News » Multifunctional Farming for sustainability of European Agricultural Landscape

10.06.2020

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In Europe, a broad variety of agricultural landscape types haveoriginated as a result of traditional farming activities and landscapediversity maintenance over centuries. The rapid development ofsocio-economic activities during the twentieth century causedsignificant loss of traditional rural landscapes. Traditional/historicalEuropean agricultural landscape types (EALs) represent a type ofcultural landscape with many specific unique cultural, historical, andbiodiversity patterns. Despite their high value, maintenance in practiceis lacking. European farmers and landowners need to learn how toimplement innovative multifunctional farming techniques within theselandscapes. An online interactive educational tool of the ERASMUS+ FEALproject (FEAL: multifunctional Farming for the sustainability of European Agricultural Landscapes) deals with these topics. Case studiesfrom the FEAL project showed the best examples of sustainableagricultural management practices in different types of EALs. The aim ofthis article was to evaluate case studies within coordination ofinformation on the environment (CORINE) Land Cover (CLC) 2012 classesrepresenting traditional land use forms, nature and landscape protectionareas, and ecologically important areas, as well as High Nature Value(HNV) farmland. Results based on 28 case studies from five Europeancountries interpreted the positive external effects of farms on valuesof EALs. A prevailing number of farms exhibited a coincidence betweenCLC 2012 classes with traditional land use forms and HNV farmland andprotected areas. Regarding land cover classes with traditional land useforms, key words selected by farmers gave importance to recreation andtourism, furthering of biodiversity, direct sale, social farming,renewable energy, and traditional building. The highest frequencies ofthe key words were achieved in CLC 2012 classes concerning (to somedegree) natural and semi-natural ecosystems.

Read full article on the "The Role of Small Farm Activities for the Sustainable Management of Agricultural Landscapes: Case Studies from Europe" at https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/21/5966

Federacja Zielonych GAJA
5 Lipca 45, 70-374 Szczecin, Poland
Phone. +48 91 489 42 33
Fax + 48 91 489 42 32
fzbiuro@gajanet.pl


Coalition Clean Baltic
Östra Ågatan 53
SE-753 22 Uppsala, Sweden
SHORT ABOUT THE PROJECT

Project Industrial animal farms in the Baltic Sea Region - sustainable practices to reduce nutrient loads is a part of a long-term campaign of the Coalition Clean Baltic and Green Federation "GAJA", aiming to reduce the negative impact of large-scale animal production on the environment and local communities in the Baltic Sea Region, particularly by reducing nutrient run-off into the sea. The project is part-financed by the European Union. This website reflects only the view of the Coalition Clean Baltic. The Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME) is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains.

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