enhancing biodiversity and boosting economic development

ENHANCING BIODIVERSITY

AND BOOSTING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

47 successful regional case studies in Europe in the fields of agriculture, land planning and tourism

22

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This book is the culmination of contributions from more than 90 individuals and more than 40 organizations since

January 2010. We would like to thank all the members of the Reverse team for having identified, described and illustrated the herein case studies, as well as all the others persons who made it possible, as authors, reviewers and contributors:

Camille MASSOL, Bénédicte HAMON, Adeline BOROT DE BATTISTI, Sophie KERLOCH (Aquitaine Region); Immacolata

BARBAGIOVANNI, Paolo COLLEPARDI, Miria CATTA, Giovanni PICA, Paola TAVIANI, Jane Helene GARZIA, Stefano

CARRANO, Paola CIRIONI, Massimo TANCA, Mariateresa COSTANZA (ARSIAL); Marta ROZAS , Azucena SALAZAR,

Pedro ORTEGA (Basque Government); Bertrand LASSAIGNE, Jennifer KENDALL, Angela MALLARONI (Bio d’Aquitaine);

Henrich KLUGKIST, Dirk HÜRTER, Tom LECKE-LOPATTA (Bremen Region); Hervé CODHANT (CEN Aquitaine); Daniela

� �

Elis VOLLMER, Maaria SEMM (Estonian University of Life Sciences); Polymnia SKALAVAKI, Voula NOUSIA, Ioannis

FOTAKIS, Dimos DIMITRIOU (Forest Directorate of Chania-Crete Region); Christini FOURNARAKI, Panagiota GOTSIOU,

Adamantia KOKKINAKI, Aristidis STAMATAKIS (MAICh); Marcelo MARTINEZ PALAO, Ramón BALLESTER SABATER,

Inmaculada RAMÍREZ SANTIGOSA, Antonio VICTORIA LÓPEZ, Francisco FLORES ALBACETE, Rafael DÍAZ GARCÍA

(Murcia Region); Lambros TSOURGIANNIS, Kiki HARALAMPIDOU, Dimitris TSIANIS (Region of East Macedonia and

Thrace); Josefine GUMPRECHT, Benjamin KÜTHER (ttz Bremerhaven); Ivana STELLA, Giuseppe MERLI, Rodolfo

INGUAGGIATO, Paolo PAPA, Raoul SEGATORI (Umbria Region); Luciano CONCEZZI, Livia POLEGRI, Federico MARIOTTI

(3A-Umbria Agrofood Technology Park).

Rémy LEBRUN, Eric MAILLE (Agrobioperigord); Cédric HEURTEBISE (ASF); Patrick CHAUVIN, Alexia QUINTIN

(Communauté d’Agglomération Pau-Pyrénées); David CONDOTTA (Communauté de communes de Lembeye);

Véronique CHABLE (INRA); Laurent COUZI , Mathieu SANNIER (LPO Aquitaine); Bernard LAFON (Oh Légumes oubliés); Clément INFANTI (Pays Val de Garonne-Gascogne); Patrick DE KOCHKO (Réseau semences paysannes);

Carlos GARBISU, Iker MIJANGOS, Eva UGARTE, Jose Ignacio RUIZ de GALARRETA (NEIKER-Basque Institute of

Agricultural Research& Developt); Miren ASKASIBAR (Paisaia);Teresa ANDRÉS (HAZI); Iñaki AZKARATE (City Council of Errenteria);

Ullrich MICKAN (Torfkähne Bremen); Theresia LUCKS (Umweltschutzamt/Naturschutzbehörde Bremerhaven);

Costas A. THANOS (University of Athens);

Isabella DALLA RAGIONE (Archeologia Arborea farm and Foundation); Alessio CAPOCCIA (WWF Italia); Valeria NEGRI

(Università degli Studi di Perugia); Aldo FREZZA , Luigi ARTEBANI (Università Agraria di Allumiere); Nicoletta CUTOLO,

Valerio ALOI, Fabrizio PETRASSI, Massimiliano BARRESI, Mariapia PIERMARINI (ARP-Regione Lazio); Vincenzo

MARCHETTI and Rossella DI MAULA (Le Fontanelle farm); Mario De SANTIS (Cooperativa Grisciano).

Special thank go to Aquitaine Region - Adeline BOROT DE BATTISTI, Bénédicte HAMON and Camille MASSOL - for

coordinating and editing the book.

We also acknowledge the work done by FRONTALIZA as English reviewer and D-Day for the design.

Book published in 2012.

ENHANCING BIODIVERSITY

AND BOOSTING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

47 successful regional case studies in Europe in the fields of agriculture, land planning and tourism

33

44

HIGHLIGHTS

Challenges related to biodiversity and economic development

Biological diversity, known for short as biodiversity, incorporates the variety of life on Earth (microorganisms, plants, fungi and animals) and the natural patterns they form 1 . Three different and interrelated levels of biodiversity are commonly defined: genetic diversity (i.e. the range of genes in all individuals as well as between individuals); species diversity (i.e. the range of species within and between populations); and ecosystems (i.e. the range of habitats, communities, and ecological processes, including intra-ecosystem variations). Although this is not easy to quantify, all levels are important for securing evolution and adaptation of individuals to a changing environment.

Biodiversity certainly has intrinsic value. It is also essential to human life and well-being in the sense that humans have always depended upon natural resources. More specifically, biodiversity ensures the quality, quantity and stability of ecosystems’ goods and services, i.e. the series of tangible and intangible benefits humans draw from the natural functions played by ecosystems (MEA, 2005). Thus, biodiversity provides raw materials for food (e.g. agricultural products and fish), health (e.g. plant medicine) and shelter (e.g. wood, wool, etc.) and in doing so, it becomes the basic resource for many production activities; it also regulates and recycles the air, soil and water conditions necessary for our survival; it finally forms the basis for cultural and recreational activities (such as ecotourism) and scientific and educational programmes, as well as spirituality, religion, ethics and emotions.

Biodiversity is the result of both natural processes and human practices. It has, however, been increasingly negatively affected by the latter. In Europe, like elsewhere in the world, biodiversity is being degraded.

25% of marine mammals, 15 % of terrestrial mammals and 12% of birds are threatened with extinction

(EEA, 2010). Moreover 62% of European habitats and 52% of European protected species included in the

“Habitat” Directive have an unfavourable conservation status (EEA-ETC/BD, 2009).

Among key pressures, rapid shifts in land use have been acknowledged as the major threat (IUCN, 2007,

2009, 2010). Extensive agriculture land has declined by 2.6% between 1990 and 2006 across Europe 2 . So have natural grassland areas. Over the same period, constructed, industrial and artificial areas have gone up by 7.9%. Subsequent pollution and overexploitation threats come next. Croplands, forests and pastures

cover almost 80% of the total European land area – EU-25 plus Norway and Switzerland (EEA,

2007). Unsurprisingly, pressure from the twin trends of intensification of agricultural and forestry practices together with land abandonment plays a great role. Furthermore, invading exotic species have gained ground, especially in aquatic ecosystems and in the context of a changing climate: more than 10,000 non-native species have been observed in Europe, more than 10% of them having an adverse economic or ecological impact 3 .

Agriculture and food production, land planning and tourism are economic sectors that are directly interconnected with biodiversity issues. Their development and sustainability requires the consumption, use and management of biodiversity. They all rely and impact on biodiversity. In some cases, they may even be the drivers of biodiversity conservation, as people realise biodiversity can be a valuable asset in marketing

(e.g. traditional varieties of plants and animals), promotion (e.g. ecotourism) and negotiation (e.g. landscape strategy).

The long-term development of agriculture and food production, land planning and tourism cannot ignore the sustainable governance of biodiversity. The challenges require mainstreaming biodiversity issues into policy strategies as in the dayto-day management of economic activities. Experience shows that this is possible and replicable.

1 According to Article 2 of the Convention on Biological Diversity in 1992, biological diversity is defined as “the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity within

2 species, between species and of ecosystems”.

Figures related to land cover (agriculture, natural grassland, industrial areas) come from the latest available statistics from

CORINE, a European Environment Agency programme dedicated to coordinating information on the environment available at

3 http://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/COR0-landcover.

See the European Invasive Alien Species Gateway from DAISIE

(Delivering Alien Invasive Species Inventories for Europe), accessible at http://www.europe-aliens.org.

5

66

THE REVERSE PROJECT

The Reverse project is based on sharing experience amongst 14 European partners who are aware of the major challenges linking biodiversity and economic development. More specifically, it focuses on opportunities and insufficiencies in biodiversity conservation policies in three sectors: Agriculture and food production, Land planning and Tourism.

Based on practical experience feedback, Reverse aims to:

- Promote successful initiatives in conserving biodiversity while boosting economic activities across Reverse partners;

- Improve the effectiveness of sectoral policies in support of biodiversity conservation and development at European and regional levels.

Reverse is a three-year European interregional cooperation project (January 2010 - December 2012). Lead by the

Aquitaine Region, it involves 7 European countries: Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Slovakia and Spain.

It is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and made possible by the INTERREG IVC programme. As part of the European Territorial Cooperation Objective, the INTERREG IVC Programme (2007-2013) is an EU programme that helps regions of Europe work together to share their knowledge and experience.

OUTPUTS OF THE REVERSE PROJECT

Several documents have been produced by the Reverse partners. Their purpose is to provide practical support tools to decision-makers, officers and technicians to enable them to take biodiversity into account in their policies and actions. They include:

- 3 European Charters on, respectively, Agriculture and food production, Land planning and Tourism, providing strategic and political recommendations for decision-makers at European level;

- A number of Regional Charters developed by each project partner with the aim of providing strategic and political recommendations to decision-makers at regional and local level;

- A Case Study Book which puts together the various experiences from Reverse partners.

In addition, a myriad of events have been organised jointly or individually by the Reverse partners, in order to raise the awareness of decision-makers, technicians and the general public as to the importance of biodiversity.

An electronic version of these documents and details of these events can be found on the Reverse website:

www.reverse.aquitaine.eu

REVERSE PARTNERS

The 14 Reverse partners comprise regional authorities, public establishments, associations, research institutes and universities, which contribute to the conservation and development of natural and cultivated biodiversity. They work on various complementary subjects such as the conservation of species in situ , gene banks, the management of natural areas, region-wide strategies for the conservation of biodiversity, ecological corridors, local legislation for the protection of biodiversity, education, etc.

Regions:

Aquitaine Region (France) www.aquitaine.fr

Umbria Region (Italy) www.regione.umbria.it

Euskadi Region (Spain) www.euskadi.net

Murcia Region (Spain) www.murcianatural.carm.es

Bremen Region (Germany) www.umwelt.bremen.de

Specialised organizations:

Decentralized Administration of Crete-Forest Directorate of

Chania (Greece) www.crete-region.gr

Region of East Macedonia and

Thrace (Greece) www.remth.gr

Bio d’Aquitaine (France) www.bio-aquitaine.com

Estonian University of Life Sciences-EMU (Estonia) www.emu.ee

Regional Agency for the Development and the Innovation of Agriculture in Lazio - ARSIAL (Italy) www.arsial.it

Natural Areas Conservatory of Aquitaine - CEN Aquitaine (France) www.cen-aquitaine.fr

Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania (Greece) www.maich.gr

The Plant Production Research Center

Piešt’any - PPRC Piešt’any (Slovakia) www.cvrv.sk

Technology Transfer Centre

Bremerhaven ttz Bremerhaven (Germany) www.ttz-bremerhaven.de

77

88

ABOUT THIS GUIDE

This guide puts together 47 successful projects from several European regions around protecting biodiversity in the fields of agriculture, land planning and tourism. It does not intend to be exhaustive, but provides a wide collection of case studies, all of them successful in addressing a double imperative: protecting biodiversity and boosting economic development. These projects were originally identified and described by the 14 partners of the Reverse project.

They are very diverse, as they cover small-scale as well as nation-wide actions. They may be expensive or require no budget. They involve very distinct actors. They may target mountains, water, agricultural lands or urban areas.

The object of this guide is to provide illustrations of successful case studies of the joint management of biodiversity protection and economic development. The practical examples chosen prove that conserving biodiversity can deliver economic and social benefits.

This guide is primarily designed for policy-makers and local elected representatives, as well as officers and technicians operating in agriculture, land planning, tourism and environment. More broadly, it may interest everyone committed to biodiversity.

Every case study reported in this guide is presented under the responsibility of the respective author. Methods used and results obtained fit into a specific context and may not be applied generally. However, all these experiences underline several major considerations that are worth sharing here:

- Available scientific and practical knowledge is always an asset in the conservation and valorisation of biodiversity and is sometimes a prerequisite for any decision or action;

- Raising the general public’s, technicians’ and local authorities’ awareness of the benefits of conserving biodiversity is essential for their future commitment and engagement;

- Participative action and sustained communication have often been reported as critical factors of success;

- Valuable benefits from the reported experiences prove not only ecological and economic, but in many cases also cultural and social (such as job maintenance or creation, improved collaboration and networking);

- Many examples have demonstrated that effective consideration of biodiversity does not necessarily require revolutionary measures but may simply need the implementation of a tiny change or the adoption of a different perspective.

Find your way through this guide

The presentation of the case studies has been structured into three chapters. Chapter 1 is dedicated to Agriculture and food production (21 projects), Chapter 2 focuses on Land planning (13 projects) and Chapter 3 on Tourism (13 projects). The three sectors are intrinsically interrelated though, especially when examined through the crosscutting angle of biodiversity. As a result, we are aware that some examples could have fit into several chapters, but it is the author’s responsibility to choose the most relevant sector. For instance, cases dealing with agri-tourism can be found in Chapter 3, although they may relate to both agriculture and tourism.

Case studies all adopt a common presentation format. This enables an easy-to-read overview of the object, purpose, context, contributors, resources needed and results of each reported experience.

A complementary analysis grid prefaces every chapter in order to facilitate searching for the most relevant examples as regards the specific expectations of the reader. All three grids enable a cross-comparative examination of cases related to agriculture, land planning and tourism respectively, on several entry points: the key biodiversity issues addressed, the targeted area, the specific objectives, the beneficiary group, etc.

CONTENTS

AGRICULTURE, FOOD PRODUCTION AND BIODIVERSITY

CASE STUDY NUMBER

STRATEGY, POLICIES AND REGULATORY INSTRUMENTS

FOR COMBINING AGRICULTURE DEVELOPMENT AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION

ASSESSING BIODIVERSITY HEALTH IN AGRICULTURAL AREAS

FARMERS AS GUARDIANS OF BIODIVERSITY-LINKED LANDSCAPE,

TRADITIONS AND CULTURE

BIODIVERSITY-FRIENDLY AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES

BANKS FOR AGROBIODIVERSITY PRESERVATION

IN SITU CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF CULTIVATED BIODIVERSITY

ECONOMIC PROMOTION AND DIFFERENTIATION

THROUGH CULTIVATED BIODIVERSITY

INFORMATION AND EDUCATION TO RAISE AWARENESS OF AGROBIODIVERSITY

1

3

2

4

5

8

10

12

6

9

11

13

7

14

15

20

16

21

17 18 19

CASE STUDY NUMBER

LAND PLANNING AND BIODIVERSITY

REGIONAL LAND PLANNING POLICIES TAKING BIODIVERSITY INTO ACCOUNT

ECOLOGICAL CORRIDOR PLANNING

LEGAL PROTECTION AND MANAGEMENT TOOLS

TO PROTECT AREAS WITH THREATENED BIODIVERSITY

COMPLIANCE AND ASSESSMENT TOOLS

FOR TAKING INTO ACCOUNT BIODIVERSITY IN LAND PLANNING

DEVELOPMENT OF BIODIVERSITY-LINKED LANDSCAPE HERITAGE

PROACTIVE AND COOPERATIVE PUBLIC COMMITMENTS IN FAVOUR OF BIODIVERSITY

1

2

6

9

11

13

10

12

3

7

4

8

5

CASE STUDY NUMBER

TOURISM AND BIODIVERSITY

REGIONAL STRATEGIES FOR RECONCILING TOURISM AND BIODIVERSITY

BIODIVERSITY-FRIENDLY TOURISM MANAGEMENT IN PROTECTED AREAS

ECOTOURISM FOR ATTRACTING VISITORS AND BIODIVERSITY AWARENESS RAISING

TOURISM BASED ON AGROBIODIVERSITY

HERITAGE VALUE OF BIODIVERSITY AS A PROMOTING TOOL FOR TOURISM

5

9

1

2

11

3

6

10

12

4

7

13

8

PAGE NUMBER

10

14

20

24

34

40

44

52

70

PAGE NUMBER

76

80

84

100

110

118

126

PAGE NUMBER

128

132

136

146

156

162

99

10

AGRICULTURE, FOOD PRODUCTION AND BIODIVERSITY

AGRICULTURE, FOOD PRODUCTION AND BIODIVERSITY

Agriculture has a central role to play in bringing biodiversity loss to a halt. Firstly, farmers, by their influence on landscapes, are the guardians of heritage, traditions and cultures linked to biodiversity (5, 6 and 7). Secondly, agricultural practices which are respectful of the environment, voluntarily adopted by some farmers, contribute to limiting natural biodiversity loss (8 and 9).

Last but not least, maintaining cultivated biodiversity is a major challenge, as it is often forgotten when talking about biodiversity. Gene banks allow ex-situ conservation of agro-biodiversity (10 and 11). Also, at farm level, in-situ conservation methods maintain and even develop agro-biodiversity (12, 13 and 14).

Cultivating biodiversity may become a differentiation asset when it is used as an ingredient for traditional food recipes, or when a quality label distinguishes it (15, 16, 17, 18, 19), contributing to increased income and resilience.

Creating a supportive environment in order to encourage and coordinate small-scale farmers’ actions still remains a major challenge, for instance, creating economic incentives and legal frameworks linking agricultural development and biodiversity conservation (1 and 2), tools to improve knowledge in interactions between agriculture and biodiversity

(3 and 4), and continuing to educate stakeholders on the importance of biodiversity (20 and 21).

11

CONTENTS

STRATEGY, POLICIES AND REGULATORY INSTRUMENTS FOR COMBINING

AGRICULTURE DEVELOPMENT AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION

1

2

ENVIRONMENTALLY-FRIENDLY FARMING

REGIONAL PROGRAMME

FRANCE

REGIONAL ACT FOR AGRO-BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION

ITALY

ASSESSING BIODIVERSITY HEALTH IN AGRICULTURAL AREAS

3

MICROBIAL BIODIVERSITY AND SOIL HEALTH

SPAIN

4

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDY GUIDELINES

SPAIN

FARMERS AS GUARDIANS OF BIODIVERSITY-LINKED LANDSCAPE,

TRADITIONS AND CULTURE

5

DRY CALCAREOUS GRASSLANDS PRESERVATION

FRANCE

6

LANDSCAPE MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR FARMERS

ESTONIA

7

AGRI-FOOD LANDSCAPES

SPAIN

BIODIVERSITY-FRIENDLY AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES

8

FARMING AND PROTECTING SNAILS

GREECE

9

NATURAL BIODIVERSITY IN VINEYARDS

FRANCE

BANKS FOR AGROBIODIVERSITY PRESERVATION

10

PRESERVING A CULTURAL HERITAGE

SLOVAK REPUBLIC

11

POTATO GENES

SPAIN

20

IN SITU CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF CULTIVATED BIODIVERSITY

12

13

ARCHEOLOGIA ARBOREA TREE COLLECTION

ITALY

BREED CONSERVATION

SPAIN

14

“SEED HOUSES” CONCEPT

FRANCE

ECONOMIC PROMOTION AND DIFFERENTIATION

THROUGH CULTIVATED BIODIVERSITY

15

DESIGNATION OF ORIGIN FOR AGRO-BIODIVERSITY

ITALY

16

COLLECTIVE MARK “NATURA IN CAMPO”

ITALY

17

LANDRACE SEEDS EVENT RENABIO

FRANCE

18

AGRO-BIODIVERSITY IN TRASIMENO LAKE

ITALY

19

THE TASTE OF LANDRACES

FRANCE

INFORMATION AND EDUCATION TO RAISE AWARENESS OF AGROBIODIVERSITY

20

EDUCATIONAL GARDEN

SLOVAK REPUBLIC

21

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION

SPAIN

70

72

44

46

48

52

54

56

60

66

22

24

28

32

34

38

40

42

14

16

CASE STUDY

NUMBER

KEY BIODIVERSITY ISSUES ADRESSED

THROUGH THE ACTION

Habitat fragmentation and loss

Threat against remarkable biodiversity

Pollution (soil, water, air)

Overexploitation

Soil erosion

Homogenisation of cultivated biodiversity

(agriculture, forestry)

TYPE OF ACTION IN FAVOUR OF BIODIVERSITY

Improve knowledge and assessment

Raise awareness, educate and share experiences

Preserve fragile biodiversity

Avoid and mitigate biodiversity loss

Compensate/restore biodiversity loss

SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC BENEFITS

OF THE ACTION

Regulated land use and activities

Maintained human activities in the area

Enhanced co-operation between local stakeholders

Increased returns for local populations

Higher value added and attractiveness of the area

Preserved social values of biodiversity

(landscape, gastonomy, heritage)

INVOLVED OPERATORS

Policy makers, public administrations or institutions

Private firms (farms, hotels, restaurants, ….)

Environmental associations

Research institutes, universities

BENEFICIARIES

Citizens, consumers and visitors

Policy makers/national, regional, local governments


Private firms (farmers, tourism operators, infrastructure builders…)

Research institutes/universities

TARGETED AREAS

Cities, urban areas, artificial areas

Agricultural lands (culture/pasture)

Wetlands, rivers, lakes, fluvial and coastal habitats

Mountains

Forests

Natural areas

1 2

3 4

5 6 7

8 9

10 11

12 13 14

15 16 17 18 19

20 21

1

ENVIRONMENTALLY-FRIENDLY FARMING:

A REGIONAL PROGRAMME OF HIGH QUALITY ENVIRONMENTAL CERTIFICATION

Aquitaine Region, France

BENEFITS AT A GLANCE

ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Since 2002, the Aquitaine Region has implemented a global approach to reduce the negative impacts of agricultural practices on the environment and biodiversity.

At the beginning, it consisted of creating a frame of reference called “AREA”, containing 10 environmental recommendations for farmers. The different measures ensure a transversal approach to environmental impact of farming. Indeed, all productions are concerned with seven different issues: pesticides, fertilisation, plant effluents, health safety, energy, biodiversity and irrigation.

In order to promote environmentally-friendly farming in Aquitaine, the Aquitaine Region limited the public funding of investments to farms that were involved in this environmental programme.

In 2009, the Aquitaine Region decided to enhance the efforts of farmers by creating an environmental certification. Thus, farmers who respect the environmental recommendations were delivered an environmental certification of the farm called “AREA”.

This certification was recognised as an official quality certification by the French government in January 2012.

Nowadays, public funding in Aquitaine is limited to certified farms. For compensation, the Aquitaine

Region finances the global environmental diagnosis of the farm and technical advice necessary to reach the certification.

BACKGROUND

Environmental certification is a national challenge initiated during the “Grenelle Environment roundtable” in 2007. The “Grenelle Environment roundtable” was a participative debate organised by the French government, to which many organisations were invited to discuss sustainable development issues for the next five years. This debate has led to different laws, the second of which (“Loi Grenelle de l’Environnement II”) deals with the environmental certification.

Since then, a national commission for environmental certification was created. All organisations in France are allowed to create an environmental certification such as “AREA” (public organisations, firms, associations).

The role of the commission is to analyse the content of the environmental measures and to decide whether the certification proposed can be considered as a high quality certification or not. Thus, in France, there are several programs like “AREA” (“Agriculture Raisonnée” for instance).

Nevertheless, the “AREA” programme is still unique in

France as it is the only certification used for attributing regional public funding.

AGRICULTURE AND BIODIVERSITY

STRATEGY, POLICIES AND REGULATORY INSTRUMENTS FOR COMBINING AGRICULTURE DEVELOPMENT AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION

ACTORS INVOLVED (PROMOTER AND TARGET

GROUPS)

The promoter of the project is the Aquitaine Region along with the other public funders: Europe and

French state. This programme has been implemented in close collaboration with farmers’ representatives.

More precisely, technical advice and environmental diagnosis are provided by technical advisers from local agriculture offices (“Chambres d’agriculture”).

As for the certification of farms, controls are made by an external organisation specialised in certification called AFNOR Certification.

LOCATION AND TIMESCALE OF THE PROJECT

Farm level, across the whole Aquitaine Region

Start date: 2002, creation of investment programme

“AREA”;

Step date: 2009, “AREA” becomes a certification scheme at regional level;

Step date: 2012, “AREA” is recognised as an official high quality certification by the French government.

RESOURCES

The “AREA” programme is run by the Department of

Agriculture of the Aquitaine Region. Three employees control the certification measures. Farmers are accompanied by approximately 120 technical advisers.

The budget dedicated for certification is about

7,000,000€ per year for all the public funders.

- 8% to fund immaterial resources (monitoring, animation, external control);

- 92% go to fund material investments (necessary to abide by the 10 requirements and specification measures).

600 farms per year benefit from this program.

All farmers in Aquitaine can receive funding from the

Aquitaine Region to get the environmental certification

“AREA”.

RESULTS AND LESSONS LEARNT

In January 2012, 82 farms were certified “AREA”.

About 5,000 farms have been funded by the “AREA” programme and are likely to get certified in the coming months.

It is a fact that most farmers get certified in order to access public funding for their investments.

Nevertheless, the negative impacts of some agricultural practices on the environment are still reduced. An overall evaluation of the programme will start in 2013 to evaluate its impacts on the environment in Aquitaine.

FUTURE PERSPECTIVES

First of all, the Aquitaine Region plans to start a widespread communication campaign to raise public awareness and enhance the efforts made by farmers. Thus, farmers should benefit from public acknowledgement which could enhance on-farm product sales.

Based on consumers’ current trend, the Aquitaine

Region foresees that the environmental certification could become a buying criterion. Eventually, environmental certification could be a binding condition to access certain markets.

WANT MORE INFORMATION ?

Guillemette HUSSON

Région Aquitaine

Croix des Fontaines, 14 rue François-de-Sourdis

33077 Bordeaux, France

+33 5 57 57 80 00

Guillemette.husson@aquitaine.fr

Website: http://les-aides.aquitaine.fr/rubrique216.html



2

REGIONAL ACT FOR AGRO-BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION

PROTECTION OF AUTOCHTHONOUS GENETIC RESOURCES OF AGRICULTURAL

INTEREST IN LAZIO REGION

Arsial, Italy


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Lazio Region has issued the Regional Act n. 15

(1 st of March 2000) “Protection of autochthonous genetic resources of agricultural interest” within the policies of development, promotion and protection of agro-systems and quality productions, according to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD, Rio de

Janeiro 1992), implemented by Italy with the Act n. 124,

14/02/1994.

The Regional Act protects Lazio’s autochthonous genetic resources of agricultural interest at risk of genetic erosion. It concerns species, breeds, populations, ecotypes, landraces, clones, and cultivars, including related wild crops, as well as animal breeds and populations of zootechnical interest with the following characteristics:

- Originated in Lazio territory or introduced and integrated into the agro-ecosystem of Lazio for at least the past 50 years or disappeared from the region and collected in botanical gardens, breeding farms, experimental institutions, public or private genetic banks, and research centres of other regions or countries;

- Used for agricultural, zoo technical, agro-forest, hunting, or aqua cultural purposes;

- Having an economic, scientific, environmental, or cultural interest;

- Threatened by genetic erosion.

The activity is founded in many steps: the census of plant and animal genetic resources (seeds and fruits collection, agronomical data and biographic historical research), the morpho-physiological and genetic characterisation as well as the evaluation of threat genetic erosion of these autochthonous genetic resources for the registration in the “Regional Voluntary

Register” (RVR, institutional repertoire). At the same time, in situ and on farm conservation is promoted through “Conservation and Safety Network” .

The Act entrusts ARSIAL to manage RVR and the

Network , and the coordination of all activities.

GOALS: protection of autochthonous genetic resources of agricultural interest in order to reduce the threat of genetic erosion; to promote on farm and in situ conservation; valorisation of food products resources, threatened by genetic erosion; public free public service for technician and scientific support of local farm communities.

CHALLENGES: to develop an economic interest which would make the active conservation of protected genetic resources possible.

TARGETS: animals and plants threatened by genetic erosion.

The Agricultural Department of Lazio Region supports in situ and on farm conservation through an incentive to autochthonous resource keepers (farmers and breeders), through Lazio Rural Development Plan

2007-2013 (EU FESR), Agro environmental Measure

214, Action 214.8 for animal protection and Action 214.9 for plant protection. The grants to resource keepers for on farm conservation are: €200/LU (Livestock Unit) for animals, €250-300/ha for cereals, €500-600/ha for vegetables, €800-900/ha for trees plants and €70-90/ plant for a single tree up to a maximum of 5 tree-plants per local variety.

ARSIAL benefits from the same Agro-environmental

Measure (214.8 and 214.9) to finance its technical and scientific activity to support the protection and valorisation of the autochthonous genetic resources and public services of local farm communities.

16 AGRICULTURE AND BIODIVERSITY


BACKGROUND

Lazio’s territory is located centrally in the Italian peninsula, and is characterised by a complex morphology (Lazio’s area is 17,236 km 2 composed of

26% mountains, 54% hills and 20% plains) and a great bio-climatic variability. The diversity of land layouts has enabled the establishment of a large number of landraces and animal breeds well adapted to the different agro-ecosystems that have developed over the centuries. In the XX century in the Lazio region, as in the rest of the world, the standardisation of farming practices and the development of an intensive agriculture has favoured the use of new cultivars and animal breeds, genetically uniform and more productive. As a consequence, local plant varieties and animal breeds have been lost.

In the 90’s, several Italian Regions decided to promote regional acts to protect agrobiodiversity and to counteract biodiversity loss at an intraspecies level

(within species). The Region of Toscana (1997) was the first, followed by the Regions of Lazio (2000), Umbria

(2001), Friuli-Venezia Giulia (2002), Marche (2003),

Emilia Romagna (2008) and Basilicata (2008).

Currently, the Italian Ministry of Agriculture and

Forest (MIPAAF) is planning the National Agriculture

Biodiversity Plan (PNBA) with a specific council (GIBA) composed of Public Italian Research Organisations, scientific expertise and Regional Administrations. The

PNBA is a guideline for Italian Regions to operate on farm, in situ and ex situ conservation of agricultural biodiversity (plant, animal and microbiological).

METHODOLOGY, PROCESS

ARSIAL collects information throughout the entire regional territory on plant and animal resources threatened by genetic erosion. These resources, registered in the “Regional Voluntary Register” (RVR) can be suggested by ARSIAL, or by a public or scientific institution, or a private organisation, or a simple citizen.

The RVR is the official repertoire of the Lazio Region, where the protected genetic resources, landraces for plants and local breeds for animals, are registered, subject to the opinion of two Scientific Commissions: one for the Plant Sector and one for the Animal Sector.

The registration form is available on ARSIAL’s website.

Anyone owning, growing plants, or breeding animals registered in the RVR may become a member of the

Conservation and Safety Network , free of charge.

To evaluate the threat of plant genetic erosion (levels high-medium-low) the following indicators are used: presence of the product on the market; presence in the catalogues of the seed companies/nurseries; number of cultivating farmers; areas under cultivation (as percentage of the total regional area for the species); trends for new area of cultivation. Each indicator is associated with other conditions in order to attribute a risk score (1 = low; 2 = medium; 3 = high): the sum of the different values gives a total level of erosion. Animal genetic erosion threat levels are evaluated considering the total number of breeding females for every species in the EU.

By monitoring the degree of the “genetic erosion threat” of each single resource it is possible to establish whether the conservation in situ or on farm is successful.

Every year, the list of the autochthonous genetic resources, reported in the Rural Development

Programme of Lazio, is updated with new resources registered on RVR.


GROUPS)

Currently ARSIAL is involved in the application of the Regional Act with its technical expert group

(agronomists, veterinarians and historians) and has partnership agreements with different Italian scientific institutions for morpho-physiologic characterisation of local varieties and breeds, and for the different steps of the approach: Plant Production Department (University of Viterbo), Departments of Agricultural Research

Council (CRA-Centre for Fruit Tree Research in Rome and CRA-OLI in Spoleto, CRA-VIT in Conegliano Veneto,

CRA-PAV, CRA-PCM and CRA-RPS in Rome), National

Research Council (CNR-IGV in Bari), Italian Public

Organisation for Seeds Control (ENSE, nowadays

INRAN), Plant Biology and Agroenvironmental

Biotechnology Department (University of Perugia),

Consortium for Experimentation, Dissemination and

Application of Innovative Biotechniques (ConSDABI in

Benevento) and Psychology Department of University of Rome “La Sapienza”.

...



17

2

LOCATION AND TIMESCALE OF THE ACTIVITY

The project covers the Lazio region area.

The implementation of the Regional Act n.15 is a fulltime work and an institutional activity started on March

15 th 2000 and still in process.



RESOURCES

Human resources: 2 people full time (€100,000/year),

7 people part time (€35,000/year), 6 temporary coworkers full time (€150,000/year).

External costs: about €250,000/year for the partnership agreements and external expertise.


Results show in 2011:

- 186 landraces and 27 local breeds are registered in the Regional Voluntary Register ;

- 352 farmers (plant resources owners) and 501 breeders (animal resources owners) are currently enrolled in the Network for in situ and on farm conservation of autochthonous genetic resources;

- 809 demands applied for economic supports provided by the Regional Development Programme for cultivating or breeding protected genetic resources;

- Characterisation of soil biodiversity has started on many farms members of the Network ;

- Ex situ conservation is maintained in Collection Fields and in ARSIAL’s Germplasm Bank;

- The valorisation of products comes from protected genetic resources, for example 19 local varieties of 32 grapevine (registered in the RVR) have been listed in the National and Regional Register of wine varieties necessary for winemaking. In the animal sector, zootechnical books for 7 local breeds have been set up.

Lessons learnt:

- The census, started in 2001 following the application of the law, has revealed more than expected, the large variability of autochthonous genetic resources. Often farmers have conserved more than one single landrace or local breed;

- The protected resources represent a cultural heritage and can provide support for developing the local rural economy.

The main problem encountered is the risk of fraud by swapping protected resources with commercial varieties. The solution to this problem is still in progress.


In the future, the development of the Conservation and

Safety Network should be based on:

- Defining specific systems for management on farm seeds production and plant multiplication;

- Promoting the participatory plant breeding methodology;

- Checking the phytosanitary and genetic status of protected resources;

- Studying soil microbial communities in the site of in situ conservation;

- Studying food products’ nutritional properties;

- Promoting traditional food products.


Mariateresa COSTANZA

(+39 0686273450, biodiver@arsial.it)

Immacolata BARBAGIOVANNI

(+39 0686273481, i.barbagiovanni@arsial.it)

ARSIAL (Regional Agency for the Development and Innovation of Agriculture in Lazio)

Via Rodolfo Lanciani, 38 Roma, Italy

Website: www.arsial.it - http://biodiversita.arsial.gov.it/

“

This type of action could easily be replicated in other regions applying our methodology:

1. Prescription of a law for protecting autochthon agro biodiversity;

2. Census and characterisation of genetic resources of agricultural interest using the scientific methodologies defined in Italian National Agriculture Biodiversity Plan (PNBA);

3. In situ and on farm conservation of genetic resources, threatened by genetic erosion, with farmers and breeders (owners) in a Conservation and Safety Network, using scientific methodologies of PNBA;

4. Benchmarking successful European experiences on agrobiodiversity protection to order to improve PNBA’s scientific methodologies;

5. Development of on farm conservation through a farmers’ European network;

6. Comparison of European genetic resources using common scientific methodologies.

”



19

3

MICROBIAL BIODIVERSITY

A BIO-INDICATOR OF THE IMPACT OF AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES ON SOIL HEALTH

Basque Country, Spain


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


- To develop a set of methodological tools, based on the status of the soil microbial communities, assessing (i) the impact of conventional agricultural practices on soil health and (ii) the beneficial effects of more sustainable agricultural practices on soil health. This involves:

→ the development of laboratory techniques to measure the abundance, activity and biodiversity of soil microbial communities.

- To use soil microbial biodiversity as a biological indicator of soil health. This further involves:

→ ensuring the validity of the different techniques to estimate soil microbial biodiversity as biological indicators of soil health.

- To develop “soil health cards” as a useful tool to bridge the gap between farmers, politicians (decisionmakers) and scientists. This involves:

→ designing an information handbook on the microbial indicators of soil health: ie quantification, data interpretation, ecological relevance, background reference values, etc.

BACKGROUND

Intensive agricultural practices (fertilisation, tillage, pesticides application, etc.) are well-known causes of environmental degradation. In particular, agricultural practices have a significant negative impact on aboveground and belowground biodiversity. The functioning of the soil resource (as the basis of all agro-ecosystems) depends, to a great extent, on the status of the soil microbial communities. Interestingly, the microbial biodiversity of soils has great potential as a biological indicator of the impact of agricultural practices on soil health.

Recently, more and more attention is being paid to microbial biodiversity. Microbial ecologists at NEIKER decided to use molecular microbial ecology tools for assessing the impact of agriculture on soil health.

Some of these tools use soil microbial biodiversity as a biological indicator of soil health.


Some field assays have been established in Biscay

(Basque Country) to study the impact of agricultural practices on soil health, via the study of a variety of soil microbial properties which provide information as to the abundance, activity and biodiversity of the soil microbial communities.


GROUPS)

Promoter: the Basque Government through the participation of NEIKER (Basque Institute of Agricultural

Research and Development). Specifically, the Soil

Microbial Ecology Group at NEIKER is responsible for developing the actions described above (development of laboratory techniques for the determination of soil microbial properties, design of soil health cards, etc.).

Target groups: Politicians (decision-makers), scientists (researchers and technicians: soil scientists, agronomists), farmers (managers) and, in general, any person interested in soil health and its quantification and preservation. To this aim, on a yearly basis, “Soil

Health Open Days” are held at NEIKER in an attempt to increase people’s awareness of the importance of preserving soil health and its quantification using soil microbial properties. In this respect, in 2012,

NEIKER will distribute “soil health cards” to people


ASSESSING BIODIVERSITY HEALTH IN AGRICULTURAL AREAS

attending the Soil Health Open Day, as part of LIFE10

NAT/ES/579 Project. In addition, people from different

Basque Institutions (LORRA Cooperative Society, Cattle

Ranching Associations of Zeanuri and Orozko, etc.) have shown considerable interest in this project.


Biscay (Basque Country)

Start date: 2004

End date: 2010

RESOURCES

Human resources: The Soil Microbial Ecology Group at NEIKER (currently, 5 doctors and 3 PhD students) works on this topic within different projects (full-time).

Funding is provided via several scientific projects financially supported by the Basque Government, the

Biscay County Council, the Spanish Government and the European Union.

There are no external costs.


Results in figures:

- Ten scientific international papers, providing scientific confirmation on the validity of using soil microbial properties and biodiversity as bio-indicators of the impact of agricultural practices on soil health;

- Development of two indexes (for treated and agricultural soils) for soil health assessment.

Published, respectively, in: Journal of Environmental

Management 91 (2010), 2066-2074 and Soil Enzymology in the Recycling of Organic Wastes and Environmental

Restoration (2012), 211-218;

- Design of “soil health cards” for local farmers. By comparing the values obtained for the soil health indicators in their agricultural soils with reference values provided in the health cards (for specific types of soils and managements), local farmers are able to monitor the health of their soils and, in particular, to follow temporal trends as to the impact of their agricultural practices on soil health;

- Local decision-makers have shown interest in these new methodological tools during the “Soil Health

Open Days” organised by NEIKER. However, some problems have been encountered in the reluctance of some local farmers and agronomists to incorporate soil microbial properties into the assessment of soil health, as they are accustomed to using the analysis of soil physicochemical parameters;

- A current limitation for the utilisation of soil microbial properties as indicators of soil health is the lack of reference values for different soil types and managements. Traditionally, soil health studies have taken into consideration only the chemical and physical properties of the soil, since techniques for the analysis of soil microbial properties are relatively recent. In consequence, reference values for microbial indicators are still scarce and vary according to the protocol used for their analysis. Extensive studies on soil microbial parameters are needed to improved current databases.


Research projects on the utilisation of soil microbial biodiversity (in general, soil microbial properties) as tools to assess the beneficial effects of organic agriculture on soil health are being continued.

NEIKER has started to offer a service of soil health diagnosis for customers. For the time being, clients belong to other research centres, farming cooperatives and individual farmers.


Dr. Carlos GARBISU and Dr. Iker MIJANGOS

NEIKER-Basque Institute of Agricultural Research and Development

Berreaga 1, E-48160 Derio, Spain cgarbisu@neiker.net

imijangos@neiker.net

Website: www.neiker.net

“

Soil Health Cards can be applied for different agro-ecosystems, by adapting the list of particular indicators on which depend, among other factors, the specific soil processes and ecosystem services of interests.

