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13.30 - 14.00 14.00 - 14.15 BALDOCK, DAVID, Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP), Dean Bradley House, 52 Horseferry Road, London SW1P 2AG. dbaldock@ieeplondon.org.uk AGRICULTURAL POLICIES SUSTAINING THE EUROPEAN COUNTRYSIDE Agricultural policies are mainly determined at the EU level and cover a broad range of objectives, extending beyond production related concerns to other social and environmental functions. Since the mid 1980s there have been increasingly explicit references to countryside management and other environmental concerns in agricultural policy. Of particular importance has been the growth of incentive policies whereby farmers receive annual payments in return for accepting agri-environmental obligations. The evolution of these initiatives to integrate the environment into the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) will be examined and placed in the wider context of agricultural policy and the changing relationship between farm practice and environmental outcomes. The primary role of incentives in agricultural policy will be considered alongside the use of other policy instruments, such as regulatory controls and land use planning. Some of the strengths and weaknesses of agricultural policy as a means of influencing countryside management have become apparent over the last two decades. There are implications both for environmental policy and for agricultural policies seeking to support ‘multifunctional’ farming. 14.15 - 14.30 BERENDSE, FRANK & David Kleijn, Nature Conservation and Plant Ecology Group, Wageningen University, Bornsesteeg 69, 6708 PD, Wageningen, The Netherlands (frank.berendse@staf.ton.wau.nl). AGRI-ENVIRONMENT SCHEMES DO NOT EFFECTIVELY PROTECT BIODIVERSITY IN DUTCH AGRICULTURAL LANDSCAPES Approximately 20% of the EU’s farmland is under some form of agri-environment scheme to counteract the negative impacts of modern agriculture on the environment. Although in various countries agri-environment schemes have been implemented for well over a decade, to date, no reliable, sufficiently replicated studies have been performed to test whether such measures have the presumed positive effects on biodiversity. Here we present the results of a study evaluating the contribution of agri-environment schemes to the protection of biodiversity in intensively used Dutch agricultural landscapes. We surveyed plants, birds, hover flies and bees on 78 paired fields that had either management agreements or were managed conventionally. Management agreements were not effective in protecting the species richness of the investigated species groups: no positive effects on plant and bird species diversity were found. The four most common wader species were even observed less frequently on fields with management agreements. On the other hand, hover flies and especially bees showed modest increases in species richness on fields with management agreements. The results indicate there is a pressing need for a scientifically sound evaluation of this management tool. 14.30 - 14.45 SCHUMACHER, WOLFGANG, Institut für Landwirtschaftliche Botanik, Abt. Geobotanik und Naturschutz, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität, Karlrobert-Kreitenstrasse 13, D-53115 Bonn, DE, geobotanik@uni-bonn.de LAND-USE AS THE PRECONDITION FOR INCREASE AND MAINTENANCE OF BIODIVERSITY IN GRASSLAND ECOSYSTEMS Low-intensity use is a precondition for the maintenance of grassland biodiversity and recreational value in central and western Europe. Since the neolithikum, grazing and mowing has moulded specific and highly diverse animal and plant communities associated with nutrient poor meadows and pastures. Communities that did not exist in pristine landscapes that were covered by forest. Meagre grassland has declined considerably as a consequence of modern and intense agriculture. However, some mountain ranges in western and central Europe have retained fair chunks of meagre grassland. Preservation of these highly diverse grasslands has become obligatory following the Rio convention on biodiversity and the European Flora-Fauna-Habitat directive. Preservation requires the integration of nature conservation and land-use (livestock). Examples from Nordrhein-Westfalen will be presented that show (a) the integration of conservation targets into farming operations (more than 200 farms); (b) successful preservation of high-level regional grassland biodiversity; (c) additional income for farmers (4,000 - 15,000 Euro per year) based on adequate compensation programs; and (d) as a result increasing identification of farmers with conservation goals. 