D. Objectives Agricultural sustainability and judicious use of soil and water resources in the humid tropics are major global issues of modern times because of the interplay among human population, socio-economic and political factors, and natural resources of the fragile ecoregion. Mismanagement of soil resources and inefficient, resource-based agricultural systems are causing serious degradation of the ecoregion and perpetuating food deficit, malnutrition, and poor standard of living. If improved and scientific methods of forest conversion, land uses.
High productivity is an important aspect of agricultural sustainability in the humid tropics.
However, most of the prevalent land uses and predominant agricultural systems in the humid tropics are characterized, with a few notable exceptions of silviculture and rice-based systems, by low crop and animal productivity, rapid decline in productivity with continuous use, and high rates of soil and environmental degradation. The principal objective of a sustainable land-use system is to maintain a high level of productivity, maintain or improve environmental and aesthetic attributes, and enhance soil quality. Inputs in Fig. 1 refer to additions of off-farm essential nutrients and amendments, while management refers to judicious use of on farm resources to minimize waste and the risks of soil and environmental degradation. Soil quality depends on a range of soil properties and processes.