Soil Health Cards include all the information required by non-experts to understand and interpret indicators.

Soil Health Cards are easily adaptable to different situations and users, and are useful tools to guide agro-ecosystem management, in a context of sustainable agriculture.

”



21

4

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDY GUIDELINES:

ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF AGRICULTURE ON THE ENVIRONMENT

Murcia Region, Spain


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


In 2005, the General Directorate for the Environment of the Region of Murcia (DGE) developed a collection of

7 guidelines for the study of projects having an impact on the environment. The aim was to establish a basis for the analysis of any programme, project or activity having a potential effect on natural environment, particularly for projects requiring an Environmental

Impact Assessment.

The second guide was on “Agriculture, livestock and aquaculture”: agricultural processing facilities, livestock, fish farms, etc...

The overall objective was to promote the integration of environmental aspects right from the beginning in the development of plans, programs and projects which could have an impact on the environment.

The specific objective was to develop a methodological guide for the environmental impact assessment of projects. This guide contains tools and basic information, facilitating the preparation of these studies and thus speeding up their administrative processing. The document is available to the general public, businesses, promoters of environmental studies and to the Public Administration.

BACKGROUND

The EU Directives on nature conservation (“Directive

2009/147/EC of 30 November 2009 on the conservation of wild birds” and “Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora”) and the related environmental assessment of plans, programs and projects (Directive 85/337/EEC, on the Assessment of the Effects of certain Public and private projects on the environment and Directive

2001/42/EC of 27 June 2001 on the Assessment of the Effects of Certain Plans and Programmes on the environment) are one of the main tools for stopping the loss of European biodiversity.

The environmental studies, under their various names (Environmental reports, Environmental

Impact Assessment, the appropriate Assessment of

Implications for the European ecological network of special areas of conservation of Natura 2000, etc) are today an important tool for preventing the alterations that certain projects or plans may have on the environment.

There is a broad technical and social consensus which states that the quality of these environmental studies, commissioned by the promoters of such initiatives, needs to be improved. The assessment system is the competence of the Public Administration, both for the

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of projects and the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) of plans and programmes, impact assessment or conditions to act within the European Natura 2000 network area, etc.

The idea of the methodological guide emerged within the DG for the Environment of the Region of Murcia due to the need to improve the environmental content of the evaluation of projects related to agriculture.


The work consisted in implementing of the following tasks:

1. Preparation of a basic minimum content, for the environmental impact studies (or similar), of plans and



projects impacting the environment grouped by type, or themes considered of importance in Natura 2000 areas.

A systematic review of plans and projects subjected to EIA in the Region of Murcia was carried out, both by the Regional Administration and by the Central

Government, specifically including a review based on previous impact studies and their allegations.

This work was supplemented with interviews of experts from the units directly under the Sectoral Secretariat for Water and Environment within our Regional Ministry and with experience from the elaboration of reports on environmental impact studies.

The General Directorate for the Environment reviewed the structure, content and accessibility of the general documentary sources, and interviewed officers in order to incorporate this information into the directory, and to propose a definition of the format for the materials annexed to the environmental impact studies, including the required mapping.

2. Development of the content for the methodological guides for assessing projects having an impact on environment.

3. Graphic design for the methodological guidelines.

Graphic designs were incorporated in the methodological guidelines, combining a common background with graphical identifications for each type of project, trying to follow as much as possible the Manual for Graphic Style of the Publications of the Directorate General for the Environment. Graphic examples and diagrams illustrating methodologies, software, presentations of results, maps, etc were included.

4. Edition and printing of the methodological guides.

500 guides were edited and published in colour.


GROUPS)

The General Directorate for the Environment produced these guidelines in order to enhance environmental awareness amongst those involved in the preparation of environmental studies.

The guidelines are primarily aimed at the administration itself and the promoters of projects.


Location: Region of Murcia.

Time: June 2002 - May 2003.

RESOURCES

Human resources: 10 technical experts:

- Project management from the DGE: 2 technical experts (part time)

- External assistance staff hired: 4 technical experts

(full time)

- Collaborators: 4 technical experts (part time)

External cost: €76,000 for the total of the seven guides over 24 months, €11,000 of which going specifically to the Agriculture and Livestock section; €2,500 cofinanced by the Interreg III-B Programme (ERDF).


500 copies were published and distributed to all local and regional administrations as well as to consultancies. The environmental studies have improved, in line with the recommendations of the

Guide. However, the dissemination of the guidelines could have been even greater with a larger budget.

The guide has proved to be an extremely hermetic document, so it could be supplemented with more practical documents which are easier to consult and use. Moreover, it only has an informative value: it should be made legally binding in order to promote its use and application.


Over the next few years, the methodological guide should be updated with the new legislation and the progress of the scientific and technical knowledge. The ambition of the DG for the Environment is to develop interactive tools (through the website) to facilitate consultation and the use of the guide.


Ramón BALLESTER SABATER

Region of Murcia - DG for the Environment

C/ Catedrático Eugenio Úbeda, nº 3

30008 Murcia, Spain

+34 968 228892 ramon.ballester2@carm.es

Website: http://www.murcianatural.carm.es

“

A project with the aim of establishing a basis for the development of any kind of environmental study of plans, programmes, projects or activities related to agriculture having a possible effect on the natural environment.

In order to produce a good document it is necessary to carry out interviews with experts who work on the elaboration of environmental impact studies

”



23

5

DRY CALCAREOUS GRASSLANDS

PRESERVATION AND MANAGEMENT OF A NETWORK OF DRY CALCAREOUS

GRASSLANDS IN THE VIC-BILH TERRITORY

CEN Aquitaine, France


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


This case illustrates a successful process from the recruitment of volunteer naturalists to the appropriation by the local actors and public authorities of the patrimonial value of a network of dry calcareous grasslands.

BACKGROUND

The main objective of this project was to protect 250 ha

(50 sites) of dry calcareous grasslands for the purpose of local development, whilst including local actors in the process.

In a context of land abandonment, one of the objectives was to mobilise a network of local farmers and local actors for the restoration and management of the sites, in order to preserve biodiversity.

METHODOLOGY, PROCESS, STEPS

1994: First information relative to the ecological value of the network of sites managed by voluntary naturalists.

This information was given by Cen Aquitaine, in collaboration with local authorities of Lembeye;

1995-1996: First inventory of dry calcareous grasslands of the Vic Bilh Territory / restoration of a site (a group of local authorities of Lembeye in connection with Cen

Aquitaine was in charge of the project);

1996-2000: Monitoring and restoration of other sites;

2000: Signature of contracts of partnership between

Cen Aquitaine and the local intercommunality of

Lembeye and voluntary land owners;

2000-2006: First Management Plan of calcareous grasslands of the cantons of Lembeye and Garlin;

2005: Approval of the Document of Objectives of the

Natura on 2000 Site N FR72200779 by the local steering committee;

2006: Signature of the first Natura 2000 contract;

2007-2011: The second Management Plan for calcareous grasslands of the cantons of Lembeye and

Garlin.


GROUPS)

Promoters:

- “Communauté de communes of Lembeye”: group of

31 rural municipalities, with a total population of about

5,000 inhabitants (density: about 25 inhabitants/km²).

- Cen Aquitaine: Non Governmental Organisation focused on “protecting biodiversity through the involvement of the territory actors”. Four major assignments: to increase knowledge, to protect, to manage, and to enhance natural heritage of remarkable sites, in the Aquitaine Region.

- Technical partners involved: wine cooperative of

Crouseilles, tourism offices, representative of the agricultural sector and financial partners (European

Union, Ministry of Ecology, Aquitaine Region Aquitaine,

General Council of Pyrénées-Atlantiques and local municipalities)

Targets include landowners, farmers, associations, municipalities, professionals involved in tourism and agriculture, general public...


Location of the project: Vic-Bilh territory, North East of

Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Aquitaine Region, France. This territory involved 54 municipalities (36,000 ha, 9,000 inhabitants, density about 25 hab/km²), amongst which


FARMERS AS GUARDIANS OF BIODIVERSITY-LINKED LANDSCAPE, TRADITIONS AND CULTURE

18 municipalities are concerned by a Natura 2000 site, representing a total dry calcareous grassland area of about 250 ha.

Quick overview of the territory:

- Two “small towns”, Garlin and Lembeye;

- Maize production is dominant, especially in the valleys;

- 15% of the land is forest (mostly private forest on the slopes, for local consumption of wood);

- Vineyard (Madiran appellation, Pacherenc, Béarn);

- Hunting and fishing activities;

- Rural Tourism (heritage: castles, churches and traditional houses – accommodation: hotels (4), camp sites (3) and holiday cottages (20)).

RESOURCES

Total funding over 15 years = €430,000 including

European funds (Rural Zone Development Programme,

European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund,

European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development,

Natura 2000), the French State (Ministry of Ecology,

Ministry of Agriculture), the Aquitaine Region, the

General Council of Pyrénées-Atlantiques and local municipalities.

For the total programme (15 years), about 6 employees

(Full Time Equivalent) with 0.3 to 0.5 FTE/year.

Increasing knowledge

Natural sites protection

Restoration and management of sites

Enhancing natural heritage

Total

Total credit

(€k)

120

70

%

28%

16%

210

30

430

49%

7%

100%

European Union

Ministry of Ecology

Region Aquitaine

Department of Pyrénées-

Atlantiques

Local Municipalities

Others (foundations, ...)

Total

Total credit

(€k)

13

185

26

185

17

4

430

%

3%

43%

6%

43%

4%

1%

100%


Fifteen years (1994-2010) of involvement in the territory of the Vic Bilh have led to several achievements:

- Increasing knowledge:

Natural habitats of major interest are present: dry calcareous grasslands, habitats of the Habitats

Directive

More than 20 natural habitats inventoried, with 4 of community interest:

- Juniperus communis formations on heaths and calcareous grasslands;

- Dry grasslands and semi-natural scrubland facies on calcareous (Festuco-Brometalia);

- Sub-steppe of annual grasses (Thero-Brachypodietea);

- “Molinie grasslands” on limestone and clay (Eu-

Molinion).

7 species of Community interest are present:

- 4 insects (3 butterflies : Maculinea arion, Euphrydryas aurinia, Eriogaster catax and 1 beetle: Lucanus cervus);

- 3 bats (Rhinolophus hipposideros, Myotis blythi,

Myotis myotis).

Localisation and mapping of 250 ha of calcareous grasslands and other natural habitats of interest, inventory and localisation of protected species and habitats;

Monitoring of the evolution of the environment, the targeted species, and the combined management procedures.

- Protection of natural sites:

Land owners were enlightened about the natural heritage of their property. Contracts for preserving and managing the natural habitat were proposed.

About 120 ha were protected out of 250 ha concerned

(80 ha under convention, 15 ha acquired by Cen

Aquitaine, 25 ha under contract such as Natura 2000 or local agri-environmental measures).

- Restoration and management of dry calcareous grasslands:

10 farmers and 2 non-profit organisations were involved: one working in the field of reinsertion of unemployed people and one involved in the insertion of disabled people through work.

...



25

5

Management of calcareous grasslands by grazing: identification of local breeders, definition of contracts with the farmers, acquisition of donkeys for maintaining pasture in danger of being abandoned, management of under grazed pastures, maintenance of ponds used for providing water for the animals.

Organisation of work camps for youth and volunteers

(support from the general public).

- Enhancing natural heritage:

Development of 5 hiking trails in connection with dry calcareous sites (with a notebook guide and information panels);

Creation of the “insects of the dry calcareous grasslands” exhibition;

Partnership with the cooperative cellar of Crouseilles;

Several thematic events organised during the year, e.g. “Frog Frequency” in April, “Nature Party” and “Aquitaine Nature Days” in May, “Sustainable

Development Week” in June, “Night of the owl” in august, “Autumn Workshop” in October.

Over the last fifteen years, more than 150 people a year have been made aware of the importance of natural heritage, especially during an event combining the discovery of orchids and wine tasting in cooperation with the cooperative cellar of Crouseilles.


After more than fifteen years of work on the territory, over 50% of the area initially identified is protected and managed, in conjunction with local stakeholders.

Now, the following issues are to be tackled in order to strengthen the work:

- Convincing new territories to join the network;

- Strengthening promotion tools for natural heritage in collaboration with tourism operators;

- Integration of the network of dry grasslands in a broader framework, by identifying ecological functionalities and ecological connectivity.




Hervé CODHANT h.codhant@cen-aquitaine.fr, +33 5 59 32 79 57

Céline DELTORT c.deltort@cen-aquitaine.fr, + 33 5 59 32 67 05

Conservatoire d’Espaces Naturels d’Aquitaine (CEN Aquitaine)

Maison de la Nature et de l’Environnement de Pau

Route de Bordeaux, Domaine de Sers, 64000 PAU, France

+ 33 5 59 32 16 74

Website: www.cen-aquitaine.fr

David CONDOTTA

Communauté de communes de Lembeye

+33 559 685 022 davidcondotta@orange.fr

“

- It is essential to work in collaboration with a legitimate local authority in order to encourage local approval.

- Integrating the skills of local actors’ skills contributes to their understanding and implication in the project.

- Mobilising several funding tools underlines the convergence of public policies.

”



27

6

LANDSCAPE MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR FARMERS

PRESERVING BIODIVERSITY IN AGRICULTURAL LANDSCAPE

Estonian University of Life Sciences, Estonia


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The goal for creating a landscape management plan method is to provide recommendations for planning and carrying out landscape management accordingly to decisions made on a higher level (county, local municipality, village...).

A landscape management plan is generally prepared for land units owned by a single enterprise or household in a rural region.

It plan specifies a programme that draws the land owner’s attention to the value of the area and the maintenance activities required, and proposes solutions for problematic areas.

BACKGROUND

In order to ensure a more sustainable spatial structure for nature and environmental protection, counties were asked to prepare thematic plans. “Green network” and “Valuable landscapes” were identified as two of the most important subthemes of the county plans.

Local governments were given the task of identifying valuable landscapes and organising their protection, preservation, maintenance, and in some cases their restoration. A valuable landscape measure was developed in 2004 as a part of draft agri-environment payments programme. However, due to the lack of financial means, the planned measure was left out of both programming periods (2004-2006; 2007-2013) of the Rural Development Plan. The areas planned for the implementation of this action would have been defined as valuable landscapes in the county plans. A landscape management plan would have been prepared for the area as a condition for applying for financial support.

An agricultural enterprise, applicant for support, would have been required to perform maintenance works according to the management plan prepared for the enterprise by an accredited specialist. The support payments would have been calculated on the basis of the volume of performed works.

A landscape management program supports the organisation of systematic activities, which takes into consideration the specificity and conditions of an area and, among other things, provides an overview of the assets of the area and describes the management measures required. The activities prescribed are designed for a larger territory (valuable landscape) and require land user specifications for smaller areas.

The current situation of the implementation of landscape management programmes is that public land is maintained by citizens’ initiative (for example in the joint work of village societies and unions), but the fate of private land and its landscape elements depends on the awareness, interest and possibilities of each individual landowner. Therefore, there are several reasons for preparing more specific management plans.

For instance, the maintenance activities prescribed for a larger territory in the landscape management programme may require local specificities. Also, landscape management programmes are too general to be used as payment contracts for land users.


The structure and preparation stages of a landscape management plan are: collecting general data; analysing the landscape; defining plans and development documents; analysing landscape assets

(in cooperation with the owner); defining a development plan (in cooperation with the owner); determining management goals (in cooperation with the owner); defining assets and activities, planning (in cooperation



with the owner); defining budget and activity funding; describing detailed activities; editing maps.

General data consists of: the name of the farm, administrative location, description of geographic location, the amount of owned and rented land, lines of activity, historical development, animal breeds, soil description, existing buildings, protected natural objects and objects under heritage protection, other definitions (valuable landscape, green network, valuable milieu etc.).

Landscape analysis helps to make decisions suitable for a region considering the landscape structure (land use, ecological features and anthropogenic objects).

Historical map analysis is based on the comparison of land use according to ancient and modern maps.

Changes in settlement, road connectivity and the contours and locations of well-preserved fields are observed. The objective of the analysis is to describe the changes that have occurred, to find well-preserved landscape structures and elements from earlier historical periods, and to identify locations of historical and cultural importance.

In the development perspective, the area must be considered as a whole with its natural, social and economic aspects and the objectives of the land owner should be taken into account. The vision and long-term goals are formulated for a longer period than the period specified in the landscape management plan.

In accordance with the development vision, short-term goals are specified in the landscape management plan. Management goals are determined according to landscape assets, land owner economic goals, landscaping decisions made on a higher level, international treaties. The planning of management activities is preceded by the mapping the farm’s assets.

Assets can be preserved or their value can be increased by managing certain features or areas.

The essential managed features or areas on farm landscapes are: fields with a historical and visual value; permanent and semi-permanent grasslands; stone walls; wooden fences or other barriers; immovable monuments; tourist attractions; buildings and their vicinity; old trees, single trees, belts of trees, groups of trees, alleys, hedges; multi-layered protective belts/ hedges; flower meadows; meadow strips, buffer areas; grasslands/brushes near water bodies, roadside strips of brushes; artificial watercourses, forest borders and patches, ponds; habitats of introduced species; agricultural buildings; unused areas; other landscape elements.

Activities are defined for each managed area, for example: afforestation, pruning, collecting, transporting or burning branches, mowing and removing the cuttings, planting trees or bushes, watering, rejuvenation, design, supporting young trees, replacing dead plants, putting up a fence if necessary, etc.

The mentioned features and areas in possible need of management can themselves be assets (e.g. fields, wetlands, bands of trees etc.). At the same time fields, roadside brush strips etc. may help preserve a beautiful view to the asset.

Some assets are not in need of management or are not managed according to this management plan, e.g. forests grove, lakes that are connected with local folklore. Conserving some assets does not presume the management of an area, but the application of general management principles.

Planning activities over the years gives an opportunity to draw up approximate annual budgets for activities.

The activity costs vary greatly depending on the nature, location and situation of the managed area and whether future management can result in economic gain.

Activities can be structured according to assets or combined by categories (e.g. brush-cutting, mowing, informing, requirements for buildings, conserving forest ecosystems, activities for tourism etc.).


GROUPS)

The promoter of the operation is the Estonian University of Life Sciences in co-operation with Ministry of

Agriculture and the Ministry of Interior.

Target group are farmers and land-owner, volunteers from rural areas order landscape management plans on their own initiative. In the future, agricultural companies will probably be interested if the contribution to landscapes becomes a part of environmental planning and this will be seen as a chance to increase the value of the company and its products.


Agricultural landscapes and rural landscapes in the wider sense in the whole of Estonia.

Start date: 2007.

End date: 2009.

The definition of a landscape management plan takes

3-6 months.

...



29

6

RESOURCES

The methodology of the landscape management plan was developed and tested during three years.

It was developed by a team of 4-5 people. The cost of the project was €32,000. To compile a landscape management plan for a farm needs a minimum of

€1,200-€2,000 depending on the size of the farm.


The methodology of landscape management plan for farms was developed and tested in five areas. The methodology of landscape plan has an important practical value as it enabled to accomplishment the objectives of landscape management plan at a local level.

A landscape management plan should be prepared in cooperation with both a specialist and the landowner.

The implementation of the landscape management plan depends on the landowner’s motivation, the possibilities and ability to use various programs, financial support, the measures and other means to implement certain activities.

The data for creating a landscape management plan should be collected during an interview with the owner, enabling the inventory and analysis of literature, source material, maps, and development document.


Perspectives are to educate farmers and to work out financial instruments for applying landscape management plans on farms. In the future, landscape management plans should be a condition for applying for financial support. The applicant of financial support (an agricultural enterprise) should be required to perform maintenance works according to the management plan prepared by an accredited specialist. The support should be calculated on the basis of the volume of work to be carried out. Minimum works should include: maintenance of the surroundings of primeval trees or groups of trees of landscape value; planting of single trees and maintenance of the surroundings; opening of viewpoints; creation of alleys; maintenance of alleys; maintenance of ancient monuments; maintenance of coppices and forest edges; creation and maintenance of woodland paths.


Prof. Kalev SEPP and Maaria SEMM

Estonian University of Life Sciences, Institute of Agricultural and Environmental Research

+372 731 3777 kalev.sepp@emu.ee

maaria.semm@emu.ee

Website: www.emu.ee





31

7

AGRI-FOOD LANDSCAPES



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The project involves the study of landscapes in relation to agriculture, more particularly to the production of animal or plant products, as well as several beverages.

Several products carrying Basque quality labels, protected designation of origin (PDO) labels, and other generic products have been studied. The land where these products are cultivated or produced has been spatially identified, in order to analyse the landscape that they help create and maintain. In addition, a wide range of Basque agents working in the field of agriculture have evaluated how they perceive the identified landscapes.

BACKGROUND

The interest in identifying the landscapes, or their attributes, created and maintained by agriculture is primarily related to the importance of making all those involved conscious of the link between producing and consuming certain local products, and maintenance of rural landscapes that are highly valued by society in general.


First of all, there has been a long and complex process of collecting spatial data. This has proved to be the most time-consuming phase of the project, and limited the number of products finally studied. While it has been possible to obtain spatial data for several of the targeted products, others had to be grouped in order to carry out the study. These are the products studied:

- Products of animal origin: Basque Label Chicken,

Basque Label Eggs, Basque Label Lamb, PDO Idiazabal

Cheese, Basque Label Milk, Basque Label Beef, Basque

Label Honey.

- Products of plant origin: fruit tree orchards (including hard-shelled fruits, dessert grapes), greenhouse products (including Basque Label Tomato, Basque

Label Gernika Green Pepper), dry-farmed crops (cereal, oleaginous and proteaginous crops, tubers, etc.).

- Beverages: three PDO Txakoli (white wine), PDO Rioja

Alavesa Wine, cider.

Secondly, a landscape analysis has been carried out regarding the landscape unit where those plots are located, and the viewsheds where they lie. Two sets of maps have been produced for each product, one showing where each product is produced/grown and the landscape linked to it in three different scales (point or plot of production/cultivation, closest landscape unit to the point or plot, viewshed where the point/plot is located), and the other showing the landscape types contained in the second scale (landscape unit).

Once the landscape related to each product has been described, all the information has been compiled in a data-sheet for each product. Finally, an opinion poll has been conducted aiming to find out how a variety of collaborators perceive these landscapes.

The results of the study show that for products linked with poultry farming and dairy production, the influence on the surrounding landscape involves mainly the farm itself. These products don’t create a particular landscape. When it comes to sheep and cattle products, which are the basis of Basque farming, there is a clear link between them and the landscapes they use, which are largely located in protected areas. On the other hand, the study concludes that honey doesn’t create a particular landscape.

Orchards are very common in the Basque Country, and give a specific character to the landscapes, especially in the first scale of the three studied. Greenhouses



are an element of rural landscape, rather than a type of landscape themselves. Dry-farmed crops occupy a large portion of the landscapes in Álava (one of the three political and administrative units of the Basque

Country), and could even be considered a symbol of identity, being the product that most clearly creates a particular landscape, tending to occupy most of the landscape units where they occur, bringing a wide diversity of colour throughout the seasons.

Wine production also creates very distinctive landscapes, due to the texture and seasonal colours of the vineyards. Similarly, the plots with traditional apple orchards create a particular texture in landscape, but less than in the preceding example. Apple orchards for the production of cider are a common element of the landscape mosaic in the Atlantic part of the Basque

Country, where some change is occurring due to the intensification of production.


GROUPS)

The Basque Government is the promoter for the action.

The results of the study could be of great use in adding value to several food products which are already highly appreciated by Basque consumers due to their intrinsic characteristics. Other actors involved are the producers of the studied products, and those involved in promoting them, as well as the general public, who needs to be made aware of the positive effect that consuming these products has on the Basque landscapes.

So far, no specific measures have been outlined to communicate the results of the study. The study itself is being used as a source of information in several other projects, such as a study conducted by NEIKER-

Tecnalia on climate change and cattle farming, or a mobile phone application that EKOGUNEA is developing on sustainable choices for consumers when it comes to agri-food products.


The project considered all agricultural products in the Basque Country, and has selected those for which spatial data was easily available. The study started in

May 2008 and ended in July 2009.

RESOURCES

The project was developed with external assistance from IKT, which was in charge of the production of spatial data, and PAISAIA, which developed the study based on the data provided. The overall cost of the external assistance was approximately 44,000 €.


In many cases, the landscape units defined for different products share the same geographical location. Therefore, the key elements of landscape, the perception, and even the problems are the same for several agri-food products. On the other hand, although there are some products which create a very distinct type of landscape, such as dry-farmed crops or PDO Rioja Alavesa Wine, others just add an element to landscape (sometimes well integrated, sometimes not), and the study has not identified a particular type of landscape linked with each of them.

Analysing the opinions received during the survey conducted, it can be concluded that agri-food products create or are part of landscapes which are perceived as pleasant. Besides, most participants in the survey agree that it is important to protect agricultural soil from the pressure of other uses, such as infrastructures, building and other urban uses. Also, as the product gains social and economic relevance, and its production increases, more participants support production methods which benefit biodiversity and natural values, as opposed to the intensification of production. In the case of cattle products, the survey shows a more acute need to enhance the sector and raise public awareness about the importance of consuming local products.

The main lesson learnt has been that even though it has not been possible to identify specific types of landscape related to each agri-food product, the study has pinpointed products which create a specific landscape and it has mapped the extent of those landscapes. In addition, it has identified for each product the elements that add to landscape character, and has served to visually attract attention on the relevance of the agrifood sector in land planning.

The main problems encountered during the study are related to the availability of spatial data, since the use of spatial data based on Geographic Information

Systems (GIS) to study landscape was not an objective when the data-bases of the products were created, some years ago.


The improvement and conservation of rural landscapes are part of agro-systems’ multi-functionality, and the practices which preserve and improve these landscapes are fostered through agri-environmental schemes.

Nevertheless, there is still much to do in this field, in order to conserve and improve rural landscapes by developing and implementing good landscape practices in production systems.


Miren ASKASIBAR

PAISAIA, S.L. Donostia ibilbidea

76. 20115-Astigarraga Spain

+34 943 335 048 paisaia@paisaia.com

“

Spatial location of agri-food products and their landscapes give stakeholders, decision makers and consumers a new perspective on the relevance of agriculture, while adding a new value to those products.

”



33

8

FARMING AND PROTECTING SNAILS


REMTH, Greece

ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


This action is about farming snails, (Helix aspersa) in a controlled natural environment (open-type farms) as opposed to greenhouse snail farms. The snails are raised directly in flower-beds, terraces or pastures equipped with a special net preventing trampling, which is weather resistant and protective, so that the snails do not escape. The snails are fed with certified seeds suitable for breeding, with no chemicals. The only chemicals used are at the beginning for the fumigation of the soil bedding.

Snail breeding does not require particular climatic conditions nor territorial requirements and therefore can be implemented all over Europe; from the South to

North and from the East to West. It turns out to be an innovative and viable production and may provide new economic opportunities for agriculture considering the current economic crisis.

During the period 1960-1990, there was a high increase in the trade and processing of fresh snails, exclusively for export to countries of central Europe and essentially in France (in 1998 French imports from

Greece represented 25% of fresh and frozen snails and 80% of processed snails). This trade was based on picking snails in their natural environment (about

1,000 ton/year). This activity, along with the intensifying of agriculture and the use of fertilisers and pesticides, applied serious pressure to natural populations of snail species. The development of farming techniques reduced this pressure, whilst still satisfying the food demand. In addition, this type of farming can be characterised as environmental friendly, as no chemical fertilisers and pesticides are used and no waste is produced.

The natural population of the main raised species named Helix aspersa is very diverse and represents an important genetic reserve. Besides the need for protection and maintenance, this population may be used for the production of selected snails with competitive characters for niche markets.

BACKGROUND

The project started as a private initiative. Over the last decades, monocultures, such as tobacco growing in the mountainous areas, maize and sugar beet cultivation in the plains of the region of Eastern Macedonia &

Thrace, had negative impacts on farmers’ income, profitability, efficiency and on the cultivation land and the environment. During the last years, these crops were no longer competitive. The price and the demand for these products declined vertiginously, reducing the farmer’s income. This led them to try other productions.

One of them is snail breeding, which appears to be competitive and efficient.

Furthermore, over the last few years, snails have become popular for their nutritional and gastronomic value. From the consumers point of view, snails are a delicacy and provide several advantages over other kinds of meat such as low calories, low-fat and high content in mineral nutrients, amino acids, beneficial fatty acids.

The debate taking place in the E.U. countries regarding snail production has created favourable conditions for the development of a market with particularly high prices, and has enabled a substantial increase in farmers’ income.

The natural reserves of edible snails have been reduced


BIODIVERSITY-FRIENDLY AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES

due to the intensive picking and to the degradation of environment (deforestation, intensification of agricultural cultivation, fires, etc.). Snail breeding is therefore inevitably justified and encouraged.


The local farmers unions began to support farmers by organising informative meetings. These initiatives were addressed to all farmers in the region aiming to create a dynamic local farming activity providing good quality products in quantity, and at a competitive price.

The Ministry of Rural Development & Food, considering the growing interest, especially from young people, to breed snails, organised a systematic guidance, in order to enhance investment and to avoid as far as possible potential untargeted business risks. For this purpose, it prepared a guidance text, covering all stages from installation and breeding to marketing of the product.

Specifically, the axes of the framework include:

- The registration of snail farms at regional level and giving them a unique code number;

- The establishment of rules of standardisation and packaging of the final product;

- The possibility of increasing the added value of the final product, through certification and setting standards for the breeding;

- The snail farms will be eligible for renting common lands dedicated to agriculture and livestock.


GROUPS)

Promoter:

It is a private initiative, undertaken by individual farmers.

In the Region of Eastern Macedonia & Thrace about 20-

25 farms have been established mainly between 2009 and 2011. They are individual farmers’ enterprises and are not funded by the Greek State or the E.U.

Target Groups:

- Farmers, especially young ones;

- Agricultural universities and relevant institutes;

- “Know-how” provider firms;

- National, regional and local agricultural authorities;

- Firms specialised in building agricultural infrastructures;

- Feed enterprises.


In the Region of Eastern Macedonia & Thrace, snail breeding farms have been established in both plain and mountainous areas. Snails are not affected by altitude so they can be raised either in flat or sloping land.

Thus the productivity of these farms is comparable to those operated in Egypt, Jordan, Sweden and Finland.

On the other hand, many studies indicate that the

Mediterranean Basin is optimal for the better quality snail production: Greece is at advantage compared to many other countries.

Timescale

1. Construction of the park;

2. Soil preparation activities;

3. Planting of specific species, mainly annual plants

(March - April);

4. Introduction of the snails for reproduction

(24,000 individuals for 0.5 ha) in the reproduction infrastructures (Spring- 1.5 month after planting);

5. Transfer of the young snails in the fattening infrastructures (250 individuals per m 2 );

6. Fattening period (12-18 months);

7. First harvest (November of 1 st year: collection of snails used for reproduction);

8. Collection period (October-November of 2 nd year)

(500,000 individuals or 5-6 tn per 0.5 ha);

9. Marketing of the product.

RESOURCES

The installation cost depends on the field. Initially, some essential works should be undertaken such as fencing, placement of stakes and sheets-metal, artificial rain, fertilisation-disinfection. These costs are estimated at about 30,000 € maximum per ha.

The efficiency can also be estimated as follows: the production of a farm with 50,000 snails on one hectare is about 10,000 to 15,000 kilos per year. From the second year and onwards the mixed profit per ha is calculated to 44,000 €, while the net profit per ha is estimated to 35,000 €.

The state’s effort is to reinforce this type of farming.

The Ministry of Agricultural Development & Food therefore includes snail farming as an eligible activity in Measure 112 (Young Farmers), in Measure 121

(Improvement Plans) and in Measure 123 (Adding value to agricultural and forestry products) of the

Rural Development Programme 2007-2013. Also the

Ministry of Development, Competitiveness & Shipping subsidises this activity through the Investment Law

3908/2011.

...



35

8


Although this project is only beginning, first results are quite positive. There are farms with impressive results, with production yield of 10-12 ton per ha. The annual revenues reached about €18,000 per farm on average

(the usual farms are about 0.5 ha).

Of course there are other snail farmers who had significant problems in their production and did not achieve a satisfactory result. Although it consists of a relatively simple farming activity, it demands technical knowledge, knowledge of the micro-climate of the region, organisational skills, long-term planning, persistence and hard work from the farmers.

It is obvious that the results of the total production will enhance biodiversity in the region, as well as the farmers’ income.


Farmers do not only intend to implement a large scale production and provide good quality products, but also they want be involved in all stages from the farm-yard to the final consumer including manufacturing and distribution.




Dimitris TSIANIS

Region of Eastern Macedonia & Thrace

Directorate of Agricultural Economy & Veterinary

+30 2541350163 tsianis75@yahoo.gr



37

9

NATURAL BIODIVERSITY IN VINEYARDS:

ASSESSMENT OF ARTHROPODS BIODIVERSITY IN ORGANIC VINEYARDS

ACCORDING TO CROPPING PRACTICES

Bio d’Aquitaine, France


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL

THE ACTION

A network named “Arthropods biodiversity” integrated by 13 certified organic “châteaux” in the Bergerac area has been created to observe, during a 5 year period

(2009-2014), the impact of various inter cropping practices in the vineyards, on the population of arthropods and their biodiversity.

The basic assumption is that improving the natural interspecific biodiversity by adapted agricultural practices, we improve the homeostasis of the agroecosystem, and then the quality of the vine and the grapes.

It is important to consider in addition the impact of the level of conversion of the vineyards to organic and the landscape wealth.

General Goal: to find an optimum agro-ecosystem using the minimum of input and the better impact of biodiversity to have a well adapted vineyard to its soil.

Specific Goal: to make a survey on arthropod biodiversity in vineyard over a 5 year period.

BACKGROUND

This network was established in 2009, because at that time Biodiversity became a hot topic in the vineyards industry without any concrete information or reference that could characterise and assess its impact. The Périgord association of organic farmers,

Agrobio Périgord, therefore decided to set up a network of organic “châteaux”, examining both the impact of cultural practices (total grass cover, grass cover every second row and one row of natural grass/one row of seeded flowers, the period of conversion to organic

(impact of organic farming) and the richness of the landscape around the experimental plots).

On the other hand, given the economic cost of certain practices (seeding flowers in particular) it seems necessary to inform the winemakers on the real impact of these methods on biodiversity:

1. Visual impact;

2. General biodiversity;

3. Aid to cope with vine pests, in relation with another parallel network (“Efficient biodiversity”) using the same seeded flowers that in the network “Arthropods

Biodiversity”.

Specificity of the study: the network includes only organic areas and areas in conversion to organic farming (certified approach), studying the impact of farming methods, taking into account the level of conversion to organic farming, taking into account the environment of the vine in the analysis.


Measuring biodiversity is to measure the diversity of life. Given the number of species it is impossible to be exhaustive, even in a simplified medium as an agricultural system. For this study we have chosen the method Rapid Biodiversity Assessment (RBA) which allows:

- To reduce the analysis time on a larger number of organisms;

- Measure a broader spectrum of species (quantitative data): Arthropods;

- Allows simplified recognition by working on “Morphospecies” = homogeneous group easily separable to others by morphological differences observed by a person who is not taxonomist (Oliver & Beattie, 1993);

- Working on two main parameters: Abundance (e.g.

20 individuals) & Morpho specific richness (e.g.: 11

Morpho species).



The device consists of: an air trap “combi” & a trap on the ground “pitfall”. Weekly, from April to August, the trainee will collect 14 traps over 13 areas.

INVOLVED ACTORS (PROMOTER AND TARGET

GROUPS)

Agrobio Périgord is the promoter of the experiment.

This association of organic farmers works with the organic grape growers of the Bergerac area, giving technical expertise to organic grape growers and grape growers in conversion process.

The experimental network for the assessment of “arthropods biodiversity” has been created in partnership with Vitinnov who gives scientific expertise.

Vitinnov is a cell for technology and knowledge transfer in viticulture, backed by the national college of agronomy and research centre “Bordeaux Agro

Sciences” (former ENITA of Bordeaux). Faced with various challenges (input reduction, carbon footprint, global warming ...), more and more wine growers are questioning their practices and the consequences in terms of sustainability on the vineyard.

PLACE AND TIMESCALE OF THE ACTION

Périgord, France

The network was established in 2009 for an initial period of 5 years (end 2014). The network composition may change annually to include new areas in conversion to organic.

RESOURCES

Currently this network receives no specific financial support and is fully funded by Agrobio Périgord. The establishment of this network requires annually:

- A full time trainee for 6 months (Master or License), to monitor the traps;

- Agrobio Périgord provides 15 days of technical expert advice;

- Vitinnov provides 15 days of scientific expert advice for training and coaching the trainee and the grape growers, analyzing the results and providing writing assistance for the report.


First results:

2009:

- Correlation between the level of conversion of the domain and its biodiversity: lower abundance and richness in morpho species in C1 (1 st year of conversion) than in Full Organic vineyards;

- No correlation between the cover of the plot and its biodiversity in arthropods.

2010:

- No correlation between the level of conversion and biodiversity in arthropods, but there was no areas in C1;

- Correlation between the grass cover and biodiversity in arthropods: a grass cover every second row would improve biodiversity in crawling arthropods.

2011:

- Data not analysed;

- Reinstatement of areas in conversion.

Note: 2010 & 2011 were particularly dry years in the Perigord area, which has heavily penalised the successful establishment of seeded flowers.

Beside the results on arthropods populations this experiment has allowed to rediscover among the vineyards, very remarkable local natural flowers such as Tulipa silvestris, Tulipa radii, Anemone.


This network will continue at least until end of 2014 and then according to the results a decision will be taken on further work. Based on the results, the network of châteaux will decide to either continue the same way or change focus to new findings which have been revealed during the first study period.

Agrobio Périgord is a member of the wine commission of the national Technical Institute of Organic

Agriculture (ITAB) through Bio d’Aquitaine and the national federation. The Dissemination of the results will be done first within these two networks and via the website www.agrobioperigord.fr. Generally the widest possible dissemination is favored whether in print

(alter-agri,...), online (different websites of network partners) and by lectures / training for who we operate

(farmers , technicians, schools, ....)


Eric MAILLE

Agrobio Périgord - Pôle Viticole de la Fédération des Vins du Bergeracois

Z.A Vallade, 24112 Bergerac Cedex, France

+33 5 53 57 62 24 (land), +33 6 87 58 48 50 (mobile) e.maille@agrobioperigord.fr

Website: http://www.agrobioperigord.fr/produire-bio/viticulture

“

Following the first years of these studies, grape growers have a better knowledge and better understanding of the biodiversity of their plot. The tenants are parties involved in the study and thus discover the abundant life in their vineyards.

Many times, at the moment a winemaker start converting his vineyard to organic, when he sees more insects he thinks he will have more problems, after a time he realizes that with more insects he has a better balance of the vines, and that they directly benefits their wealth and also indirectly (agronomic impacts, recovery from visitors to the fields, ...).

”



39

10

GENE BANK

PRESERVING A CULTURAL HERITAGE

Plant Production Research Centre Piešt’any, Slovak Republic


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The Gene Bank of Slovak Republic (SR) was created for conserving plant genetic resources for food and agriculture, and in other domains such as their use for breeding techniques, research, and education.

Preserving the biodiversity of the country and the national cultural heritage for future generations is an essential objective for the Slovak gene bank.

BACKGROUND

The Gene Bank of Slovak Republic opened in 1996 as a specific facility for long term conservation of plant genetic resources in full viability. Medium - and long - term conservation of plant genetic resources is the main objective of the gene bank. The principal programme coordinated by the gene bank is the

National Programme for Conservation of Plant Genetic

Resources for Food and Agriculture in Slovakia. This programme was approved by Law No. 215/2001

Collection of Law and all activities are supported by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural development of

Slovak Republic. Mandate for coordination was given to the Plant Production Research Centre Piešt’any (PPRC

Piešt’any). Under the direction of PPRC Piešt’any, 23 partners (universities, breeding stations, institutes, private farmers etc.) from the whole of Slovakia participated in biodiversity conservation. Researchers from Gene bank of SR are involved in national and regional projects regarding biodiversity conservation.

At present, Gene bank SR conserves more than 20 thousand accessions of plant genetic resources.


Seeds samples of genetic resources are stored in the gene bank in two collections: basic collection and active collection. In the basic collection, seeds are stored at a temperature of -17° C for a long period with a tenyear cycle of germinability monitoring. In the active collection, seeds are stored at a temperature of +4°C with a five-year cycle of germinability monitoring.

Accessions stored in the active collection are used for distribution and regeneration. The recommended sample size for storage is 4,000 seeds for self-pollinated species and 12,000 seeds for cross-pollinated species.

Before storing genetic resources, the average moisture and germinability of each sample (2 x 100 seeds) are determined.

The seeds are dried to reach appropriate storage moisture content (4 – 8%). After drying, the samples with the required germinability (at the level of the I. class of seed quality according to Slovak Technical

Standard) are put into the glass containers with silica gel and are labelled for identification.