14.45 - 15.00 Beinlich, Burkhard, Martin Dieterich, Heiko Köstermeyer and BENJAMIN HILL. Bioplan Consulting, Planning and Research, Untere Mauerstrasse 8, D-37671 Höxter, DE bioplan.hx@t-online.de(BB,HK,BH), Dieterich, Beinlich & Partner Consulting, Planning and Research, Röntgenstrasse 17, D-73230 Kirchheim, DE (MD).. THE PIG GRAZING PROJECT: PROSPECTS OF A NOVEL MANAGEMENT TOOL Until the beginning of the last century domestic pigs were mainly kept outdoors. They were guarded by herdsmen. Density of pigs was often quite high. For example in autumn during the 16th-17th century each year up to 200.000 pigs were fed on acorns in a single German forest (10 000 ha). During other parts of the year, they were kept in pastures feeding on grasses and herbs, and rooting the soil in search for sub-surface food. Our research demonstrates that rooting (a foraging behaviour unique to pigs) opens patches of soil that provide habitat qualities essential for the establishment of several species. Within 1-2 years after pigs were introduced the diversity of plants increased by up to 30 % in low-intensity pig-pastures (<2 pigs/ha). Several rare and endangered plants (e.g. Caltha palustris, Elatine triambra, Oenanthe fistulosa) and animals (e.g. Gallinago gallinago, Crex crex, Anthus pratensis) were promoted. Grazing pigs - in particular old regional breeds - attract spectators ('eco'-tourism). They therefore function as an efficient marketing tool for regional products gained from conservation oriented land-use. Thus, pig grazing can generate income for products from low-intensity farming. 15.30 - 15.45 LIST, PETER C. Department of Philosophy, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331 USA. <plist@orst.edu> ALDO LEOPOLD ON THE ETHICAL AND AESTHETIC FOUNDATIONS FOR CONSERVING FOREST BIODIVERSITY In the 1930s and 1940s, the ecologist Aldo Leopold argued for new values that would harmonize human behavior in industrial societies with the earth's ecosystems. Since that time, Leopold's land ethic has provided one conceptual foundation for environmental ethics and been widely influential in such disciplines as forestry and wildlife science. This presentation examines the predominant form of conservation thinking that prevailed in American forestry during Leopold's day and is still influential, namely, the utilitarian and agronomic philosophy of Gifford Pinchot. It then reviews Leopold's writings to evaluate the new ethical model that he proposed for forestry and forestry land use. It argues that, in contrast with "Pinchotism," Leopold's "biotic forestry" provides a sound ecological and aesthetic basis for such critical goals as preserving forest biodiversity and maintaining forest ecological health. It also notes Leopold's emphasis on such measures as transforming the attitudes of individual land owners and users, altering university education, and creating new government conservation programs. It concludes that preservation of the remaining forest biodiversity in the world must also take into account some of the institutional, cultural, and economic barriers to ecologically intelligent land use. 15.45 - 16.15 VERSCHUUREN, Jonathan, Tilburg University, Faculty of Law, P.O. Box 90153, NL-5000 LE Tilburg, Netherlands j.m.verschuuren@kub.nl LEGAL BASIS OF LAND USE AND CONSERVATION UNDER THE EC HABITATS DIRECTIVE AND THE US ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT Are the EC Habitats Directive and the US Endangered Species Act effective legal instruments to protect landscape diversity? The EC Directive obliges member states to designate sites that host certain natural habitat types (estuaries, bogs, beach forests, etc.) and/or certain endangered species as a special area of conservation (SAC). After designation as an SAC, member states have to: 1) draw up conservation measures, 2) take preventive measures to avoid deterioration by existing activities (i.e., agriculture, fisheries), 3) prohibit plans or projects with negative effects on the SAC (i.e., construction works). Apart from these rules on SACs, the Directive also gives rules on the protection of endangered species outside SACs (for instance, prohibition to destruct breeding sites). In the US, the Endangered Species Act applies to a list of endangered or threatened species. The law prohibits any action that results in a ‘taking’ of a listed species, or adversely affects habitat (designated ‘critical habitats’). There is a lot of criticism on these instruments in the US; especially the effectiveness of designating critical habitats is disputed. 16.15 - 16.45 WILSON, MATTHEW A. and Robert Costanza, Gund Institute for Ecological Economics, University of Vermont, USA. 81 Carrigan Drive Burlington, VT. 05405-0088 <mawilson@wam.umd.edu> THE GEOGRAPHY OF ECOSYSTEM SERVICES: MAXIMIZING THE VALUE OF LANDSCAPES IN LAND USE CONSERVATION This paper draws on recent theoretical and methodological developments in the economic valuation of ecosystem services and spatial analysis to discuss a new approach for assessing the value of ecosystem services at multiple spatial scales. The services provided by ecological systems are critical to the healthy functioning of the natural environment; but they also contribute significantly to human welfare, both directly and indirectly, and thus represent a significant portion of the total economic value of natural landscapes. When ecosystem service values are not fully accounted for, they remain outside the calculus of land use planning, thereby compromising the long-term sustainability of ecologically significant landscapes. Better accounting of ecosystem service values will help scientists, decision-makers, and land use planners evaluate trade-offs among the many different management options they will face as natural landscapes increasingly come under pressure by humans. We discuss our development of a flexible, web-based spatial decision support system that allows end-users to conduct value assessments of selected landscape features at multiple spatial scales in a fully interactive, ‘data transparent’ environment. The result is a spatial decision support system capable of generating reliable value estimates of landscapes that can be integrated into land use planning at multiple spatial scales. 