Towards mitigation of greenhouse gases by small changes in farming practices: understanding local barriers in Spain

Sánchez, Berta; Álvaro‐Fuentes, Jorge; Cunningham, Ruth; Iglesias, Ana

doi:10.1007/s11027-014-9562-7

Cited by 26 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 54 publications

(50 reference statements)

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“…However, experts at the workshop pointed out agronomic and economic barriers, namely the initial cost of a direct seed-drill and the additional need of spraying might cause low acceptance by farmers, especially for the small sized farms to absorb such costs. Additionally, they noted a strong tradition of conventional tillage practices in the region and an elderly farming population, as reported bySánchez et al (2014). (b) The cost of manure applied in irrigated maize are about -905 €/tCO2e ha -1 yr -1 to…”

mentioning

confidence: 71%

Management of agricultural soils for greenhouse gas mitigation: Learning from a case study in NE Spain

Sánchez¹,

Iglesias²,

McVittie

et al. 2016

Journal of Environmental Management

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A portfolio of agricultural practices is now available that can contribute to reaching European mitigation targets. Among them, the management of agricultural soils has a large potential for reducing GHG emissions or sequestering carbon. Many of the practices are based on well tested agronomic and technical know-how, with proven benefits for farmers and the environment. A suite of practices has to be used since none of the practices can provide a unique solution. However, there are limitations in the process of policy development: (a) agricultural activities are based on biological processes and thus, these practices are location specific and climate, soils and crops determine their agronomic potential; (b) since agriculture sustains rural communities, the costs and potential for implementation have also to be regionally evaluated and (c) the aggregated regional potential of the combination of practices has to be defined in order to inform abatement targets. We believe that, when implementing mitigation practices, three questions are important: Are they cost-effective for farmers? Do they reduce GHG emissions? What policies favour their implementation? This study addressed these questions in three sequential steps. First, mapping the use of representative soil management practices in the European regions to provide a spatial context to upscale the local results. Second, using a Marginal Abatement Cost Curve (MACC) in a Mediterranean case study (NE Spain) for ranking soil management practices in terms of their cost-effectiveness. Finally, using a wedge approach of the practices as a complementary tool to link science to mitigation policy. A set of soil management practices was found to be financially attractive for Mediterranean farmers, which in turn could achieve significant abatements (e.g., 1.34 MtCO2e in the case study region). The quantitative analysis was completed by a discussion of potential farming and policy choices to shape realistic mitigation policy at European regional level.

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mentioning

confidence: 71%

Management of agricultural soils for greenhouse gas mitigation: Learning from a case study in NE Spain

Sánchez¹,

Iglesias²,

McVittie

et al. 2016

Journal of Environmental Management

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“…Given the large number of farmers without a successor as well as the negative relationship between farmer age and the uptake of innovations, non-retirement in farming could become an increasing problem for agricultural productivity in Ireland, which is already struggling with structural challenges. While low intensity retirement farming can result in benefits to the environment due to reduced inputs of fertilizer, pesticides and machine work (Potter and Lobley, 1992a), older farmers tend to be less willing to actively engage in agri-environmental schemes (Karali et al 2014;Padel, 2001;Sanchez et al 2014;Slee et al, 2006;Vanslembrouck et al, 2002).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This could be achieved for example through minimum educational levels for the younger partner into the design of a support scheme, which could also address fears of the land quality deteriorating. Furthermore younger, well-educated farmers have been shown to be more likely to be innovative and engage in agri-environmental schemes (Daberkow and McBride, 2003;Diederen et al, 2003;Jones, 1963;Karali et al, 2014;Padel, 2001;Paudel et al, 2012;Sanchez et al, 2014;Slee et al, 2006;Vanslembrouck et al, 2002).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Retirement farming or sustainable growth – land transfer choices for farmers without a successor

Duesberg

Bogue²,

Renwick

2017

Land Use Policy

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Ireland's agriculture is characterised by an ageing farmer population and small average farm sizes. These structural issues are shared by a number of European countries and have been identified as barriers to sustainable growth in the sector. While farms with an identified successor usually enter a path of expansion and growth, farms without a successor at some point follow a route of winding down and extensification. Such retirement farming could potentially become an issue for food security and sustainable land use. Understanding the retirement decisions of farmers without a successor is key to address this issue. To this end a survey was conducted with Irish farmers including questions surrounding succession and retirement. About half of the surveyed farmers did not have a successor and two thirds of those did not intend to fully retire from active farming in the future. A logistic regression analysis of the collected data showed that placing a high value on family tradition in farming and only receiving a state pension had a negative effect on the intention to retire, while being aware of changing pension ages had a positive effect. A follow up qualitative study explored the perceptions of farmers without a successor regarding various land transfer options. The participants mainly anticipated negative consequences arising from selling the farm and full retirement such as the loss of land and the end of the farming activity. Other options such as the long-term leasing of part of the land or entering into a partnership with a younger farmer were regarded as having more positive consequences. These included a lowering of the workload, allowing a continuing involvement in farm work, and the ability to be able to stay on the farm.

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“…The operationalization of agro-ecology is contextdependent (see Section 2). Agro-ecological practices that are considered essential in degraded agricultural lands, also in order to restore soils, include diversification (Kremen, Iles, Bacon, & Bacon, 2012;Kremen & Miles, 2012;Pala, Ryan, Zhang, Singh, & Harris, 2007;Sánchez et al, 2014), tree management (Pearson, 2007;Rigueiro Rodríguez, McAdam, & Mosquera-Losada, 2009; Sánchez et al, 2014; Sayer et al, 2013), soil management (Abawi, Thurston, & Thurston, 1994;Holland, 2004;Kennedy & Smith, 1995;Sherwood & Uphoff, 2000;Soane et al, 2012) and water infrastructure Lopes et al, 2011;Toensmeier & Herren, 2016). These practices should help decreasing erosion, increasing fertility, increasing infiltration of water and increasing biodiversity.…”

Section: Agro-ecology In Andalusiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Conditions for the adoption of agro-ecological farming practices: a holistic framework illustrated with the case of almond farming in Andalusia

Schoonhoven

Runhaar

2018

International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability

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Agricultural landscapes offer unique habitats for many species. Because agriculture is a major land use worldwide, changes in farming practices can have major repercussions for biodiversity. Particularly in Western Europe, ongoing intensification and scale enlargement but also land abandonment and poor agricultural practices leading to land degradation form a major threat to agrobiodiversity. Agro-ecological farming practices are suggested as an alternative way of farming in order to conserve and enhance biodiversity. Yet knowledge about what factors explain farmers' adoption of agro-ecological farming practices is fragmented and incomplete. In this paper, we offer a holistic framework that specifies these factors and how they are interconnected. The framework is illustrated and refined by means of a case study analysis of almond farming in Andalusia. The chosen case represents a specific localized farming practice that currently negatively impacts biodiversity but for which agro-ecology forms an attractive alternative regarding biodiversity. The case study demonstrates that our framework offers a useful tool to systematically identify the different factors that affect agro-ecological farming adoption, interlinkages between factors and particularly the more structural barriers to agroecology.

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Towards mitigation of greenhouse gases by small changes in farming practices: understanding local barriers in Spain

Cited by 26 publications

References 54 publications

Management of agricultural soils for greenhouse gas mitigation: Learning from a case study in NE Spain

Management of agricultural soils for greenhouse gas mitigation: Learning from a case study in NE Spain

Retirement farming or sustainable growth – land transfer choices for farmers without a successor

Conditions for the adoption of agro-ecological farming practices: a holistic framework illustrated with the case of almond farming in Andalusia

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