Detailed crop databases describe each collection stored.

Most gene banks are mandated to distribute germplasm to users. One of the main activities of the Gene bank of SR for biodiversity conservation is to provide seeds samples for research organisations and multiplication companies, institutes, schools, universities and farmers. Recommended size of sample according to EU regulations is a maximum 200 seeds of each genotype.

Genetic resources accessions are usually distributed using s.MTA (standard Material transfer agreement) that defines the terms and conditions for use. The

International Treaty on plant genetic resources for food and agriculture includes specific terms governing access and benefit-sharing, facilitating the exchange of genetic resources around the world.

The Gene bank of SR carries out the collecting expeditions within Slovakia and other countries.

Landraces, old and natural cultivars and population of grasses, forage crops, medicinal species, vegetable,


BANKS FOR AGROBIODIVERSITY PRESERVATION

legumes, oil crops and cereals are collected. Collecting and survey activities increase the collection of genetic resources, protect biological diversity and prevent genetic erosion.

Gene bank of SR cooperates with Food and Agriculture

Organisation (FAO) and Biodiversity International. These international organisations implement activities for biodiversity conservation at European and International level. Gene bank of SR participates in the activities of the European Cooperative Programme for Plant

Genetic Resources (ECPGR). The activities are carried out within networks and working groups: Allium,

Avena, Barley, Beta, Brassica, Forages, Grain Legumes,

Malus/Pyrus, Potato, Prunus, Wheat, Umbellifer, Vitis,

Medicinal and Aromatic Plants etc.


GROUPS)

The promoter of the project is the Plant Production

Research Centre Piešt’any, staff of Gene bank SR

(research workers).

Target groups are the general public, students, pupils, regional policymakers in order to increase awareness about threats to biodiversity conservation.

LOCATION AND TIME OF THE PROJECT

- Plant Production Research Centre Piešt’any, Gene bank of Slovak Republic - Permanent “Opens days for students and children”, in 2010 and 2011.

- Plant Production Research Centre Piešt’any, Gene bank of Slovak Republic - Preservation of cultural heritage – Fandly apple in Slovakia, from April, 21 st ,

2010 to future.

- Plant Production Research Centre Piešt’any, Gene bank of Slovak Republic - Conservation biodiversity from Nikolai Ivanovic Vavilov to Gene banks, June, 30 th ,

2011 to future.

RESOURCES

A minimum staff of 10 people is necessary for the achievement of Gene bank of SR activities. The annual budget for external costs of the project and funding partners should be approximately € 50,000.


1. Opens days for students and children

Biodiversity was explained to children, students, PhD students, universities and the general public during


Dr. Daniela BENEDIKOVA

Gene Bank of the Slovak Republic

+421 33 7722311 benedikova@vurv.sk

Website: http://reverse.cvrv.sk/en/ the open days organised by the Gene bank of Slovakia in Piešt’any during 2010 and 2011. Participants were taught about the importance of biodiversity conservation through visits of experimental fields, a film projection and a specific presentation. They were very interested in the excursions on field experiments with medicinal and aromatic plants.

2. Preservation of cultural heritage - Fandly apple in

Slovakia

Old fruit species are being preserved through a specific frame for the preservation of cultural heritage in Slovak

Republic. For example, Fandly’s non-flowering appletree is a botanically interesting mutant which has a flower with two whorls of sepals and two rings of carpels in two superposed plans. It was founded by the Slovak patriot and priest Juraj Fandly who lived in Nahac in the 18 th century. The apple tree is known as Fandly’s flowerless apple-tree. In the cooperation with “Natures and Landscape protection” in Banská

Bystrica, a methodology for the conservation of old trees has been instigated. Gene bank’s workers

� recovered old apple-trees, in the village of Nahac, in the region of Trnava. These trees were multiplied and then planted according to the methodology developed, on

April 21 th 2010, in the area PPRC Piešt’any. 21 workers from PPRC Piešt’any attended this event. This activity could be applied in other regions dealing with the preservation of old genetic resources and landraces.

3. Conservation biodiversity from Nikolai Ivanovic

Vavilov to Gene banks

Staff from the Slovak Gene bank, continuing a long time cooperation, started the multiplication and evaluation of old species originating from Nikolai Ivanovic Vavilov’s expedition*. Guests from Mendel University, Faculty of Gardening Lednice (Czech Republic) attended this

REVERSE workshop. During this event, old native species of rye, oat and lupine were evaluated by genetic experts. The output of this event will be the creation of an educative film oriented on native biodiversity conservation.

This film will be used by all REVERSE partners.


In the future, the Gene Bank of the Slovak Republic will continue organising open days aiming to disseminate knowledge about biodiversity conservation and it is an important task. It will continue activities connected with the preservation of cultural heritage - such as perpetrating the Fandly apple and other species of national heritage.

“

Conservation of nature and biodiversity is a very important challenge for all countries; it should be the main theme in new projects for the younger generation. For this reason, is essential to organise events such as “open days” for schools, universities, institutes and the general public in European regions.

”

* Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov (1887 - 1943) was the botanist, geneticist, biologist, geographer, explorer, agronomist and plant breeder who developed the fundamental theory on the centres of origin of cultivated plants. During his activity, he organised a series of botanical-agronomic expeditions, collecting seeds from every part of the globe, and created in Leningrad the world’s largest collection of plant seeds at that time. Vavilov identified first five centres of origin of the species, then eight in his last papers: China,

India, Central Asia, Near East, Mediterranean Coasts, Ethiopia, Central and South America, especially in mountain areas or highlands. His theory and observations were fundamental for the birth of modern studies on crop biodiversity.



41

11

POTATO GENES

CONSERVATION OF LOCAL CULTIVARS AND WILD SPECIES OF POTATO



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The germplasm is the basic raw material for the improvement of a crop plant through multiplication.

The cultivated potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is tetraploid and highly heterozygous. Elite parental lines/ clones of potato are thus maintained through vegetative propagation rather than through true (botanical) seeds because sexual reproduction leads to segregation of the genotype. In order to keep the potato germplasm accessions disease-free, these are conserved as in vitro propagated microplants under tissue culture conditions.

An evaluation of genetic vulnerability of the potato will provide administrators with economic evidence to justify germplasm preservation. The range of genetic diversity in the available Neiker potato germplasm should be underlined. This variability can be used for solving future major problems.

Cytogenetic study of different species within the genus

Solanum and the characterisation of old cultivated varieties are done by analysing their possible use in genetic breeding. Nowadays the challenges of the

Genetic Breeding Programme carried out in NEIKER-

Tecnalia (Basque Institute for Agricultural Research and Development), started in 1966, are linked to resistance to diseases (mainly non persistent viruses and late blight), early maturity, drought tolerance and frost tolerance. Wild species such as S. acaule,

S. demissum, S.toralapanum, S. simplicifolium and

S. andigena have an essential role. They are used as parents in the crossing programme as they provide these desirable characteristics. Others parameters like good industrial aptitude have been added to the selection programme in the last ten years. As result of this work, in the last five years, NEIKER-Tecnalia has registered six new varieties, with good commercial interest for the European agroindustry.

This project consists of the creation and maintenance of a gene bank for conserving local cultivars and wild species of potato.

NEIKER-Tecnalia maintains, nowadays, a potato germplasm bank containing more than 300 potato varieties and about 80 wild potato species of the genus

Solanum, constituting a reference for this crop in Spain.

The collection is composed of old cultivars such as

Roja Riñón (dating back to the 18 th century); other local cultivars obtained in NEIKER-Tecnalia, such as Víctor,

Turia, Duquesa, Buesa, Olalla, Nagore and Zorba and some varieties in danger of extinction such as Ganade and Fina de Carvallo. Moreover, the bank contains a wide collection of varieties from Tenerife and La Palma islands. Information on the collection is available at the following address www.neiker.net/neiker/ germoplasma. NEIKER-Tecnalia also works within international networks with the objective of sharing genotypes, experience and results: Red Latinpapa

(https://research.cip.cgiar.org) and Red Papata (www.

neiker.net/neiker/papata) are some examples.

The ambition of this project is triple:

- To create a reservoir of genetic diversity that may be useful in the future;

- To maintain local phytogenetic resources and to collect traditional varieties cultivated in farms;

- To preserve the genetic potential of the varieties.



BACKGROUND

The conservation and utilisation of plant genetic resources is in continuous evolution. Early in the twentieth century the emergence of science-based plant breeding resulted in large collections of germplasm being made. This genetic diversity was ready at hand to be used in plant breeding programmes.

Record keeping should include plant catalogues, illustrations, characterisation and evaluation data.

Pathogen identification and indexing work are required in the base plant prior to inclusion in the bank. Thermotherapy or heat therapy followed by apical meristem culture has been used in Neiker to successfully eliminate many viruses from some varieties.


The perpetration of the bank is done by micropropagation using in vitro culture techniques and cryopreservation. Besides maintaining the perennity of varieties, the gradual characterisation of new cultivars is also done on field and periodically, and the interesting ones are introduced into the bank. The cost of field and in vitro storage are very different; the first option being the most economical. Cryopreservation is not a general practice, but in the case of Neiker collection, it is used as an alternative.

The safety of germplasm collection requires duplication and/or additional collections in other sites.


GROUPS)

The Basque Government through NEIKER-Tecnalia

(Basque Institute for Agricultural research and

Development) is the promoter.

Researchers, breeders and farmers are the target groups.


Basque Country Region.

RESOURCES

Human resources: 1 researcher + 3 technical staff.

Building: Laboratory.

Others: Field trials.


Several gene collections are maintained at NEIKER-

Tecnalia nowadays, 330 of which being potato varieties

(Solanum tuberosum L.). Other crops include 165 maize varieties (Zea mays L.), 94 tomato varieties (Solanum lycopersicum L.), 250 French bean varieties (Phaseolus vulgaris L) and 65 pepper varieties (Capsicum annuum L.).


The research has revealed the existence of a wide genetic variability, and this variability underlines the agronomic potentiality of some of the varieties. In this way, work will continue to introduce and characterise new varieties with two objectives in mind: maintenance of biodiversity and availability to the research community so that they may be used as parent stock in genetic breeding programs, according to their characteristics. For instance, characteristics related to yield, health status, cooking quality and industrial transformation are the most interesting.


Jose Ignacio RUIZ de GALARRETA

NEIKER-Basque Institute of Agricultural Research and Development

Berreaga 1, E-48160 Derio, Spain jiruiz@neiker.net

Website: http://www.neiker.net/neiker/germoplasma/ingles/ingles.html

“

Maintenance of valuable genotypes (biodiversity and productive aspects)

Collaborative work between countries

Use of innovative tools for maintenance and preservation

Laboratory and field trials are necessary

”



43

12

ARCHEOLOGIA ARBOREA


Umbria Region, Italy

ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


For many years Archeologia Arborea, a non profitmaking organisation owning a farm and a tree collection, has been collecting rare and forgotten local fruit tree varieties and species with the goal of rescuing them from extinction by using local knowledge and people’s memories of lost flavours and tastes. An inventory field of old fruit varieties can be found in the organisation’s headquarters in Lerchi, Città di Castello,

Province of Perugia. The organisation also provides educational activities for schools and groups promoting sustainable conservation of the environment. In addition, the technician of Archeologia Arborea offers advice on rescuing or replanting old varieties of fruit trees and plants, and assists clients in the restoration of old family orchards with traditional local varieties.

BACKGROUND

The collection of old fruit varieties was initiated by Livio

Dalla Ragione nearly 25 years ago in the High Tiber

Valley. His daughter, Isabella, agronomist, inherited and developed her father’s activity, increasing the collection and founded in 1989 the cultural organisation

Archeologia Arborea with the aim of supporting the following activities:

- Promoting research for conserving ancient fruit tree plants from the Dalla Ragione family collection;

- Disseminating information on the existence of the collection, and the efforts made to conserve and enlarge it.


The research on old varieties of fruit trees and plants from traditional rural landscape began in the Upper

Tiber Valley area. Since the beginning, the main focus was on traditional farming systems, on food history and culture, on folklore and old traditions, and the connections with medieval and Renaissance art.

Remarkable documents and information have been collected from old farming handbooks and archives, as well as from the texts of itinerant agriculture lectures and from toponomastic. Most of the plants were rediscovered by visiting abandoned farms, old hamlets, parish gardens, villas and monastery orchards. All the vegetal material found during many years of research became the orchard collection. The trees are grown using ancient local farming techniques, thus entirely recreating the harmony and enchantment of early country landscapes.


GROUPS)

The action promoters are Livio Dalla Ragione and his daughter Isabella for saving the varieties. They then started to share the collection and the knowledge of heirloom varieties.

The targeted groups are farmers wanting to plant old varieties, schools, organisations promoting a sustainable conservation of the environment,

Universities and research centres, and all people interested in cultural and agricultural traditions.

Target groups know of Archeologia Arborea through press and television, and public interviews. Students, or any person interested, are welcome to get involved in research projects.


IN SITU CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF CULTIVATED BIODIVERSITY


The farm Archeologia Arborea is located in San Lorenzo di Lerchi, Città di Castello, in the Province of Perugia, the site of the main collection. The organisation disseminates information all over the world since 1989.

RESOURCES

Until now, the farm and the organisation were supported only by private funds and did not benefit from public funds.

Whereas the farm continues to function in the same way, a foundation has been created and will support activities and contribute to save the Collection.

The foundation will be supported by private funds and the objective will be to spread knowledge about biodiversity and rural culture heritage. Information about the kick-off will be on the Foundation’s website.


The collection of old fruit varieties is composed of about

140 old local varieties of apple, pear, plum, peach, apricot, figs, cherry trees and grapes.

Since its creation, the organisation has taken part in many projects aimed at collecting and conserving germplasm in cooperation with different public national and international institutions. Isabella Dalla Ragione

(alone and with her father Livio) is the author of four books relating their experience.

In many countries, private groups or individuals search for old fruit varieties and collect them. It is important that those people cooperate with the local authorities involved in conservation of germplasm. Archeologia

Arborea is a precious resource for the activities that the Umbria Region is carrying out for the conservation of biodiversity. Other inventory fields with old local fruit varieties were established or are being established in

Umbria benefiting from Isabella’s consultancy.


A project aiming at the morpho-agronomical and molecular characterisation of some of these varieties is being carried out by the Parco 3A PTA and the

University of Perugia, along with establishing an experimental orchard with a selection of the most interesting varieties. In the long-term, the aim is to produce propagation material suitable for distribution.


Isabella DALLA RAGIONE

Archeologia Arborea farm and Foundation

San Lorenzo di Lerchi Città di Castello, Perugia, Italy

+39-335 6128439 archeo.arb@libero.it

Website: www.archeologiaarborea.org



45

13

BREED CONSERVATION

GENETIC BREEDING PROGRAMME OF AUTOCHTHONOUS BREEDS



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The Latxa and Carranzana are sheep breeds native to the Basque Country and Navarre. Although they are not very productive in terms of milk yield (1.5-2 litres/day), sheep milk produced in this area is primarily used for cheese production, mainly Idiazabal cheese certified within the Protected Denomination of Origin. Thus, it is important for cheese manufacturers to obtain milk of high nutritional quality at the lowest possible cost. In addition to the economical implications, the production system (which can be defined as semi-extensive since it is based on the use of natural resources during most of the year) provides very relevant and important social and ecological values such as: the maintenance of the human population, economic activity in rural areas; cultural identity and Basque food heritage; environmental services related to the maintenance of landscape; high value natural areas and biodiversity; control of vegetation and prevention of fire hazards, etc.

In the early 80´s, the Basque Government considered a priority to implement a genetic programme to keep and improve the breed and its system of production, so as to enhance the standard of living of these shepherds. It was expected that these measures would help to avoid the introduction of more productive foreign breeds that are exploited under highly intensive production systems without providing these positive and sometimes intangible values and services.

The objectives of the Latxa and Carranzana sheep breed programme are:

- To maintain local breeds very adapted to local areas, linked to the territory and the natural resources available;

- To improve the features of the sheep in terms of milk production, milk quality, health and welfare features;

- To maintain the ecological balance in these areas.

BACKGROUND

The production system of the Latxa and Carranzana sheep in the Autonomous Community of the Basque

Country (BC, Spain) has been improved during the last 30 years due to the implementation of several programmes regarding health and sanitary issues, the breeding scheme for conservation and improvement of the local breeds, integration of technology, as well as a process of structuring and organisation of the whole professional sector.

Regarding commercialisation, a Regulatory Council for the Protected Denomination of Origin (PDO)

“Idiazabal” emerged in 1987 to certify and guarantee the outstanding quality of the cheese produced. As a result, farmers enjoy a certain social recognition and a suitable level of income for their activity.

However, there are still some issues threatening the evolution and even the sustainability of the breed and its system (highly productive foreign breeds, intensification strategies, low milk prices paid by the industry, predation hazards, etc.), as well as opportunities (new products and markets, etc.) and new challenges to be faced

(social recognition of environmental services, etc.).


This genetic programme is based on the selection process of a pure breed, with the initial objectives of conserving the breed and improving the milk yield per ewes. The programme started in 1982 with the implementation of the milk recording programme in order to identify the milk yield per ewe. Every single ewe is controlled monthly during the milking season. Nowadays there are 85000 sheep in 204 flocks registered in the programme.



Once the milk yield has been estimated for every ewe from the data provided by the milk recording programme, data is analysed using the BLUP (Best

Lineal Unbiased Prediction) methodology that takes into account all productive data and pedigree relationship between animals (in 2011, the database used for the genetic evaluation consisted of about 1,000,000 records coming from 300,000 ewes). This methodology predicts the genetic value of every animal (males and females) for milk production.

Since 2005, new characters have been introduced into the selection objectives: milk composition (to avoid a decrease in the fat and protein content) and udder morphology (to be better adapted to milking facilities).


GROUPS)

The Department of Agriculture of the Basque

Government (BG) and the Local Authorities (Diputaciones

Forales) are the promoters, since they define and establish the policy measures and provide funding.

NEIKER-Tecnalia is responsible for the genetic evaluation process. It is a public society property of the

BG, since 60% of the total budget of NEIKER, plus some strategic research projects related to conservation programmes, are funded by the BG. In this sense, the

BG defines the priorities of research lines.

The local authorities support the breeding programme by funding the milk recording programme and the insemination centre. All ewes into the programme are controlled once a month and milk quantity and quality are measured during all the lactation.

The dairy farmers are the beneficiaries of these improvements as they benefit directly from the prediction of genetic values of their stock. Regional breeder organisations (CONFELAC) own the artificial insemination and selection centre (ARDIEKIN).

Researchers, technical staff from R&D centres, policy makers, sheep breeders, dairy farmers, farmers associations, food quality labels (Kalitatea, PDO

Idiazabal), dairy industry, milk laboratory, shepherd’s schools, consumers are the target groups.


The breeding scheme of the Latxa and Carranzana sheep started in 1982 and has been implemented without a break since then. It has implications mainly for the sheep farmers of the Basque Country, but also for the sheep sector of Navarre and the French Basque

Country. Eventually it has implications in different initiatives in nearby areas (Cantabria, Castilla-León,

Asturias, Galicia) and also overseas in Chile.

RESOURCES

Human resources:

- Dairy farmers: 204

- Technical staff responsible for the milk production registering: 9

- Technical staff of farmer’s associations: 5

- Technical staff of the artificial insemination centre: 3

- Researchers: 2

Financial contribution is provided by the Basque

Government (23%), the County Councils, Bizkaia, Araba and Gipuzkoa (50%), the Spanish Government (11%) and the livestock farmer’s associations (50%).

There is no external cost.


Concrete results have shown:

- Annual genetic improvement nowadays assessed as 3%;

- Conservation of native breeds through a traditional, sustainable farming system;

- Improvement in the productivity and economic profitability per ewe;

- Maintenance of environmental services;

- Maintenance of population and economical activity in rural areas. The genetic improvement is a higher milk yield per ewe and the average value shows that the increase since 1990 has been of 37 litres by ewe taking into account that the average lactation in 1990 was 116 litres. However there are sheep producing over

500 litres per lactation;

- A positive aspect is that it is absolutely necessary to work together and joint the efforts of entire community of sheep breeders in a common interest;

- The total production of PDO Idiazabal cheese has increased since its creation.

Problems encountered:

- Initially farmers were reluctant to work on genetics, but nowadays most of them appreciate the results achieved and cannot imagine a different approach;

- The introduction of highly-productive foreign breeds;

- The global economic crisis in Europe.


The future works will be focused in two areas:

- The active conservation of biodiversity (including landscape, cultural heritage and genetic diversity) by increasing the economic value of the product (cheese).

- The evaluation and valorisation of social and environmental services provided by pasture based farming systems.


Eva UGARTE

NEIKER-Basque Institute of Agricultural

Research and Development

Berreaga 1, E-48160 Derio, Spain eugarte@neiker.net

Website: www.neiker.net

“

Collaborative work between breeders, technician and administrations.

Common objectives.

Labelled high quality products associated with specific breeds and production systems.

Good methodological and technical tools.

”



47

14

“SEED HOUSES” CONCEPT

COLLECTIVE MANAGEMENT NETWORK OF CULTIVATED BIODIVERSITY



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The regional programme named “Aquitaine cultivates biodiversity” has been initiated by Bio d’Aquitaine. It consists of a collective management system for agrobiodiversity in collaboration with farmers, technicians and researchers. The aim is to revive, manage, renew, improve and develop cultivated biodiversity.

Experimental agro-biodiversity platforms have been set up to observe the behaviour of landrace seeds in situ, mostly for commercial crops (corn, sunflower, wheat and other cereals), and to experiment crossings and breeding protocols for the creation of agro-biodiversity

(notably in non opened pollinated varieties). The platforms are located on farms, where the collections of landrace seeds are cultivated and integrated into farm rotations.

A network of farmers cultivating different landraces for conservation and/or production implement in turn a “seed house” (composed of a physical place for seeds collections, or implemented on site by a small group of farmers), enabling the necessary revival of knowhow and knowledge of the selection and conservation techniques.

BACKGROUND

Farmers are at the origin of the creation of a huge diversity of crop varieties adapted to the specific conditions of their environment, their cultures and their economic and technical means. In Europe, the modernisation of agriculture during the 20th century led to fewer and very uniform crop varieties with cropping patterns made to meet the needs of productivity and standardisation related to the industrialisation of agriculture and food. This evolution has extinguished of old varieties or “landrace” varieties, and their associated knowledge and know-how. Some of the seeds were stored in gene banks (static conservation) or by individual farmers (dynamic conservation).

The consequence is the overall shortage of seeds adapted to organic and low input farming in the late

90s. That is, seeds able to produce without soluble fertilisers, using less water, suitable for a great variety of environments, which are adaptable... and able to ensure the total absence of GMOs, and to which concentrate a large range of organoleptic qualities.

These new environmental and food challenges have reintroduced an interest for old and landrace varieties.

To be conserved and to continue their evolution, these varieties have to be grown and bred in situ by a network of farmers, their knowledge and know how have to be revived and transmitted. In this way, the landraces can be better known, recognised and valued.

Challenges:

- Rediscovering a heritage in danger of extinction: lack of seeds and / or information on methods of cultivation;

- Working despite unfavourable legal framework: exchanging or selling of seeds not listed in “The

Catalog” is prohibited outside experimental protocols;

- Proposing collective methods to manage agrobiodiversity.




- Collecting old and landrace varieties (from germoplasm banks, networks of knowledge, and individual farmers) and culture on two farm sites that became “platforms” (corn, wheat);

- Development of a network of farms growing old and landrace varieties;

- Exchanges of expertise and seeds between farmers in Aquitaine & the rest of France;

- International exchanges of experimental protocols

(Brazil for corn and Middle East for wheat);

- The establishment of experimental methods to acquire and formalise knowledge, and to evolve within the legislation;

- Training of farmers and technicians to spread knowhow and distribute seeds;

- Creation of a network of farmers and farms growing landraces;

- The establishment of participatory plant breeding techniques, to include researchers (agronomists, geneticists, anthropologists) farmers and technicians;

- Implementation of “Seeds houses” to conserve, manage, create and improve cultivated biodiversity collectively and in situ ;

- Organisation of events to promote the value of cultivated biodiversity among diverse target groups (eg farmers, consumers, policy makers, administrative).

Seeds lot packaging and storage

Technological analysis,

GMO analysis

SEED HOUSE

Return of seeds to seed house

Provision of seed lots under agreements

+ technical documents

In situ Conservation and Selection

On field ratings

Technical training during the culture cycle


GROUPS)

Farmers are the promoters of this action, individually at first and later accompanied by their farmers’ organisation (Agrobio Périgord, CETAB, Civam 47), with the support of the technicians and training agents from the association.

Partnerships with researchers and investigation programs have been developed: Farm Seed

Opportunities (STREP project at www.farmseed.net);

MAPOD Gene flows model (INRA); SOLIBAM EU project

2010-2015: Strategies for Organic and Low-input

Integrated Breeding and Management www.solibam.eu.

The targeted groups of this action are organic and low input farmers, seeking greater autonomy for their farm, and a strong identity for their products, as well as agriculture technicians, researchers and local and regional policy makers.


Aquitaine Region, France

The corn and sunflower platform is located in Le

Change, Dordogne Department, and has a direct local and regional impact, but has also national influence.

The wheat and cereals platform is located in Port Sainte

Marie, Lot et Garonne Department, and has also local, regional and national influence.

Start date: 2000

2000: Creation of the corn and live wheat collections on farms;

2001: Start of the “seeds programme” based on 11 corn populations, by Agrobio Périgord;

2002: Partnership with an independent professional breeder;

2003: Participation in the creation of the national network for farmers’ seed conservation (“Réseau semences paysannes”) to spread the use of seeds and know how;

2003-2005: Development of the farmer network, and increase in the number of landrace varieties (wheat & corn) and species (Sunflower, soya). Exchanges with

Brazilian partners (corn);

2006: Creation of the pilot “seeds house” in Dordogne

- First event on cultivated biodiversity - Creation of the regional programme “Aquitaine cultivates biodiversity”;

2007: Creation of the CETAB, for the collective management of the wheat collections;

2007-2010: Increase in the number of farmers, and species

(sorghum, lupine, moha, buckwheat, rice), partnership with researchers and investigation programs;

End date: ongoing.

...



49

14

RESOURCES

Human resources:

- In 2000, two farmers.

- In 2001, a technician and five farmers.

(...)

- In 2010: 2 full time specialised technicians + Network of over 100 farmers with conventions + 4 part time technicians of the local associations trained in agrobiodiversity and plant breeding.

Staff costs (2010): Charges and wages + structure =

€175,000.

Total 2010 funding, for one year = €290,000

- Region Aquitaine: €184,000

- European Union: €107,000 (FEADER 111B: €74,000 +

INTERREG IVC: €33,000).


Results in figures regarding:

- Conservation in situ :

For Corn: 309 farmers have been growing landrace varieties under experimental conventions since the programme started up; 45 hectares have been cultivated since the programme began under conventions.

For Wheat: lack of precise figures because no historic and continuous staff on the programme. More than 100 farmers are breeding wheat at national level.

- Experimental platforms for variety selection:

In 2010, “Le Change” Corn platform contains 111 Corn varieties, 25 varieties of upland rice, 7 sunflowers, 4 sorghum, 5 Mohazi, camel, lupines.

In 2010, “Le Roc” Wheat platform gathers around 100 wheat varieties & cereals (300 varieties in 2009).

- Collective trainings:

- 40 training courses have been conducted on corn conservation;

- Around 800 farmers and technicians have been directly trained.

- Dissemination (until 2010):

- 14 platforms visits (corn & wheat), approximatively

1000 people;

- 4 Cultivated Biodiversity days, approximatively 1000 people.

- Seeds House:

Crops: 100 varieties of corn (30 of which being cultivated in France), 15 of sunflowers, 5 of soybeans,

8 of sorghums, 10 of Mohazi, camels, lupines...

Vegetables: 150 varieties (80 varieties of tomatoes, 20 of eggplant, 20 of pepper, 13 of basils, 10 of squash, 5 of zucchini...).

The activities related to the recovery of seeds, the creation of a collective dynamic network of farmers and management practices of cultivated biodiversity are successful. Improving the common knowledge on landrace varieties is however a long-term work which needs to be better known and better supported.

The general rural and agriculture population is however still insufficiently aware of the possibilities of the landrace varieties. Few legislators and policy makers seem to be aware and interested on the crop biodiversity issue. Open legal recognition of landrace varieties is necessary for a better diffusion.


Platforms:

To ensure that farmers in each European region can have the opportunity to explore, experiment and have local reference through the multiplication of landrace platforms and increase the number of crop species cultivated on these platforms (rice, vegetables, soybeans, etc.).

Seeds Houses:

The establishment of a good computerised database is necessary to improve the collections management and the experimenters’ network.

Formalising a simple legal frame to be able to duplicate easily the pilot seed houses.

Develop a national and European network of European seed houses is a goal for coming years.




Jennifer KENDALL

Agrobio Périgord

20, rue du Vélodrome, 24 000 Périgueux, France

+33 5 53 35 88 18 biodiversite@agrobioperigord.fr

Website: www.agrobioperigord.fr/produire-bio/biodiversite-cultivee

Angela MALLARONI

Bio d’Aquitaine

6 rue du château trompette, 33000 Bordeaux, France

+33 5 59 47 18 07 (land), +33 6 77 52 41 45 (mobile) amxb@orange.fr

Website: www.bio-aquitaine.com/content/view/300/313/

“

The originality of this work is that it is actually run by and for farmers.

Each actor, farmer, technician, researcher, brings his stone to build a true participatory process. We now have the pleasure of accompanying other community in the development of new Farmer

Seed houses in France and farther, so do not hesitate to contact us for more information on these innovative projects.

”



51

15

DESIGNATION OF ORIGIN FOR AGRO-BIODIVERSITY

VALORISATION OF CROP BIODIVERSITY THROUGH THE ADOPTION OF EUROPEAN

DESIGNATIONS OF ORIGIN: PDO AND PGI



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The project has enabled to protect specific Regional genetic resources which have a traditional link to a limited territory. This link was characterised and investigated from a scientific, technical and anthropological point of view. For the most relevant genetic resources, a Protected Designation of Origin

(PDO) or a Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) was obtained, in order to enhance effective on-farm conservation, and to give economical and touristic value to the traditional area of cultivation.

Sometimes, the small production and the limited area of cultivation (often a single farm) of a landrace do not give the opportunity to request a European Designation of Origin. The priority is then to increase the production and enhance the creation of farmers’ organisations in order to protect and promote the product. Economic support in this first step of activity is strongly requested.

The main goal of the operation is to increase the economic value of agro-biodiversity of a territory therefore producing income for farmers. The adoption of a European Designation of Origin gives the opportunity both to protect the local production of a typical landrace (therefore maintaining a tight link with the area of traditional cultivation and enhancing effective on-farm conservation) and to add value to the territories, often marginal areas with a high naturalistic potential.

BACKGROUND

In the region of Umbria, areas deeply linked to the agricultural, cultural and religious traditions are still present. In these areas, often marginal and well suited for a specific product with peculiar characteristics, the knowledge (technical, cultural, gastronomic, anthropological and religious) is inherited from generation to generation and shared by the entire local community. In consequence of the depopulation of rural areas, some products and genetic resources were in danger of extinction, along with the knowledge linked to them.

The European Union since 1992 with the Regulation

2081 gave tools to protect local products (or varieties) for which the peculiar characteristics are proven to be linked to the area of traditional cultivation.


Accordingly to the methodology used for the European

Designation of Origin (European Regulation REG CE

510/2006), a compilation the traditional production methods was produced. The farmers’ organisation asked a certification body to verify the correspondence between the product/production process to the registered specification. Umbria Region supported farmer consortiums in the process of European recognition of origin.


GROUPS)

The promoters are the farmer’ organisations cultivating the typical products, along with research centres or universities, and local institutions such as Umbria

Region.

The targeted people are the producers themselves or the farmers potentially interested in the PDO and PGI production. In a long-term perspective, the entire local community will benefit from this operation.


ECONOMIC PROMOTION AND DIFFERENTIATION THROUGH CULTIVATED BIODIVERSITY


The territory concerned is the strict area of origin or cultivation of each typical product. For each Umbrian product labelled with an European designation of origin, the production area is equivalent to one or a several municipalities - except for the extra virgin olive oil Umbria PDO and for the white cow of the central

Apennine PGI, for which the territory is respectively the whole Region and regions from the central part of Italy.

Since 1997, Umbria Region supported the process of designation of origin of the regional food products.

So far, the regional PDO and PGI products are the following: Castelluccio lentils PGI, Monteleone Spelt

PDO, extra virgin olive oil Umbria PDO, white cow of the central Apennine PGI, Norcia’ ham PGI and several wines that recently passed to the EU PDO and PGI system (REg. CEE 510/2006) from DOC system. The action is still in progress and other regional products are waiting PDO and PGI label.

RESOURCES

Human resources: For a single PDO or PGI product, many people are involved (producers, producers association, certification body, Ministry of Agriculture) but the real cost for the farmers can be considered the sum of the income of one or two employee(s) from the producers organisation plus the cost of the certification.

External cost: For PDO and PGI, the main external cost is the certification which is about 1 to 2% of the economic value of the certified production.

Action funding: The costs for the European certifications are carried by the producers. PDO and

PGI producers have access to the funds of the Regional

Rural Development Plan in order to cover part of the certification and promotion costs.


Several Umbrian products based on landraces obtained the European Designation of origin. The first (1997) was the lentil of Castelluccio di Norcia (PGI), typical of a highland on Sibillini Mountain National Park. In 2009, a local spelt, the Farro of Monteleone, a municipality in the mountain area of Nera river Valley, obtained the

PDO certification. In 2009, several regional wines were included in the EC REG n. 510/2006, the most famous is a typical wine made with a native grape variety, the Sagrantino of Montefalco. Today, these landraces appear to be saved from extinction and represent an important economic resource for Umbria Region.

The adoption of European labels of origin has enabled to increase the market value of the products, and therefore to enhance the cultivation of the landraces.

It can be a strategy suitable for enhancing on-farm conservation in all European countries.


The request of a European label of origin appears to be a good strategy to enhance the market of typical products, inciting farmers to get together in organisations and protect consumers from frauds. The local political and academic institutions are identifying other native products in danger of extinction to be submitted to the same procedure.


Federico MARIOTTI

Key Manager - Certification Area - 3APTA

3A-Parco Tecnologico Agroalimentare dell’Umbria

Soc. Cons. a r.l. - P.IVA 01770460549

Fraz. Pantalla - 06059 Todi (PG), Italy

+39 075 8957 224 certificazione@parco3a.org

Luciano CONCEZZI

PhD - Key Manager - Innovation and Research Area

- 3APTA


Soc. Cons. a r.l. - P.IVA 01770460549


+39 075 8957 209 lconcezzi@parco3a.org; ricerca1@parco3a.org

Websites: www.parco3a.org

www.politicheagricole.it



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COLLECTIVE MARK “NATURA IN CAMPO”

PRODUCTS FROM THE PARKS ON GENETIC RESOURCES


Arsial, Italy

ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Collective Mark “Natura in Campo - products from the

Parks” protects the genetic resources of agricultural interest in Natural Protected Areas and the Natura 2000

Network. It is a programme of the Lazio Regional Park

Agency for developing agri-food production through the economic and environmental sustainable development of rural areas.

This operation aims to preserve local biodiversity.

Eligible products have to be typical, traditional and/ or eco-sustainable, with the possibility of certifying through a legal qualification recognised at EU, national or regional level such as: 1) organic products, 2) biodynamic products 3) products included in the list of traditional agricultural food products of Regione Lazio,

4) products included in the Regional Voluntary Register of the Lazio Region of agricultural interest at risk of genetic erosion. 5) products certified according to the

Globalgap standard 6) products from farms certified

UNI EN ISO:2004 or EMAS registered or able to produce at least 30% of green energy.

The farms have to be GMO-FREE and have to apply guidelines for preserving the environment as defined in the regulations.

BACKGROUND

The Natura in Campo Collective Mark was launched in

2004 as a project idea funded by the IVth Research and

Development Frame Programme APQ7 “Local economy and sustainable development”

The programme “Natura in Campo – products of the parks” provides three main political guidelines:

- Increasing the value of agricultural and food products by using the brand “Natura in Campo” for the products that meet the necessary quality and eco-sustainability requirements;

- To promote, advertise and inform on agricultural and food products that have obtained the brand;

- Marketing branded products, and also to give direct support to producers in positioning and delivering their products.

The idea stems from the need for a programme for quality agricultural food products in Latium’s Natural

Protected Areas and Natura 2000 Network.


The collective mark was created to collect certified products from farms located in Natural Protected

Area and Natura 2000 Network. In 2005, the Regional

Park Agency and the Regional Parks organised several meetings with agri-food local farmer to explain the

Collective Mark’s objectives and requirements for obtaining it.


GROUPS)

Regional Park Agency: launched the “Natura in

Campo” project to promote quality agricultural food products in Latium’s Protected Natural Areas. The main actions of the “Natura in Campo” project are: 1)

To introduce the collective mark “Natura in Campo – products of the parks” to farms. 2) To increase the value of agricultural foods products carrying the “Natura in Campo” collective mark 3) To put into action the educational farms.

ARSIAL: is the official public body in charge of the application and implementation of the agricultural



regional policies of the Lazio Region. The agency is involved in the protection of agricultural food products by applying the regional Act 15/2000 (See Good practice n. 2) creating quality production trademarks such as PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) and

PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) 3) monitoring organic farm control organisations.

The “Natura in Campo” Committee is constituted by the

Regional Park Agency and is involved in the following tasks: 1) Drafting the regulations to launch the “Natura in Campo” collective mark 2) Evaluating whether the collective mark objectives are reached 3) Monitoring, coordination and promotion of the Collective mark and its labelled products 4) Evaluating problems 5)

Approbation of regulations changes and reviews.


The action involves Protected Areas of Lazio Region in which genetic resources of agricultural interest are diffused. The project is implemented in farms situated in protected territories.

Start date: 2004

End date: -

RESOURCES

Human resources employed:

- The project manager of the Regional Park Agency;

- Two project administrative assistants;

- Two technician agronomists.

Project partners: Latium Regional Parks.

Total Project budget: € 600,000.


The collective mark enables the:

- Promotion and valorisation actions through meetings, publications, exhibitions and sales of products with the

“Natura in Campo” brand;

- Creation of educational farms to give everyone, children and adults, an opportunity to learn about agricultural activities and food products making

In the educational farms, everyone, children and adults, can directly experience daily agricultural activities and the making of food products. Sowing and collecting, drying, making things by hand, cooking are all operations that encourage participants to deepen their knowledge and comprehension of agricultural processes and food realisation on a farm. Within the

“Natura in Campo” programme, a few old rural houses have been restored and transformed into educational farms.

The collective mark identifies:

- about 150 products from 70 farms with different kinds of products (vegetables, fruits, cheese, meat, wine, bread, cakes, olive oil).


ARSIAL will organise meetings with Protected Areas’ operators on Regional Act 15/2000 activities to discuss how to protect resources of agricultural interest in

Protected Areas which are at risk of genetic erosion.

Lazio Region owns 77 Protected Natural Areas. This is the first step for a synergy between Agricultural

Regional Agency (ARSIAL) and the Regional Park

Agency (ARP) in the Lazio Region. Our main object is the protection and conservation of regional natural and agricultural biodiversity.


Nicoletta Cutolo

Agenzia Regionale per i Parchi - Regione Lazio via del Pescaccio 96/98 00166 Roma, Italy cutolo.arp@parchilazio.it

+39 0651687366.

Website: www.arplazio.it

Immacolata BARBAGIOVANNI

Agenzia Regionale per lo Sviluppo e l’Innovazione dell’Agricoltura del Lazio (ARSIAL)

Via Lanciani, 38, Rome, Italy

+39 0686273481 i.barbagiovanni@arsial.it, biodiver@arsial.it,

Websites: www.arsial.it

www.naturaincampo.it

“

- This operation is a good example of coordination between environmental departments and agricultural activities at a regional level: knowledge exchange, and sharing among agronomists and naturalist technicians.

- It could be easily replicated in other regions by going through the following stages: checking requirements for obtaining a Collective Mark in your agro environmental system, issuing a European collective brand, implementing a law for the protection of agro biodiversity, coordinating the Natura 2000 Network with organic farmers.

”



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LANDRACE SEEDS EVENT:

RENABIO, AN INTERNATIONAL MEETING TO REVIVE CEREAL’S BIODIVERSITY

AND FARMER AND BAKER KNOW-HOW



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


In June 2009, the RENABIO event, an international meeting organised in Port Sainte Marie in the Aquitaine

Region, by the French network of farm seeds “Réseau

Semences Paysannes” (www.semencespaysannes.

org), made it possible to share know-how on cultivating and on farm or traditional local processes of landrace cereals through the presence of 150 people from 17 different countries. One year before the meeting,

150 landrace varieties were provided by meeting participants in order to be sawn and cultivated on the site of the event. During the event, each participant transformed their cereals in his own way, sometimes with special ovens or techniques.

