Impacts of land managers´ decisions on landuse transition within Missisquoi Watershed Vermont: An application of agent-based modeling system

The primary objective of this study is to identify macro emergent phenomena pertaining to landuse transitions within the Missisquoi Watershed, Vermont, by accounting for land managers´ landuse decision making processes with respect to landscape characteristics, climate change scenarios and public policies. Due to the heterogeneity and the complexity of the interactions among human decision makers and potential trade-offs among natural and socio-economic losses and gains, a landuse transition agent-based model (LTABM) is developed to simulate landuse transitions with respect to several climate change scenarios and public policy interventions. It is expected that land managers´ landuse decisions will be primarily dominated by profit maximizations, but also heavily driven by new technologies, risk perceptions and tax and subsidy policies. The results of this study will identify influential factors affecting landuse change, policy implementation hurdles, and alternate public policies leading to more sustainable landuse planning in the face of climate change.