyzed. As a result, we obtained that 100% of the APU had an Economic Indicator (KI > 2), 65% a Socio-cultural Indicator (SCI > 2) and 99% an Ecological Indicator (EI > 2). Also, there was a suitable agreement between calculated benefits of Ecosystem Services (CBESs) and economic (KI), socio-cultural (SCI), ecological (EI) and general sustainability (GSI) indices. This study intends to make a contribution to the model coupling efforts targeting at exploring the interaction between available farmer information and ES. The dependence on external inputs is established as a critical point, which could constitute a threat to the sustainability of the production system, these findings can play an important role in a decision-making process.