The goals of the event were multiple:

1. To exchange experiences between farmers and researchers on conservation, renewal and dynamic management of landrace varieties of cereals

(principally wheat, durum wheat, corn, rye, spelt);

2. To exchange views on the knowhow, uses and traditional processing methods of the landrace cereal varieties cultivated on farms;

3. To develop and disseminate the know-how through various media supports (films, methods, and recipe book).

BACKGROUND

Since the creation of the farm seed network (“Réseau

Semences Paysannes”) in 2003, many local and regional on farm meetings have been organised, to discuss technical issues. At European and International level, annual meetings have been organised around the idea “let’s liberate biodiversity” and focused on legal issues. These meetings enabled to take common positions for the European debate on the regulation of

“conservation varieties” (2005 in France, 2006 in Spain,

2007 in Germany, 2008 in Italy).

The RENABIO event had the ambition to enrich this debate on the very practical idea that the landrace varieties are confronted with legal restrictions... but have a very high nutritional and cultural interest: every cereal variety is initially associated with a specific know-how and a type of bread or food. Sharing, recognising and developing this know-how is crucial to making landrace varieties more interesting to new farmers, researchers, policy makers.

The interest in cultivating landrace cereal varieties has been lost in most European countries where modern and industrial agriculture has been developed. At the same time as this evolution of agriculture, the common know-how on food and traditional processing methods is declining. Nevertheless every landrace variety has an environmental interest (adapted to a local agroecosystem) and its associated use for food: if you prepare the Romanian “mamaliga” or the Basque

“taloa” with a modern hybrid corn variety, they will be tasteless; the wheat landrace varieties are adapted to hand bakery with sourdough. The idea of the RENABIO event is to share, between people still working with landrace cereal varieties, the cultivation and processing methods still in use (or rediscovered) so that they are aware of the heritage they have contributed to preserve.


Different steps have been necessary to set up the event:

- The mobilisation of the network of NGOs, researchers and peasants involved in the conservation of cultivated biodiversity;



- The mobilisation of funding;

- The management of logistic and mutual understanding of the subject for people of so many origins and languages.

The final agenda was the following:

Day 1: Welcome, registration, presentation of the meeting;

On-farm visit of the sown 300 varieties collection (150 sent one year before by participants!);

Day 2: 4 Workshops on breads and foods:

Sourdough breads (wheat); Rye breads, gingerbread;

Pastas, semolina, frik; Tanoor breads.

Day 3: 4 Workshops on breads and foods:

Breads with spelt/engrain/korazan; Corn workshop: polenta (italia)/mamaliga (rumania), Broa (portugal) with white corn/rye, yellow corn/wheat), Talo (euskadi);

Georgian Breads with Thone oven; Flat breads from

Iran, Palestine with the tanoor oven; Study workshop on regulation issues.

Day 3: Conference-debate on Participative selection and open visits for local visitors

Workshops on all the bakery know-how developed the

2 nd and 3 rd day.


GROUPS)

The promoters of the action are: the French network for the promotion of the cultivated biodiversity “Réseau

Semences paysannes” and some of its members such as the CETAB (“Centre et Terre d’accueil des Blés”),

“Triptolème”, BEDE and Bio d’Aquitaine. (See details on www.semencespaysannes.org).

The international partners invited to join the event were farmers associations promoting agrobiodiversity in European and Mediterranean countries, traditional handcraft bakers, as well as researchers: Rete

Semi Rurali NGO (from Italy), Red de Semillas

NGO (Spain), Saatgutforshung NGO (Germany),

Association HosmanDurabil (Rumania), NGO AREA-

ED Transformation du blé dur en boulgour et couscous

(Algeria), Allkorn Association (Sweden), Svilen

Klasanovi (Baker in Bulgaria), Net Cohler par semear

NGO (Portugal), Penelop Bebeli (Researcher, Greece),

Elkana Association (Georgia), Maryam Rahmanian researcher in CENESTA NGO (Iran), Fuad Abusaif

UAWC NGO (Palestine), Salvatore Cecarelli researcher

ICARDA (International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas) (Syria, Jordania).

Target groups include farmers, handcrafting bakers and processors, researchers implicated in participative research.


The event took place at the “Plateforme du Roc”, Port

Sainte Marie, Lot et Garonne, France

Project start date: July 2008

Step dates: RENABIO event: 23-26 June 2009

End date: July 2010

RESOURCES

Human resources: 5 people part time (1 pers. 0.5

EFT 24 months, 1 pers. 0.25 EFT 24 months, 1 EFT

6 months, 1 EFT 3 months + administrative time ) … and many volunteers’ time (at least 6 translators, 15 volunteers during the event);

- Total staff costs = €85,000, including:

Coordination €33,000; Networking €17,000; Technical

Work €13,000; Methodology support €7,000;

Administrative tasks €15,000

- Total external costs = €85,000, covering:

Translations €13,000; Communication tools €27,000;

Hosting and meals €20,000; Transport €25,000

- Funding partners are:

Fondation de France €82,000; CS FUND (USA private foundation) €52,000;

Aquitaine Region €15,000; Lot-et-Garonne Department

Council €15,000; Municipalities of Aiguillon and Port

Sainte Marie €3,000; Biocoop €3,000


Results in figures:

- 150 people from 17 different countries have participated in the RENABIO event;

- 300 varieties of cereals cultivated on site, for local collection (150) and partners’ collections (150) presented by all the partners to all the participants, and traditionally transformed over the meeting.

Beside figures, enthusiasm dominated the event and all participants left with a lot of energy and intention to disseminate this energy, the biodiversity and the know-how shared. Expectations are high in the Eastern

European countries about getting information on the management of genetic resources at farm level and the different ways to develop and increase value of crop biodiversity. The farmers from Hungary and Romania got a lot of information on small mills, small sorting equipment, farm-ovens to adapt it in their countries.

Bulgarian bakers were discovering all the old varieties

...



57

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Iranian farmers have re-discovered the interest of using sourdough and decided to work with it again.

The American bakers left with the firm intention to start growing old wheat varieties back home, the Palestinian have expressed the wish to organise such meetings in their region and all European participants have gained a greater interest in the cultivation and promotion of old, traditional population varieties.

All participants have proved to be willing to develop the network initiated during the meeting and were motivated to start collective efforts for maintaining and processing cereal biodiversity. Local policy makers were very positive about the event (the president of the

Department as well as the agriculture director and 5 mayors of the local communities attended the meeting).

A satisfactory participation of the local population in the open days has been observed.

The diversity of languages of the participants was a huge richness but also a challenge for people to understand each other and also to solve financial costs for translations in so many languages. This challenge was resolved on site during the event thanks to Babel’s volunteers. Babel is a network of translators implicated in the translation needs of the social forums.


The farm seed network “Réseau Semences Paysannes” is continuing to maintain contact with all participants and partners and, building on the output of this event and will develop initiatives on biodiversity in Europe and beyond.

Many projects have been launched as a follow-up to this meeting:

- A training programme with exchange visits between

Hungarians, German, Spanish , Italian and French farmers and people involved in biodiversity is being reviewed for funding by European Union (EU Leonardo

Project),

- A participatory breeding programme has been accepted for funding by EU, involving partners in 14

Europeans countries (SOLIBAM project): the wheat and corn programs are integrated to SOLIBAM project (i.e.: traditional and new recipes with chefs using corn for human nutrition (talo, milla, millassou, bread), analysis of nutritional values of landrace cereals).

In many countries, several partners involved in “Wheat and bread farmers meetings” are approaching “Réseau

Semences Paysannes” to build up a new programme on cereals in order to enable them to start practical work on site: conservation work, sorting and storing cereals, participatory breeding programs, and adapting of small equipment which can be built in the country and made available to small farmers to produce sourdough bread, noodles, semolina with their own local varieties.

A LEONARDO “Columelle” project has been approved for the period 2010/2012 to sustain and go further in the European exchanges of experience.

Exchanges of this same type are underway concerning fruits trees and fruit valorisation. The RENOVA federation working on the renovation of old orchards is in discussion with Hungary and Spain (CERIDA) for exchanges regarding on farm processing of fruits.

A work on tomato tasting has started in Bio d’Aquitaine to formalise data on organoleptic interest of landrace varieties and could be completed by the same type of information across Europe.




Patrick DE KOCHKO

Réseau semences paysannes

3, av. de la Gare, 47190 Aiguillon, France patrick@semencespaysannes.org

+33 5 53 84 44 05

Website: www.semencespaysannes.org /

Photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/nathaliebede

“

Imagine you live 1,000 km away from a field in south west of

France, where you are going to be in one year. You send there some seeds to be sown and cultivated with love and patience, by other hands, in other lands.

One year later you travel to this field to discover your plants, but also to show to other people how you shape your dough, bake your bread. Then you break the bread and share it with the 150 people who came here for the same thing, share its own experience. It is a rich, highly symbolic experience that revives know-how and energies to rediscover the richness of forgotten grain.

”



59

18

AGRO-BIODIVERSITY IN TRASIMENO LAKE

USING GENETIC RESOURCES IN AGRICULTURE FOR RESTORING ECOSYSTEMS



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Since 1996, several local administrations of the

Trasimeno Lake basin have undertaken different actions aiming to reduce the impact of both intensive agriculture and beach tourism on the lake’s ecosystem.

The local organisations on one hand imposed tight restrictions regarding water use in agriculture, and on the other hand promoted the rescue of local traditional crops, less demanding than the crops prevalent in local farmlands (such as corn). Since then, the activities undertaken, mainly by the Perugia

University (Department of Applied Biology, DBA), have led to the ex situ conservation of several landraces belonging to different crops well known locally in the past and threatened by extinction and the in situ safeguard of some of them. The preservation and promotion of one particular legume landrace, now very appreciated by a high level market, provided several farms, often organic, with a good income, applying lowinput agricultural practices and therefore preserving the lake’s ecosystem. The developement of traditional crops also enabled the promotion of an alternative to the beach tourism prevalent in the past: agro-tourism, more respectful of such a fragile environment and providing additional income to low-input farms.

BACKGROUND

The area surrounding the Trasimeno Lake (belonging to eight municipalities, one of them in Tuscany and seven in Umbria) has known intensive tourism in the last decades, mostly beach tourism. Consequently, increasing infrastructures have occupied a large part of the lake’s bank, reducing the area available for wildlife and increasing water pollution. Given the fertility of the soil surrounding the lake and the water availability, intensive agriculture carried out in the whole basin has contributed to the impoverishment and pollution of water reserves. In the last decade of the 20th century, protecting lake water reserves became a true issue, quantity wise but also quality wise. The area was classified by the Umbria Region as a vulnerable area for nitrates (Directive 91/676/CE). At the same time, nonetheless, the beauty of its landscapes and historical villages was attracting more and more naturalistic tourists in the agro-tourist structures in the surroundings, while beach tourism was declining.

Intensive agriculture became less profitable, because of the reduced water availability. Local administrations came to the conclusion that a change towards a more sustainable development model for the whole district was needed through the environmental recovery of the waters, the banks and the surrounding land with the aim of enhancing a new kind of tourism more respectful of the environment, traditions, local knowledge, landscape, historical and cultural identity. In 1995, a

Regional Natural Park was established, in order to protect the lake’s water and banks. An observatory for viewing the lake’s wildlife ecosystem (“Oasi La Valle”) was established in 1996 by the Province of Perugia.

Agricultural water use was restricted; irrigation by aspersion was forbidden in a large area around the lake, therefore strongly limiting the cultivation of profit crops such as corn, previously widespread in the area.

Suburban areas of towns facing the lake are composed of a lot of home gardens, often managed by old people, maintaining crop landraces through family tradition and particular tastes. Some of these traditional crops were in the past widely cultivated across the entire basin; they were then neglected with the rise of intensive agriculture in the 1970s, and since then have survived almost solely in home gardens. Local administrations undertook a project to rescue some of



these neglected traditional crops in order to increase their use in the entire basin along with sustainable practices (lower input of water and chemicals than modern cultivars), therefore contributing to changing the intensive agricultural practices that had become prevalent in the area.

Among the traditional crops of the area, a cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) landrace called “Fagiolina del Trasimeno”

(Trasimeno little bean) was mostly known as typical and appreciated for its peculiar shape and taste, as also reported in historical documents. Cowpea, an important grain legume throughout the tropics and the subtropics, is in Italy a minor crop and its cultivation is restricted to a very limited acreage and mostly based on landraces. Cowpea was the bean (“phaseolus”) known in Europe and Asia before the introduction of the common bean (Phaeolus vulgaris) from the New

World, as reported by several classical authors, among them Theophrastus and Pliny. The cowpea landraces cultivated in the Trasimeno area were well known until the latter half of the 20th century and sold at a profitable price by producers in the market of the nearby town of Perugia, for its peculiar shape of seed, characterised by small size, different eye patterns and different colours: among them, a particular type of seed was mostly appreciated, characterised by a cream-coloured seed where the eye is almost absent, and for this reason traditionally called in Perugia

“risina” (“little rice”). This traditional crop had been almost lost by the beginning of the project, mostly because, given the progressive maturation of pods during a long season, it needs to be hand–harvested: in 1994 only one farm was producing a few kilograms for the town market of Perugia. Eighteen residual cowpea landraces were found in Trasimeno home gardens for self-consumption during a germplasm exploration and collection mission carried out in 1994 by the Department of Applied Biology (DBA) of the

Faculty of Agriculture of Perugia University, Section of Genetics and Plant Breeding. The total area under cultivation at that time was estimated as a couple of hectares. A broccoli landrace was also known as being traditional of the Trasimeno lake area (“broccoletti del

Trasimeno”) and had almost disappeared. Other fruit and vegetable landraces were reported as traditionally cultivated in the past, but there was no information about their survival.


The specific aim of the different projects funded since

1996 by local administrations was to collect, rescue and preserve the landraces still present in the area, mostly conserved in situ in home gardens, and the knowledge related to them, and promote their cultivation in the area through the distribution of seeds to farmers.

In 1996, the Province of Perugia financed the “Plan for the preservation and valorisation of crop species biodiversity in the Trasimeno Lake district”. The main actor involved was the Department of Applied Biology

(DBA) of Perugia University. The project led to the rescue of 77 local populations of horticultural species, among them 18 cowpea landraces (“fagiolina”).

Duplicated seed samples of seed-propagated landraces were collected and conserved at -18°C in the seed bank of the DBA and in a newly created seed bank on

Polvese Island, inside the Educational Centre of the

Trasimeno Natural Park. First, actions were focused on the rescue of “fagiolina del Trasimeno”, the most relevant traditional landrace known in the area, which was threatened by extinction. Being a legume crop, and so having the intrinsic capability to enrich the soil and needing less water and chemical inputs than other crops, this landrace was also considered to be an important resource to enhance soil fertility and reduce water consumption and pollution.

According to the aims of the project, the Province charged the DBA with carrying out a morphological, organoleptic and genetic characterisation of cowpea landraces in the area, to support their ex situ conservation in the DBA’s gene bank, to conduct seed multiplication and distribution to farmers interested in reintroducing them, and in general to increase farmers’ awareness about the potential benefits offered by this crop.

In addition, the presumed higher quality of cowpea landraces from Trasimeno Lake was tested in an ad hoc experiment. Research results were presented to farmers and farmers’ associations in a series of meetings and seminars during which seed samples were given to farmers interested in reintroducing the crop on a larger scale. A “Consortium” of “fagiolina” growers was established in 2002, with the economic support of the Trasimeno Mountain Community and the

Municipality of Castiglione del Lago, in order to market the crop more effectively.

In 2001, 2004 and 2008 the Trasimeno Regional Park funded a Seed project (“Progetto Sementi”), with the aim of enlarging the collection of Trasimeno landraces and to disseminate related knowledge. In addition, a study was carried out identifying wild species traditionally used for human consumption and now threatened by extinction.

...



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18

In 2006 a project coordinated by the 3A – Agrofood

Technology Park with funds from the Rural Development

Plan, Measure 1.2.4 (Innovation in agriculture) was undertaken to draw up specifications for the request of a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) for the

“fagiolina”.


GROUPS)

The action promoters were:

- The Department of Applied Biology (DBA) of the

University of Perugia, specifically Prof. Valeria Negri, who has carried out research on Umbrian landraces for a long time, focusing in particular on Trasimeno landraces, with many publications on the subject. The

DBA was the main actor involved in all the projects carried out on the Trasimeno landraces, conducting the exploration, collection, ex situ conservation, morphological, molecular and organoleptic characterisation, distribution of seed samples, and dissemination of results.

- In 1996, the Province of Perugia funded the “Plan for the preservation and valorisation of crop species biodiversity in the Trasimeno Lake district”, where the main actor was the DBA;

- The Trasimeno Regional Natural Park funded the

“Progetto Sementi” in 2001, 2004 and 2008, where the main actor was the DBA;

- The Trasimeno Mountain Community and the

Municipality of Castiglione del Lago funded the setting up of the Consortium of Fagiolina del Trasimeno in

2002;

- The 3A Umbria Agrofood Technology Park promoted the project funded by the Rural Development Plan

(Measure 1.2.4) for the drawing up of a specification for the request of a PDO for the “fagiolina of Trasimeno”.

The actors involved were the DBA, the 3A and the farmers of the Consortium.

The entire population of the area of Trasimeno, including farmers, consumers, traders, tourist operators were targeted.

Farmers and home-gardeners growing the collected landraces were approached in a friendly manner and the reason for the visit was explained to them.

An interview followed to gather information on the farmer’s family, the farm and the crops cultivated. The farmers were then awarded with a certificate attesting the status of “Trasimeno guardian farmer”.

Those farmers potentially interested in cultivation of

Fagiolina were informed through local seminars aimed at the dissemination of results, where seed samples were distributed.

Farmers’ associations, tourism operators, consumers and traders were invited to seminars and dissemination material was distributed. The Trasimeno Regional Park published interactive description dossiers of each landrace on its website.


The targeted area is the territory around the Trasimeno

Lake, corresponding to the district occupied by eight municipalities (seven in Umbria, under the Province of

Perugia, and one in Tuscany).

In 1996 the “Plan for the preservation and valorisation of crop species biodiversity in the Trasimeno Lake district” was funded.

In 2001, 2004 and 2008 the “Seeds projects” were funded.

In 2002 the Consortium of the Fagiolina del Trasimeno growers was set up.

In 2005 the project aiming at the drawing up of the

PDO specification for the fagiolina del Trasimeno was funded.



RESOURCES

Financial resources:

The political institutions funding projects carried out in this area from 1995 to 2006 were: the Province of

Perugia, the Trasimeno Regional Park, The Trasimeno

Mountain Community, the Municipality of Castiglione del

Lago, and the European funds for Rural Development.

Human resources:

- Three human resources employed for the project

“Plan for the preservation and valorisation of crop species biodiversity in the Trasimeno Lake district” funded by the Province of Perugia.

- The human resources employed for the “Progetto

Sementi” funded by the Trasimeno Regional Natural

Park were: two people in 2001 (from DBA), three people in 2004 (two from DBA and one from the Natural Park) and two people from DBA in 2008.

- The human resources employed for the project funded in 2005 by the Rural Development Plan for the drawing up of the PDO specification were: 1 person from 3A

Agro-food Park and two people from DBA.


Several surveys of the territory led to a collection of germplasm stored in a duplicated gene bank mainly representing traditional horticultural crops.

An inventory field with an educational purpose was created on Polvese Island, within the Natural Park area.

A morphological and molecular characterisation was conducted on a cowpea variety (Fagiolina) considered as the main genetic heritage of the territory, and samples of the accessions collected were donated to the local farmers. The morphological and molecular characterisation of the 18 cowpea landraces enabled the clear distinction of cowpea types in the area. The results showed significant differences between the landraces and varieties commonly found on the market with respect to organoleptic characteristics, such as taste and visual appeal, crude protein content and total carbohydrate percentages of dry matter. Finally, some farmers have reintroduced the crop in areas where it had disappeared. Further studies provide strong evidence that Italian cowpea landraces have a definite identity which makes them distinguishable from landraces coming from abroad and commercial material that can be found on the market. They also showed that landraces from Lake Trasimeno have a precise identity and probably a common origin. No molecular evidence of introgression of commercial material was found for the Trasimeno cowpea landraces. The projects enabled the actors to significantly increase the collection of landraces rescued (88 horticultural landraces, 3 cereal landraces, 5 fruit species landraces). The results were disseminated to farmers, stakeholders and local schools through seminars and a publication made available online.

The fagiolina of Trasimeno Lake caught the interest of the Slow Food movement which included it among its “presidia” and, within a few years, it became an essential item in many top restaurants, even outside

Umbria. In addition, it has recently been registered in the list of typical Umbrian products (the so-called

“basket of typical products of Umbria”) which has been prepared by the Region of Umbria. The promotion of research activities and the raising of farmers’ awareness triggered a virtuous cycle of conservation.

The area dedicated to cowpea cultivation increased, therefore significantly increasing the income of farmers cultivating the crop. The market price for the small, white-seeded landrace increased (from €6/kg in 1994 to the present €22–25/kg). A specific project carried out by the 3A Umbria Agrofood Technology Park and the

DBA enabled the drawing up of specifications for the request of a European label of origin for this landrace.

The projects carried out by the Regional Natural

Park in cooperation with the University (“Progetto

Sementi” 2001, 2004, 2008) extended the collection and disseminated the results to the local farmers and institutions. Since 2008 an interactive CD-ROM with an illustrated inventory of the whole Trasimeno collection and a preliminary inventory of local spontaneous species used for human consumption has been available online.

The recovery of one or more traditional landraces can be an essential opportunity to make the global productive planning of an area more sustainable. The substitution of an intensive agriculture model for lowinput land use can enhance an integrated development plan, mainly in vulnerable areas where peculiar environmental conditions should be preserved. Each region, in cooperation with scientific institutions, should identify areas with such characteristics and constraints, and plan a survey of the agrobiodiversity still present, along with anthropological, historical and sociological investigations. In order to optimise the effectiveness of the project, specific attention should be paid to the increase of in situ conservation and to the dissemination of results. The involvement of farmers and stakeholders through a participative process is also essential.

...



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In 2012, a project funded by the Rural Development Plan

(Measure 2.1.4) will be undertaken in order to set up a

“Seed house” for the Trasimeno germplasm collection.

The project, coordinated by 3A, also implicates the DBA

(for the characterisation and the scientific supervising) and a local organic farm run by a fagiolina grower

(for the seed reproduction, the setting up and the management of the seed house). The project, lasting two years, will also produce a detailed inventory useful for local communities, farmers, tourist operators and scientists. Those landraces meeting the requirements of Regional Law 25/2001 (for the protection of the autochthonous agro-biodiversity) will be entered in the

Register of regional genetic resources. The Trasimeno seed house will be the starting point for an effective in situ conservation of Trasimeno germplasm, aiming to involve other local interested farmers.

In the future, the aim is to create a network among farmers, traders, tourist operators, schools, and educational farms. In addition, the attention will be focused on the transmission of the old farmers’ knowledge to the young farmers. The possible creation of a territorial label linked to the protected natural area will be also taken into account.


Prof. Valeria NEGRI (Dip. Biologia Applicata)

Università degli Studi

Borgo XX Giugno 74, 06121 Perugia, Italy

+39 075 5856218 vnegri@unipg.it

Websites: www.parcotrasimeno.it/Download/DWN_20081211155634.PDF

www.parcotrasimeno.it

www.fagiolina.com

Luciano CONCEZZI (PhD- Key Manager - Innovation and Research Area -3 APTA)


Soc. Cons. a r.l. - P.IVA 01770460549


+39 075 8957 1 lconcezzi@parco3a.org

ricerca@parco3a.org

Website: www.parco3a.org





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THE TASTE OF LANDRACES

DEVELOPING THE SPECIFICITIES OF MAIZE LANDRACE VARIETIES IN HUMAN FOOD

TO DEVELOP CULTIVATED BIODIVERSITY



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Since 2001, the “Aquitaine cultivates biodiversity” programme, coordinated by the Bio d’Aquitaine federation, has been implemented to re-establish cultivated biodiversity in Aquitaine. Based on a participatory experiment and the selection of landrace crop (maize, sunflower, corn, grain, soy...) and vegetable varieties, the project involves more than 400 farmers.

Since 2010, special emphasis has been given to the taste interest of landrace varieties (see also Good practice

RENABIO). In this context, Agrobio Perigord and the

“Wheat study and hosting centre” (“Centre pour l’étude et terre d’accueil des blés”: CETAB), two members of the federation Bio d’Aquitaine, are participating in the EU Seventh Framework Programme, SOLIBAM

(Strategies for Organic and Low-input Integrated

Breeding And Management). This programme is led by the French Agronomical Research Institute, INRA, in Rennes and brings together 22 organisations from

12 countries in Europe and Africa. The objective of this research programme is to develop strategies combining plant breeding and agronomic innovation in organic farming and low-input agriculture.

Through its work, Agrobio Périgord is involved in the evaluation of the aptitude of maize varieties for human consumption and processing, provided by participatory breeding schemes in organic and low-input agriculture.

BACKGROUND

Interest in cultivating landrace cereal varieties has been lost in most European countries where modern and industrial agriculture has taken over.

Along with this evolution, common know-how about food and traditional hand processing methods is declining. Nevertheless, every landrace variety has an environmental interest (adapted to a local agroecosystem) and an associated use for food.

Bio d’Aquitaine and the “Réseau Semences Paysannes”

(Peasant Seeds Network), dedicated to re-establishing crop biodiversity in Aquitaine and in France, quickly realised that the revival of farmers’ and landrace seeds is made possible by promoting these varieties in the fields but also on the plate.

Indeed, if this biodiversity is sought out by consumers wishing to find food nutritional qualities, sensory and cultural variety, farmers will continue to cultivate them and therefore their conservation will be ensured.


The work carried out by Agrobio Périgord is part of

Work Package 7 (WP) of the SOLIBAM project (www.

solibam.eu), entitled “Effect of, and interaction between, crop genotypes and management innovations on crop nutritional, organoleptic and end-use quality”.

Both genetic and agronomic factors may affect the nutritional and organoleptic quality of crops grown under low-input and organic conditions. The main aim of WP7 is therefore to quantify the effect of breeding and agronomic innovations developed under WP3-6 on crop quality.

1. Study of the nutritional, organoleptic and processing aptitudes of farmers’/landrace varieties.

Three main types of aptitude were identified and are studied in the SOLIBAM programme:

- Nutritional quality: the goal is to qualify and quantify, by



physico-chemical analysis of the grains in the laboratory, the different nutrients present (proteins, vitamins, trace elements ...) in the different varieties studied.

- Ability for transformation: the first observations are made at the mill, then under real bakery and kitchen conditions. A partnership with professionals (millers, bakers, restaurateurs, hotel schools ...) enables experimentation and observation of the behaviour of different varieties according to established protocols.

- Taste quality: preparations obtained during the transformation assays are evaluated in a taste test, thus integrating the consumer (hedonic preference test), but also more experienced people (sensory analysis) in a process of participatory evaluation.

2. Sharing expertise in transforming farmers’ varieties for human consumption.

A participatory approach has been developed involving different stakeholders, from the producers to the processors and the consumer, in order to share experiences and know-how. Maize is a cereal that has a strong historical imprint in the Aquitaine region through varieties, knowledge, recipes and tales ...

Partners share their knowledge and skills to rediscover local traditional recipes and create new value for the different farmers’ varieties studied.

3. Communication about the interests of farmers’ varieties and food expertise.

In order to exploit the obtained results and perpetuate the know-how gathered, specific communication actions are organised, aimed at industry (producers, millers, processors ...) and consumers.

In the framework of this programme, tasting workshops open to the general public enable the provision of information to consumers on the specificities of indigenous varieties: geographical origin, particularities of these varieties, expertise and selection of seeds, legislative history ...

Other specific communication activities aimed at the general public included cooking workshops, the production of written and audiovisual communication tools ...

Organising theme days also enables communication with many different actors on this theme: producers, processors, consumers. For instance, since 2006, Bio of Aquitaine has organised an annual event: the Crop

Biodiversity Festival.

Other SOLIBAM partners are working on the organoleptic testing of other species, such as tomatoes, or broccoli.


GROUPS)

The entire SOLIBAM research programme has been implemented by a participatory network of 23 research institutes, technical institutes, universities, crop breeding companies and farmers’ associations, from Europe and Africa, and is led by the French INRA of Rennes. It is a Collaborative

Project (large-scale integrating project) supported by the European Commission through the Seventh

Framework Programme for research and technological development under Grant Agreement n°245058.

The key partners are: INRA, France - AIAB, Italy -

ORC, UK - RISODTU, Denmark - ITAB, France - TUM,

Germany - ITQB, Portugal - IAS, Spain - ESC, Portugal -

ARI HAS, Hungary - SSSUP, Italy - UNIPG, Italy - FDEA-

ART, Switzerland - UCPH, Denmark - INRA Transfert,

France - UNIPI, Italy - Donau, Austria - Gautier, France

- Agrovegetal, Spain - Arcoiris, Italy - ICARDA, Syria -

CNOP, Mali - MU, Ethiopia. See more information at www.solibam.eu

In Aquitaine, Agrobio Périgord and CETAB are active members of the “Aquitaine cultivates Biodiversity” programme and provide external expertise for INRA of Rennes to evaluate the aptitudes of maize varieties provided by participatory breeding schemes in organic and low-input agriculture for human consumption and processing.

The target groups are farmers, consumers and professional cooks.


SOLIBAM : All Europe and Syria, Mali and Ethiopia.

For the trials on maize organoleptic qualities: Aquitaine

Project start date: March 2010.

End date: March 2015.

Resources

SOLIBAM : The resources of the whole project are described on the website.

For the work in Aquitaine:

Human resources in Bio d’Aquitaine: 2 people (1 at

Agrobio Périgord, 1 at CETAB) Total = 0.3 EFT over 4 years.

Total Staff cost = €21,000for 4 years

Total external costs = €27,000 for 4 years (laboratory analysis, external experts, farmers’ indemnities ...)

Resources: SOLIBAM Programme = €48,000 for 4 years.

...



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19


The first experiments in milling showed differences between indigenous varieties of corn concerning ratios of semolina / flour. Qualitative information was also collected, including the ease of screening: for example, some “fat” corn varieties quickly clog the mill’s screens; other very hard grains require a second passage through the mill.

Programme partners confirmed, through appropriate tests, the differences in behaviour during transformation of the different varieties studied: water absorption rates, cooking times and evolution of tastes during preparation. These different behaviours enabled the determination of appropriate preparation methods for the different varieties (sweetness, saltiness, preparation and cooking mode...).

The initial nutritional analysis performed on key constituents of the grain showed that indigenous maize varieties have a higher protein and sugar content than hybrid test varieties. These results will be correlated with the results of taste tests, as these two factors affect the transformation and taste of the final products. Today several programme partners are using the studied varieties in their own preparations and are developing them in the products they sell.


Bio d’Aquitaine wants to continue developing the participatory development programme initiated by

SOLIBAM to enhance the value of farmers’ varieties for human consumption in Aquitaine.

In order to disseminate the work done under this programme, a book will be published, combining traditional recipes of Aquitaine and successful incomeproducing experiences from flour and cornmeal valorisation.

As a result of the SOLIBAM project activities and Bio d’Aquitaine’s communication plan, product demand for farmers’ seeds will increase. It is therefore essential to provide support services for producers to meet this demand.

At the national level, within the “Réseau Semences

Paysannes”, a project to create a collective brand to develop and increase the value of products yielded from farmers’ seeds or landrace seeds is under study and could merge in the coming years.




On the maize organoleptic evaluation: Agrobio Périgord - Rémy LEBRUN

20, rue du Vélodrome, 24000 Périgueux, France

+33 5 53 35 88 18 biodiversite@agrobioperigord.fr

Website: http://www.agrobioperigord.fr/produire-bio/biodiversite-cultivee

On SOLIBAM: Dr Véronique CHABLE - Project Coordinator

Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique - SAD (Science for Action and Development)

65, rue de Saint-Brieuc, 35042 Rennes Cedex, France

T +33 2 23 48 70 49 veronique.chable@rennes.inra.fr

Website: www.solibam.eu

“

This work on assessing the qualities of maize populations for human consumption is the result of a close collaboration between farmers, millers, cooks, consumers and facilitators technicians. Together, we recover and develop knowledge and know how, in order to share with consumers the nutritional and taste interest of the population varieties.

This participatory work enhance the skills and ideas of each of us, thus nourishing a very exciting working thematic, still not enough documented.

A word to the wise…

”



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20

EDUCATIONAL GARDEN

MEDICINAL AND AROMATIC PLANTS AS EDUCATIONAL MATERIAL

FOR PRIMARY SCHOOLS



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Project leaders from the Gene bank of Slovak Republic

(SR) implemented educational activities in the primary school St. Maria Goretti in Piešt’any. The operation consisted in creating an educational garden with medicinal and aromatic plants. Project participants evaluated and collected medicinal plants in order to provide material for practical demonstrations and observation activities. These educational activities were intended to maintain biodiversity in the educational garden and raise primary school children’s awareness of the importance of biodiversity conservation.

The educational garden can inspire several similar activities in the field of nature preservation.

BACKGROUND

St. Maria Goretti is a primary school in Piešt’any. A cooperation agreement between the school and Gene bank of SR enabled children to visit regularly the experimental fields used for biodiversity conservation.

The students were very interested in medicinal and aromatic plants. After discussion with the teachers, it was decided to plant some medicinal plants in the school’s garden.

METHODOLOGY PROCESS

Project leaders from the Gene bank of SR proposed the teachers of the primary school st. M. Goretti in

Piešt’any to show children plant diversity by planting medicinal species in the school garden such as

Lavandula, Agrimonia, Hyssopus, Melissa, Origanum . For each species, about 10 plants were planted. This activity was conducted by the Reverse project assistants and as a result medicinal plants were planted by 40 school children. This project enabled a mutual collaboration with an elementary school, about educating school children on nature and biodiversity preservation, via practical demonstrations of medicinal plants growing.

These plantations will encourage observation activities and the conservation of species.


GROUP)

The promoter of the project is the Plant Production

Research Centre of Piešt’any.

The target group is composed of children from primary schools and their teachers.


INFORMATION AND EDUCATION TO RAISE AWARENESS OF AGROBIODIVERSITY


West Slovakia, town Piešt’any, Primary school of St.

Maria Goretti, 29.4.2010 – 30.9.2011

RESOURCES

A minimum staff of five people during a year is necessary. Annual budget for external costs of the project and funding partners should be approximately

€ 5 000.


The practical result is the creation of garden with medicinal and aromatic plants. Species such as

Lavandula, Agrimonia, Hyssopus, Melissa, Origanum were planted on an area of 50 m².

40 children, 2 teachers and 5 gene bank workers planted 10 plants of each species of Slovak origin.

During the vegetation period, the children cultivated the plants, irrigated, collected and harvested the plants.

This experimental garden with medicinal plants was visited by others schools from the region of Piešt’any.

Two primary schools from Piešt’any would like to establish a similar garden with medicinal plants.


These activities are not only popular with schools, but also with hobby gardeners in the region of Piešt’any.

Similar activities will be organised in other institutions working in the field of training and education. Near the Gene bank of SR’s premises, the Gardening High

School of Piešt’any would like to extend their botanical garden. They are particularly interested in native Slovak medicinal and melliferous species.



Gene Bank of the Slovak Republic benedikova@vurv.sk

+421 33 7722311

Website: http://reverse.cvrv.sk/en/

“

Education and training activities are not only popular with schools, but also with hobby gardeners in the region of Piešt‘any. Similar activities should be organised in other educational institutions. They are interested in native Slovak medicinal and melliferous species. The dissemination of Slovak native medicinal and melliferous plant species protects the domestic genetic resources.

”



71

21

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION

A PARTICIPATIVE PROCESS FOR THE BUILDING OF A MANAGEMENT PLAN

FOR A SPECIAL AREA OF CONSERVATION (SAC) OF THE NATURA 2000 NETWORK

WITH EMPHASIS ON AGRICULTURAL ASPECTS



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The project consists in integrating specific measures of conservation for a Natura 2000 site in the Management

Plan. This site, Ernio-Gatzume, is largely concerned by agricultural activity and so these measures had to be confronted and discussed with farmers and other users. A consultation process was initiated in order to implicate stakeholders in the preservation of grasslands and shrubs, in the creation and maintenance of hedges or improving biodiversity in natural forests, for instance.

The general objectives of the consultation process were:

- The involvement of the population in the planning and management of the Natura 2000 sites;

- The direct information of local population on the measures to be developed, their justification and the expected results;

- The direct consultation with owners and users to incorporate the perspectives and expectations of local communities in management solutions;

- The identification of social factors and agents that might be obstacles or success factors for the implementation of the plan;

- The identification of individuals or groups which are able to promote the development of the plan;

- Making joint decisions, as far as possible;

- The facilitation of the active involvement of stakeholders in the management of the site (joint management);

- The creation of specific means of communication;

- The inclusion of interested parties in the decisionmaking process right from the beginning of the planning;

- Making the population aware of the importance of conserving in particular the Natura 2000 Network, and

Biodiversity in general.

Specific objectives related to agricultural activity include:

- To increase awareness of stakeholders and local population;

- To improve feasibility and guarantee the implementation of conservation measures related to agriculture.

BACKGROUND

The Habitat Directive specifies that Special

Conservation Areas should be identified, along with the conservation measures which respond to the ecological demands of natural habitat types included in Annex

I and of species included in Annex II and present in those areas (Articles 4.4. and 6.1). In addition, article

2.3 of the Habitats Directive states that measures taken according to the Directive should take account economical, social and cultural requirements as well regional and local characteristics.

However, despite the initiatives carried out, many of those who are involved are unaware of the Natura 2000 network or how it can affect them, although 90% of the surface of Ernio-Gatzume is privately owned and the conservation of the main values of this SAC are dependent on human activities, mainly livestock and forestry.

Moreover, nowadays biodiversity conservation requires the acceptance and agreement of citizens; accordingly to the white paper on Governance (COM (2001) 428 final) and the Aarhus Convention (access to information, public participation in decision-making, and access to justice in environmental matters), transposed to the

Spanish legal system in Law 27/2006.




1. Identification of actors and creation of participant databases after detecting possible actors (in particular groups, rural development agencies, city councils, etc.).

2. Interviews with potential opinion leaders and creation of focus groups: agricultural and social development agencies and sessions at Town Councils. The objectives of these interviews are to:

- Request information or opinions about the process;

- Obtain valuable information for social participation: problem forecast, obtaining contact details of people that may be interested in the process, diagnostic of existing conservation experiences…;

- Analyse expectations, priorities, and detect weak points and possible threats;

- Obtain information to draw up an informative document on frequently asked questions and doubts about Natura 2000;

- Gain the support of the process from these institutions.

3. Introduction to all interested actors of the characteristics of the site and explanation of the process of participation:

- Customised delivery of call (note the work done by the councils themselves to inform their neighbours of the beginning of this process.);

- MASS MEDIA IS NOT USED. It should be a diffusion lined with local realities (municipal boards, rotating from house to house...);

- Presentation (PowerPoint) providing information about Natura 2000, focused on specific values of the space and on the development of participation process;

- Frequently Asked Questions Document;

- Registration records of stakeholders in the process

(participation is always voluntary).

4. Thematic workshops for the identification of problems and proposals for action:

- Target group: farmers, forestry and tertiary-use

(hunters, hikers, environmentalists, rural tourism, etc);

- From a summary document (in accessible language) of targets and measures.

5. Formal public consultation.

6. Presentation of adopted measures and justification of possible exclusion of proposals.

7. Final document.


GROUPS)

The Basque government is responsible for approving the management plan for the SAC Ernio-Gatzume and therefore, ensuring proper public participation in the preparation of this plan and the promotion of the participative process.

Stakeholders, local politicians, rural and regional development associations, farmers, forest owners, conservationists and environmentalists, mountaineers, hunters and local population are the target groups.


Gipuzkoa, Basque Country (9 municipalities).

From February to October 2010.

RESOURCES

3 Experts in participation process, with the support of experts who make the technical documents

Costs estimated on €12,000 have been covered by the

Administration’s general budget.


Results: broad consensus on the conservation measures. Feasibility of its implementation

- A total of 63 people attended the presentations; 47 people attended the sector workshops;

- Very different profiles, mainly livestock and forest owners and hunters; to a smaller extent, hikers and mountaineers. Total absence of the tourist sector and ecological groups;

- A total of 24 contributions to the same number of technical measures have been made from the forum;

- A total of 7 added suggestions.

Lessons:

- Although having a previous methodological scheme, each process is a different reality and must be adapted;

- Processes are unpredictable and, thus, it must be possible to incorporate new possibilities to face new demands;

- Different levels of participation must be distinguished

(municipal, social);

- There are not many interesting contributions for the technical team; however, the communication value of the process is very high;

- The main targets are the people that work in the area or people whose activity is affected by space management.

...



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Future actions: we must go further in the design of tools for a stable and effective participation of organisations and population for the evaluation of measures and for the management of the Natura 2000 Network.

