Document Type : Research/Original/Regular Article
Authors
1
Associate Professor, Department of Soil Science and Real Estate Cadastre, Baku State University, Baku, Republic of Azerbaijan
2
Associate Professor, Department of Soil and Water Research, Guilan Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center, AREEO, Rasht, Iran
3
Ph.D. Department of State Land-Use Planning and Unified Real Estate Cadastre, State Service for Property Issues, Ministry of Economy, Baku, Republic of Azerbaijan
4
Ph.D. Laboratory of Genesis and Geography, Institute of Geography Public Legal Entity, Ministry of Science and Education, Baku, Republic of Azerbaijan
5
Associate Professor, Laboratory of Genesis and Geography, Institute of Geography Public Legal Entity, Ministry of Science and Education, Baku, Republic of Azerbaijan; Department of Ecology, Sumgayit State University, Ministry of Science and Education, Sumgayit, Republic of Azerbaijan
6
Ph.D. student, Department of Forest Industry Engineering, Bursa Technical University, Bursa, Türkiye
Abstract
Spatially explicit tools are essential for optimizing resource use and defining priority areas for sustainable agriculture in arid regions. This study develops a Green Agriculture Sustainability Index (GASI) as a spatial decision-support framework for precision soil conservation and agricultural resource management in heterogeneous agricultural landscapes. GASI operates at a 1 km² resolution by integrating three normalized sub‑indices: resource use efficiency, erosion impact, and crop pressure using weights derived from PCA and specified according to management priorities. Annual soil loss was modeled using a locally calibrated Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), while Getis-Ord Gi analysis was utilized to identify statistically significant sustainability “coldspots” between 2018 and 2022. The results reveal a clear spatial contrast in GASI values. Eastern plains, featuring cereals, pulses, and fodder, exhibit high to very high sustainability (GASI > 0.6). Conversely, northwestern sloping orchards and central cotton plantations demonstrate low sustainability (GASI < 0.4). These low‑sustainability areas (coldspots) account for approximately 29% of the agricultural land. Statistical analysis identifies slope (β = 0.65) and cotton cultivation (β = 0.40) as the primary drivers of erosion. Scenario analysis demonstrates the potential benefits of targeted interventions. If 30% of sloping orchard areas were turned into agroforests, and 30% of cotton cultivation areas were converted to drip-irrigated cereals and pulses, then the average GASI value would increase from 0.28 to 0.61 for the first case and from 0.20 to 0.52 for the latter. Such interventions would reclassify these areas into higher sustainability classes. Furthermore, annual GASI maps (2018–2022), hotspot analysis using the Getis–Ord Gi statistic, and scenario-based simulations demonstrate the capability of GASI to support precision erosion control and sustainable agricultural planning.
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