https://opus.lib.uts.edu.au/bitstream/10453/9811/1/2008000329.pdf

Sustainable construction--the role of environmental assessment tools.

http://homepages.see.leeds.ac.uk/~lecajd/papers/Reedetal2006.pdf

An adaptive learning process for developing and applying sustainability indicators with local communities

Soil is a component of primary importance in crop production, even if it is often neglected, or only regarded as a physical support for the growth of plants. However, with the increasing societal concerns for the sustainability of agriculture, soil must be considered as a living system. Its quality results from the multiple interactions among physicochemical and biological components, notably the microbial communities, primordial for soil function. Crops are threatened by soil-borne diseases. These are often difficult to control, because of the “hidden” status of the pathogens and also because of the absence, noxiousness or lack of efficacy of chemical treatments. In this context, there is a renewed interest for cultural practices such as the use of organic amendments. These practices have a strong influence on soil health, which takes into account plant health, through both changes of physicochemical characteristics and influence on soil microbial communities. Cultural practices are used to improve soil health, and can, in some cases, increase soil disease suppression. The effects of these practices on soil properties have been studied, but the relationship between these properties and soil suppressiveness has not been always very clear. Many different soil descriptors, either abiotic or biotic, have been used to describe the soil health and suppressiveness, but there is a lack of identified, reliable and consistent indicators. One aim of this review is to show that, despite the age of the soil health concept and all the studies that have been conducted, there are still no guidelines for assessment of soil quality from the plant health point of view. Obviously, the extreme diversity of situations makes any generalisation from a given case-study difficult. However, based on what has already been done in related fields, a methodology to search for indicators of soil health can be proposed. In this review we will present (i) how a healthy soil can be defined and what are the concepts hidden behind the words “soil health,” (ii) which cultural practices have been used to control soil-borne diseases and their limitations, (iii) which soil parameters have been measured when studying soil suppressiveness, and which relationships have been found between these parameters, and finally (iv) how these descriptors could become indicators of soil health, using appropriate analytical and statistical methods.

Soil health through soil disease suppression: Which strategy from descriptors to indicators?

Evaluation of the environmental impact of agriculture at the farm level: a comparison and analysis of 12 indicator-based methods

http://ira.lib.polyu.edu.hk/bitstream/10397/73089/2/Olawumi_Scientometric_Global_Sustainability.pdf

A scientometric review of global research on sustainability and sustainable development

SUMMARY Significant interest in the concept of sustainable development exists amongst scientists, planners, policy makers and the public, and considerable effort and expenditure is made or envisaged at local, national and international levels to promote a more sustainable society Until ‘green accounting’ and similar systems are made available and are implemented, the sustainability indicator will be the most effective tool available for monitoring progress towards a more sustainable society Sustainability indicators are already available but are characterized by a poor or absent theoretical underpinning This paper addresses this problem by proposing a methodological framework that can be applied to the construction of indicators of sustainable development In order to be consistent with widely accepted definitions of sustainable development, considerations relating to the measurement of quality of life and ecological integrity are central to the methodology The methodological framework has relevance t

A. May

Papers

PICABUE: a methodological framework for the development of indicators of sustainable development