economic point of view based on productivity, net farm income, and
diversity of income; and from the point of view of social terms, indicators
such as food security and employment opportunity were defi ned. Hence,
analyzing of the role of agroforestry system in sustainability of agriculture
can be summarized in to three dimensions of sustainable agriculture as
follows:
Biological/ environmental dimension
Agroforestry system is consistent with the concept of sustainable
agriculture in terms of environmental issues. Biodiversity, effi cient use of
natural resources, and natural resources conservation are the environmental
indicators. Biodiversity in agroforestry system lead to achievement of
environmental sustainability by restoring the equilibrium in the ecosystem.
One of the prominent objectives of the agroforestry system that addresses
the issues of effi cient use of natural resources depletion is sustainable
agriculture. Integration of various components in agricultural production
leads to optimization of the usage of resources. Agroforestry system
practices natural resource conservation through enhancement of soil
fertility by providing natural fertilizer for the soil while small plants help
retain moisture.
Economic dimension
Productivity, net farm income, and diversity of income are
economic indicators. Agroforestry system based on integration of various
productions potentially lead to increased benefi ts from economies of scope
by spreading farm inputs and moreover different farm activities complement
each other to reduce unit cost, hence increase farm productivity. In general,
the types of crops or animals in the monoculture system will depend on
the expected market demand and price. Thus, there is always the risk of
excess supply and decreasing prices. Agroforestry system based on multiple