No abstract

The 2003 reform of the European Union's (EU) Common Agricultural Policy introduced a decoupled income support for farmers called the Single Farm Payment (SFP). Concerns were raised about possible future land use and production changes and their impact on rural communities. Here, such concerns are considered against the workings of the SFP in three EU Member States. Various quantitative studies that have determined the likely impact of the SFP within the EU and the study countries are reviewed. We present the results of a farm survey conducted in the study countries in which farmers' responses to a decoupling scenario similar to the SFP were sought. We found that little short-term change was proposed in the three, rather different, study countries with only 30% of the farmers stating that they would alter their mix of farm activities. Furthermore, less than 30% of all respondents in each country would idle any land under decoupling. Of those who would adopt a new activity, the most popular choices were forestry, woodland and non-food crops.

No abstract

No abstract

OBJECTIVE:To assess the acute metabolic and cardiovascular responses to walking exercise at an intensity corresponding to the heart rate of claudication pain onset and to investigate the effects of a 12-week walking training program at this intensity on walking capacity.METHODS:Twenty-nine patients with intermittent claudication were randomly allocated to the walking training (n = 17) or control (CO, n = 12) group. The walking training group performed an acute exercise session comprising 15×2-min bouts of walking at the heart rate of claudication pain onset, with 2-min interpolated rest intervals. The claudication symptoms and cardiovascular and metabolic responses were evaluated. Walking training was then performed at the same intensity twice each week for 12 weeks, while the control group engaged in twice weekly stretching classes. The claudication onset distance and total walking distance were evaluated before and after the interventions. Brazilian Registry Clinical Trials: RBR-7M3D8W.RESULTS:During the acute exercise session, the heart rate was maintained within tight limits. The exercise intensity was above the anaerobic threshold and >80% of the heart rate peak and VO2peak. After the exercise training period, the walking exercise group (n = 13) showed increased claudication onset distance (309±153 vs. 413±201m) and total walking distance (784±182 vs. 1,100±236m) compared to the control group (n = 12) (p<0.05).CONCLUSION:Walking exercise prescribed at the heart rate of claudication pain onset enables patients with intermittent claudication to exercise with tolerable levels of pain and improves walking performance.

A R T I C L E I N F O Keywords:Logit models Porto Tree-lined streets design and management Urban forest Urban fabric change A B S T R A C T Street trees can play an important role in the urban green infrastructure (UGI). However, changes in the urban fabric often have perverse effects on the structure, diversity, and performance of street trees, and, consequently, on their perception by the public.This research explores public perception of the current street tree adequacy in a coastal neighborhood of Porto that went through a major densification in its urban fabric during the second half of the 20th century.The research methodology included: i) a survey to evaluate public perception of tree services and disservices, and public perception of the adequacy of street trees in the study area; and ii) two Logit models relating public perception of tree services with the characteristics of respondents and streets.96% of the respondents self-reported as tree lovers. However, more than 30% found the street trees of the study area inadequate to the present urban fabric and 5% have already made a complaint to the municipality.Characteristics of respondents and streets affect respondent's perceptions. Education plays a key role in the acknowledgment of tree services. Older respondents are more likely to perceive trees as dangerous. Respondents who live on streets dominated by Black Poplar are more likely to dislike trees.Results implications on UGI planning and design advise an adjustment of tree dimensions to street dimensions, an increase in street tree diversity, and an improved street planting design. Results also suggest that an investment in education and information could lead to conflict mitigation. among green spaces, contributing to a more cohesive Urban Green Infrastructure (UGI) .While in the past, street trees have been essentially perceived as decorative elements (Sanesi and Chiarello, 2006), nowadays their environmental, economic, social and aesthetical services have been increasingly acknowledged (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, 2005;Seamans, 2013). However, the positive attributes of street trees are not the only ones perceived by people. In the streets, trees live alongside with people and buildings, which increases the opportunities for negative interactions (Dandy, 2010). The costs of maintenance, the potential damages to urban infrastructures, the produced green waste and the allergies caused by pollinating can lead people to complain and to feel that, somehow, trees are inappropriate (Rotherham, 2010;Escobedo et al., 2011).Over the years, several studies about public perception, attitudes and opinions regarding street trees were conducted to understand what drives

Characteristicsand motivations of potential users of urban allotment gardens: The case of Vila Nova de Gaia municipal network of urban allotment gardens.

Background: Althoughobesity is usually observed in peripheral arterial disease (PAD) patients, the effects of the association between these diseases on walking capacity are not well documented. Objective: The main objectives of this study were to determine the effects of obesity on exercise tolerance and post-exercise hemodynamic recovery in elderly PAD patients. Methods: 46 patients with stable symptoms of intermittent claudication were classified according to their body mass index (BMI) into normal group (NOR) = BMI <28.0 and obese or in risk of obesity group (OBE) = BMI ≥28.0. All patients performed a progressive graded treadmill test. During exercise, ventilatory responses were evaluated and pre- and post-exercise ankle and arm blood pressures were measured. Results: Exercise tolerance and oxygen consumption at total walking time were similar between OBE and NOR. However, OBE showed a lower claudication time (309 ± 151 vs. 459 ± 272 s, p = 0.02) with a similar oxygen consumption at this time. In addition, OBE presented a longer time for ankle brachial index recovery after exercise (7.8 ± 2.8 vs. 6.3 ± 2.6 min, p = 0.02). Conclusion: Obesity in elderly PAD patients decreased time to claudication, and delayed post-exercise hemodynamic recovery. These results suggest that muscle metabolic demand, and not total workload, is responsible for the start of the claudication and maximal exercise tolerance in PAD patients. Moreover, claudication duration might be responsible for the time needed to a complete hemodynamic recovery after exercise.