What to improve: we must improve participants’ training in this kind of process. Although participation can be considered high, it is necessary to continue carrying out actions to attract more people. A guide on participation processes is being developed as well as a guide that compiles successful interrelation experiences between the Natura 2000 Network and people and their activities.


Marta ROZAS

Basque Government - Directorate of Biodiversity and Environmental Participation

Donostia-San Sebastian, 1

01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz

+34 945016957 marta-rozas@ej-gv.es

Website: www.euskadi.net/natura2000

“

Effective management and conservation of protected areas is only possible if it involves the owners, local communities and multiple users of these areas.

The best participative process is the one that adapts to the situation from the beginning and promotes its development through learning, towards more complex and rich processes in the future.

”





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76


LAND PLANNING AND BIODIVERSITY

At first glance the main instrument for biodiversity conservation at land planning level lies in protected areas. Legal protection, management plans and management measures contribute to protecting threatened biodiversity in specific defined zones (6, 7 and 8).

However, there is no valid reason why biodiversity conservation should be limited to protected areas. On the contrary, biodiversity richness extends beyond these virtual borders and so should its management. Therefore, connection between protected areas is encouraged, and is recognised as a major contributor to biodiversity conservation (2, 3,

4 and 5).

At a regional level, land planning policies are designed to take biodiversity into account in a coherent territory (1).

Compliance tools and assessment methods have been designed to support their implementation (9 and 10).

Strategies and plans often tackle the issue through the perspective of landscape, which proves to be consensual enough to defend and promote biodiversity heritage (11 and 12). Similarly, voluntary initiatives may also be successful when there is a shared approach (13).

77

CONTENTS

CASE STUDY

NUMBER

REGIONAL LAND PLANNING POLICIES TAKING BIODIVERSITY INTO ACCOUNT

1

LANDSCAPE PROGRAMME AND LAND USE PLAN

GERMANY

80

ECOLOGICAL CORRIDOR PLANNING

2

GREEN NETWORK IN ESTONIA

ESTONIA

3

UMBRIA REGION ECOLOGICAL NETWORK

ITALY

4

NATURAL AREAS WITHIN A CITY

FRANCE

5

LEGAL PROTECTION AND MANAGEMENT TOOLS TO PROTECT AREAS

WITH THREATENED BIODIVERSITY

6

AÑARBE RESERVE: DESIGNATION OF A FOREST RESERVE ZONE

SPAIN

7

PLANT MICRO-RESERVES

GREECE

8

TERRITORIAL PLAN FOR WETLANDS

SPAIN

100

104

108

COMPLIANCE AND ASSESSMENT TOOLS FOR TAKING INTO ACCOUNT

BIODIVERSITY IN LAND PLANNING

9

10

DEFINING TECHNICAL CRITERIA

FOR REGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION

SPAIN

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT REPORTS

SPAIN

DEVELOPMENT OF BIODIVERSITY-LINKED LANDSCAPE HERITAGE

11

COMMON LANDS LANDSCAPE

ITALY

12

UPGRADING MOTORWAY INFRASTRUCTURE

FRANCE

LANDSCAPE CHARTER TO PROMOTE

TERRITORY ATTRACTIVENESS

FRANCE

PROACTIVE AND COOPERATIVE PUBLIC COMMITMENTS

IN FAVOUR OF BIODIVERSITY

13

DECLARATION: BIODIVERSITY IN CITIES AND MUNICIPALITIES

GERMANY

110

114

118

122

84

88

92

96






Overexploitation

Soil erosion









126


OF THE ACTION













BENEFICIARIES






TARGETED AREAS




Mountains

Forests

Natural areas

1

2 3 4 5

6 7 8

9 10

11 12

13

1

LANDSCAPE PROGRAMME AND LAND USE PLAN

Bremen Region, Germany


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The landscape programme in Germany is part of the landscape planning for the whole territory of a federal state. It is fixed in the national law of nature conservation. The actual landscape programme of the federal state of Bremen has been running since 1991.

As for the land use plan, this is the basic planning instrument for the urban development of an entire town. Both plans are non-binding for the public but binding for the administration. The preparatory land use plan for the city of Bremen was drawn up in 1983 and newly published in 2001.

Because these planning instruments were outdated, in 2009 politicians decided they had to be realigned for the next five years. At the moment, the landscape programme has been developed for the city of Bremen.

It will be prepared later for the city of Bremerhaven.

The new idea is to prepare, combine and integrate both plans for the city of Bremen simultaneously. In this way, all aspects of urban ecology, conservation of biodiversity, habitat connectivity and adaptation to climate change can be included in the land use plan.

Within the process are many public discussions, workshops, exhibitions and an internet platform to involve stakeholders and interested citizens before the political decisions. The public participation started at a very early stage of the process.

The new plans are based on much expertise from external consultants and experts. Related topics can be, inter alia, urban development, social development, economic structural change, demographic changes, recreation, areas of high biodiversity or high natural value to be protected, the development of a habitat network, aspects of climate change and adaptation to the outcomes of climate change through the means of land planning, soil, water, urban climate and natural scenery.

The drafts of the plans shall be finished for the first consultation of public agencies and the wider public in autumn 2012. The second consultation is planned for

2013 and the final decision of the parliament of Bremen at the end of 2014.

The process of drawing up the plans is a good example of the integration of the needs of “Nature” and urban planning within a public discussion. The integrated realignment of the landscape programme and the land use plan makes it possible to fix information on natural values, habitat connectivity and areas of high biodiversity in the basic plan for urban development.

The expected results are a base for urban development, the conservation of biodiversity in the state of Bremen and the implementation of a habitat network.

80 LAND PLANNING AND BIODIVERSITY

REGIONAL LAND PLANNING POLICIES TAKING BIODIVERSITY INTO ACCOUNT

BACKGROUND

The land use plan has been in place since 2001, although some specific changes have been implemented later.

The landscape programme dates from 1991. Owing to German law, both plans have to be updated on the basis of new data on urban development, inhabitant structures, demographic shifts, recreation needs, climate, soil, biotopes and wild living plants and animals.

The idea of combining and integrating both plans comes from the fact that not only urban development but all aspects of urban ecology, conservation of biodiversity, habitat connectivity and aspects of adaptation to climate change can be included in the preparatory land use plan. Also, the results of nature monitoring are presented in the landscape programme and provide important information to be included in the land use plan.


Both plans are prepared on a scientific basis of information about urban development, social needs, demographic changes, results of monitoring nature and external expertise on soil, water, climate, biodiversity, landscape and public green spaces.

A general principle of urban development was created, called BREMEN 2020. This was discussed in a broad manner with politicians and the public through workshops and lectures. A wide set of information material was created: exhibition, folders, brochures and website. The results of this action were implemented in the further drafts of the plans.

The key steps of urban development (BREMEN 2020) are the public consultation, the presentation of drafts of the plans and reflections to main stakeholders and public agencies, a second public consultation and finally the decision of the parliament of Bremen. Local decision-makers are frequently informed and must decide the milestones.


GROUPS)

Promoters: The landscape programme is implemented by employees of the Department for Nature and Water, the land use plan by employees of the Department of Urban Development, both within the government agency, Senator for Environment, Urban Development and Traffic). The results and drafts have discussed in many workshops with stakeholders and public meetings prepared and coordinated by external consultants.

Target groups are politicians who have to decide on milestones, members of the different administrations involved and interested citizens.

Dissemination events have been organised to reach these targets: exhibitions for the general public, presentations at public events and workshops, lectures and discussions with stakeholders. Brochures, folders, posters and websites have been created.


The new preparatory land use plan and the landscape programme have been designed for the city of Bremen

(325.42 km²) in the north of Germany. The scale is

1:5.000 for biological information and the natural scenery, the planning scale of the maps is 1:35,000 to 1:50,000.

Start date: 2009.

End date: The final decision of the plans by the parliament of Bremen is expected at the end of 2014.

Milestone dates: consultation of public agencies and the public: 2012 and 2013.

RESOURCES

Human resources: For the landscape programme, 3 people from the permanent staff of the Nature and

Water Department and 0.5 external landscape planner for preparing detailed plans with special information about natural resources and biodiversity (e.g. habitat connectivity, breeding birds, roosting and wintering sites of birds). Additionally external consultants and experts provided expertise on specific themes such as local climate, effects of climate change on wild living animals, habitat connection and evaluation of mappings of habitats, wild living animals and plants.

Time spent by the team: Each member of the team in the department worked for about 30 hours per week on the landscape programme.

External cost: About €110,000 per year for the landscape programme, especially for external expertise.

Action funding: The action is funded within the regular budget of the department.

...



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Because there has been a broad discussion with many stakeholders and the public, there will be a new state of the art for the urban planning and an opportunity to integrate natural values and needs for conservation with urban planning.

The main and new results of the expertise and discussions are:

- Identification of habitat corridors and creation of a habitat network;

- Identification of high biodiversity and high natural value areas;

- Integration of new needs due to adaptation to climate change in urban development and nature conservation measures.

These new principles for urban development and preservation of biodiversity will be applied to both plans as the basis for future concrete urban land use planning.

Lessons learnt: The combined preparation of the land use plan and the landscape programme is a good opportunity for integrating all aspects of urban development and preservation of biodiversity as a basis for communal planning. The wide public discussion at an early stage of planning will make the required consultations on the drafts easier. But the whole process is taking more time than expected.


Now both draft plans and argumentations need to be completed for the first public consultation, planned for autumn 2012. Arguments given in this consultation will be analysed, discussed and taken into account in a second consultation with the public and the public agencies. Finally, the last drafts will be approved by the parliament of Bremen.




Free Hanseatic City of Bremen

The Senator for Environment, Urban Development and Traffic

Dirk HÜRTER, Dipl.-Ing. Landscape planning, Dept. Nature and Water, Unit Landscape planning

Tel. +49 421 361 15981

Dirk.Huerter@umwelt.bremen.de

Henrich KLUGKIST, Dipl.-Biol., Dept. Nature and Water, Unit Protection of Species and Habitats

Tel. +49 421 361 6660

Henrich.Klugkist@umwelt.bremen.de

Tom LECKE-LOPATTA, Dipl.-Ing. Landscape Planning, Dept. Urban Development, Unit Regional Planning,

Tel. +49 421 361 10389

Thomas.Lecke-Lopatta@bau.bremen.de

Websites: http://www.umwelt.bremen.de/de/detail.php?gsid=bremen179.c.4010.de

http://www.bauumwelt.bremen.de/de/detail.php?gsid=bremen02.c.28453.de

“

Bremen aims at a better integration of the urban land-use plan and the landscape program by setting them up jointly. As only the land-use plan is statutory for public authorities, this is an important step towards implementation of landscape planning. Both plans together cover most of the spatial aspects of quality of living, so that more people feel affected and take part in the process. Intense communication with local stakeholders and specific target groups is supposed to create better planning results and more public support for their implementation.

”

Dirk HÜRTER, Coordinator for the landscape program



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GREEN NETWORK

DESIGNATING AN ECOLOGICAL NETWORK AT COUNTY LEVEL

Estonian University of Life Sciences, Estonia


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The establishment of ecological networks (Green

Networks) has become one of the most promising applications through which ecological principles and biodiversity conservation requirements are integrated into spatial planning procedures and land use practices. By adopting the Pan-European Biological and

Landscape Diversity Strategy in 1995, the development of ecological networks (the Pan-European Ecological

Network) became the priority nature conservation strategy in Europe. An ecological network is a coherent system of natural and/or semi-natural landscape elements configured and managed with the objective of maintaining or restoring ecological functions as a means of conserving biodiversity, while also providing appropriate opportunities for the sustainable use of natural resources.

“Green Network” is a new term that has recently been used in a spatial planning context in Estonia.

Resembling the American term “greenways”, it simplifies the complex theoretical concept of ecological networks and describes a network with characteristics determinable in regular planning practice, including socio-economic dimensions. Like its American analogues, the Green Network seems to be attractive to landscape architects and land-use planners for channelling recreation and visualising ecological corridors, especially in near-settlement areas.

According to the Estonian Spatial Plan, the Green

Network is a coherent system of extensively-used areas in a comparatively good natural state that helps to maintain the biodiversity and stability of the environment.

In Estonia, the methodology of designating the green network (ecological network) states that the main objective of planning is first and foremost to guarantee a naturally and environmentally grounded spatial structure, which should guarantee sustainable development in whole country. It is not to define a largescale “green surface” and leave it out of economic use.

The following main purposes were stated:

- To shape the spatial structure of natural areas in the most reasonable way, considering ecological, environmental protection, economic and social aspects;

- To complete functionally the network of protected areas, connecting them into a complete system with natural areas;

- To protect valuable natural habitats and preserve the migration routes of wild animals, and valuable landscapes;

- To soften, compensate, and forestall the anthropogenic impact on nature, to contribute to a sustainable development strategy;

- To offer the possibility of nature-friendly management, lifestyles and recreation by ensuring spatial accessibility to natural areas;

- To promote nature conservation outside protected areas;

- To minimise future conflicts of interest incorporating different sectors (forestry, agriculture, transport, recreation) through spatial planning;

- To guide settlement and land use;

- To preserve the natural self-regulation ability of the environment;

- To support international and transboundary cooperation.


ECOLOGICAL CORRIDOR PLANNING

BACKGROUND

The Green Network in Estonia is addressed at all three levels of planning (i.e. country, county and municipality).

The national long-term spatial plan, “Estonia 2010”, establishes the basic principles of the Estonian ecological network by identifying corridors and 12 core areas of national and international importance.

In 1999, the second phase of county planning

(thematic planning) was initiated. It aimed to define environmental conditions for the development of land use and settlement. The main tasks of thematic plans included the design of the Green Network and the definition of valuable cultural/historical landscapes.

By December 2002, each of the 15 counties of Estonia had to prepare a map of ecological networks on a scale of 1:50,000, as one of the layers of thematic spatial planning. For that reason, three methodologies were devised: one for designing Green Networks, a second for defining valuable cultural landscapes, and a third to combine outputs from the previous two. However, it took until the end of 2007 for all 15 counties to finish the preparation of these plans.

The Estonian Environmental Action Plan for 2007-2013 sets targets to determine and implement measures for the Green Network within all municipalities by 2013, in terms of spatial planning and environmental conditions and restrictions.


Ecological networks in Estonia are a constituent part of the Pan-European ecological network. Therefore its main structural elements and their functions are the same as those of the Pan-European one. Whatever its scale (from regional or continental) an ecological network consists of the following elements: core areas, ecological (or biological) corridors, buffer (protective) zones, and stepping stones.

...



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The Estonian methodology on designating green networks could be adopted in different regions, considering these main stages (Jagomägi, Sepp, 2002):

- Analysis of the initial nature conservation problems;

- Identification of well-defined objectives of the network;

- Definition of the methodological approach for the designation of the ecological network and criteria for identifying its structural elements;

- Analysis of existing databases, identifying the location of relevant data and possible gaps;

- Identification of potential core areas, ecological corridors; and finally buffer zones and restoration areas if needed

- Designation of implementation strategy.


GROUPS)

At national level, the promoter is the Estonian

Ministry of the Interior. At the County Level, the

County Government is the main promoter (15 County

Governments in total); at municipal level the Local

Government is the promoter.

County governments coordinated the planning of the

Green Network at a regional level (completed in 2007) and continue to supervise Green Network planning more locally. Consultants assist local and regional governments in land-use planning, including the Green

Network. The Ministry of the Environment and its subdivisions give advice mainly on considering the impacts of the Green Network (e.g. Strategic/Environmental

Impact Assessment (SEA/EIA)).

A wide variety of stakeholders representing different land-use sectors as well as government, commerce and civil society have an interest in Green Network issues at regional and local levels. According to

Estonian planning law, local governments are obliged to specify the land-use conditions for Green Network areas defined at county level.

Estonian legislation on spatial planning includes mechanisms for public involvement in Green Network planning. More specifically, at regional level the public should be involved in the final phases of the planning process. Public involvement includes a written consultation period in relation to draft planning documents for the Green Network, followed by a public discussion. The same is true at a local level but the public is to be included earlier in the process and there are public discussions over earlier drafts of planning documents. These legal obligations represent the minimum requirements for public involvement, and their success depends on how they are implemented in practice (e.g. public discussions need a skilled facilitator to be meaningful and produce a worthwhile output).

Local people, hunters, environmental NGOs and ecologists have been heavily involved in planning the

Green Network, nationally and regionally. They continue to make an important contribution to some of the Green

Network implementation measures, especially in the

EIA process. In addition to the above mentioned actors, several other stakeholders are affected by decisions on

Green Network issues.


The hierarchy of the spatial planning system is organised mainly around basic administrative units in Estonia (i.e. country, county and municipality). The

Green Network is, to varying degrees, addressed at all three levels of planning. The current overview deals with designating the Green Network at the County level.

Start date: 1999.

End date: 2007 at the County level, will be continued at municipal level.

RESOURCES

In every county, the departments of planning and development were involved, in total 3-5 persons. In several cases private consultants were involved.

External costs amounted to €40,000-60,000 per county per year over 5 years, fully funded by the public budget.




The main result was the methodology for designating and defining land use conditions of Green Networks at county level (Sepp, Jagomägi, 2002). The methodology was implemented in all 15 counties and, by the end of 2007, thematic plans in scale 1:50000 had been compiled and approved.

The Green Network plans at county level, defining

“Environmental conditions for settlement and land use”, were reasonably commensurable and had achieved their goal in every county. A wide range of stakeholders were involved in the Green Network planning at county and local levels. However, the tendency for conflicts between construction, forestry and transport stakeholders and local citizens suggested that key stakeholders were not sufficiently involved in the planning process.

The results indicated that the planning legislation - especially at municipal level - should be improved in order to better implement the Green Network concept

- there is a need for practical suggestions as well as involvement requirements, supported by direct, open and flexible communication.

Conflicts arising during the implementation of Green

Network plans at regional or local level suggest that in some cases the decision-making process has failed to bring all relevant parties together and sufficiently consider their interests. Green Network implementation constrains the activities of land-use sectors, including forestry, mining, peat extraction, building/construction and transport. Within some

EIA/SEA processes, conflicts of interest between foresters and municipalities have emerged, as well as between peat extraction companies on the one side and environmental authorities, local residents and NGOs on the other. Similarly, the activities of real estate, infrastructure developers and transport planners have in some regions conflicted with the interests of local residents’ action groups and nature conservation stakeholders in maintaining green areas.


Successful implementation of the Green Network concept should be achieved mostly through territorial planning at lower levels (municipal) and setting conditions for land and other resources usage.

According to the Planning Act, the Green Network needs to be addressed in each municipality’s comprehensive plan. The plan should specify the boundaries of the

Green Network delineated in county thematic plans and lay down requirements for land use within the Green

Network at a local level. Therefore, in coming years, local municipalities should implement the concept of Green

Networks in their spatial plans. By 2010, the Green

Network had been addressed in 70 comprehensive plans, representing 30% of municipalities.

In the European Union, a concept of Green Infrastructure is currently under preparation. The themes around the connectivity of natural areas and green infrastructures will attract more and more attention in the coming years at European level as well as in member states.


Prof. Kalev SEPP

Estonian University of Life Sciences, Institute of Agricultural and Environmental Research.

+372 7313777 kalev.sepp@emu.ee

Website: www.emu.ee



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UMBRIA REGION ECOLOGICAL NETWORK

SETTING UP A MULTIFUNCTIONAL ECOLOGICAL NETWORK IN UMBRIA



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Ecological networks are designed to take into account the complex system of interrelationships that governs exchanges of energy, matter and organisms in the environment. The main objective of the RERU (Rete

Ecologica Regionale dell’Umbria) project is to create a multifunctional ecological network able to reconcile the conservation of ecosystems and landscapes with land development and territorial management in Umbria.

In order to achieve this objective, an interdisciplinary research group has been set up. Made up of highly experienced scientists from both inside and outside

Umbria, the RERU research group has drawn up an overall picture of the current and potential ecological and territorial situation of the region. As a result, specific knots and ecological corridors for some target species have been defined and represented on a Geographical Information System.

BACKGROUND

Fragmentation of the natural ecosystems and anthropic pressure cause the degradation and the reduction of biodiversity in several territories: in particular, some animal species cannot survive in the specific landscapes reshaped by human activities. The main objective of RERU is to create an informative system able to correlate the ecological needs of the flora and fauna with the Territorial Urban Plan, in order to face urban expansion with appropriate tools, avoiding habitat fragmentation and connecting policies for protected areas with global strategies for the conservation of nature. This would help to integrate the ecosystems into land planning activity, focus the activities around the restoration and requalification of ecosystems and optimise the initiatives for the conservation of nature and landscapes in the whole territory, even in areas not covered by environmental protection.


Umbria’s 1998 Territorial Urban Plan stated that “the largest terrestrial mammals are the most effective indicators of the state of the Umbrian landscape and environment, particularly with regard to the fragmentation and discontinuity of ecosystems” six mammals have been considered the most representative umbrella species with respect to the

Regional Ecological Network: the wolf ( Canis lupus lupus , European wild cat (Felis silvestris silvestris) , badger (Meles meles) , roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) , porcupine (Hystrix cristata) , brown hare (Lepus europeaeus) .

All the work undertaken during the creation of the

RERU was carried out on the basis of a specific

Geographic Information System. The RERU map is composed of the following morpho-functional entities:

- Regional units of ecological connection (regional patches);

- Corridors and stepping stones;

- Fragments;

- Matrix (unselected vegetation by umbrella species);

- Anthropogenic barriers ;

- Urban high sensibility areas.

The data is available online through the regional webgis system: www.agriforeste.regione.umbria.it



Ecological Network of Umbria Region

RERU- Rete Ecologica Regionale Dell’Umbria

Legend

*Regional patches

Vegetation selected (habitat) by wolf, European wild cat, roe deer in continuous patches>=50 hectares – and by badger, porcupine, brown hare>= 20 hectares; matrix buffer <= 250 metres (wolf, roe deer, brown hare) and

<=100 metres (badger, European wild cat, porcupine) from the habitat patches (connectivity)

Habitats

Connectivity

* Corridors and stepping stones

Habitat patches< 50 hectares (wolf, European wild cat, roe deer) and < 20 hectares (badger, porcupine, brown hare) reciprocally distant (connectivity) <= 250 metres

(wolf, roe deer, brown hare) and <= 100 meters (badger,

European wild cat, porcupine) of linear (corridors) or dotted (Stepping stones) form, connected (<=250 and

<=100 meters of distance) with Regional patches.

Habitat

Connectivity

* Fragments

Habitat patches < 50 hectares (wolf, European wild cat, roe deer) and < 20 hectares (badger, porcupine, brown hare) reciprocally distant> 250 metres (wolf, roe deer, brown hare) and > 100 meters (badger, European wild cat, porcupine) unconnected (>250 and > 100 metres of distance) with Regional patches but surrounded by a matrix <= 250 meters and <= 100 meters (connectivity).

Habitat

Connectivity

* Matrix

Unselected vegetation by wolf, European wild cat, badger, roe deer, porcupine, brown hare

* Anthropogenic barriers

Urban areas, roads, railways

* Urban Sprawl High Sensibility Areas

Areas characterised by SIX (Sprawl Index) Index high values, where there is a majority (over 80%) of regional areas at present time.

SUPERVISORS AND GENERAL RESPONSIBILITY

Regione Umbria, Direzione Agricoltura e foreste, aree protette, valorizzazione dei sistemi

Naturalistici e paesaggistici, beni e attività culturali, sport e spettacolo.-P. PAPA, Dott. R. SEGATORI, Dott.

ssa M. POSSENTI

Cambridge University e Reading University, UK-Prof.

G. PUNGETTI



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GROUPS)

The Umbria Region is the main public establishment involved in the project. The coordination of the working group was carried out by the Directorate of Agriculture and Forest, Protected Areas, Valorisation of Nature and

Landscape Systems, Cultural Goods and Activities,

Sport and Show Business of Umbria Region, together with the Universities of Cambridge and Reading (UK).

The Universities of Perugia, l’Aquila, Camerino, and

Wageningen (NL) were also involved in the work group for the project.

The targeted persons are the people involved in land planning at the regional and sub-regional level. They are committed to RERU indications, as the Umbria

Region adopted the RERU indications as a specific regional Law.


The targeted area is the Umbria region. The scale of the action is regional, but this tool can be used in all cases of land planning, even at sub-regional and interregional level.

RESOURCES

Human resources and external expertise involved in the project included about 25 people from Umbria Region,

University of Perugia (Italy), University of L’Aquila (Italy),

Università of Camerino (Italy), University of Cambridge

(United Kingdom), University of Reading (United

Kingdom) and the Wageningen Research Institute

Alterra (Netherland).

Total cost of the project: about €200,000 (public funds)


A cartographic representation of the territory of

Umbria Region for each category of wildlife was produced, as an output of the inter-disciplinary activity of the working groups. This contains eight layers of information: regional patches-habitat, regional patches

-connectivity, corridors and stepping stones-habitat, corridors and stepping stones-connectivity, fragments- habitat, fragments-connectivity, matrix, anthropogenic barriers. This representation was implemented in a

Geographical Information System.

The validity of RERU has proved to be acceptable and has been tested by means of investigations carried out in sample areas of high and low anthropization in

Umbria, and through three-month radio-telemetric tracking of a wolf fitted with a radio-transmitted collar.

The RERU was adopted by the Umbria Region through a Deliberation Act in 2005.

In conclusion, in the whole region, the ecological corridors supporting biological permeability were identified, connecting among them the knots represented by the Nature 2000 sites. RERU is a strong planning tool for institutions, professionals and citizens that works at regional level with the objective of making interventions without subsuming the identity values of Umbria identity. The lesson learnt is that only with a multidisciplinary approach is it possible to reach important results in terms of the conservation of nature.


Future activities: the application of the RERU at the territorial level enables local planning choices and interventions aimed at the rescue, protection, maintenance and reconstitution of network connections: rivers, agro-ecosystems, forestry, and environmental restoration.

The next steps will be to work on increasing the awareness of the resident population of the importance of biodiversity and the awareness of the municipalities of the importance of RERU as a tool for maintaining biodiversity.




Paolo PAPA ppapa@regione.umbria.it

Raoul SEGATORI segatori@regione.umbria.it

Umbria Region - Servizio Aree Protette, valorizzazione dei Sistemi

Naturalistichi e Paesaggistici

Via Mario Angeloni, 61

06124 Perugia, Italy

Websites: www.regione.umbria.it

www.agriforeste.regione.umbria.it



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NATURAL AREAS WITHIN A CITY:

INVENTORY OF NATURAL AREAS IN AN URBAN AGGLOMERATION

IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH A NETWORK OF SITES AND BIOLOGICAL CORRIDORS

CEN Aquitaine- Pau, France


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


In 2004, the agglomeration of Pau launched an inventory programme of natural habitats in partnership with Cen Aquitaine, the Conservatory of Natural Areas in Aquitaine Region, along with the implementation of sustainable development tools for the city (Environment

Charter in 2003, Agenda 21 in 2009). The challenge was to move from a regulatory approach to an environmental management approach in terms of the living environment and territorial development.

The operational objective of this work was to create an inventory of the natural environments of the city and implement multi-annual management plans for major sites.

The long term goal is for municipalities to adopt the requirements of a landscape charter and take into account natural areas and linkages between them in planning documents, in order to develop efficient ecological corridors.

BACKGROUND

Elected officials and technicians of the city wanted to engage in sustainable development, integrating the consideration of biodiversity. Cen Aquitaine had been leading operations in the participative management of protected natural sites in the surrounding territories.

The environment charter developed in 2003 appeared to be a useful tool for the agglomeration of Pau, in order to:

- Establish a coherent and readable strategy of sustainable development;

- Prioritise actions during the time period;

- Mobilise people in the territory;

- Enhance the attractiveness of the town and its surroundings;

- Mobilise specific financial aid for all these purposes.

In this process, the agglomeration expressed at an early stage its interest in integrating biodiversity in the sectoral policies of the city (transport, urban planning, economics ...), starting with the inventory of natural areas.


1. The first action to engage in is an inventory of the natural sites in the territory: The natural heritage is to be identified, described scientifically and mapped. At this stage, priority areas can be defined in order to plan further implementation;

2. Communication of results to the population: It is necessary to give information about the results to the local population and especially to local representatives who make decisions on land planning;

3. Integration of inventory results into urban planning

(i.e. mapping of some corridors in municipalities’ Local

Urban Plans);

4. Negotiation of agreements with land owners on major sites, particularly when these owners are public authorities;

5. Description of management plans: These plans are written for each site, in three parts

- Diagnostic of the natural heritage and socioeconomical data

- Challenges and objectives

- Planning of actions for the next 5 years;



6. Implementing management plans: this is supposed to be scheduled in the document. However, each year, it is necessary to evaluate what has been done, and modify actions according to the evolution of the context.

This is a good point at which to share the results with a local steering committee;

7. Evaluating management plans: the evaluation is based on indicators that are identified in the plan and are linked to the objectives (such as surface area under protection and management, presence and number of targeted species, number of people visiting the site if it is open to the public...).


GROUPS)

Promoters of the action are:

- The Agglomeration of Pau: an urban group of 14 municipalities, with a total population of 150,000 inhabitants on a territory of 18,500 ha (density: about

814 inh/km²). Competences of this local authority:

Economic Development, Spatial Planning, Housing and urban policy, Environment, Highways.

- Cen Aquitaine and technical partners such as birdwatchers, bat specialists, entomologists, geologists, foresters... Cen Aquitaine is a Non

Governmental Organisation dedicated to “protecting biodiversity with the involvement of the territory actors”. Four major missions: Increasing knowledge, protecting, managing and enhancing the heritage of remarkable natural sites, in the Aquitaine Region.

Beneficiary groups include municipalities of the agglomeration, residents as well as elected representatives. One of the challenges was to raise their awareness of the natural heritage of their territory and to implicate them in these actions.


The territory of the action is the Agglomeration of Pau situated in the Department of Pyrenees-Atlantiques,

Aquitaine Region, France. The total inventoried natural areas concern 16 types of variable surface covering a total of 4,900 hectares (more than a quarter, or 27%, of the territory).

Start date: 2004.

Milestone date: 2009 (Inventory / Communication actions).

End date: still in progress in 2011, through the implementation of management plans of natural sites.

RESOURCES

Financial resources:

For the first step of the programme, including inventory, communication actions (5 years - 2004 -

2009), about €72,000, with several sources of funding mobilised, including Agglomeration of Pau (€30,000),

Municipalities (€4,000), Aquitaine Region (€12,000),

General Council of Pyrenees-Atlantiques (€26,000).

Costs details: Inventory: €44,000 / Communication actions: €28,000.

For implementing management plans (from 2009 until now, still in progress):

- Design of the management plans of sites : €23,000 to €50,000;

- Implementation of the management plans (5 years) :

€257,000 (site of Gan) to €368,000 (site of riparian willow forests), €790,000 (site of north forest of Pau).

Other funding: for management plans, other complementary partnerships are solicited (Water

Agency, private foundations…).

Human resources:

For the first step of the programme, including inventory and communication actions (5 years – 2004-2009), about 2.5 Full Time Equivalent (FTE).

For implementing management plans (from 2009 until now and still in progress): about 1.2 FTE/year

- Agglomeration of Pau: 0.1 to 0.2 full time equivalent

(FTE) for the last 5 years;

- Cen Aquitaine: Inventory : 0.5 FTE on 2 years;

Communication actions : 0.1 FTE on 4 years;

Management plans of sites : 0.2 to 0.5 FTE for 2 years each.

...



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Successive achievements since 2004:

2004-2005: Inventory of 16 natural habitats of the agglomeration of Pau, 4,350 hectares in total (i.e. 27% of the territory), including 7 sites classified as “priority

1” (sites of major interest in terms of biodiversity and natural heritage - 900 ha), 5 sites of “priority 2” (600 ha) and 4 sites of “priority 3” (350 ha + 2,500 ha forests).

2005 – 2006: Technical assistance for the protection of natural areas concerned in urban planning documents.

2006 - 2009: Providing information for residents on the results of the inventory.

2006: Technical assistance to the manager of the north forest of the city.

2007: Signature of agreement and implementation of the Management Plan for the fossil site of Gan.

2008: Signature of agreement and implementation of the Management Plan for the willow riparian forest

(along the main river crossing the city).

2011: Signature of agreement and implementation of the Management Plan for the calcareous grasslands of Gan and Jurançon.

The project has resulted in success so far, with the inventory programmes and communication having been agreed by the elected representatives of the agglomeration. Several municipalities have integrated their land property into the projects. Biological continuity is considered and taken into account during the updating of planning documents.

The difficulties encountered included some municipalities proving reluctant to involve their land in the process because they feared jeopardising these areas potentially affected by other projects.


- Continuing the transfer of information on the inventory results;

- Taking action to preserve all the priority sites through management plans;

- Involving residents in inventories;

- Implementing green and blue corridors in the territory of the agglomeration.


Hervé CODHANT (h.codhant@cen-aquitaine.fr, +33 5 59 32 79 57)

David SOULET (d.soulet@cen-aquitaine.fr)

Conservatoire d’Espaces Naturels d’Aquitaine (CEN Aquitaine) - Maison de la Nature et de l’Environnement de Pau

Route de Bordeaux, Domaine de Sers, 64000 PAU, France

+33 5 59 32 16 74

Website: www.cen-aquitaine.fr

Patrick CHAUVIN (p.chauvin@agglo-pau.fr) et Alexia QUINTIN (a.quintin@agglo-pau.fr)

Communauté d’agglomération Pau-Pyrénées Hôtel de France

2 Bis place Royale, 64000 PAU, France

+ 33 8 20 06 40 64

Website: http://www.agglo-pau.fr/

“

Habitat fragmentation has a major impact on biodiversity and is a direct consequence of the development of urban areas. Cities administrators should share their experiences in this field.

The grouping of local authorities is an appropriate scale for conducting this type of operation.

The following tasks must be carried out successively: the identification of natural habitats, raising awareness of the residents and elected officials, and finally the implementation of practical actions to preserve natural sites.

The integration of the connectivity of natural areas must be included in urban planning documents.

”





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UPGRADING MOTORWAY INFRASTRUCTURE

RESTORATION OF FRAGMENTED ECOLOGICAL CONTINUITIES



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


After developing a spatial analysis method for identifying sensitive motorway sections across its entire network, in June 2009 ASF* initiated a biodiversity conservation programme in five French departments. The purpose of this programme is to study the regional ecosystems surrounding motorways to gain an understanding of motorway impacts and implement upgrades jointly designed by stakeholders.

BACKGROUND

The “Grenelle Environment roundtable” is an open multi-party debate in France bringing together representatives of national and local government and organisations (industry, labour, professional associations, non-governmental organisations) on an equal footing, with the goal of defining the key points of public policy on ecological and sustainable development issues for the next five years. The

“Grenelle Environment roundtable” was officially launched on 6 July 2007 – although the name “Grenelle” comes from the first conference bringing all these stakeholders together which took place in May 1968 in the Grenelle street.

The second law (“Loi Grenelle Environnement II”) deals with several work packages, one of them being biodiversity and ecosystem conservation. It notably urges for the setting up of the Green and Blue Network through infrastructures that abide by the conservation of outstanding natural habitats (biodiversity core areas) as well as the biological corridors that connect them.

It offers a way to conserve biodiversity by maintaining and restoring their ecological function.

The leading cause of biodiversity erosion is habitat fragmentation. Connectivity barriers created by linear infrastructure such as motorways are one contributing factor. The ASF programme is a full-scale experiment in restoring habitat connectivity along and across existing motorways by upgrading them to meet the ecological needs of the regions through which they run. This experience is also meant to demonstrate the feasibility of such projects and build momentum for conservation programmes.


Several additional investigations were conducted in order to:

- Analyse habitat connectivity through a spatial analysis method based on landscape ecology and geographical information system tools;

- Identify the use by wildlife of existing engineering structures and the ecological functionality of the green areas or sides of the motorway;

- Suggest upgrades to restore or create terrestrial and aquatic habitat connectivity along and across the motorway;

- Implement projects and conduct environmental monitoring of wildlife use achievements and effectiveness.

Upgrading the motorway infrastructure to ensure that it no longer constitutes a connectivity barrier and restoring ecological function beyond the motorway requires dialogue with all of the stakeholders. Broad consultations were therefore carried out to ensure the consistency and acceptability of every upgrade project and to enable local stakeholders to take the programme on board.




GROUPS)

In each department, a non-profit conservation organisation and an environmental consulting firm were appointed to operate the programme.

The programme is overseen by the ASF Infrastructure

Technical Department with the support of a Scientific and Technical Committee set up for the purpose, which brings together representatives of businesses, research institutes, regional and departmental authorities and government administrations.

A crucial success factor is the participation of ASF motorway operators and local stakeholders, who implement the actions.


The pilot programme covers 420km of ASF’s 2,633 km network and is being carried out in five French departments (Drôme, Hérault, Hautes-Pyrénées,

Gironde and Charente-Maritime). The five departments were selected as being representative of the full range of ecological regions and landscapes through which the ASF network runs. The motorways in these five departments vary in terms of their age, environmental features and traffic. They also differ in the progress they have made on the Green and Blue Network programme.

The unit chosen for the study is the department, but habitat connectivity issues often need to be approached on a regional or even broader scale.

This investigation and consultation phase of the project carried out in each of the five French departments, started in June 2009 and took 14 months to complete.

Work on the upgrades got under way in November 2010 and is scheduled for completion at the end of 2012.

RESOURCES

ASF is investing €15 million in the programme to cover ecological studies (€1.5 million), design, technical feasibility and construction of 19 upgrades and ecological monitoring of the structures built (€13.5 million) over five French departments.

The phase involving the ecological studies required more than 40 people (including 7 engineers and technicians from ASF). By January 2012, nearly 100 people had worked on different projects in progress

(design and construction).


The ecological investigations identified both functional and interrupted ecological connectivity in the five departments. The crossings used by wildlife were surveyed and a study of the strategies used by the various biological groups to cross the motorway or to use green areas along the motorway land provided further useful information. The thousands of recordings and images collected and the hundreds of captures, markings and monitoring of specimens made the characterisation of crossings possible.

The various crossing structure configurations were studied to gain an understanding of their use by mammals (including bats), insects, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. For instance:

- The study of the movements of insects, birds and amphibians above motorways showed the importance of the surrounding habitat structures along the corridors.

- Road kill counts (carried out by vehicle and on foot) provided qualitative and quantitative data on direct fatalities over a full year.

- The botanical and wildlife investigations in the green areas of the motorway land and edges identified species and stopping places previously unknown in the departments.

- On average, 20% of the land reserves associated with these five motorways have strong or very strong ecological value as refuges.

These observations about the fragmentation of ecological continuities lead to consider the need to carry out works of restoration. Existing structures have to be improved to allow their use by more species.

Terrestrial fauna cannot cross motorway via a large number of hydraulic structures because there is no possibility for dry passage inside them. Therefore, to mitigate the disruption or reduction of connectivity, ASF undertook 19 upgrade projects comprising:

- 2 “ecoducts” to foster passage for most animal species across the motorway;

- 8 culverts to create pathways for meso- and micro-fauna;

- 4 benches inside hydraulic structures to provide; passage for animals such as otters and European mink

- 3 conversions of motorway overpasses to dual road / wildlife crossings;

- 1 fish ladder to restore upstream-downstream fish passage that can also be used by semi-aquatic mustelidae;

- 1 experimental project in which daytime backlighting was installed in a hydraulic structure to eliminate the light barrier that prevents insects from crossing it; the project includes a study of its effects.

...

*“Autoroutes du Sud de la France” (ASF) is a French transport infrastructure operator and a subsidiary of VINCI, the world’s leading integrated concession-construction group.

ASF has become the leading motorway network in France and the second largest in Europe



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The ecological conservation programme made it possible to develop new skills and a form of project governance that is fully in line with the Grenelle

Environment Forum (a participative debate organised by the French government, to which many organisations were invited to discuss sustainable development issues).

ASF has decided to extend this programme to cover all operations carried out as part of its environmental management system. VINCI Autoroutes has made a focus on the environment a priority and ASF is committed to making its motorways more and more environmentally friendly.

The entire programme has made it possible to create a basis for exchanging information with the government about future master plans for motorway concessions and thus promoting biodiversity conservation. More broadly, environmental upgrades are a principle of sustainable development and a way to adapt infrastructure to the changing needs of regions as they develop.


Cédric HEURTEBISE

ASF, Infrastructure Technical Department

9 place de l’Europe, 92 851 Rueil-Malmaison cedex, France

+33 4 90 39 96 53 cedric.heurtebise@asf.fr

Website: www.asf.fr

“

The ASF programme presents a replicable methodology to improve motorways or other types of existing linear infrastructure.

The lessons learned during the investigation and the technical difficulties overcome to implement the projects must be used by other stakeholders to promote this approach. Ecological monitoring provides encouraging results and demonstrates that is possible to take practical action.

