•Regional priorities are significant in affecting the participation in measure 214.•Spatial component are significant in improving the explanatory ability of the model.•Explanatory variables were ...sharply differentiated by sub-measures.
The objective of the paper is to understand the determinants of the spatial location of participation in Agri-Environmental Schemes and, in particular, to understand the interplay between structural determinants, priority criteria and spillover effects in guiding participation. As a first step, the paper seeks to conceptualise the issue based on the existing literature. Thereafter, an econometric model is used to provide an empirical application on data regarding participation in measure 214 of the Rural Development Programme 2007–2013 in an Italian region (Emilia-Romagna). The results show that both priority scores and the spatial dimension are significant in affecting participation.
► We investigate the sale land intention by farm-households following the exit farming decision. ► Exit process and land tenure/use change follow different patterns and determinants. ► CAP payments ...have major role in affecting the exit intention than sale land decision.
This paper investigates how farm-households would dispose of farms following a decision by the farm-household to exit from farming, and in particular when a decision is made to sell the land The paper builds on data from a survey of stated intentions carried out in 9 EU countries at the beginning of 2009, using a probit Heckman model, where the model is applied to explain stated intentions to sell land in the case of farm-households that have decided to exit from farming activities, under two extreme Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) scenarios. The numbers of farm households opting to exit from agriculture increases sharply under the scenario characterised by the removal of the CAP. The statistically significant determinants are mostly consistent with previous studies, but show different behaviour when comparing the exit decision with the willingness to sell the farm. The outcomes of this study seem to deliver a clear policy message reinforcing the notion that the current CAP payments are important for staying in/exiting farming activities, but the land reallocation process clearly requires more targeted instruments. At the same time, greater attention should be paid to mechanisms of land rent or alternative land tenure solutions.
The impact of agricultural management on global biodiversity highlights the need for farm-scale monitoring programmes capable of determining the performance of agriculture practices. Yet the ...identification of appropriate indicators is a challenging process and one that involves considering a number of different aspects and requirements. Besides the attention given to scientific effectiveness, relevant but less studied issues related to biodiversity measurements include the economic feasibility of monitoring programmes and the relevance of indicators for different end-users. In this paper, we combine an analytic assessment of costs and a stakeholder-based evaluation of the usefulness of a set of biodiversity-related parameters (habitat mapping, vegetation, bees, earthworms, spiders, and a farmer questionnaire) tested for scientific consistency in 12 European case studies and on more than 14,000 ha of farmland. The results point to the possibility of meeting the expectations of different end-users (administrators, farmers and consumers) with a common indicator set. Combining costs and usefulness also suggests the possibility of designing more efficient monitoring approaches involving private agencies and networks of volunteers and farmers for the field data collection at different stages of a monitoring programme. Although complex, such an approach would make it possible to enhance the effectiveness of available funds for farmland biodiversity monitoring.
•The work focuses on the usefulness and costs of farmland biodiversity indicators.•Farm-scale biodiversity parameters tested in a Europe-wide trial were evaluated.•A combination of cost estimations and stakeholder assessments is proposed.•The possibility of meeting the expectations of different end-users was confirmed.•The involvement of different actors may enhance the cost-efficiency of monitoring.
The objective of this paper is to evaluate the impacts of agriculture and water policy scenarios on the sustainability of selected irrigated farming systems in Italy, in the context of the ...forthcoming implementation of the directive EC 60/2000. Directive EC 60/2000 (Water Framework Directive) is intended to represent the reference norm regulating water use throughout Europe. Five main scenarios were developed reflecting aspects of agricultural policy, markets and technologies:
Agenda 2000, world market, global sustainability, provincial agriculture and
local community. These were combined with two water price levels, representing stylised scenarios for water policy. The effects of the scenarios on irrigated systems were simulated using multi-attribute linear programming models representing the reactions of the farms to external variables defined by each scenario. The output of the models consists of economic, social and environmental indicators aimed at quantifying the impact of the scenarios on different aspects of sustainability relevant for irrigated farming systems. Five Italian irrigated farming systems were considered: cereal, rice, fruit, vegetables and citrus. The results show the diversity of irrigated systems and the different effects that water pricing policy may produce depending on the agricultural policy, market and technological scenarios. They also highlight a clear trade-off between socio-economic sustainability and environmental (water, nitrogen, pesticide) sustainability. Water pricing will have, in most cases, less impact than agricultural markets and policy scenarios, though it appears to be an effective instrument for water regulation in the least intensive irrigated systems considered. This emphasises the need for a differentiated application of the Water Framework Directive at the local level as well as a more careful balance of water conservation, agricultural policy and rural development objectives.
The Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union is subject to a continuous process of reform. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the effect of decoupling and related policy and market ...scenarios, as introduced in the 2003 CAP reform, by way of selected agriculture sustainability indicators and through the aggregation of individual farm-household simulated behaviour. The approach is based on the use of a Net Present Value-maximising dynamic farm-household model. The model is implemented on 80 farm-households to simulate the reaction to scenarios of different agricultural systems in 8 EU countries. The results are measured through three main indicators – represented by farm income, labour use and nitrogen use – evaluated over a period of 14 years. The results of individual farm-households are aggregated first using the concept of farming system and then based on a cluster analysis using the results in different scenarios as discriminant variables. The results show that the CAP as a whole is crucial for the sustainability of farming systems in terms of income and employment, but also provides incentives for higher use of inputs, suggesting a trade-off between social and environmental sustainability concerns. In the range of variation considered, nitrogen and labour use appear much more reactive than income and indicate much higher variability across farms and scenarios. The aggregation by agricultural system denotes rather different behaviour among systems. However, the cluster analysis shows that results appear to be better interpreted by patterns of individual characteristics (location in the plain, structure, asset endowment, labour, etc.) than by country, specialisation or technology.
► The CAP is crucial for the sustainability of farming systems. ► But also provides incentives for higher use of inputs. ► Nitrogen and labour use are the parameters more reactive to scenarios. ► Results are better explained by patterns of individual characteristics.
A fertile discussion is developing in the EU regarding the application of the Water Framework Directive (60/2000) (WFD), the legislative act that provides the framework for water regulation in Europe ...and emphasises the role of economic instruments in water policy. The objective of this paper is to provide an evaluation of different instruments designed to deal with the management of water for agriculture, in the perspective of WFD implementation and agricultural price scenarios. The paper focuses on the regulation of mixed source unmetered water and carries out a comparison of flat rate versus differentiated contracts as the policy instrument. The analysis is based on a combination of linear programming and a Principal-Agent model. The empirical model is applied in an agricultural area of Northern Italy. The results show the feasibility of incentive-oriented policy instruments, even in the less sophisticated form of flat rate area payments. They also show the relevance of agricultural market scenarios and policy scenarios in the design of the optimal policy instruments. The adoption of such instruments, however, could require a revision of the role of different institutions involved in water management.
Assessing the environmental impact of agri-environment schemes (AESs) is complicated by the lack of both specific measurable objectives and dedicated environmental monitoring of the impacts. A ...methodology to estimate the environmental performance of AESs was applied in nine EU case study areas, and reduced the complexity of scheme structure into elements that were assessed by experts. Multi-criteria analysis (MCA) techniques helped produce aggregated judgements about single objectives or measures. Expert panels assessed the link between environmental measures and objectives by scoring specific criteria that reflect important factors for delivering environmental effectiveness: valid research models for measures (cause-and-effect); quality of implementation by farmers and institutions; extent of participation and degree of spatial targeting. Multi-criteria analysis enabled comparison of the degree to which environmental effectiveness (estimated from the criteria scores) within a scheme was achieved across environmental objectives of different importance. There were considerable differences in overall environmental performance across different case study areas, and the experts' scores identified scope for improvement in one or more criteria in most measures. Higher priority environmental objectives (as assessed by stakeholders) did not necessarily demonstrate highest environmental performance. We discuss implications for learning how to improve the design and evaluation of AESs.
The study analyses the contribution of relevant economic actors to the provision of private and public goods in agricultural landscapes. A method consisting of a multi-sectoral perspective and an ...integrated approach based on the analytic network process (ANP) and the use of selected local stakeholders is applied. The usefulness of the method is demonstrated in three European case studies in Austria, Italy and Spain. The results show that agriculture and tourism are the sectors that contribute the most and the least, respectively, to the provision of goods and services in agricultural landscapes. Moreover, the results underscore that policy instruments towards such provision need to be targeted differently in different areas and must take into account the different roles of the local actors involved.
•The paper presents farm-scale costs and the efforts required to measure six parameters to monitor biodiversity.•A database composed of Europe-wide field trials was analysed with a consistent cost ...assessment method to estimate the required costs and effort to complete the measurement of biodiversity on a standardised farm using three different staff-cost scenarios.•The variability of the data indicates that producing a reliable estimation of the costs of monitoring farmland biodiversity requires a large data-set and sample pool of farms, farm types and countries.•Our results point to a possible cost reduction of 46% with farmer involvement and of 77% with volunteer involvement in comparison with monitoring activities subcontracted to private agencies only.
Forty percent of the EU land area is currently considered to be agriculturally managed (utilised agricultural area – UAA – Eurostat Agricultural Census 2010), and attention to the environmental performance of farming practices is growing. To determine the performance of agricultural practices, farm-scale monitoring programmes are required but their implementation is hampered by a number of difficulties such as the identification of broadly applicable indicators appropriate for different biogeographic locations, and the evaluation of the effectiveness and costs of different monitoring approaches. In this paper, we focus on the costs of farm-scale biodiversity monitoring, presenting results from a Europe-wide cost data collection in the EU FP7 BioBio Project. Firstly, we present an analytical assessment of resources consumed by the research units and a cost estimation for the measurement of six biodiversity-related parameters: farm habitats, vegetation, wild bees and bumblebees, spiders, earthworms and farm management. Thereafter, we estimate a standardised cost for an ordinary measurement of the six parameters at farm-scale. In doing so, we highlight the cost differences between three strategies involving different potential actors (professional agencies, farmers, volunteers). This analysis demonstrates that producing reliable data on monitoring costs requires a large sample pool of farms and farm types, as was the case in the BioBio project. The cost standardisation allowed us to estimate a cost for biodiversity monitoring ranging between €2700 and €8200 per farm, depending on the chosen strategy.
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