16.45 - 17.00 COCCOSSIS HARRY, Laboratory of Environmental Planning, University of the Aegean, Nikis 44 - 151 23 Marousi Athens, Greece, <hkok@aegean.gr> NATURE CONSERVATION AND TOURISM IN THE AEGEAN ISLANDS Tourism has provided many small islands in the Aegean with substantial opportunities for income and employment. In some cases these have led to a reversal of past trends of population decline and abandonment. Opportunities are not evenly distributed as a variety of factors affect the spatial patterns of growth and development. Tourism is accounting for much change in local societies and environmental quality. Change might be interpreted in a positive manner but may also incorporate serious negative impacts. As islands are closed systems with intensive interdependence of society-economy and environment, impacts in one sector affect the entire system. Environmental change is particularly important as it affects ultimately the tourist activity itself. With a broader perspective on environmental quality, incorporating quality of life dimensions, tourism relates directly to quality of life in tourist destinations. Most islands in the Aegean are seeking sustainable development policies, particularly in relation to tourism. As the interpretation of sustainable tourism varies from one place to another so do policy responses. Seeking sustainable tourism policies is often based on several key assumptions regarding the capacity, often limited, of local societies to control tourist development while safeguarding their natural and cultural heritage. 17.00 - 17.30 SZYSZKO JAN. Landscape Architecture Department Agricultural University of Warsaw. 02-528 Warsaw. Rakowiecka 26/30. Poland. szyszko@delta.sggw.waw.pl. THE FOUNDATIONS OF POLAND’S CULTURAL LANDSCAPE PROTECTION — CONSERVATION POLITICS From the very moment of the origin of life on earth the natural resources of our planet have evolved through the successional natural processes modified by climatic changes and distributed by various catastrophes such as orogenic movements, floods or fires. The appearance of man has brought about disturbances and modifications of natural processes. Natural resources varying in different spots of our globe influenced the awareness of sociates which was reflected in the broadly undrstood cultural resources. The three components: society, natural resources and cultural resources are inseperable, forming a cultural landscape. The changes in the social and economic system in Poland the late 1980s and the early 1990s and the respective development of local governments which should favour the protection of cultural landscape on the contrary they seem to be a serious threat to the landscape. The only way to counteract the threat is to promote and implement the policy of sustainable development However, it requires highly qualified staff who might hold responsible positions in the state and local administration. The staff who can evaluate and assess the value of the cultural landscape and is able to include this value in economic analyses of all investments promoting regional development. (Reserve) JOOS, MARTIN, Ulrich Lang and Martin Dieterich. Bürgermeisteramt, Bad Überkingen, Aufhauserstrasse 4, D-73337 Bad Überkingen, DE, m.joos@bad-ueberkingen.de (MJ), Landratsamt Göppingen, Amt für Umweltschutz und Wasserwirtschaft, Postfach 809, D-73008 Göppingen, DE (UL) and Dieterich, Beinlich & Partner, Consulting, Planning and Research, Röntgenstrasse 17, D-73230 Kirchheim (MD). THE FILSALB PROJECT: COMMUNITIES AS MEDIATORS - THE USEFULNESS OF ACCEPTANCE IN NATURE CONSERVATION Communities represent the political scale at which humans actually shape and administer their environment. Decisions whether ideas and concepts remain abstract theory or will be implemented are mostly made at the communal level. Here, the interests of land-use and conservation meet or sometimes clash and have to be balanced. Nature conservation has to overcome barriers of acceptance within communities, if it is not to just be an obligation imposed from higher political and administrative levels. Nature conservation can not be sustained against the interests of the majority of those directly affected by measures. Within the context of the 'Filsalb'-Project, communities attempt to seek more acceptance for nature conservation and at the same time to grant a just and thus sustainable balance of interests. In an area characterised by species-rich chalk grassland the project attempts to integrate concerns from nature conservation, agriculture and recreation/tourism into measures that provide benefits for all the parties involved. Measures include improved funding for extensive land-use, marketing of locally grown produce, visitor guidance and information linking land-use to landscape qualities. The project seeks acceptance for conservation targets by generating win-win-situations rather than acceptance through scientific or pseudo-scientific discourse. |