”





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AÑARBE RESERVE

DESIGNATION OF A FOREST RESERVE ZONE



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Añarbe is a communal forest located in Errenteria

(Basque Country) and occupied by extensive areas of beech wood and the largest oak wood in Gipuzkoa and

Bizkaia, surrounding a reservoir that supplies water to a population of 400,000. In addition to providing drinking water to over half of the population of the

Gipuzkoa province, Añarbe is home to fauna and flora of great interest. It is part of the Aiako Harria Natural Park and Natura 2000 Site of Community Importance (SCI), and the designation of 920 hectares of the communal forest as a Forest Reserve Zone aims to guarantee its conservation. In the Forest Reserve, 51.22 hectares are associated with the Añarbe reservoir. This Forest

Reserve Zone will be the fourth in the Aiako Harria

Natural Park.

The aim of the activity is to designate a new Reserve

Zone in the Aiako Harria Natural Park, larger and with a greater biological value than the three currently in existence. The administrative proposal for this designation was put forward in 2010 by the City Council of Errenteria. It involves:

- Changing the policy of the Natural Park, with the introduction of active policies to restore and reconstruct the original characteristics of the mature forest habitats that centuries ago occupied wide areas of the Basque Country;

- Integrating this new Reserve Zone in the management plan for the Aiako Harria Natura 2000 Special Area of

Conservation (SAC).

BACKGROUND

Añarbe is in the South of the Basque Country, on the western foothills of the Pyrenean mountain chain, in an area facing the Atlantic Ocean (Cantabrian sea).

Añarbe is part of Aiako Harria Natural Park, declared by the Basque Government in June 1995 and covering an area of 6,779 hectares. It is predominantly forest, but is dominated by large areas of commercial exotic wood, highly dependent on public subsidies and economically unstable.

In 2004, the European Union declared this Natural

Park a Site of Community Importance (SCI) ES2120006

“Aiako Harria”, including it in the Natura 2000 Network.

Conservation objectives are mainly aimed at forest and fluvial habitats. The forest types are represented by acidophilic beech forests (Fagus sylvatica) , where a wide range of indicators and specific forest species are distributed, including relict and threatened plants, ferns and invertebrates associated with mature forests with a large presence of dead wood. In addition, large areas of pedunculate oak (Quercus robur) are found in

Añarbe, which – while not constituting habitats included in the Habitats Directive – possess special relevance for the Basque Country, as along the Cantabrian coast they are retreating and are currently quite scarce.

The Añarbe communal mountainside, with a public area of 1,671.74 hectares, has been since time immemorial the public property of the City Council of Errenteria, where the reserve is located, and is registered in the

Catalogue of Mountains of Public Use in Gipuzkoa.

The Forest Reserve Zone will occupy an area of 920 hectares, of which 51.22 hectares are associated with the Añarbe reservoir, which supplies drinking water to 400,000 inhabitants. To create the Forest Reserve

Zone, it is the responsibility of the Basque Government to modify the Natural Park’s policy. Similarly, the Aiako

Harria Special Area of Conservation (SAC) Management

Plan - subject to approval - is also being defined by the


LEGAL PROTECTION AND MANAGEMENT TOOLS TO PROTECT AREAS WITH THREATENED BIODIVERSITY

Government. Management of the Natura 2000 Network corresponds, however, to another regional body, the

Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa.

During the period 2005-09, a LIFE-Nature project was developed in Aiako Harria Natural Park. The creation of the Forest Reserve Zone has no direct link with this project, in the sense that it is not derived from it, nor included in it in any way. However, there is a coincidence in the land involved in both initiatives, and several of the actions developed within the LIFE-Nature project were associated with the improvement of structural complexity in some of the forest and fluvial habitats present in the area of the proposed Forest Reserve

Zone.


This is a local initiative to conserve biodiversity and it arises from a process of public participation initiated within the Local Agenda 21 process. Thus, this action is envisaged in both the Local Agenda 21 Action

Plan for Errenteria (2006-2010), and the Municipal

Environmental Strategy (2009). The City Council of

Errenteria agreed unanimously to proceed to the declaration of Añarbe as a Forest Reserve in November

2009.

The methodology was based on the forest and habitat cartography provided by the Provincial Council of

Gipuzkoa that had been used to identify tree stands containing habitats of community interest (acidophilic beech woods, as well as acidophilic oak woods). As a result, almost 920 hectares were defined as a Forest

Reserve Zone.

In the designation of the Aiako-Harria SAC, the

Forest Reserve of Añarbe was included under the classification of “Natural Evolution Zones”, defined as zones of high ecological value with essential key functional processes for the whole area, or zones requiring minimal intervention in order to protect natural habitats or highly endangered species.

These zones are destined for observing the natural evolution of natural habitats and the wild species present in them. In particular, low intensity actions may be considered necessary to accelerate the evolution of species towards a more favourable state of conservation, and slow down threats that endanger their continuity or ecological integrity. Scientific, educational or general public targeted actions may be implemented, provided that they do not affect this integrity. Among other procedures, the eradication of exotic species is permitted, along with the opening up of small clearings.

In the Añarbe Reserve Zone, activities that may negatively affect the quality of the reservoir waters, or that are not scientific, educational or for public use are restricted. Forestry activities are an exception to this rule and are defined within the area of ecological restoration. They aim to improve the state of the native forests.


GROUPS)

The promoter of the creation of the reserve is its owner, the City Council of Errenteria.

The actors involved with dealing with formal agreements with the Basque Government and the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa, are the Environment Office Manager, the municipal forest ranger, the cartography technician, and administrative staff.

Citizens in general and in particular those of the

Donostia – San Sebastian region, will benefit from this activity. Among the benefits that will be obtained we should highlight the guarantee of a supply of high quality drinking water for the population of the district.


Errenteria, Basque Country.

Start date: November 2009.

End date: June 2012 (expected).

RESOURCES

This action requires no specific material or financial resources.

Human resources:

- Environment Office Manager

- Municipal forest ranger

- Cartography technician

- Administrative staff

...



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Right now, it is not possible to evaluate the results of the action, as it is still in progress. The evaluation will be feasible once the Basque Government finishes writing the management plan for the Special Area of

Conservation (SAC).

The activity was considered to be positive right from the beginning by local decision-makers. Among likely factors for success, the following stand out:

- The fact that the whole Reserve Zone belongs to the municipality of Errenteria makes its requisition simpler.

- The proposal for the designation comes from a public participation process linked to the Local Agenda 21

Action Plan for Errenteria.

- The outstanding biological values of Añarbe have been praised in scientific studies and in management documents at both local and regional level.

- Añarbe acts as a connection element between Natura

2000 sites in Gipuzkoa and neighbouring Navarre.

- Other public bodies that manage water supplies have shown widely favourable opinions on the designation of this reserve.

- Similarly, ecology organisations and the most important conservationists in the region have expressed favourable opinions on the new Reserve Zone, in addition to pressing for an extension of the Natura 2000 site towards land situated north of the SAC, to take in numerous habitats of community interest and provide a suitable protection system.

No obstacles have been encountered, other than opposition by 6-8 local hunters. The hunting sector will hardly see any reduction in hunting areas, particularly for migratory or winter visitor birds such as the woodcock (Scolopax rusticola) , or sedentary mammals such as the wild boar (Sus scrofa) and the roe deer

(Capreolus capreolus) . Even so, in the Aiako Harria SAC there are alternatives for carrying out this activity in thousands of other hectares outside the Reserve Zone, within the Natura 2000 site, as well as in hundreds of thousands of hectares in neighbouring provinces.

Since the whole of the Forest Reserve is on public land belonging to the City Council of Errenteria, the City

Council decided to continue with the designation that was approved in a council meeting.


Future actions:

- Integrate the Añarbe Forest Reserve Zone into all planning and management documents.

- Continue restoring biodiversity values in Añarbe.

What to improve: coordination and collaboration among public authorities involved could be improved further.




Iñaki AZKARATE

City Council of Errenteria, Basque Country, Spain

+349 43 44 96 03 iazkarate@errenteria.net

Website: www.errenteria.net

Website of the LIFE-Nature project: http://www.lifeaiakoharria.net

“

- Value of participatory processes.

- Coordination and collaboration among public authorities is feasible and positive.

- Land planning serves both as an instrument for the protection of biodiversity, and to recognise and communicate its values.

”



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PLANT MICRO-RESERVES

CRETAPLANT - A PILOT NETWORK OF PLANT MICRO-RESERVES

IN WESTERN CRETE

MAICh- Crete, Greece


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Plant Micro Reserves, PMRs, encompass areas of small surface area (less than 20 ha) and have a defined legal status. They aim, ideally in a network form, to protect a selected sample of each of the main populations of the rarest, endemic or most threatened plant species, and to develop plant conservation activities ( in situ conservation, ex situ conservation in seed banks, re-introduction of species, etc.). At the same time, permanent monitoring systems are established in order to record and evaluate plant population fluctuations and tendencies.

Such a patchy network of small protected areas, and the PMR concept in general, should be viewed as a management tool complementary to the generally adopted “large site” strategy that has recently been applied within the framework of the European Network of nature conservation, NATURA 2000.

The project “CRETAPLANT: A Pilot Network of

Plant Micro-Reserves in Western Crete” (a LIFE-

Nature project) constituted the first attempt to apply the innovative concept of Plant Micro-Reserves in

Greece. The project objective was the conservation and enhancement of populations of 6 threatened plant species and one habitat of priority (protected by national legislation, international conventions and the

EU Dir.92/43) through:

1. The establishment of Plant Micro-Reserves areas with a legal status;

2. Fencing, pathway construction and installation of informative signs in PMRs;

3. Installation of a permanent monitoring system for the study of plant populations;

4. Conservation of plants out of the Micro-Reserves, in the botanical gardens of MAICh and the Forest

Directorate and in the MAICh seed bank;

5. The active involvement of local populations as a result of increased awareness and appreciation of nature conservation. Dissemination and collaboration with the local communities and specific target groups: local authorities and administrators, shepherds, hikers, nature lovers, ecotourism operators and eco-tourists, environmental education instructors, students and young people in general.

Another goal of the project was the improvement of the scientific knowledge on the biology, ecology and detailed distribution of the threatened plants, as well as the elaboration for the first time of a long-term monitoring plan. The purpose of the establishment of the areas of Plant Micro-Reserves (with a strict legal status) within the larger areas of NATURA 2000 sites they belong to, was the creation of an efficient legal tool for the management and protection of the habitats and populations of these rare plant species.

Apart from the obvious goal of contributing to the protection of Western Crete’s natural heritage,

CRETAPLANT was a pilot and demonstration project that aimed also to constitute a useful tool and a practical guide towards integrated and sustainable development planning (in the field of biodiversity conservation), at both regional and national level.

BACKGROUND

Around 1990, in the Region of Valencia (Spain), Emilio

Laguna conceived the concept of the “Plant Micro-

Reserve”, PMR, as a novel suggestion for the in situ conservation and management of threatened and rare plants. It was put into practice in 1994 within the



context of a relevant European LIFE project. The idea was successfully implemented, and has been applied in other regions of Spain, Slovenia, Bulgaria and Cyprus.

The Mediterranean bio-geographical region is the most bio-diverse in Europe, boasting a high number of endemic flora on the islands and mountains of the

Mediterranean Sea. Crete is particularly rich in plant life. However, its plants are subject to threats, primarily from human activities, such as tourism, farming

(including the grazing of farm animals), uncontrolled access to important habitats, fires, and habitat modification through deforestation, drainage and climate change. Crete has 14 plant species included in Annex II of the Habitats Directive (92/43) – eight of these have priority conservation status - and the Greek authorities proposed 38 Natura 2000 sites that include populations of these plant species.

The 6 target plant species and the target habitat of the project are all included in the Annexes of the Habitats

Directive, and some of these are also protected by the

Bern Convention, as well as by the Greek national law.


A detailed inventory and mapping process was carried out for each PMR, which recorded the location and density of each species. This information was then used to develop a management plan for each PMR area, all of which were already in public ownership.

Long-term monitoring plans were also drawn up for each species in order to determine the factors that affect their conservation. Some of the parameters monitored included: climate conditions; soil characteristics; interaction with other plants; the presence of animals; and human activities. The project established permanent monitoring plots, with meteorological and environmental sensors.

In collaboration with the Chania Forestry Service, a warden was also hired to guard each PMR.

The project also collected seeds of target species in order to study their germination and assess their viability. The seeds are currently stored in the MAICh

Seed Bank, and seedling nurseries were established in the MAICh Botanical Garden and the Alpine Botanical

Garden at Omalos (mountains of Lefka Ori). These seeds and plants can be used to restore and reinforce the natural populations of the target species.

The visitor centre established at MAICh and the information centre of the Forest Directorate of Chania

(at Omalos) continue to disseminate the project’s goals and results as well as to enhance the environmental awareness of inhabitants and tourists.

...



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GROUPS)

Promoters: The ‘Cretaplant’ project was coordinated by the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

(NKUA) in collaboration with the Mediterranean

Agronomic Institute of Chania (MAICh) and the Forest

Directorate of Chania (FDC) of the Region of Crete.

Target groups: local administration authorities, local inhabitants in the areas of the Micro-Reserves, teachers, school children, students, tourism agencies

(particularly those dealing with alpine tourism and ecotourism), mountaineering & climbing groups, general public.

LOCATION AND TIMESCALE

OF THE ACTIVITIES

The project was realised within the boundaries of three major proposed Sites of Community Importance (pSCIs

- Natura 2000 sites) of the Chania Prefecture in Western

Crete, Greece. Agriculture, stockbreeding and tourism are the main occupations of the inhabitants in most of the wider areas that these sites (and their environs) cover. The Reserves Network in Western Crete (Chania

Prefecture) comprises 7 reserves (of an area less than

10 hectares each).

Start date: September 2004.

End date: December 2007.

RESOURCES

Human resources: Scientists (Plant Biologists,

Conservation experts, Foresters, GIS experts),

Technicians (Field Assistants), Visitor guide, Gardener,

Wardens.

Time spent by the team: Full time equivalent spent by the personnel was 8.48 (40 months).

Activity total funding: €931,650

- EU LIFE Programme funding (75%): €698,738

- National funds (25%): €232,912


The results of CRETAPLANT are as follows:

- In situ and ex-situ conservation of the target plant species and habitats and protocols for seed storage, germination and seedling cultivation (more than 60 different seed lots for the target species and other important plant species of the PMRs collected and preserved in the seed bank; more than 500 different germination experiments conducted for defining the optimum germination protocol for the most important species of the PMRs);

- Reduction of unintentional human impact by access control, full avoidance of trampling, minimisation of the collection of live plant specimens and total exclusion of grazing (affecting all plants) resulted in the enhancement of natural populations through the elimination of browsing pressure on both seedlings and mature plants;

- Environmentally-friendly approach and specific interventions of local authorities (increased awareness of visitors, positive attitude of target groups) through a huge information campaign:

- Events in 8 schools (in the vicinity of PMRs);

- 2 Student Weeks organised at MAICh (May 2006 and 2007, with the participation of over 1300 students in total);

- 7000 20 page booklets distributed (in Greek and

English);

- 500 large posters distributed to students, schools and guests of the Visitors Centre;

- 4000 T-shirts produced, decorated with original coloured drawings of the 7 target plants of the

Project;

- Other events included 3 dissemination meetings for local authorities, 2 seminars for environmental education tutors and 1 seminar for ecotourism operators;

- An experts workshop took place in Chania in

November 2005, with the significant participation of

20 experts on nature conservation and management from Greece and 6 European countries;

- A project movie on DVD (in Greek with English subtitles) was produced for the general public, illustrating nature conservation and Plant Micro-

Reserves;

- A bilingual (Greek and English) website was launched in 2005, hosting all CRETAPLANT activities and additional relevant information;

- More than 10 scientific papers with Project related activities were presented at international conferences;

- 1 Visitor Centre with a permanent Project



Exhibition and 2 Alpine Botanical Gardens were created;

- Improvement of the scientific knowledge about the target plant species and habitats: Inventory

Report with details for the 6 plants/1 habitat targets, detailed digital maps and Management

Plans for each of the 7 PMRs, Monitoring Plans and Monitoring Reports for each of the 7 PMRs and reports on the genetic diversity for the targeted plants (after DNA sequencing analysis for more than 90 different samples);

- Installation of a permanent monitoring system

(including the installation of 9 meteorological micro-stations);

- Promotion of the PMR concept as an alternative tool for natural conservation: The project defined the legal status of PMRs in Greek law, along with the Natura 2000 sites. The proclamation of the 7 PMRs (with an area of 1to 7.2 ha each) as “wildlife refuges” was officially approved in 2009 by the regional authority of Crete.

CRETAPLANT was awarded as one of the best LIFE

Nature projects for 2009 by the LIFE Nature Unit,

Directorate-General for the Environment European

Commission.

No political problems arose, as local authorities agreed to participate in the project’s Advisory Committee in order to be informed and participate in the project’s decisions. Also, local meetings and briefings helped the project to be understood and accepted by the local communities. No financial problems arose either, since funding was sufficient and the continuation of the PMRs does not require a significant cost. Since the PMRs were established on public land, within the boundaries of proposed Sites of Community Importance, their initial status was safeguarded. Moreover the project defined the legal status of PMRs in Greek law, within the Natura 2000 sites.

This action was a pilot project in the area of Western

Crete. The creation and expansion of a network of

PMRs that would cover many and diverse areas in large regions (for example a network of PMRs all along Crete or along Greece or in the Mediterranean), would be more efficient for both the conservation of the biodiversity and the promotion of ecotourism in these regions. In addition, a higher involvement of private land owners in such a network would improve the dimension of ecotourism development, as is the case in Spain: in Valencia, the network includes about

250 Micro-Reserves, some on public land but others on private land whose owners profit from the parallel development of ecotourism activities in the PMRs.

This kind of project could be easily applied to areas with botanical richness such as the European Mediterranean regions.


The CRETAPLANT Project aims to promote alternative, mild economic activities in the reserves, particularly in the tourism sector.

The prospects for the coming years, particularly those concerning the inclusion of PMRs in a framework of sustainable local development, that would be friendlier both to local communities and natural habitats, are summarised as follows:

- Cooperation with tourist agents and alternative tourism groups (hikers, alpinists, cyclists) in order to enhance tourists’ interest and awareness regarding the natural environment of Western Crete and the conservation activities that have been undertaken.

- Cooperation with municipalities for the distribution of information leaflets at tourist points.

- Information meetings with other professional groups

(stock breeders, farmers, trade associations) towards achieving the widest possible social consensus.

- Cooperation with the Management Authorities of

Protected Areas, local authorities and decision-makers for the expansion of the network of PMRs.


Prof. Costas A. THANOS,

Dept. Botany, Fac. Biology, Univ. of Athens,

Athens 15784, Greece tel. +30-210-7274655, fax +30-210-7274656, cthanos@biol.uoa.gr

Christini FOURNARAKI, Biologist MSc,

Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania (MAICh),

Alsyllio Agrokepiou, PO Box 85,

Chania 73100, Greece tel. +30-28210-35053, fax +30-28210-35001 flora@maich.gr

Website: http://cretaplant.biol.uoa.gr

“

The CRETAPLANT experience has taught us all that, apart from the hard work, the secret of success lies in the widest possible interdisciplinary collaborationa as well as in social consensus and synergy.

”



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TERRITORIAL PLAN FOR WETLANDS



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The activity consists of developing a territorial planning instrument to preserve the wetlands in the Basque

Country. The goal of this activity is to preserve and protect all the wetlands of the Basque Country, without distinction as to their relevance. The specific objectives are:

1. Guarantee the conservation of each wetland area’s ecological, landscape, productive and scientific/ cultural values

2. Enable the improvement, recovery and rehabilitation of landscape, fauna, flora and vegetation in impoverished wetland areas, either due to activities incompatible with their structure and capacity, or due to specific negative impacts

3. Establish lines of action that enable given value to natural resources

To this aim, the Territorial Plan for Wetland Areas makes an inventory of all of the wetlands within the

Basque Country and classifies them among different typologies. It takes also into account their conservation value and degree of protection. In those cases in which they are not included in the Basque Network of Natural

Protected Areas, the Plan establishes the regulation of uses and activities in accordance with their capacities.

Regulation is compulsory for 19 wetlands considered very relevant, and in the more than 300 other cases, the

Plan makes recommendations for local authorities. It can be summarised as follows:

- Inventory of the wetlands of the Basque Country;

- Cartography and mapping;

- Specific recommendations for protection according to typologies;

- Classification of 18 types of wetland according to origin and function;

- Compulsory regulation of land uses and activities for

19 wetlands.

BACKGROUND

The wetlands are acknowledged as being one of the richest and most unique ecosystems but, at the same time, one of the most fragile in the biosphere. Numerous protected areas are wetlands. However, regardless of their individual qualities and the protection which some of them receive through nature conservation regulations, wetlands constitute a cultural and natural heritage of great interest in regard to the functions they have and the fact that they support numerous human activities.

In the Basque Country the wetlands were for centuries considered marginal areas, which should be drained and “recovered” for agriculture or in order to allow for urban growth. Thus the wetland areas have been – and still are - suffering serious damage, fundamentally due to the pressures of human activities.

The protection that other legal instruments give to these specific ecosystems is only partial. On the other hand, in many cases the wetland itself does not have enough ecological interest to be protected by the instruments related to Nature conservation. In these cases, territorial planning could be a useful instrument to protect the wetlands.

The tools described in Law 4/1990, of 31 st May, on

Spatial Planning in the Basque Country in order to regulate Territory in the Region are the Spatial Planning

Directives and the Territorial Plans. They represent the general reference framework for land use regulation.

Therefore, the Territorial Plan for Wetlands was seen as the ideal tool to identify, inventory, diagnose, define and establish the protection and regulation of wetlands, while respecting their own particular regime, which has provided them with special protection through legislation on the conservation of nature.




The Territorial Plan for Wetlands is the result of a process of the study and conciliation of different interests along with the forecasts of other sectors.

This process started formally in March 1998, with the approval of the project (or ‘advance’ document) by the Basque Committee for Territorial Planning.

This ‘advance’ included technical and informative documents (inventory, cartography and diagnosis), justification and proposals. Immediately (April 1998), the ‘advance’ was presented to all of the territorial authorities of the Basque Country for analysis. Thirtyfive suggestions and/or comments were received. Some of them were taken into account and the document modified (November 1998). This modified document was to be the document for initial approbation. Prior to the initial approbation, the document was put out for public consultation and 78 suggestions were received. After carefully studying and considering each suggestion, modifications arising from some of these were introduced to the document, which was initially approved in April 2001. From there to the provisional approbation, administrative reports were gathered and

Environment and other control committees saw the proposal and reported on it. The final approbation was reached in 2004 by the Decree.

- Field and desk studies: Technical Document;

- Start of the administrative process (1998):

- Advance document;

- Initial approbation (2001):

- Public participation;

- Gathering of suggestions;

- Discussion;

- Drafting the document for the provisional approbation;

- Provisional approbation (2003):

- Reports from Control committees;

- Drafting document for definitive approbation;

- Definitive approbation (2004): Decree 160/2004, of 27

July, by which the Territorial Plan for wetlands in the

Basque Country comes into force.

consultation (to the authorities or the stakeholders) and/or publication of announcements in the main newspapers.


The action affects the whole territory of the Basque

Country Region (or Euskadi).

Start date: 1998.

End date: 2004.

RESOURCES

The activity was fully funded by the General budget of the Basque Country. The multidisciplinary team in the

Department of Environment and Land Planning was composed of 6 people, working part time on the Plan during the whole process.

External expertise, mainly for field studies, was needed.

External costs were €130,000.


The main outputs of the Plan are:

- Inventory of the wetlands of the Basque Country;

- Cartography and mapping;

- Specific recommendations for protection according to typologies;

- Classification of 18 types of wetland according to origin and function;

- Compulsory regulation of land uses and activities for

19 wetlands;

- Some restoration projects developed;

- Some research projects developed;

- First actualisation of the inventory (2010).

The encountered problems relate to the reconciliation of very different interests to reach a minimum agreement in areas where pressures (economic activities, urban development…) are high. Negotiation has been a means to overcome the problem.


GROUPS)

The Basque Ministry for Environment and Territorial

Planning was the action promoter.

Target groups are mainly the local authorities and citizens in general. Local authorities as well as citizens must abide by the Plan. Local authorities have to apply it to their authorisations. All of them (local authorities, different administrations, stakeholders, researchers, naturalists and the general public) have been informed through the whole process and invited to discuss the proposal at different stages by means of direct


Future steps for improvements include:

- Monitoring;

- Ecosystem restoration;

- Public use compatible with conservation (education, tourism);

- Control for preventing irreparable damages.

Better coordination between research and planning is needed, as well as better communication to the general public. Of course, funding for restoration projects is crucial.


Azucena SALAZAR

Dirección de Biodiversidad y Participación Ambiental - Gobierno Vasco c/Donostia-SanSebastián 1, 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz

+34 (9)45 019544 azu-salazar@ej-gv.es

Websites: http://www.ingurumena.ejgv.euskadi.net/r49-578/es/ www.euskadi.net/biodiversidad

“

The inventory of wetlands is a basic tool for monitoring and is crucial for preventing damage.

Territorial planning reveals itself as a very useful and effective instrument to protect wetlands.

Urbanising projects have been given up or modified because of the Territorial Plan for Wetlands.

”



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9

DEFINING TECHNICAL CRITERIA

FOR REGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION:

URBAN DEVELOPMENT



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Requirements for objectivity at the service of general interest, and the principles of transparency and participation proclaimed in the State Law on

Legal Regime of Public Governments, coupled with experience in environmental management at the regional level, have led to the development of a regional standard for informing the general public on the daily work of the regional environmental administration.

A set of technical criteria enabled the regulation of natural environment aspects (including the preservation of biodiversity), by establishing definitions and harmonising standards for developing activities compatible with the natural value of sites. Some of these technical criteria include issues related to urban development.

The technical criteria are classified into three areas:

1. Authorisation approvals: public servants have a structured system enabling the analysis of specific regulations affecting each domain of the natural environment;

2. Specific preventive measures: standards that any project must meet in order to obtain approval from the Directorate General for the Environment of the

Regional Ministry;

3. Curative, compensatory and environmental improvement measures: in this area, we include all the compensatory measures and incentives to Natura

2000, and measures for the restoration of degraded areas, transplanting plants, or the creation of useful elements for wildlife, among other activities.

These technical criteria are applied to different types of projects having an impact on the environment

(transportation, agriculture, livestock, tourism, marine and hydraulic works, urban development, mining, energy, etc.). Specifically regarding urban development, they provide preventive and corrective measures for projects that have to do with urban development activities.

With the publication of these criteria, two objectives are pursued:

- To give greater transparency to the process of administrative decision-making: therefore stakeholders will be able to know in advance the criteria by which administrative decisions are made and apply the preventive and corrective measures given by the Administration for their projects;

-To facilitate the internal work of the Administration, particularly the work of public servants responsible for handling the various environmental procedures.

BACKGROUND

The Region of Murcia, as part of the Mediterranean area, has a high responsibility for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. In particular, an important (but not exclusive) portion of this biological richness is related to the environmental conditions of the South East Iberian arid area, of great peculiarity, especially in a European context, due to the diversity of habitats (spatial heterogeneity) and to the extended human pressure (deforestation, wild fires, agriculture, grazing, etc.).

Murcia´s Region has an important protected natural heritage represented by:

- 19 Protected Natural Areas;

- 448,690 hectares of Natura 2000 Network;

- 481,783 hectares of Natural and Community Important

Habitats;


COMPLIANCE AND ASSESSMENT TOOLS FOR TAKING INTO ACCOUNT BIODIVERSITY IN LAND PLANNING

- 17 Wildlife Protection Areas;

- 23 Flora and Fauna protected species (Community interest species);

- 18,539 hectares of wetlands;

- 56,455 hectares of Public Forest;

- Ecological Corridors;

- 2,182 km cattle trails, etc.

In order to safeguard the natural heritage of the

Murcia Region, as opposed to the urban development experienced in recent years, and in accordance with state regulations concerning natural protection (Law

4/2007, Natural Heritage and Biodiversity), it has been decided that environmental protection should prevail over urban planning since natural heritage and biodiversity play an important social function through their contribution to the health and welfare of the people, and their role in social and economic development.

Therefore, in order to promote the environmental sustainability of urban development and the conservation of natural environments, the Directorate

General for the Environment developed a set of criteria.


The development of the technical criteria is based on the establishment of a set of tools that streamline the environmental assessment processes for a plan or project, obtaining licenses and permits, and the responses on the feasibility and compatibility with the natural environment of all kinds of public and private projects.

The key steps of the action are:

1. Selection of subjects for development of criteria.

- Ecological corridors;

- Bands of protection (buffer areas);

- Compensatory measures through the conversion of forest areas;

- Countervailing measures for the conditions for Natura

2000 (flora, fauna and Habitats of Community Interest);

- Preventive, mitigating and compensating measures for protected wild flora and fauna;

- Consideration of the natural heritage listed, heritage trees, geological sites, places of interest to botanists, wetland inventory, etc;

- Assessment of Community Interest Habitats outside the Natura 2000 Network;

- Occupation of public forests.

2. Inventory of technical background for each topic.

The sources of information available on the criteria previously used in the various documents of the

Directorate-General, reports, technical assistance, environmental impact statements, etc.

3. Diagnosis of weaknesses and opportunities.

In view of the previous inventory, we proceeded to identify aspects of each topic that should be completed, specified or even corrected.

As far as possible, updated information available through the Internet and literature available from the

Directorate General is integrated.

4. Proposal:

Preliminary technical criteria for regulating aspects of the natural environment.


GROUPS)

The action promoter is the Directorate General for the

Environment (DGE) of the Region of Murcia.

The target groups are private promoters of projects, technical experts on the environment, and the general public.


The territorial scope of application of these criteria is the Autonomous Community of Murcia’s Region.

Start date: June 2008

End date: ongoing

...



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9

RESOURCES

External cost: €40,000, 100% equity capital from the

Directorate General for the Environment.

Human resources: 10 technical experts from the DGE:

- Project Management from the DGE: 2 technical experts (part time)

- External Assistance Staff hired: 3 technical experts

(full time)


These criteria provide greater transparency for the administrative process of decision-making and facilitate the work of public servants, particularly in the processing of the various environmental procedures.

From the point of view of the stakeholders, they will be able to know in advance which criteria will be applied.

These technical criteria include defining areas of influence of the Natura 2000 sites and of protected natural areas, with the established of a minimum protection distance, enabling stakeholders to know if their project affects the Natura 2000 network and therefore requires an appropriate assessment to determine its implications for the Natura 2000 site.

These criteria enable the establishment of buffer zones, consisting of strips of land adjacent to protected areas and Natura 2000 sites, public utility forest and other natural sites, enabling the attenuation of the impacts of different activities or projects. These zones are defined based on the following parameters: 1) Length of the buffer zones, 2) Width of the buffer zones and

3) Activities allowed in the buffer strip.


The success of this activity lies in the knowledge and implementation of the criteria by the stakeholders, so communication tools will be improved. Over the next few years, these technical criteria should be approved by the autonomous community.




C/ Catedrático Eugenio Úbeda, nº 3; 30008 Murcia, Spain

+34 968 228892 http://www.murcianatural.carm.es

ramon.ballester2@carm.es

Website: http://www.murcianatural.carm.es/web/guest/ visor-contenidos-dinamicos?artId=163819

“

It is a good tool for giving greater transparency to the process of administrative decision-making.

Good communication between stakeholders is necessary for the better implementation of the criteria.

”





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10

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT REPORTS

REPORTS ABOUT HOW PLANS AND PROGRAMS CAN AFFECT BIODIVERSITY



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


This case exposes the experience of preparing impact reports about how plans and programmes can affect biodiversity. Reports are issued in application of

Directive 2001/42/EC on the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment, implemented in Spain in Law 9/2006.

These reports regard to the following points:

- Protected natural areas (parks, protected biotopes,

Biosphere reserves, areas of natural interest, and others);

- Locations in the Natura 2000 network;

- Areas of special concern for endangered species of fauna and flora;

- Special protection areas designated within regionallevel land use plans (i.e. wetlands, seashore);

- Native forests;

- Habitat types of Community Interest;

- Ecological connectivity, according to the regional network of ecological corridors;

- Landscape.

These reports are part of the administrative procedure of the environmental assessment of land use plans.

There are no compulsory rules for most of them, so, usually, these recommendations have no binding force.

BACKGROUND

The antecedents of these reports lie in the environmental impact assessment of projects. The

Directorate for Biodiversity has established legal protection for some areas (such as protected areas) for

20 years. Studies to improve knowledge of biodiversity have also been developed. The impact reports use these studies to make environmental impact assessments more accurate.

Reports traditionally include biodiversity elements

(such as protected areas and endangered species).

They underestimate the biological importance of the remaining territory, resulting in insufficient understanding of diffuse ecological processes. For the last fifteen years, occupied soil has increased 18 times more quickly than the population in the Spanish

Basque region; if this trend continues, the whole regional territory will be occupied by infrastructure, residential areas and areas of economic use. Only islands of biodiversity would be retained. The authorities responsible for land planning do try to avoid urban spreading, but not sufficiently. By emphasising the impact on diffuse biodiversity, the reduction of soil occupation is encouraged, without involving any significant element of biodiversity.




In each report, it is considered that the developer of the urban development or land development plan should take into account the following sustainability criteria:

1. Justify the need for the plan in relation to its environmental effects;

2. Justify that the minimum area possible is reclassified in order to satisfy the needs that have been detected;

3. Uncouple the artificialization of land from demographic growth. Reduce the rate of artificialized land per inhabitant;

4. Take greater advantage of artificialized land before occupying new land surfaces;

5. Use up all land designated as suitable for urban development before designating new areas for those purposes. If an area previously designated as suitable for urban development in a planning instrument is deemed to be not suitable later, its designation should be changed accordingly in the planning instrument itself;

6. Avoid affecting special elements of biodiversity

(autochthonous vegetation, habitats of endangered species, habitats of community interest, rivers and streams, wetlands, hedges …);

7. Justify in environmental terms the locations chosen compared to the other alternatives, including the alternative ‘do nothing’;

8. Maintain or improve the overall state of the biodiversity and its capacity to provide environmental services. Give priority to the prevention of environmental damage compared to its compensation;

9. Compensate any effective loss of natural capital considered to be unavoidable. The following elements must be defined in the planning instrument:

- Location of compensation based on a study that defines priorities based on:

- degraded zones which should be recovered

- network of local corridors

- opportunities

- That the area of land where the compensation measures will take place will be effectively attached to the total area being designated, for instance, a plot that will hold uses that will benefit the whole community

- That the cost of the compensation measures is a cost of the urbanisation of the new sector

- That the compensation measures must be carried out before awarding building licences;

10. Avoid the generation of new induced developments and remote urbanisation.

Recently, indicators of environmental objectives and principles of sustainability have begun to be incorporated, such as:

- Area occupied by habitats of interest, both European and regional;

- Area protected by municipal planning (categories of

Special Protection and Protection of Surface Waters, wetlands, imposed determining factors…);

- Percentage of the artificialized area in relation to the total area in the plan;

- Number of inhabitants per hectare of urban and land ready for development;

- Area and density of transport infrastructures.

Furthermore, a checklist has been defined, composed of biodiversity key elements (protected areas, habitats, species, processes, territorial connectivity and landscape) based on the environmental information available in the biodiversity information system of the

Basque Country (http://www.euskadi.net/biodiversity) and in Geoeuskadi (http://www.geoeuskadi.net). The consideration of these elements in the plan is assessed.


GROUPS)

The action promoter is the Directorate for Biodiversity, which is a part of the Environment Department of the Basque Regional Government. The Directorate for Biodiversity acts as a consultation body for the environmental authority in charge of the strategic environmental assessment and the reports issued from part of the administrative report on the environmental evaluation of the plan or programme in question.

The reports will be sent to the town councils, Provincial

Councils, other sector administrations (industry, infrastructures, etc.) and the Committee on Land

Planning in the Basque Country.


This affects the whole Community of the Basque

Country. Reports are written throughout the year and their number depends on the number of plans promoted at different local and sectorial levels. Figures fell in 2011, with 170 reports. The time taken to process each report is variable, depending on the complexity of the plan, and can take between one month and several years.

...



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RESOURCES

In the Biodiversity Office, there is a technician with full time dedication to the elaboration of this kind of report, who has the external technical assistance of a consultancy service which costs around €80,000/year and the sporadic collaboration of other technicians from the same administrative unit.


There are no direct results of impact assessment reports on biodiversity. However, expectations are that these reports improve effectiveness for:

- the compulsory protection of biodiversity elements, through recommendations that are bound by law;

- the availability of information on unknown biodiversity elements, for information is not easily available through other means.

The structure and the contents of the reports must be reviewed and improved continually, bearing in mind the experience acquired and the knowledge available.


The recommendations that are formulated in the reports issued from the Biodiversity Office are not always or sufficiently taken into account by the developers of plans or by the administrations responsible for their approval, but we envisage that the insistence on the need to appropriately consider the conservation needs of Biodiversity will lead in time to them being better appreciated.




Pedro ORTEGA

Basque Government - Directorate of Biodiversity and Environmental Participation

Donostia-San Sebastian, 1

01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz

+34 945016961 pedro-ortega@ej-gv.es

Website: www.euskadi.net/biodiversidad

“

Taking in account diffuse biodiversity elements improves decision-making about land use, and helps to achieve biodiversity protection.

”



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COMMON LANDS LANDSCAPE:

PARTICIPATIVE MANAGEMENT OF A TERRITORY FOR ACTIVE CONSERVATION

OF FARM AND NATURAL BIODIVERSITY

Arsial, Italy


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The safeguarding and governance of Tolfa Mountains was possible thanks to the active participation of local communities associated with the Agricultural

University of Allumiere (from the Latin “Universitas” in the sense of “Universi Cives” that means the “union of all citizens”); the Agricultural Universities are organisations which preserve common rights dating from the Feudal Age and today represent a different development model.

The project is an original way to maintain the presence of a population in an area considered as marginal.

It also enables the active conservation of a farming system which preserves agrarian biodiversity in a natural environment. The operation has the following purposes:

- to increase the empowerment of inhabitants in the management of common lands;

- to practice farming and husbandry in harmony with the natural environment through the introduction of certified organic farming systems, the conservation of free grazing pastures, the active safeguarding (on-farm conservation) of autochthonous animal populations

(Maremmano cow, Tolfetano horse, Roman Latium

Maremma horse, Allumierasco donkey);

- to exploit the Agrarian University’s directly-managed organic farm, growing organic durum wheat, and forage (horse bean, oat, hay) necessary to feed the

Maremmana cattle;

- to recognise, and use for productive goals, the common social capital (creation of micro enterprises, cultural valorisation of the skills);

- to enhance traditional quality products, Maremmana beef (typical breed of this environment, characterised by lyre-shaped horns, freely raised on poor pastures rich in spontaneous plants giving peculiar organoleptic properties to the meat), spontaneous vegetables and herbs, mushrooms, chestnuts and berries;

- to enhance the contribution of landscape in the economical development of the area through enlarging the rural touristic offer (horse riding, archaeological tours, farm reception);

- to protect the natural biodiversity and in particular the beech forest of Allumiere. The “Mesophyll low forest of Allumiere” Site of Community Importance (SCI) covers 628 ha at a mean altitude of 428 m above sea level. The SCI includes a priority habitat, “Apennines

Beech Woods”, enlisted into the Habitat Directive of the European Union. The beech forest of Allumiere is peculiar as it is situated below the usual altitude for Apennines beech woods (1200-1800 m above sea level). At this site, peculiar climate conditions enable us to find, only 13 km from the sea, a relict of the lost ice ages.

BACKGROUND

The peculiar common utilisation of the lands that had been developed in a sustainable way over the centuries by the Agricultural University of Allumiere initiated this project.

Before the Unification of Italy, the land was owned by the

Romana Apostolic Chamber, heritage of the Pontifical

State and, over the course of centuries, inhabitants were allowed different additional rights (firewood, berries and other wild fruit picking, and animal grazing); at present there is a system of common ownership. The common organisation management is ruled by National

Law 1927 n. 1766 and National Law 1930 n. 1078. In

1977, the responsibility was transmitted to regions thanks to Republic President Decree n. 616.


DEVELOPMENT OF BIODIVERSITY-LINKED LANDSCAPE HERITAGE

The Agricultural University of Allumiere is a public institution. The University is an administrative and management body that is subject to Municipal,

Regional and National Laws. This kind of institution is called a “Land management body”. The commons are the property of the local community residents of the area. The University is an elective body. The members of the Directive Board are elected by the commoners.

The electoral base is constituted by all the members

(shareholders). Members of the Agricultural University of Allumiere are all residents, regardless of voting age and employment status, and have been permanent residents of the municipality of Allumiere for at least

5 years. Later, the Università Agraria obtained a legal private statute and became autonomous. Its statutes and norms are subject to approval by the Regional body.

The Grazing Rights (“Fida Pascolo”) statute rules the relationships among the entitled to the allowed rights

(“Utili essenziali”), and these are described by specific rules that limit grazing areas, grazing seasons, kinds of animal entitled (donkeys, horses and cows, versus sheep, goats and pigs, which are banned) and the administrative requirements.

In 1999, 500 hectares owned and managed directly by the University organisation were dedicated to organic farming (however owing to the characteristics of the territory and for the type of the husbandry, the farm had been organic “ante litteram” for 500 years). The area has a high natural value from the point of view of vegetation, birds and fish fauna and was appointed as an SPA (Special Protected Area) in the Birds Directive and as a SCI (Site of Community Importance) in the

Habitat Directive of the Latium Region. It has been listed under the Nature 2000 Network, the European network of sites designed for biodiversity conservation, and it is protected by the laws ruling the two directives.

Moreover, on-farm conservation of populations of local breeds of horses, cows and donkeys was started according to Regional Act 15/2000 (see Good Practice n°2, Chapter 1).


Research on good practice for:

- Best management of the common heritage:

- Exploitation of a organic farm for on-farm conservation of genetic resources compatible with the peculiar conditions of the Tolfa Mountains;

- Attribution of pasture fields for 5 years or more to allow breeders to access the Lazio Rural

Development Plan 2007-2013 (EU FESR);

- Inclusion of requirements present in SCI/SPAs and Habitat and Birds Directives in the Forest

Management Plan.

- Increasing empowerment of inhabitants in the management of common lands;

- Developing and using social capital for production

(creation of micro enterprises and cultural valorisation of skills).


GROUPS)

- The “Agricultural University of Allumiere” as a structure for implementing the action;

- Farmers entitled to University rights;

- The local community;

- National and international tourists interested in cultural, natural and oenological-gastronomic traditions;

- Schools of different types interested in studying biodiversity and environmental protection.



The “Agricultural University of Allumiere” is situated

North of Rome in the Tolfa Mountains (Delle Grazie

Mountain, 616 m above sea level) near the Tyrrhenian

Sea, mainly located in the municipality of Allumiere, but also including parts of the municipalities of

Civitavecchia, Santa Marinella and Tolfa (Rome district).

Total municipality land 9,230 ha; Popul. 4,187 inhabitants; Common lands 6,812 ha; Agricultural soil 3,939 ha; Forest and semi-natural areas 5,218 ha;

Urban areas 73 ha; SCI 710 ha - SPAs 4,000 ha.

The municipality of Allumiere and foundation of the

Agricultural University of Allumiere were founded in

1826 and became active in 1868 with the attribution of a large area from the Tolfa municipality (6,500 hectares of common lands). The Agricultural University of Allumiere is the largest managing organisation of common lands in Italy, with a territory of 6,500 to 7,000 ha.

Spring 1999: start of the conversion period of 500 ha to organic farming with direct management.

RESOURCES

Human resources:

- Local residents: about 5,000

- Inhabitants entitled to undertake cattle-raising: about

150 micro farms

- Staff of the organic farm of the Agrarian University: approximately 12 full-time employees

...



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- Administration of the Agrarian University: approximately 5 full-time employees.

Economic resources (yearly budget of the Agrarian

University) include both ordinary and extraordinary funds:

Ordinary funds (impact on the budget entry of 70%)

- Agrarian University’s commoners service institutional activity has an active yearly budget thanks the management of the collective heritage. This heritage is constituted of “collective lands” which are directly managed by the Agrarian University and “private lands” whose rights belong to the community, better known as “civic uses”. These rights are managed by the

Agrarian University for the Municipality of Allumiere.

There is no public ordinary funding for the Common lands, since they are the “common propriety of a private juridical nature”. This doesn’t mean that these

“lands” are private property, nor that they belong to a public entity but that they belong to a community of private citizens. So the funds for managing and administrating the “common lands” come from the same “common lands”, through the revenues obtained by pastures concessions, wood (for cutting), hunting and mushroom picking licenses, herb selling, lands rents, according to consolidated practices of the collective patrimony which are prescribed by the current norms. Furthermore, part of the “collective lands” is exploited directly by a biological farm whose contribution increases significantly the budget.

Extraordinary funds (impact on the budget entry of

30%):

- Agro-environmental Benefits of Public Funding (Lazio

Development Rural Plan):

- 214.8 Incentive payments for local breeds (protection of autochthonous animal genetic resources);

- 214.2 Incentive payments for organic crops and breeding;

- Regional Law 43/88: financial support to organisations managing common lands on the basis of employed staff and managed landscape;

- EU grants, LIFE programme for interventions aiming at the conservation of specific habitats in SPAs in a general context of common ownership (pasture enhancement and forest heritage safeguarding);

- Regional laws 10/2005 and 472006: financial support for SPA areas.


Practical results include:

- An increase in the consumption of local products, the opening of a direct selling point for Maremmana breed beef; durum wheat bread and bakery products; chestnut and spring flower honey; horse-chestnuts and chestnuts;

- an increase in the diversification of activities linked to territorial and farm management, characterisation of local breeds such as the Allumiere donkey, Tolfetano and Roman Latium Maremmana horses, and on-farm conservation of local breed Maremmana cow;

- Rural tourism, touristic routes and farm accommodation, horse riding tourism (riding routes, horse therapy);

- Education for the schools (educational farms, guided tours, naturalistic routes);

- Forest management, forest conservation techniques

(periodical coppice cutting), productive utilisation

(truffle and mushroom collection, chestnut tree logs), production of firewood for domestic use;

- Water source utilisation projects and rational distribution of water;

- Research on environmental aspects and projects to increase fruition;

- Pasture maintenance: turnover and enhancement.

The success and validity of the actions carried out have been acknowledged by external regional and national

European organisations, notably through:

- Organisation of organic production control;

- Adhesion to the genealogical register for the

Maremmana cow;

- Registration in the genealogical register for the

Tolfetano horse;

- Registration in the Regional Voluntary Register of

Regional Act 15/2000 (see Good Practice n°2, chapter

1) for the Maremmano horse and the Allumiere donkey;

- Registration in the genealogical register for the

Maremmano horse breed (ANAM Italian breeders association);

- Proposition of a Protected Origin Appellation for

Maremmana meat;

- Presence of local products on the national list of traditional products, Ministerial Decree 350/99;

- SCI and Nature 2000 Network sites.

Problems encountered:

The common lands of this area overlap with the Natura



2000 area (SCIs and SPAs). The norms stated in Nature

2000 are different to those in the Forest Management

Plan stated in Regional Act n. 39/2002. Nature

2000 and the Habitat Directive 92/43/CEE and Birds

Directive 79/409/CEE set strong limits on grazing and woodcutting activities, severely limiting the exercise of the commoners’ rights which are constitutionally granted. The fact that the commoners, who have exercised centuries-old rights, could have limited or null access to the resources and to the area determines a loss of traditional activities, and a loss in terms of the territory’s safeguarding, increasing the risk of fires and forest deterioration.


- To diversify activities linked to farming, thanks to the introduction of a new multifunctional model: the realisation of a social farm

- To value the material and non-material heritage of the territory thanks to actions on non-material issues: research on the social capital of Allumiere cattle breeders, in collaboration with ARSIAL and the

Psychology Department of the University of Rome “La

Sapienza” (anthropology and social studies)

- To innovate and transform rules in order to give more response to common rights necessities, without upsetting the historical roots: participation in the

EU INTERREG IVC “Commons – Common land for sustainable management” project, in particular relating to the good practices proposal on the fruition of common rights and in the relationship between the managing organisation and commoners: www.commons-interreg.eu


Aldo FREZZA (President) and Luigi ARTEBANI (General Secretary)

Università Agraria di Allumiere

Piazza della Repubblica, 29 - 00051 Allumiere (RM) Italy

+39 0766 96031 segreteria@uniagraria.it

Website: http://www.uniagraria.it/

Massimo TANCA

ARSIAL (Agenzia Regionale per lo Sviluppo e l’Innovazione dell’Agricoltura del Lazio)

Via Lanciani, 38, Rome, Italy

+39 0686273454 m.tanca@arsial.it

Website: www.arsial.it

“

- The common lands, thanks to the absence of fragmentation, are able to guarantee the survival of extensive cattle breeding through the use of autochthonous breeds and quality production.

- The prevention of environmental degradation is made possible only through active management.

- The market value of a farming product typical of a territory is mainly composed of non-material factors, such as landscape preservation, considered a main element of development in marginal areas.

- Nowadays, landscape heritage governance is based on the interaction between conservation and economic and social development, where rural inhabitants continue their activities according to and in respect to available resources. In this new perspective, well managed commons play a newly discovered role, and represent a valid instance as well as a good practice.

- Civic uses are the only existing goods in Italian law that are neither private nor public property, but are owned by a population as a whole and as single commoners. The good is reserved only for the original community, which was entitled to it as a form of survival. The community preserves the good and rules its utilisation through acts of direct democracy (users’ meetings). The conservation of these goods exclusively dedicated to farming and husbandry is guaranteed through historic customs or by definition in law.

- The historical-cultural values to be saved through common ownership are not only of aesthetic or landscape value but also represent a particular kind of territorial management. This process conciliates the utilisation of resources with the safeguarding of irreplaceable goods and enables the participation of the single inhabitant in decision-making processes involving his own habitat.

”



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LANDSCAPE CHARTER

PROMOTING THE ATTRACTIVENESS OF A TERRITORY THROUGH ITS PRESERVED

LANDSCAPE HERITAGE



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The elected representatives of the “Val de Garonne-

Gascogne” area have decided to develop and implement a policy aimed at protecting and enhancing landscapes, the living environment and biodiversity. The underlying goal was to increase the attractiveness of the “Val de Garonne-Gascogne” area, notably for the young active population, in order to maintain the population dynamics of the territory.

First, a landscape charter was developed (in 2008-2009) with support from a private company specialising in town planning and landscape architecture (Folléa

Gautier). On the basis of a detailed diagnostic, this charter provided a strategy for the future life environment of the territory.

A number of activities were then identified, classified under four themes:

1. Urban planning: for cities and towns that are pleasant to live in:

- To act for the quality of urban life: residential areas, economic activities and tourist facilities;

- To consolidate village and city centres as key areas for social life;

- To restrict areas consumed by new urbanisation;

- To preserve the rural character of villages;

- To enhance the image and attractiveness of town outskirts and create new centres;

- To counteract the trivialisation of urbanised landscapes and to “reinvent” a local character for urban planning and architecture.

2. Agriculture: for agricultural areas to be part of the living environment:

- To restore the richness and diversity of agricultural landscapes, particularly in the plains and hills, to encourage the adoption of specific farming practices near developed sites and to stop urbanisation on farmed hill slopes;

- To exploit the areas of transition between urban and agricultural zones for the benefit of tourism and local life;

- To encourage a greater diversity of forest landscapes in the “Landes de Gascogne” area.

3. Water: for the Garonne river and waterfronts to be more attractive:

- To encourage the ecological quality and the “quality of landscapes” of rivers, lakes and their banks;

- To promote public access to waterfronts;

- To take into account non-agricultural uses of rural areas (hiking, development of rich and diversified natural sites...).

4. Roads: to diversify and enhance the travel routes of the territory

- To show the territory at its best from the major road and rail traffic;

- To diversify and typify entry points for towns and villages;

- To rehabilitate crossings in towns and villages;

- To facilitate walking and cycling;

- To enhance the country’s rural heritage.

This is the heart of the policy in favour of landscape in the Garonne Valley. It is notably reflected in all local land planning strategies, including the “SCOT”

(“scheme of territorial coherence”) regulatory land management document for the Garonne Valley.

Moreover, practical tools have been created to implement this policy such as a digital herbarium of trees that are local or well adapted to the territory.

The implementation of this policy was made possible by the European LEADER programme, which is an important financial tool to help to achieve applied



local activities, such as: planting local species of trees, creating sales of local farm products, and rehabilitating crossings in towns.

By preserving and increasing diversified landscapes, this policy helps to protect and increase biodiversity by supporting activities in favour of biodiversity, e.g. the reintroduction of natural hedges and copses.

BACKGROUND

First the elected representatives of the “Val de

Garonne” highlighted the need to develop activities aiming to increase the attractiveness of the territory.

The enhancement of the varied local landscape seemed a good way to achieve this goal.

At the same time, the work undertaken to carry out the “Val de Garonne” “SCOT” (scheme for territorial coherence) land planning document underlined that preserving and enhancing landscapes were an opportunity to increase the attractiveness of the territory.

As a result, the elected representatives decided to conduct a global reflection on landscapes at the large scale of the territory “Pays Val de Garonne-Gascogne”.

The project “to promote the attractiveness of the area by enhancing landscapes” was defined, targeting three major objectives:

- To raise awareness of landscapes, via cultural and scenic events;

- To improve the living environment and to enhance the image of the landscape heritage;

- To manage, monitor and support the transformation of the landscape.

In 2008 this project was approved by the European

LEADER programme, thus receiving €1,400,000 from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development

(EAFRD) to implement it.


In a search for coherence and the implication of local actors, the development and implementation of the landscape policy is based on a threefold process:

1. Dialogue: this enabled the definition of the strategy outlined for the application to the LEADER programme

(via the “Development board” and working groups). It has also been used in the preparation of the landscape charter, through thematic workshops.

2. Raising awareness: an essential step to ensure political involvement in the landscape policy. This enabled all elected officials and local stakeholders to become aware of the importance of landscapes, including the attractiveness of the territory. It resulted in the organisation of the “Transversal landscape”: 3 days for elected members to discover landscape and the lines of the landscape charter, and a symposium on landscape entitled “What role for landscapes in local development policies?”.

3. Design and implementation of an action plan: resulting from the two previous stages, the action plan aims to manage, monitor and support the transformation of the landscape, and at the same time to set goals for maintaining a quality landscape.


GROUPS)

The “Pays Val de Garonne-Gascogne” is the promoter of the action. This is the association of local public entities: the Val de Garonne agglomeration, the

Community of municipalities of the “Coteaux et Landes de Gascogne” and the municipalities of Casteljaloux,

Fauillet and Montpouillan.

Many dissemination activities aimed at the elected representatives and also the general public have been conducted in order to present and implement this landscape policy, and also to divulge the funding possibilities offered by the LEADER programme: minutes of the symposium on landscape; a web page dedicated to “SCOT and the LEADER programme”; an information leaflet about the LEADER programme for potential project leaders (mayors, farmers, inhabitants)

– 1,000 copies; a newsletter about the “SCOT” land planning regulatory tool with a focus on landscape

(27,000 copies); a set of illustrations on local species of plants (mostly trees) as a practical tool to implement actions according to the landscape policy; and many press articles.

...



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12


The location of the activity is the territory of the “Pays

Val de Garonne Gascogne”, a 1,220 km² rural area involving 58 municipalities and 60,000 inhabitants, situated in the Eastern part of the Aquitaine region.

Its landscapes combine the valley of the Garonne, the

Marmande hinterland, the lands of Pechs and the

Cocumont hills.

Start date: January 2008 launch of the LEADER project

“To promote the attractiveness of the area by enhancing landscapes” (application presented in 2007, approved in 2008 by the LEADER programme).

Milestone date: 2009 Local Landscape Charter -

Summer 2009, launch of the SCOT Val de Garonne

End date: in progress.

RESOURCES

Staff: equivalent to 2 people full time.

External costs cover:

- Expertise for carrying out the Landscape Charter

(€80,000 before tax) and “Transversal landscape” conference and symposium: €5,725 (before tax);

- Various communication actions linked to the landscape policy.

All of these actions were financed at 80% by the

LEADER programme, with the following breakdown:

55% of EAFRD, 12.5% of Aquitaine Region funds and

12.5% Lot-et-Garonne Department funds.

Moreover, actions carried out by towns, farmers, associations or citizens, in the framework of this

LEADER project “to promote the attractiveness of the area by enhancing landscapes”, can also generally be co-financed up to around 80% by public funds.


To date, the main result is the collective awareness about the importance of landscapes for the development and attractiveness of the territory. In addition, some landscape improvement activities have already been conducted.

The main challenge was to underline the theme of landscape and give it a prominent place within the concern of elected members of the local authorities.

For this purpose, political support, funding related to the LEADER programme and the emergence of the “SCOT” land planning document have played an essential role. As a result:

- Some elected members took up this issue and placed it at the heart of the debate, enabling the definition of a landscape policy. Notably, the 3 Co-Presidents of the

“Pays”, the President of the “SCOT” and the Presidents of local tourist offices have been a crucial driving force.

- Members of the Programming Committee of LEADER

(decision-making body of the programme) play the role of spokesperson for the activities and guarantee respect for the objectives.

- The cross-disciplinary nature of landscapes

(related to the economy, housing, environment ...) enabled associating this topic at every stage of the implementation of the “SCOT” land planning regulatory tool.

The main issue relates to the administrative burden imposed by the LEADER programme, which somewhat slowed the implementation of the strategy.

This landscape policy appeared to be a good approach to dealing with different problems like biodiversity preservation, because the theme of landscape is quite consensual.


The success of the first actions should reinforce the credibility of such a policy around landscape. This success should also help to increase the intensity and impact of the activities.

Finally, the aim is that the “Pays Val de Garonne-

Gascogne” be recognised as a pilot area for enhancement of the landscape, at the national or even the European level.

Today discussions have been initiated on the creation of land monitoring, a landscape observatory (including

80 viewpoints, to follow the transformation of the landscape), an atlas of biodiversity and a policy in favour of organic farming.




Clément INFANTI

Pays Val de Garonne – Gascogne

Maison du développement

Place du marché BP 305

47213 MARMANDE CEDEX

+33 5 53 64 96 62 cinfanti@cc-val-de-garonne.fr

Website: www.vg-agglo.com (see LEADER section)



125

13

DECLARATION: BIODIVERSITY IN CITIES AND MUNICIPALITIES ttz Bremerhaven, Germany


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


2010 was the international year of biodiversity.

Therefore several activities have been undertaken in Germany. One of them was the development of a declaration regarding the protection of biodiversity in urban spaces. The declaration is a voluntary selfcommitment for cities, municipalities and counties and it is part of the implementation process of the national

Strategy on Biological Diversity at a communal level.

The participating German cities and municipalities accepted the challenges and the need to strengthen local biodiversity by signing the declaration.

The declaration comprises suggestions regarding how German cities and municipalities can act in a biodiversity friendly manner in the following areas:

- Green and open spaces in settlement areas, e.g.:

- Development of intelligent urban planning concepts; which integrate compact constructions such as an appropriate population density and urban greening in settlement areas;

- Organic maintenance of public green areas inter alia with the greatest possible reduction of pesticides and fertilisation and less frequent trimming;

- Species and biotope protection, e.g.:

- Involvement in the development of biotope connection systems (corridors) and protected areas;

- Protection of ecologically sensitive areas from the influence of genetically-modified cultivated plants and pollutants.

- Sustainable use, e.g.:

- Promotion of environmentally compatible forms of agriculture and forestry;

- Development of intelligent public transport concepts to avoid the extension of traffic areas and the associated fragmentation of natural areas which are close or within settlement areas;

- Raising awareness and cooperation, e.g.:

- Promotion of sustainable and environmentally friendly tourism concepts;

- Strengthening of educational work and the range of information on local biodiversity e.g. forest nursery schools, school gardens and natural trails in urban green spaces.

With their signing of the declaration the municipalities have committed to preserve and strengthen local biodiversity within their capabilities.

BACKGROUND

Biodiversity is threatened. All over the world almost two thirds of all ecological systems and animal and plant species are classified as “threatened”. In addition to this, there is a great loss of genetic diversity with unforeseeable effects on future generations (e.g. food and health). In Germany, more than 70 percent of the natural habitats are endangered. The national and international efforts to decelerate or stop the loss of biodiversity are as yet inadequate. Therefore it is necessary to increase efforts from all actors on all levels to preserve biodiversity.

Cities and municipalities have a special position, because they represent the political level which is closest to the people. Their broad tasks of planning and administration and the decisions involved play an important role for preserving the local biodiversity. They also have the possibility of raising public awareness of issues of biodiversity at a communal level.


PROACTIVE AND COOPERATIVE PUBLIC COMMITMENTS IN FAVOUR OF BIODIVERSITY

Aspects of biodiversity will be taken into consideration during the urban development of German cities and municipalities. Requirements for preserving local biodiversity will be included in communal decisions.

But the cities and municipalities can only pursue these targets, given their financial situation, with support from the federal and state levels and therefore they emphasise a cooperative approach. The signatory municipalities work towards the implementation of financial frameworks and basic knowledge in order to maintain biodiversity systematically.


The German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation, the German Environmental Aid Association and 30 municipalities developed the declaration in close cooperation,. Together they identified four core areas where cities, municipalities and counties can tackle activities to preserve biodiversity on their local level.


GROUPS)

The promoter of the action is the German Federal

Agency for Nature Conservation and the German

Environmental Aid Association.

Target Groups are cities, municipalities and counties in Germany.


Every city or municipality in Germany which wants to implement actions in the field of biodiversity is invited to sign the declaration.

Start date: 01/02/2010

End date: on-going

RESOURCES

The required financial resources for the development of the project were provided by the German Federal

Agency for Nature Conservation and the German

Environmental Aid Association. The precise costs involved are not published.


As a result of the cooperation between the German

Federal Agency for Nature Conservation and the

German Environmental Aid Association, in partnership with 30 municipalities, the declaration “Biodiversity in cities and municipalities” was published on May 22,

2010 . This self-commitment from the municipalities to act proactively was signed, in the meantime, by more than 211 municipalities, cities and counties (as of September 2011). Well above the expected number of municipalities have declared their readiness to integrate biodiversity preservation as a fundamental principle for their future urban development.

The very positive response from the municipalities to the declaration “Biodiversity in cities and municipalities” testifies the strong interest in this subject and the willingness of numerous municipalities to join in an alliance for biodiversity.


The declaration is the start of a long-term process.

The signatory municipalities have expressed their willingness to join in a communal alliance for biodiversity. This alliance should represent a platform to support inter-communal cooperation and the exchange of information and knowledge as well as the dissemination and initiation of good practices in order to implement the national strategy for biodiversity.

The opening event of this alliance was on February

1 st /2 nd , 2012. It provided members (65 of the 211 cities, municipalities and counties which signed the declaration showed their interest to become a member) with several support activities, e.g.:

- annual workshops on the subject areas of the declaration (Green and open spaces in settlement areas, species and biotope protection, sustainable use, raising awareness and cooperation);

- regular newsletters for the members;

- creation of surveys and synopses, which are essential for the members.


Theresia LUCKS /Umweltschutzamt

+49 471 590-2528

Theresia.Lucks@magistrat.bremerhaven.de

Websites: http://www.kommunen-fuer-biologische-vielfalt.de/ http://www.biologischevielfalt.de/ http://www.bfn.de/

“

Cities, municipalities and counties play an essential role in biodiversity protection. Over 200 of them have signed declarations showing their willingness to bring tangible improvements and to implement the National Strategy on Biological Diversity on a local level.

”


PROACTIVE AND COOPERATIVE PUBLIC COMMITMENTS IN FAVOUR OF BIODIVERSITY

127

128


TOURISM AND BIODIVERSITY

Tourism is a highly dynamic sector that can represent a real threat to biodiversity. Although there is little regulation in this sector, regional strategies can help to conciliate conflicting forces which oppose tourism development with biodiversity conservation (1).

However, on a small-scale, some tourism, such as ecotourism, is based on the observation and understanding of nature and even contributes to raise visitors’ awareness of the subject of biodiversity (5, 6, 7 and 8).

Furthermore, many examples demonstrate that biodiversity conservation, development and promotion can serve tourism’s purposes and vice-versa. For instance, in protected areas, developing biodiversity-friendly tourism may yield income and positive returns, as regards site management (2, 3 and 4). In some cases, agri-tourism is based on cultivated biodiversity (9 and 10) whilst the heritage value of biodiversity is often the driver of cultural tourism activities (11, 12 and 13).

129

CONTENTS

CASE STUDY

NUMBER

REGIONAL STRATEGIES FOR RECONCILING TOURISM AND BIODIVERSITY

1 REGIONAL STRATEGY FOR CONSERVATION

AND SUSTAINABLE USE OF BIODIVERSITY IN TOURISM

SPAIN

132

BIODIVERSITY-FRIENDLY TOURISM MANAGEMENT IN PROTECTED AREAS

2

3

QUALITY LABELS FOR TOURISM IN PROTECTED NATURAL AREAS

4

MANAGEMENT OF THE NATIONAL PARK OF SAMARIA

GREECE

SPAIN

NATURE ON TOUR: PROMOTION OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM

ITALY

136

140

144






Overexploitation

Soil erosion



ECOTOURISM FOR ATTRACTING VISITORS AND BIODIVERSITY

AWARENESS RAISING

5

6

AQUITAINE NATURE DAYS:

EDUCATION AND DISCOVERY OF BIODIVERSITY

FRANCE

ALVIANO LAKE: ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

AND BIRD WATCHING

ITALY

7

DISCOVERING VULTURES, LOCAL ECOTOURISM INITIATIVE

FRANCE

8

GEOCACHING

GERMANY

@ NATURE

TOURISM BASED ON AGROBIODIVERSITY

9

BLACK PIG: INCREASE IN VALUE OF A LOCAL BREED

ITALY

10

APICULTURAL ROAD: BEEKEEPING EDUCATIONAL PATHWAY

SLOVAK REPUBLIC

156

160

146

150

152

154








OF THE ACTION








HERITAGE VALUE OF BIODIVERSITY AS A PROMOTING TOOL FOR TOURISM

11

12

13

“GOURMET MUSEUM OF HERITAGE VEGETABLES”

FRANCE

PARCHINMOSTRA- TOURING EXHIBITIONS

ITALY

EXCURSIONS WITH HISTORICAL PEAT BOATS

GERMANY

162

164

166






BENEFICIARIES






TARGETED AREAS




Mountains

Forests

Natural areas

1

2 3 4

5 6 7 8

9 10

11 12 13

1

REGIONAL STRATEGY:

TARGETING CONSERVATION AND SUSTAINABLE USE OF BIODIVERSITY IN TOURISM



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The Regional Strategy for the Conservation and

Sustainable Use of Biodiversity foresees the elaboration of an Action Plan about Biodiversity in tourism. The specific objectives of this plan are:

- To incorporate principles of sustainability and conservation as a quality criterion of tourism activity;

- To combine the development of tourism with land zoning at local and regional level and biodiversity conservation policies.

Key objectives of the whole Regional Strategy are:

- To foster cooperation among stakeholders;

- To integrate biodiversity into sectoral policies;

- To create mechanisms for natural resource management;

- To promote research, knowledge and training on biodiversity;

- To foster communication and education for biodiversity;

- To articulate policy and financial instruments;

- To promote interregional cooperation;

- To integrate biodiversity conservation in municipal policies.

BACKGROUND

The Region of Murcia, as part of the Mediterranean area, has a high responsibility for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. In particular, an important (but not exclusive) part of this great biological richness, unique in Europe, is related to the arid conditions in the Iberian South East. It has its origin in the diversity of habitats (spatial heterogeneity) and in the traditional human activities of the last centuries, having low-intensity disturbances such as deforestation, wild fires, agriculture, grazing, etc. The loss of biodiversity also concerns areas with less severe conditions from the point of view of water availability, such as the mountains of the interior, which provide shelter and represent the distribution limit of many species, some of them endangered.

The tourism sector has had a growing development in the Region of Murcia. Residential urban growth on the coast has led to the demise of large tracts of ecosystems that are particularly valuable for their rarity (salt marshes, sand dunes) and environmental perturbations on some coastal mountains and in particular on the Mar Menor lagoon.

Urban growth is a corollary to the demand for efficient means of transport and services, involving bigger road infrastructures and more facilities impacting environment. The explosion of the summer population in the coastal areas increasingly pressurises water and energy resources, increases waste production and threatens terrestrial and marine habitats.

On the other hand, there is an emerging rural tourism market whose main appeal lies in the enjoyment of well preserved natural areas. This alternative tourism provides an important opportunity to promote rural development and could easily contribute to the reduced deterioration of natural areas.

132 TOURISM AND BIODIVERSITY

REGIONAL STRATEGIES FOR RECONCILING TOURISM AND BIODIVERSITY


The Regional Strategy has its origins in the Spanish

Strategy for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity (approved in December 1998), which emerged as an institutional response to the demands of the Convention on Biological Diversity (ratified by

Spain in 1993). The purpose of the Regional Strategy is to apply in the Murcia Region the principles of the Convention on Biological Diversity, which are to promote a flexible framework enabling integration of conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in plans, programmes and sectoral policies, thus establishing a long-term policy.

According to the requirements, guidelines, recommendations and commitments of the United

Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, the

European Biodiversity Strategy (1998), and the Spanish

Strategy on Biological Diversity (1999), the Regional

Directorate General for the Environment started in 2000 to draft a document for a regional strategy.

This document was presented to the civil society of

Murcia on November 2001. It was a starting point for a debate in which many people, institutions, organisations and social sectors participated. The main objective of this process was to find consensus and collect commitments in order to face the regional policy challenges for conserving and using of biodiversity sustainably. Contributions to the debates greatly enriched the regional strategy document, by facilitating the incorporation of basic data, guidelines and opinions on the need to conserve biodiversity.

The Regional Strategy was presented in November 2003.


GROUPS)

The promoter is the Directorate General for the

Environment (DGE) of the Region of Murcia.

The targets of this strategy are the Regional Public

Administration, mainly the General Directorate for

Environment, but also regional ministries and other public administrations (municipalities, state), as well as civil society (social institutions, economic and civic actors).


The territorial scope of application of this Regional

Strategy is the Murcia Region.

Start date: June 2000.

End date: November 2003.

Almost three years have been necessary since the beginning of the technical work, including 6 months for the public participation process.

RESOURCES

Human resources:

- 16 technical experts for the preparation of technical documents;

- About 150 people have studied the document and have provided ideas and items for discussion within the public participation process.

Total costs = €131,000, including:

- Cost of technical assistance: €24,000;

- Cost of the design and development of a process for public participation: €107,000

Indirect costs for regional Administration: € 70,000

100% of funding comes from the equity capital of the

Directorate General for the Environment

...



133

1

LESSONS LEARNT

Although the Regional Strategy was approved, its results have not yet been evaluated. The Action

Plan about Biodiversity in Tourism has not yet been formalised, but has provided general guidelines for policies, for instance in the development of the Tourism

Master Plan of the Region of Murcia 2006-2012. Other examples that can be mentioned as achievements in the development of approaches integrating biodiversity conservation in tourism activities:

- Protected Areas have become more and more attractive and are one of the most popular tourist destinations. To incorporate an element of added value, the Protected Areas in the Region of Murcia have made an effort to achieve the “Q” distinction for touristic Quality and other quality certificates, to improve services and information for visitors. Two of our Regional Parks have been certified by the “Q”

Quality: the “Sierra Espuña” and “Salinas y Arenales de San Pedro” Regional Parks

- Furthermore, the “El Valle” visitor centre (in the

“Carrascoy y El Valle” Regional Park) has obtained

SICTED Certification, which is a system to improve and homogenise the quality of tourist destinations promoted by the Tourism Institute of Spain

- Finally, the Sierra Espuña Regional Park, the municipalities involved, nature conservation organisations, tourism industry groups and local tourism operators, have applied to join the European

Charter for Sustainable Tourism (ECTS). The ECTS is accredited by the Europarc Foundation (grouping the Protected Areas of 38 European countries), and is a proposal for better integrating the principles of sustainable tourism in Protected Areas. It has been developed by European representatives of protected areas and tourism entrepreneurs. This voluntary approach commits the signatories to implementing a local strategy for sustainable tourism.


Encouraging the revision of the Regional Strategy in order to determine its achievements, providing the necessary financial instruments to implement the proposed measures and proceeding with the definition of the action plans.





30008 Murcia, Spain


Websites: http://www.murcianatural.carm.es

http://liferayagri.carm.es/web/guest/estrategias/-/journal_content/56_INSTANCE_9GoI/14/84596

“

It is necessary to intensify debate procedures, enabling the participation of many people, institutions, organisations and social sectors. The main objective of this process should be to find consensus and provide commitments to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.

”






30008 Murcia, Spain


Websites: http://www.murcianatural.carm.es

http://liferayagri.carm.es/web/guest/estrategias/-/journal_content/56_INSTANCE_9GoI/14/84596



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2

MANAGEMENT OF THE NATIONAL PARK OF SAMARIA

Forest Directorate of Chania - Decentralised Administration of Crete, Greece


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Samaria was declared a National Park by Royal Decree

781/1962. The declaration aims to protect natural heritage and ecological balance, whilst also offering the opportunity for environmental education and recreation for visitors.

The management of visitors is of great importance, as

Samaria National Park is considered a valuable genetic species reserve (plant and animals) which is used as a kind of databank from which material is occasionally drawn for the so-called ex-vitro protection of species in botanic gardens, sperm banks and zoos. The ultimate goal is the protection of biodiversity in all its forms

(genetic, species, ecosystems, landscape) as well as the education of visitors in knowledge about and respect for nature. The National Park aims to become a pilot case study for its visitors, who will apply the knowledge they gain during their visit to their consequent life.

Every year an approximate number of 160,000 visitors travel through the gorge. They have the opportunity to visit three Thematic Information Centres (Xyloskalo,

Samaria and Agia Roumeli), to observe information posters and to read leaflets related to the natural resources of the area.

Management of the area is undertaken within the regulations for absolute protection and the removal of all traditional activities (crops, livestock, logging, etc.) apart from beekeeping, for which a special licence is required. Visitors are allowed to enter if they follow specific regulations. However, recent management tends to allow minimal human interference, especially in the areas in which humans used to live for centuries.

Core and buffer areas follow specific legislation for protected areas.

The objective is to have the minimum possible effects from human actions on the natural resources and biodiversity of the core area of the National park.

Nature should be allowed to follow its course without any interference. In the buffer area, where specific works and activities are allowed, nature should be also minimally affected. Environmental legislation should be strictly followed and all interventions are undertaken with great care.

The National park and its management should serve as a pilot case for green activities and tourism.

No changes in biodiversity or natural resources have been detected so far; however monitoring programmes have been initiated by the Management Body of Samaria

National Park that will indicate any possible changes.

BACKGROUND

Samaria was declared a National Park by Royal Decree

781/1962. The National park is characterised by a rich biodiversity, a high degree of endemism in fauna and flora, distinctive geological configurations and specific landscape features. It is also a place with a strong and important anthropogenic environment (history, special songs, traditions, etc.).

Distinctive species of fauna found in the area are: the Cretan wild goat (Capra aegagrus cretica) , the largest mammal of the island, the Cretan wildcat

(Felis sylvestris cretensis) and a species of mouse

(Acomys minous) which is considered to be rare. The rich bird population of the area includes 69 species, with Gypaetus barbatus among others. The area houses

172 endemic species and subspecies, while 97 of them are endemic to Crete and 24 are specifically endemic


BIODIVERSITY-FRIENDLY TOURISM MANAGEMENT IN PROTECTED AREAS

(steno-endemic) to smaller areas. Some of the most distinctive species are: Cephalanthera cucullata, Nepeta sphaciotica, Bupleurum kakiskalae and Zelkova abelicea.


Core and buffer areas follow specific legislation for protected areas.

- The core area:

The entrance to the National Park is controlled by specific rules and regulations:

The Park can be only accessed from two entrances: its Northern entrance (Xyloskalo) and the Southern entrance (Agia Roumeli). The Park officially accepts visitors from May 1st till October 15 th , daily from 6.00 am until 4.00 pm. Visitors can walk along the main footpath. Walking outside the main footpath requires a special licence.

The following actions are prohibited:

1. Destroying or removing any Park installation;

2. Cutting trees, bushes and uprooting, collecting plants and seeds;

3. Collecting and transporting plant, soil and firewood;

4. Lighting fires;

5. Smoking in all areas apart from the recreational areas;

6. Camping and staying during the night in the Park;

7. Any domestic animals without a lease;

8. Displaying boards and signs;

9. Hunting animals;

10. Removal or destruction of all nests, eggs and newborns, as well as any disturbance or destruction of wildlife;

11. Swimming in Park rivers and streams;

12. Disturbing other visitors;

13. Dumping waste in areas other than the waste bins;

14. Damage to the geological formations and cultural monuments;

15. Grazing of domestic animals;

16. Setting up beehives without a licence from the

Forestry Service.

The Park wardens are accustomed to applying all the above regulations.

The protection of biodiversity is also ruled not only by the national park rules but also by all relevant legislation applied to protected species (endemic species, wild goats, forest land, etc), since the National

Park has also been declared a wildlife refuge, with even stricter legislation for the protection of wildlife.

- The buffer area:

In the surrounding buffer zone rules are less strict, since human interference is more evident and present. However, there are limits on the activities that can be undertaken: only traditional activities that have been in practice for centuries are allowed. Any new installation and activity should go through an environmental auditing process to assess its effect on the environmental balance, and many are rejected.

Management actions regarding extensive parks such as the Samaria National Park require strong prioritising of necessary activities, especially taking into account the restrictions and activities allowed within each zone; provident actions in order to ensure the adequacy of financial and human resources for the overall function of the Park; insurance of effective cooperation with all levels of authority (local, municipal, regional, national); constant adaptation to the daily challenges; and continuous presence of staff from all levels of management (scientists, administrative personnel, warden, drivers etc.).


GROUPS)

Promoter:

The management of the National Park has been until recently solely undertaken by the Forest Directorate of

Chania and specifically by the Department of Protection,

Administration and Management of Forests and Public

Prosecutor. Since the establishment of the Management

Body, the management and administration issues of the National Park are nowadays undertaken by both authorities, in a cooperative and closely linked way.

All actions and activities undertaken within the Park by both authorities comply with the suggestions of the

Management Plan of the Park and the subsequent

Regulation for Administration and Actions. The key factors addressed by the Management Plan aim primarily to protect and preserve biodiversity and also to provide recreation and environmental education to visitors.

The Decentralised Administration of Crete plays an essential role in administration and management issues since it has the sole responsibility for the protection of all forest areas in Crete and also participates in the

Board of the Management Body of the Park, with an assigned representative.

Target groups:

All management and administration activities within the boundaries of the National Park are aimed at local communities located within its borders and all visitors to the White Mountains zone, and also the whole municipality of Chania and subsequently the entire island of Crete. The financial aspects of the management activities, in particular, have a direct impact on the sustainability and well-being of the entire island.



137

2


The National Park of Samaria, which includes the gorge of Samaria, is located in the White Mountains, in the prefecture of Chania in the South-West of Crete.

It includes one of the largest gorges in the Balkans,

Samaria Gorge, with a total length of 13 km.

The area of the National Park is 48,480 km² and covers a specially protected area, i.e. the core of the Park.

Its buffer zone is about 256,775 km² and includes the wider area of the White Mountains and its coastal zone. This area has been designated as a Site of

Community Importance (SCI -GR4340008), according to Directive 92/43/EEC, while the core of the Park has been designated as a Special Protection Area (SPA-

GR4340014) according to Directive 79/409/EEC.

Start date: 1962 is the primary date when the establishment of the National Park took place and

1999 is the year the Management Body of the Park was initially included in the decision-making and actiontaking processes related to the Park.

RESOURCES

Human resources

The Department of Management and Administration of the Forest Directorate of Chania has about 10 people as permanent personnel (who are employed by the National

Park), and about 25 people are employed seasonally.

The Management Body of Samaria National park employs 5 people and also has an administrative body of 11 people designated from different bodies that are involved with the National Park.

Time spent by the team

The main work is undertaken during the spring and summer. However, a great deal of administrative work is done over the rest of the year by the permanent personnel. The duration of the peak season related to the management of the Park is approximately eight months per year. The remaining four months are mainly dedicated to administrative and maintenance issues.

Costs

- Personnel, permanent and seasonal: approximately

€500,000 per year.

- Fire preventive measures: €200,000;

- Construction and reconstruction of infrastructure

(signs, warden posts, information material, etc):

€100,000;

- Studies on monitoring the endemic species (flora and fauna), the estimation of daily fire risk, the estimation of the population of wild goats, GIS, etc.: €100,000;

- Management plan for the National Park: €80,000.

Other expenditures

Fire brigades run daily surveillance in order to prevent and combat any fire incidents.

Civil Protection agencies run continuous monitoring of the area with remote cameras.

Meteorological agencies have a meteorology station to monitor environmental conditions at Xyloskalo.

Universities and other research centres and Institutes run individual research programmes.

Action funding

Ministry of Environment, Energy and Climate Change,

Decentralised Administration of Crete and E.U. Funding

The annual budget from the entrance fees is directly transferred to the Green Fund of the Ministry of

Environment, Energy and Climate Change. There is no direct allocation of this budget to the National Park. The

Ministry approves the transfer of a budget to the National

Park’s administration authorities according to need.

Local municipalities also gain money from the National

Park income, since 30% of the annual income goes to local municipalities that have borders with the National Park.


The gorge of Samaria, due to its uniqueness, has gained both national and international recognition.

Besides its declaration as a Greek National Park, it is also a NATURA 2000 site.

Internationally, it has been nominated as a “Biosphere

Reserve” by UNESCO (1981) - a designation given for the proper management of areas that are important for their natural and cultural heritage.

In addition, the National Park of Samaria has been nominated as a European Diploma site by the Council of Europe (CoE), because of its exceptional character as an area since 1965. The title is granted after a thorough assessment of the area and its management and lasts only for a period of five years. Renewal



is given by a further decision of the Committee of

Ministers following a new independent assessment on the recommendations of a group of specialists.

The follow up of the CoE in the implementation of its recommendations and/or conditions is performed by each year’s annual reports submitted to the Council of Europe and the five year on-the-spot expert assessment. The latest renewal was awarded in 2009.

A study on the population of wild goat (a protected species that resides in the Park) has shown a total number of 800 animals in the area of the Park. Their population does not seem to be affected by the visitors, however constant monitoring of the goat population is needed. Other biodiversity parameters, such as the population of protected and endemic species, are also going to be monitored. Preliminary research, especially on plant species, has shown no effect of tourism. This is particularly the result of the restrictions in the six month period when no entrance is permitted and

Nature seems to recover.

Nevertheless, constant and organised monitoring of species, ecotypes, visitors and activities is required in order to estimate potential threats and danger.

The role of local communities and cooperation with local stakeholders is vital, since these people are the direct consumers of the landscape and also have the knowledge and main responsibility to ensure the sustainable continuum of the wildlife within the Park.

Encountered problems and means used to resolve them

Regarding the biodiversity conservation at species level, even though most international and European legislation has been incorporated into the Greek legal system, work is still needed on the conservation of rare and endangered priority species.

The effective and straight-forward implementation of specific Action Plans is necessary.

Coordination among various authorities and stakeholders including locals’ support is needed.

Implementation of conservation and sustainability at habitat level gives a more complicated picture. Current legislation is still facing implementation difficulties.

National Park management bodies are still without real legal power and financial resources.

Specific Environmental Studies that include regulations on land uses are still mostly kept on paper. European legislation is incorporated into the Greek legal system, however, the elaboration of all issues regarding the establishment of the NATURA 2000 network moves very slowly.

Management of a National Park involves a greater number of experts than those found in Forestry Service.

Thus, it was a requirement that management was given to a Management Body that would incorporate all stakeholders. This was achieved recently with the formation of the Management Body of the National

Park of Samaria. However, this still does not have a permanent budget and must apply annually for its income. Nowadays, the Forestry Service and the

Management Body of the Park, in its current form, are working closely and have established a cooperative scheme which seems to have had a positive effect on the overall protection and preservation processes.


The recently completed and updated Management

Plan of the Park, based on newly addressed scientific findings and current technological advances, has renewed the effective and realistic actions needed to be taken in order to ensure the preservation and sustainability of all elements within the Park.

Proposed measures such as the extension of the Park’s borders, a clear determination of zones with different degrees of protection and management activities directly related to the multidisciplinary role of the Park have been assigned.


Polymnia SKALAVAKI

Head of the Forest Service,

Decentralized Administration of Crete

Forest Directorate of Chania

+30 28210 84200 ddchania@otenet.gr

Websites: www.samaria.gr

www.crete-region.gr/samaria/el/home.html

“

Management of extensive and multi-landscaped areas is complex and requires constant adaptation to scientific findings, technological advances, stakeholder’s opinions, financial matters and legal issues.

A key factor in maintaining a positive management attitude is to recognise all incoming issues (threats, danger, demands, financial problems, etc.) related to the administration of a Protected Area, as challenges and not directly as problems.

The Samaria (White Mountains) National Park is one of the earliest designated areas in Greece. Thus, years of accumulated scientific and empirical knowledge within the different aspects of site management, makes this case study a useful model for those involved in matters such as sustainability, nature preservation and the integration of multidisciplinary approaches in management.

The National Park of Samaria (White Mountains) aims to become a pilot case study for its visitors, who will

”



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QUALITY LABELS FOR TOURISM IN PROTECTED NATURAL AREAS



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The Basque Network of Protected Natural Areas (PNA) is formed by areas which, because they comply with certain of the conditions outlined in Law 16/1994, relating to Nature Conservation in the Basque Country, provide environmental, landscape and/or relevant cultural values, and also have a specific instrument of protection. A Strategy for Quality in the Basque Network of Natural Protected Areas has been developed. This strategy applies to the typical PNA working spheres: conservation of biodiversity, public use and social and economic development. Given this working framework and in relation to public use and social and economical development, the European Charter for Sustainable

Tourism (ECST) has been chosen as a tool for promoting labels and certificates that link products or sectors to the objectives of PNAs. On the other hand, a quality system for management in Tourism services is also being implemented.

The aim is to implement socioeconomic actions in the influence areas of the PNAs through the implementation of the European Charter for Sustainable Tourism for innovative management and investment in tourist and economic promotion. Prior to this, a quality system for management in Tourism services is being implemented, the “UNE 187002:2008 Protected Natural

Areas”. During the timescale of the Strategy (until

2015), this UNE standard is intended to apply to all the PNAs of the Network, whereas the ECST is being implemented only in Valderejo Natural Park.

The European Charter for Sustainable Tourism in

Protected Areas (Europarc Federation) commits the signatories to put into practice a local strategy in favour of sustainable tourism, defined as “any method of development, facilities or tourist activity which respects and preserves the natural, cultural and social resources for the long term, and which contributes in a positive and equitable way to the economic progress and to the full development of the persons who live, work or stay in the protected areas”.

On the other hand, the “UNE 187002:2008 Protected

Natural Areas” standard, developed by the Spanish

State Secretariat for Tourism in collaboration with the Europarc-Spain foundation, establishes the requirements that a PNA should fulfil, in relation both to the facilities and equipment available for public use, and to all the necessary processes for the provision of a quality service in the area of public use. The “Q mark” is the most visible element of the Spanish Tourist Quality

System and is common to any activity related to tourist services or products.

BACKGROUND

The Basque Network of PNAs is a key instrument in reducing the loss of biodiversity in this Region, supports the sustainable development of high ecological value areas and has the ambition to disseminate environmental values among citizens. Nevertheless, its management has lacked standardised systems that guarantee specific levels of management quality and encourage a dynamic of continuous improvement.

In recent years, the development achieved in specific quality control tools for PNAs has allowed the undertaking of the project of a Strategy for Quality in the Basque Network of Natural Protected Areas. This project aims to assess and implement those quality systems in the Basque Country.

Representatives of the Provincial Councils (who are



responsible for the management of the PNAs in each

Province) and of the Basque Government (responsible for coordination), together with a technical secretariat

(IKT) formed a working team at both decision and technical levels in 2009 to deal with the Strategy.

The starting point was an assessment to analyse whether the PNAs would fit the requirements of the

UNE-187002:2008. The implementation of the standard started with five Parks (Pagoeta, Aralar, Urkiola,

Gorbeia and Valderejo). In addition, a previous study on the “Implementation Framework of the European

Charter for Sustainable Tourism” was carried out in

2008. Valderejo was chosen to be the candidate for adhesion to the European Charter for Sustainable

Tourism because it really represents an example of social and economic revitalisation resulting from the declaration of the Park, at the beginning of the 1990s.

Before that, depopulation had reduced some villages to ruins, but the ones that survived are now living on the income provided from tourism. Ethnographic museums, rural hotels and restaurants work side by side with agrarian cooperatives and livestock breeders and, as a result, they are now prepared to join the project of getting the ECST.


The main objective of the European Charter for

Sustainable Tourism is to generate tourism that respects the sustainable development principles, guiding PNA managing bodies and companies in sharing a process for defining a strategy.

To join the ECST, Valderejo Natural Park must:

- Distribute information on the ECST within the Region in order to obtain stakeholder agreement on the submission of the application;

- Work on the compilation of the application form for a sufficient period of time to gain the involvement of stakeholders. The form includes a diagnosis of the region under the aspects required by the ECST, a strategy and a five-year action plan, allowing continued progress in observing the ECST principles.

The complete process must be participative, involving all tourism-related parties in the protected area;

- Send the application form to the EUROPARC

Federation;

- EUROPARC assesses the application and sends an auditor to the protected area to verify the accuracy of the diagnosis, the commitment of the stakeholders and the feasibility of the action plan;

- EUROPARC finally grants – or denies – certification of the protected area.

In parallel, the implementation of the Spanish Tourist

Quality System for Protected Natural Areas entails:

- Testing and diagnosis;

- Training and sensitising human resources;

- Actions required to comply with the Regulation;

- Production of documentation system (quality manual, operational procedures, registers, indicator systems);

- Internal auditing.

The development of documentation for the quality system in PNAs is based on four stages: 1) Launch

(During this phase, a first self-diagnostic exercise is carried out using a self-evaluation tool); 2) Development

(a variety of operational procedures are developed, identifying the processes which should be incorporated in the system and detailing the specific activities within these processes); 3) Consolidation (a quality manual is created and followed by the identification of areas of improvement); 4) Continuous Improvement (the final stage of implementation requires the successful completion of the certification audit). Once certification has been obtained, an annual monitoring audit is conducted, and the certification renewed periodically.


GROUPS)

The promoters are the Provincial Councils (of Alava,

Bizkaia and Gipuzkoa) and the Basque Government.

Target groups, apart from the general public, are the management staff of the PNAs, and companies related to environmental services and tourism.

Location and timescale of the activity

The action affects the Protected Natural Areas in the

Basque Country Region (or Euskadi)

Start date: 2010

End date: 2015

Resources

This project was equally funded by the three Provincial

Councils and the Basque Government. The working team supervising the strategy is composed of 5 people, working part time on the Strategy during the whole process. The different actions within the Strategy (Q and

ECST) are developed by the staff of the management bodies. The company, IKT, acts as Technical Secretariat and coordinates all the actions.



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Quality Systems offer advantages to the managing bodies as well as to the users of the Protected Natural

Areas. Among others, their benefits are:

- Improved management, leading to excellence;

- Improved efficiency of management tools;

- Greater levels of user satisfaction;

- Recognition on the part of the tourism sector and the visitor;

- Use of the “quality marks” as an instrument for promotion and popularisation;

- Guaranteed quality of products and services;

- Active visitor input in service improvement;

- Increased confidence in staff professionalism;

- Services adapted to meet users’ expectations and needs.

The ECST is more than that. It is, in short, a working method, a planning tool, a specific commitment by managing bodies, tourism companies and tour operators, as well as an assessment process and a

European brand of excellence in sustainable tourism development.


To continue the Strategy for Quality and to monitor its evolution.


Teresa ANDRÉS

Hazi, Corporación del Gobierno Vasco para el desarrollo rural y marino.

Unidad de Consultoría

Granja Modelo

01192, Arkaute, Álava

+34 (9)45 003278 tandrés@hazi.es

Websites: http://www.hazi.es

http://www.ingurumena.ejgv.euskadi.net/r49-u95/es/contenidos/plan_programa_proyecto/ calidad_enp/es_doc/indice.html

“

Quality Systems offer advantages to the managing bodies as well as to the users of the Protected

Natural Areas.

The European Charter for Sustainable Tourism is a working method, a planning tool, a specific commitment by managing bodies, tourism companies and tour operators, as well as an assessment process and a European brand of excellence. in sustainable tourism development.

”





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NATURE ON TOUR

PROMOTION OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM IN THE NATURAL PROTECTED AREAS

OF THE LAZIO REGION

Arsial, Italy


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


“Nature on Tour” is a programme aimed at involving several Protected Areas of the Lazio region in actions and activities for the improvement of local tourist services.

The objectives of the programme are:

- Knowledge of the natural values of the Lazio Region through landscape and territory interpretation and environmental education;

- Increased of accommodation facilities, traditional handcrafts and agricultural products made in a sustainable way;

- Discovery of hidden places which are often preserved by parks for their authentic identity and biodiversity heritage.

The programme is composed of several coordinated and synergic activities such as:

- Educational Tours: tour operators specialising in sustainable tourism and journalists from travel magazines are invited to experience the beautiful natural areas of the Lazio Region and gather for a B2B trading workshop;

- “The routes of the parks”: five guided itineraries, supplied with specific road signs and information posters along a minor road connecting parks and natural reserves of the region, promoting new routes for discovering historical, environmental and cultural assets. Besides this, guidebooks are provided for each itinerary, in addition to the dedicated website www.

naturainviaggio.it;

- Training courses for the quality certification of local tourism operators;

- Target analysis;

- Building a shared process for a “Nature on Tour” quality brand in order to qualify tourism structures through the Ecolabel certification concerned with sustainable practices.

BACKGROUND

The regional protected areas system of the Lazio region

(about 79 protected areas: regional parks, regional reserves and natural monuments), is mostly composed of economically marginal territories, with problems of depopulation and accessibility, but also some urban and peri-urban parks around the city of Rome.


The programme was created and coordinated by the

Regional Park Agency with the involvement of the

Protected Areas System, including in its strategy local stakeholders and domestic and foreign tour operators. Furthermore, the Agency has broadcast a wide advertising campaign aimed at regional and foreign citizens. The process aims to lead local tourism operators to a gradual improvement of their performance in terms of sustainability.


GROUPS)

The action is implemented by the Regional Park Agency

(which belongs to the Lazio Region) in partnership with the management institutions of the single protected areas.

Various groups of economic operators whose activities are localised in the protected areas are targeted, as well as visitors, from Italy and abroad, who come and enjoy protected areas, natural environments and landscapes.




The territory does not cover the entire Region, but the main natural parks and reserves and their surrounding areas.

The programme started in 2004 when the first

“Educational Tour” took place at the natural reserves of Monte Rufeno and Marturanum, and the natural parks of Monti Simbruini and Monti Aurunci. The programme is still in progress, although dedicated financial resources have been cut off.

RESOURCES

Human resources employed in this activity belong mainly to the Sustainable Development Department of the Regional Park Agency (3 people) and the protected areas system.

The launching of the programme was made possible through the Docup 2000-2006 European Union funds and APQ7 ministerial agreement.

Cost assessment:

- Educational Tour: €45,000 (per Tour)

- “The routes of the parks”: €750,000

- Training courses for tourism operators: €20,000

- Target analysis: €20,000

- “Nature on Tour” quality brand: €30,000

- Ecolabel certification assistance: €10,000


The project started a few years ago and is still in progress. It has by now produced positive effects and raised a lot of interest throughout the districts in which the actions have been accomplished. It is however difficult to completely assess the exact outcome at the moment.

As a result, we consider that:

- About 14 tour operators from different countries attended the 2010 Educational Tour and the “Buy

Nature” tourist workshop held at the Santa Scolastica monastery in Subiaco in the majestic surroundings of the Simbruini Mountains Park;

- About 220 tourism operators from regional protected areas attended training courses on sustainable business management;

- 5 tourist structures have been selected and assisted to obtain Ecolabel certification.

Nevertheless, it has been difficult to link minor tourism stakeholders and local tour operators specialised in environmental tourism.


It is not possible at the present moment to give further information on the future of the action due to lack of financial budget.


Nicoletta CUTOLO

Agenzia Regionale Parchi (ARP) via del Pescaccio 96/98 00166 Roma, Italy cutolo.arp@parchilazio.it

+39 0651687366.

Websites: www.arplazio.it

www.parchilazio.it, www.naturainviaggio.it

“

- This case study aims to inform general public of the values and specificities of the different areas and provides another tool for tourists.

- This experience has produced wider knowledge on marginal territories for domestic and foreign tour operators.

”



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“AQUITAINE NATURE DAYS”:

LOCAL PLAYER PARTNERSHIP TOWARDS EDUCATION

AND DISCOVERY OF BIODIVERSITY



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The “Aquitaine Nature Days” are an annual event organised since 2008 by the Aquitaine Region in the framework of the “Aquitaine Nature Network”, a network of managers of remarkable natural sites (such as CEN Aquitaine, the Conservatory of Natural Areas in

Aquitaine Region). The “Aquitaine Nature Days” occur in May during 5 days (including a weekend), at the time of “National Nature Day” in France.

During the “Aquitaine Nature Days”, around 150 events are offered for free to the general public (and more specifically families) in 50 remarkable natural sites.

The events consist of field-based activities to attempt to raise public awareness of ecological issues (including biodiversity preservation). The activities offered vary from site guided tours to fauna/flora watching, hiking, exhibition, cooking workshops… Five films dealing with ecological issues are presented in ten different cinemas (for free or less than €6.50). Each film showing is followed by discussions among the audience and filmmakers, naturalists and managers of natural sites.

In addition, five ecotourism routes are presented to visitors in different areas in Aquitaine. These ecotourism routes encourage visitors to broaden their local discoveries and to visit organic farms, cultural heritage sites or sports structures. The visitors are invited to eat in labelled restaurants which propose

“café de pays” or “assiette de pays”, which are meals containing locally-produced products of good quality, and to stay in eco-labelled accommodation (hotels, hostels or campsites).

“Aquitaine Nature Days” aim to show the general public

Aquitaine’s natural richness and to raise awareness about nature and biodiversity.

Moreover, the organisation of the ecotourism routes helps different local actors (managers of sites, local facilitators, service providers of hostels, restaurants, museums, sporting activities, organic farmers…) to learn how to work together better. This contributes to building long-term partnerships and developing local ecotourism.

BACKGROUND

In 2005 the elected representatives of the Aquitaine region highlighted the need to improve actions for protecting biodiversity and to compensate for the lack of an existing network linking managers of natural sites at the regional scale.

As a reaction, the “Aquitaine Nature Network” was created in 2006 to improve the exchange of good practices between managers of remarkable natural sites (in 2011, 20 organisations and 86 natural sites were involved). The network also aimed at raising public awareness of the richness of the local nature in Aquitaine and why/how to preserve it through informative and consciousness-raising activities.

The Aquitaine Nature Days were then created in 2008 to improve communication towards the general public.

They aimed at highlighting the richness/diversity of nature in Aquitaine for the general public through visits and specific activities organised by members of the

“Aquitaine Nature Network”.

The ecotourism routes were created in 2009 to highlight the diversity of assets (environmental, cultural and gastronomic) of the landscape of the territories and to underline good approaches such as organic agriculture and environmentally-certified accommodation. The


ECOTOURISM FOR ATTRACTING VISITORS AND BIODIVERSITY AWARENESS RAISING

objective was to attract more visitors to the “Aquitaine

Nature Days”.


Project Leader Team = Aquitaine Region +

Communication consultancy company + MOPA

(the Federation of Tourist Offices and Territories of

Aquitaine) + UMIRHA (the Union of Hotel businesses in Aquitaine) + 3 representatives of the managers of

“Aquitaine Nature Network”.

The usual process for organising the “Aquitaine Nature

Days” is:

- The managers of remarkable natural sites prepare specific events for the “Aquitaine Nature Days”;

- The ecotourism routes are chosen according to the events proposed at the different natural sites;

- Within these selected areas, pubs and restaurants are selected and branded “café de pays” or “assiette de pays” (involving the use of local produce and regional specialities) in collaboration with the MOPA; environmentally-certified accommodation is selected by UMIRHA, cultural sites are selected (e.g.: the House of Prune, a castle…) by MOPA, based on proposals from local tourist offices and other local actors involved in tourism;

- The ecotourism routes are consolidated;

- Tools are created to attract visitors (passes and contests to win gifts) and to assess participants’ satisfaction (satisfaction survey);

- Meetings are organised to inform local actors involved in the ecotourism routes and to gather their ideas;

- Communications tools are produced (programme event, evaluation forms …);

- “Aquitaine Nature Days” (5 days);

- The results of the Days are assessed;

- The relevance and efficiency of the evaluation tools are assessed.


GROUPS)

Action promoter: The Aquitaine Region organises these days in partnership with the members of the “Aquitaine

Nature Network” (who are managers of remarkable natural sites - more than 20 organisations in 2011), the MOPA (Federation of Tourist Offices and Tourist

Territories of Aquitaine), the UMIRHA (Union of the

Hotel businesses), the APCA (Association of Local

Cinemas).

Target groups: General public and family audience

(some activities are dedicated to children) as well as service providers and local economic players.



This initiative takes place in the Aquitaine Region, in remarkable natural sites and areas with particular territorial dynamics. There are five different ecotourism routes, each located in one of the five different departments of the Aquitaine region.

Start date: 2008 Launch of the “Aquitaine Nature Days”

Milestone date: 2009 launch of the ecotourism routes

(in addition to the visits to natural sites and the film shows).

End date: in progress. The “Aquitaine Nature Days” are run every year.

RESOURCES

Human resources involved in the organisation of the

“Aquitaine Nature Days”:

- Aquitaine Region: 2 people work part-time on the organisation of the “Aquitaine Nature Days” (including the ecotourism routes) helped by a communication consultancy company;

- “Aquitaine Nature Network” members = Time spent by managers and workers of the remarkable natural sites of the “Aquitaine Nature Network” to organise activities and visits on their sites (voluntary work);

- MOPA (Federation of Tourist Offices and Tourist

Territories of Aquitaine);

- UMIRHA (Union of Hotel businesses in Aquitaine);

- ACPA (Association of Local Cinemas in Aquitaine).

A communication consultancy company is in charge of preparing, coordinating and communicating the event. This represents all the external expertise costs, funded by the Aquitaine Region (€230,000 in 2011). They include:

- Development of communication tools: posters, event programmes, journal, graphical display unit for the

“Aquitaine Nature Network” website;

- Project coordination, coordination of the partners, facilitation of meetings;

- Public relations (space buying …), video reports, broadcasting rights for films, public prizes (posters).



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Quantifiable results:

- In 2011, 5,000 people participated in a guided tour to visit the natural sites of the “Aquitaine Nature

Network”;

- At least 2,000 non-guided visits (such as ecotourism routes) have been registered (but this figure is certainly under-estimated since there is no comprehensive counting device to assess the attendance of non-guided tours).

Qualitative results:

- Enhanced environmental education (local and general) of the visitors;

- Raised public awareness about ecological issues

(including biodiversity preservation);

- Improved image of the “Aquitaine Nature Network” and local players involved in its organisation;

- Development of cross-disciplinary work between local players and development of local eco-tourism (long term).

In general, local decision-makers are pleased with the

“Aquitaine Nature Days” and are very supportive of the initiative. The cross-disciplinary work involving various local players (managers of sites, local facilitators, service providers of hostels, restaurants, museums, sportive activities, organic farmers …) has proved to be very relevant as a successful first step to adopting habits that are more respectful of biodiversity. However some criticisms have emerged, highlighting that improvements are required on three levels:

- Assessment of the action: There is a lack of available tools to assess the impact of the activities, e.g. evaluating the exact number of persons who take part in the “Aquitaine Nature Days” including the ecotourism routes. Moreover it would be relevant to know why they decided take part in the event (what they are interested in? What convinced them to come? etc.).

Two tools were developed in 2011 to address this gap: a survey was sent to the public and restaurants, and an

“Aquitaine Nature Days” passport was given to visitors to count and record the routes they travelled. However, very little feedback has been observed, suggesting this is still some room for improvement and increased involvement;

- Organisation: local actors (hotel and restaurant owners …) should be more involved in the organisation of the “Aquitaine Nature Days” (in launch meetings for instance) in order to improve the possibilities offered to participants and to improve the quality of the welcome.

Moreover, there are only a few relevant regional films about biodiversity protection;

- Political: sounder commitment from local mayors should be expected, especially when “Aquitaine Nature

Days” activities take place in/near their town. Better targeted communication is necessary to reach this objective.


In order to improve the involvement of stakeholders and communication, a new process has been set up in 2012 regarding the design of the ecotourism routes: a call for proposals will be disseminated among stakeholders through the MOPA to select the most relevant projects.

Furthermore, some other natural sites, partners of the “Aquitaine Nature Network”, have claimed to be interested in joining the “Aquitaine Nature Days”.

The number of natural sites involved in the network is therefore likely to increase, although this may complicate the organisation.




Sophie KERLOCH

Région Aquitaine

Croix des Fontaines, 14 rue François-de-Sourdis,

33077 Bordeaux, France

+33 5 57 57 80 00 sophie.kerloch@aquitaine.fr

Website: www.sites-nature.aquitaine.fr



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ALVIANO LAKE

ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION AND BIRD WATCHING

IN THE TIBER RIVER REGIONAL PARK



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


The World Wildlife Fund (WWF)’s management of the Alviano Lake Oasis is considered to be one of the most effective in promoting ecotourism, environmental education and the conservation of biodiversity in Umbria. The wetland is well organised for environmental education and bird watching: there is an educational laboratory specialising in water wildlife, many observation sites, one tower and one room for outdoor lessons and observations. There are many ecosystems such as the most important flooded forest of the Umbria Region, ponds, flood plains and small islands where different kinds of herons nest.

BACKGROUND

Alviano Lake is an artificial lake constructed in 1965 by damming the Tiber River. The main reason for the creation of the lake was to produce renewable energy and provide water regulation of the Tiber River to avoid flooding in Rome. In few years the ecosystem of the place developed into a real wetland with very shallow water frequented by thousands of birds. In 1978, the

Alviano lake Reserve (about 900 ha) was funded by the

Province of Terni to protect nesting and migrating birds and unique wet ecosystems. Since then, this protected area has been managed successfully by the WWF.


In Italy, in order to protect biodiversity, the WWF manages more than 100 “oases” and natural reserves.

Each “oasis” protects a small area of biodiversity, a unique heritage of the colours and sounds of nature!

The WWF carries out specific environmental education programmes in Italian schools; therefore the Alviano lake Oasis is well known by regional and national schools.

The network of protected areas covers a wide range of habitats: a mosaic of precious and unique habitats, flora and fauna.

The Oases are not just sites for the protection of nature.

They are places where injured wildlife can recover, where nature trails offer ample opportunities to watch wildlife from dedicated hideouts, where research is on-going, and where people can discover the wonders of nature.


GROUPS)

The area is managed by the WWF through an agreement with the Province of Terni; Alviano Lake is inside the

River Tiber Regional Park, the management of which is under the control of the Protected Areas Service of the Umbria Region.

The target groups are: 1) Birdwatchers 2) people who want to spend their leisure time in nature (families) 3) children from five to eighteen years old.




Alviano Lake is located within the Tiber River Regional

Park in the south east of the Umbria region, close to the Lazio region border. This location is one of the most important Natura 2000 sites (Special Protected Areas) in Umbria.

RESOURCES

The WWF’s management of the protected area is founded by the Province of Terni with an annual Grant of about €50,000. In addition, Alviano Lake Oasis attracts

8,000 paying visitors per year.


The management of Alviano Lake is an example of good practice in sustainable tourism based on the high level of staff knowledge, especially on birds, biology and environmental education. Visitors are increasing year by year, coming from Umbria, Italy and other European countries.


To create a large and comfortable visitor centre.


Dott. Alessio CAPOCCIA

Località Madonna del Porto, Guardea (TR), Italy

+ 39 744/ 903 715 (mobile), +39 333/7576 283 (Oasi) lagodialviano@wwf.it

Websites: http://www.wwf.it

http://www.wwf.it/alviano.nt



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DISCOVERING VULTURES

LOCAL ECOTOURISM INITIATIVE IN THE FRENCH BASQUE COUNTRY



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


This ecotourism initiative aims at discovering vultures in the French Basque country. It consists of a threeday tour for a small group (up to 10 participants). The cost per person amounts to around €250 per person.

The participants stay in environmentally-certified accommodation and the restaurants where they eat, the shepherds who guide them and the food producers they meet (cured ham from Oteiza, chocolate factory in Laia) are selected according to high-level quality standards.

BACKGROUND

In the French Basque country, some species (like vultures) are very controversial, as they are considered to be incompatible with local human activities. Ecotourism is relevant as it is a way both to generate economic activity in a territory and to preserve biodiversity, the main topic of the tour. These eco-tours demonstrate to service providers (hostels, restaurants ...) that tourists can come and spend money just to see vultures. So it proves that it is in their interest, and that of local development, to preserve vultures. The global objective is to change people’s attitudes towards vultures.


- Friday: meeting at Idiartekoborda Bed & Breakfast from 5.00pm. Dinner and presentation of the eco-tour.

- Saturday: discovery of one of the oldest colonies of griffon vultures in the French Basque Country and observation of local fauna. Sandwich break during the trek. Visit to a sheep farm and cheese tasting. Dinner in a traditional Basque cider-works.

- Sunday: observation of fauna during a mountain trek on the crests of Idiartekoborda. Sandwich break during the trek. Visit to a traditional chocolate factory. End of the eco-tour around 5.00pm.


GROUPS)

Action promoter: “LPO Aquitaine”, the French representative of BirdLife international, a global partnership of conservation organisations dedicated to bird conservation, bird habitat conservation and global biodiversity protection.

The eco-tours are sold by a travel agency which shares the same values as LPO and identifies the targeted tourists perfectly.

Target groups include:

- Tourists, to show them the interaction between scavenging birds and pastoral activities

- Service providers (hostels, restaurants ...)

- Local elected representatives, who have been informed of this eco-tour activity so that they can replicate this idea.




French Basque country, Aquitaine region.

Start date: 2008.

End date: in progress: once a year.

RESOURCES

Human resources:

- 1 guide from LPO Aquitaine, for 7 days (3 days for the tour + 3 days for preparing the tour + 1 day for administrative details)

- Staff from the bed and breakfast and from the restaurant

- 1 shepherd (for visits)

- 1 chocolate maker (for visits)

External costs include the price of sandwiches.


In 4 years, 6 eco-tours have been run, totalling 38 participants.

- 2008: 1 Eco-tour organised = 10 participants (1 person on waiting list)

- 2009: 2 Eco-tours planned, 1 tour cancelled due to lack of participants = 1 tour organised with 8 participants

- 2010: 2 Eco-tours organised = 1 with 10 participants

- 1 tour “dedicated to beginner photographers “ with

6 participants

- 2011: 1 Eco-tour organised = 4 participants.

In 2011, a new coordinator took over a little time before the eco-tour. This explains the communication difficulties and the relatively small number of bookings that year.

With so many activities during the eco-tour, it is sometimes difficult to fit everything into the short timescale, which may compromise the smooth running of the tours. Maybe the visit to the chocolate factory should be limited to tasting.


The topic of the eco-tour was originally dedicated to vultures. In 2012, it has been extended to “endemism and mountain fauna” (the external contributors remain the same).

In 2012, two new eco-tours have been set up in the

Aquitaine Region:

- “The estuary of the Gironde River, a migratory stop between the ground and the ocean”, from 27 to 29

April, consists of observing birds of the estuary and discovering prestigious areas. Accommodation is planned in Blaye in a vineyard château.

- “Butterflies and orchids of the Lot-et-Garonne

Department”, from 11 to 13 May, offers the opportunity to observe the orchids and insects of the dry grasslands with an expert from Cen Aquitaine (the Conservatory of Natural Areas in Aquitaine). Accommodation is organised in Courbiac in a medieval château.


Laurent COUZI laurent.couzi@lpo.fr

and Mathieu SANNIER mathieu.sannier@lpo.fr

LPO Aquitaine, 109 Quai Wilson, 33130 Bègles (France)

+33 5 56 91 33 81 or +33 6 82 70 88 30

Websites: http://lpoaquitaine.org

http://lpoaquitaine.org/public_html/images/stories/documents/pdf/Sorties/vautours%202012.pdf



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GEOCACHING@NATURE ttz Bremerhaven, Germany


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Geocaching can be best described as a modern form of outdoor treasure hunting or a paper chase. In brief, a small container called a “geocache” is hidden. The

“geocache” usually contains many little treasures and a registration document. The coordinates of the hiding place are posted on the internet. Participants enter these coordinates into a GPS device in order to find the “geocache”. Once found, they can take something from the “geocache” and have to leave something of equal or greater value in return. They also sign the registration document before returning the “geocache” to its original location. There are different kinds of

“geocaching”, from the easiest kind of “geocache” which is easy to find, to caches which can only be found with special equipment like diving or climbing equipment. But they all have something in common: they associate fun with being outdoors and on the track.

In this way people can discover unknown regions or learn something new about their own region and the animals and plants which live in it. A geocaching route can be a good way to raise the number of visitors to cities, communities or national parks and to inform them in a fun way about the local flora and fauna and the importance of the local biodiversity.

The aim of geocaching@nature was the implementation of a geocaching route combined with a nature trail in Bremerhaven. As in classical geocaching games, participants have to find places, on foot or by bike, where containers are hidden. In each container there is a riddle which is about nature and landscape of

Bremerhaven. If the riddle can be solved, it will lead to the next container by providing the coordinates.

Thus knowledge about the local environment can be increased and sensitivity towards nature conservation and environmental protection can be raised.

BACKGROUND

Geocaching is a very popular leisure activity and a lot of people are so-called “geocachers”. An employee of the environmental agency, who is also a geocacher, introduced the idea to create a geocache route in order to attract children and young people to go out and learn something about their environment.


At the beginning, the action was implemented as a communal project, by a project team consisting of employees of the environmental agency, the institute for extended education for teachers, the land registry office and IP SYSCON (software and system vendor of geographical information systems). The land registry office and IP SYSCON identified different spots in

Bremerhaven suitable for integrating a geocache tour.

The longitudes and latitudes of these points are the basis for the tour and need to be entered in a GPS device.

The implementation of the geocaching route in

Bremerhaven took one year. In addition, the route has to be checked every year to make sure that the metal signs still exist and are undamaged.


GROUPS)

The environmental protection agency of Bremerhaven was the main driving force for implementing a geocaching project in Bremerhaven. The agency lends

GPS devices to those participants who do not have their



own or who just want to try first before they buy one for themselves.

The offer is addressed especially to school children and teenagers aged from 11 up to 16. It is also of interest to families, hikers and tourists.


The geocaching route is in total about 34 km long and is spread out over Bremerhaven city. One part of the route starts in the Northern part of Bremerhaven and ends in the city centre. The second part goes through several areas of the city centre.

Start date: 01.04.2008.

End date: on-going.

RESOURCES

The overall costs of the geocaching@nature project amounted to €15,000. At the beginning of the summer season the Environmental Agency spent about €2000 for advertising purposes and maintenance and repair of the metal signs. The costs were covered by budgetary funds.


The environmental protection agency of Bremerhaven has created a 34 km long route through the city which is divided into two parts. The North route is themed

“Nature under the influence of humans”. Starting from the CT4 container terminal via Speckenbütteler

Park to Fehrmoor, it ends at Geeste River in the city of Bremerhaven. The thematic focal point of the

South route is “On the trail of climate change”. This route guides its participants from the “Klimahaus

Bremerhaven” to other nearby places which deal with issues of climate change. Thus, people can learn about the biodiversity of their region and the causes and consequences of climate change.

The geocaching@nature route was the first route at the level of a municipality and the city council of Bremerhaven was impressed by the project.

Furthermore this project has also an advertising effect for the environmental agency of Bremerhaven.

The first problems which need to be solved were the materials used for the information boards. At first they used small metal signs which were simply inserted in the ground. But soon these metal signs were destroyed or stolen. So the environmental agency decided to use a small concrete foundation with a metallic socket.

They placed these sockets in hidden places where the probability that the sockets can be discovered by uninvolved people is low.

When the geocaching@nature project was presented at conferences or meetings, some stakeholders had the opinion that school groups would have a negative impact on the ecologically sensitive areas. But the pupils proved to be well-prepared by their teachers to behave carefully.


Geocaching was invented in the USA around the year

2000. Since then, the number of geocaches has grown.

By now there are over 1.3 million active caches and over 5 million geocachers worldwide. So the future prospects, that more people set out to find caches and learn something about interesting areas of

Bremerhaven that are really worthwhile protecting, are very promising. Every year the environmental protection agency of Bremerhaven runs events in partnership with the institute for extended education for teachers (e.g. get-to-know events for students). An additional route was created in 2010 called the “climate route”, which is shorter and which aims to raise interest in the topics of “climate/climate change mitigation and adaptation”.

This route follows the mission statement of “Klimastadt

Bremerhaven” (climate city Bremerhaven). The city of Bremerhaven has several R&D institutions such as the AWI (Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and

Marine research), Klimahaus® Bremerhaven 8°Ost and many institutions for renewable energies (off-shore technologies, wind energy).


Theresia LUCKS

+49 471 590-2528 theresia.lucks@magistrat.bremerhaven.de

geocaching@magistrat.bremerhaven.de

Websites: www.bremerhaven.de

www.geocaching.bremerhaven.de

“

The feedback from the classes and teachers is very important for the project. In our case, the feedback was positive and so we were motivated to develop another route with a focus on climate change and the associated challenges.

”



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9

BLACK PIG: INCREASE IN VALUE OF A LOCAL BREED

ANIMAL GENETIC RESOURCES USED TO ENHANCE TOURISM IN CENTRAL ITALY

Arsial, Italy


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


This project shows how an agri-tourism farm, “Le

Fontanelle”, can improve agro-biodiversity using animal autochthonous genetic resources:

- Restaurant services are based upon oenological and gastronomic traditions of Central Italy;

- Menus vary according to the season, and preparations are made from fresh products (extra-quality meat selected from on-site cattle production).

It emphasises using local breeds in an organic farm production system and especially the local ancient pig breed “Suino Nero del Reatino”, which is an animal genetic resource protected by the Lazio Regional Act

(see the 2nd case study in chapter 1). This local breed belongs to the “Apulo - Calabrese” black pig group.

The rearing of “Suino Nero del Reatino” represents the on-farm conservation of a threatened animal genetic resource and aims to introduce organic farming principles in dynamic conservation methods: grazing surfaces (4 animals/ha) should be composed of more than 30% of fields that include natural trees (oak trees and apple trees) and crop rotation should be applied in order to preserve phyto-sanitary status. On the farm,

6 sows produce about 50 to 120 piglets a year, all of this local breed.

Animal agro-biodiversity valorisation is based on meat processing in the farm butchery, using ancient and family recipes to prepare black pork sausage and typical cold-cuts. Products are sold directly by the farm butchers and for agri-tourism cooking. The farm satisfies the needs of a demanding oeno-gastronomic clientele using genuine ingredients and products.

There is an increase of interest in local meat products and in the traditionally-worked different cuts of pork.

Many other genuine ingredients, such as cheese and wine, are supplied by highly qualified local producers.

Recently the farm started breeding the horse “Cavallo

Agricolo Italiano” from “Tiro Pesante Rapido” (TPR), a breed from the North of Italy, and has became a reference in the centre of Italy (since 2001 this breed has been under the protection of Regional Act n.

15/2000). The farmer is going to use TPR horses to carry agri-tourism guests in antique carriages.

Goals of the “Le Fontanelle” action:

- Valorisation of old local breeds such as the “Suino

Nero del Reatino” and the “Cavallo Agricolo Italiano”;

- Promotion of agricultural based local products;

- Increased diversification of agri-tourism activities;

BACKGROUND

Valorisation of animal genetic resources through agritourism is the central theme of several experiences in Central Italy. One of these is “Le Fontanelle” agritourism in Contigliano, 500m above sea-level, near

Rieti. Another is the “Cooperativa Grisciano”, created in 1981 to enhance job opportunities in a depopulated mountain area (in Rieti district); it aims to develop organic farming and husbandry, therefore preserving the environment. The farm is situated in “Parco del

Gran Sasso e Monti della Laga” National Park (natural protected area).

The “Le Fontanelle” farm is located in the Valle Santa,

Rieti district in Central Italy, one hour away from Rome.

For many generations these fields (10 ha in hills and

12 ha in mountains) have been exploited through environmentally friendly agricultural practices and cattle breeding. In the 1980s, Mr. V. Marchetti took over


TOURISM BASED ON AGROBIODIVERSITY

his father’s farm, which has been in his family for nearly five generations, and continued goat, cattle and horse breeding. He wanted to apply organic farming principles and participated in ALPRROB (first Association of Lazio

Organic Farmers and Breeds). In 1992, he decided to open the farm butchery for direct sales of beef, pork and lamb meat. The animal nutrition is mainly based on self-produced grass and forage, according to the disciplinary rules of organic farming; any external suppliers for complementary foods should be certified organic from the surrounding area (Rieti Valley and

Sabina). In 2002, new activities began: agri-tourism and the renovation of the stable and the butchery.

The ARSIAL activity operating under the “Protection of autochthonous genetic resources of agricultural interest” Lazio Regional Act n°15/2000, promotes the on-farm conservation of threatened animal genetic resources (see the 2 nd Good Practice in chapter 1).

In 2005, ARSIAL published a historical study “The pig breeding history in Rieti district” (M. Tanca and P. Cirioni).

The traditional cold-cuts (guanciale, lardo stagionato al maiale nero, lombetto della sabina e dei monti della laga) produced using old processing methods and the local breed black pig “Suino Nero del Reatino”, were registered in the Regional Repertory of Traditional

Products (D.M. 350/99) by ARSIAL.


Enhancement of agrobiodiversity products:

- All meat products are from organically bred farm animals;

- Farm butchery;

- Meat processing using ancient and family recipes.

Tourism and Agrobiodiversity:

- Farm products for direct sales and used in agritourism cooking;

- Respond to the oeno-gastronomic demand for local products;

- Networking with places in nearby towns (especially in Rome).

Conservation, valorisation and tourism:

- