Check that you have the same solution as the following model : modelEco_landUse.zip .
Why does the model not succeed in obtaining a stable solution over the years ?
The model provides results that change every year, because every year the population increases, and the cropping pattern must be adapted in order to produce enough food resources to feed this growing population.
How do the simulation results evolve over 30 years ?
After a number of years the model becomes infeasible. Indeed, the population keeps growing and food demand gets higher every year. But the land area is limited and therefore at a certain point the region does not have enough land resources anymore. In this model this situation occurs after 27 years.
What can you say about the carbon stored ?
Total carbon stocks go down significantly between the initial situation and the first year. This is due to the fact that the first choice is to cut down all the forest in order to produce palm oil, which stores very little carbon in comparison with the forest. Carbon stocks go down year after year because in order to meet food constraints, the farmer increases the area dedicated to cassava – yet cassava does not store carbon at all – and has to reduce the area dedicated to palm oil for that reason.
