International awareness of the world-renowned Angkor Wat temple complex has drawn attention to the challenges of climate change, deforestation, and water management in Cambodia. The aim of this chapter is to examine the benefits of enhanced water management provided within Angkor Archaeological Park, and to consider challenges to maintaining those benefits. The Authority for the Protection of the Site and Management of the Region of Angkor (APSARA) designed and in 2014–2018 implemented within the Park a water management project to recharge groundwater supplies, mitigate floods, and provide irrigation. To assess the benefits, we draw on an economic analysis of ecosystem service changes, including interviewing 145 households from across the Park and four experts. To assess challenges to sustaining the benefits, we also interviewed 73 households and conducted 12 focus group discussions in the upper catchment. We used a combination of quantitative analysis (i.e. economic assessment) and qualitative data analysis (e.g. thematic analysis). Our analyses of data from people living in and around the Park showed that improved water management (e.g. reinforcing dykes and storage facilities for groundwater recharge) and investment in economic diversification (e.g. tourism, horticulture, and heritage crops projects) reduced vulnerability of the people to climate hazards. Currently, these benefits are threatened by forest loss in the upper Siem Reap catchment. Our analysis of data from the upper catchment showed that forest loss also resulted in detrimental effects to human health and well-being, and was associated with higher food insecurity. Solutions are suggested to enhance nature-based employment opportunities and promote economic diversification. This would extend the scope of management of this socio-ecological production landscape (SEPL) beyond the Park and ensure its sustainability by improving the health and well-being of the people living in the upper catchment.

Green Firebreaks (GFBs), strips of strategically placed low-flammability vegetation, represent a proactive complement to other approaches to wildfire management. This review, which summarises the literature to elucidate GFBs’ potential to reduce fire spread and intensity, revealed that empirical studies validating their effectiveness remain scarce. It also revealed that comparisons of GFB techniques are challenging due to spatial and temporal complexity combined with inconsistent methods and terminology. Several researchers note that GFB effectiveness requires that their design is appropriate for the site conditions. Furthermore, GFBs are not a stand-alone solution to the wildfire problem, and a lack of consideration for trade-offs may undermine their effectiveness, particularly under extreme weather conditions. As climate change intensifies drought and heat, vegetation moisture content must be a key design factor given that even low-flammability vegetation becomes fuel under extreme drought conditions. In addition, poorly designed GFBs may unintentionally alter wind dynamics and increase ember transport and fire spread. There is a broad consensus in the literature that appropriately designed GFBs can complement wildfire management while providing additional biodiversity and other benefits. To achieve their potential, research is required for GFB designs to be site-specific, responsive to trade-offs, and effective in providing multiple benefits under different climate change scenarios.

With increased wildfire risks and reduced suppression effectiveness, Green Firebreaks (GFBs) provide a proactive approach to fuel management. This literature review revealed diverse approaches to GFB design that generally involve establishing strips of low-flammability vegetation to slow fire spread and reduce fireline intensity. While GFB approaches may reduce fire spread and intensity by creating fuel discontinuities, empirical studies validating their effectiveness remain scarce. Comparing GFB techniques is challenging due to spatial and temporal complexity combined with inconsistent methods and terminology. Several researchers note that GFB effectiveness requires matching design with site conditions; they are not a stand-alone solution to the wildfire problem, and they are not suitable in all settings. A lack of consideration for trade offs may undermine the effectiveness of green firebreaks, particularly under extreme weather conditions. As climate change intensifies drought and heat, vegetation moisture content, which is critical to flammability, must be a key design factor, since even low flammability species can become fuel under extreme drought conditions. In addition, poorly designed GFB structures may unintentionally alter wind dynamics, increasing ember transport and fire spread rather than reducing it. There is a broad consensus in the literature that appropriately designed GFBs can complement wildfire management, while also providing additional benefits. To achieve their potential, research is required for GFB designs to be site-specific, responsive to trade-offs, and effective in providing multiple benefits under different climate change scenarios.

Iris pallida Lam., also known as Sweetie Iris, is a perennial ornamental and medicinal plant that produces a wide range of secondary metabolites. The Sweetie Iris was recently reported to have high allelopathic properties with the potential to be explored in sustainable weed management. This study aimed to identify and evaluate the contributions of compounds involved in the inhibitory effects of the rhizome of Sweetie Iris. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis was used to determine the content of β-ionone in the rhizome of Sweetie Iris. The phytotoxicity of β-ionone was evaluated on lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) and other test plants. The content of β-ionone in the crude extract of Sweetie Iris rhizome was found to be 20.0 mg g⁻¹ by HPLC analysis. The phytotoxicity bioassay showed that β-ionone had strong inhibitory activity on the growth of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) and the other test plants, including Taraxacum officinale, Stellaria media, Eleusine indica, Amaranthus hybridus, Vicia villosa, and Brassica napus. At a concentration of 23.0 µg mL⁻¹, β-ionone inhibited the growth of all test plant species treated. Therefore, β-ionone is an active compound among the other allelopathic substances contained in the rhizome of Sweetie Iris.

Wildfire risks are increasing due to climate change, which poses a challenge to conventional firefighting strategies. In the wildland–urban interface (WUI), people and their infrastructure are increasingly vulnerable to fire. Strategic planting of low-flammable vegetation as green firebreaks has emerged to support wildfire management in the WUI. However, under extreme heat and drought, even low-flammability plants become fuel, contributing to fire spread and intensity. This paper presents a conceptual design framework for irrigated green firebreaks (iGFBs), which integrate vegetation design with supplemental irrigation to maintain fuel moisture and enhance fire-regulating ecosystem services. The framework is structured around landscape contexts, priority ecosystem services, integrated design solutions, and implementation considerations. A case study in Noosa Shire, Queensland, Australia, demonstrates how urban water reuse, including greywater and rainwater, can provide the needed irrigation in a WUI landscape. The iGFB concept highlights the potential to reduce fire intensity and slow fire spread while delivering co-benefits such as localised cooling and enhanced biodiversity. While the framework is site-responsive, its underlying principles are transferable to other WUI settings. Further research is required to evaluate the effectiveness of iGFBs under different fire and climate scenarios.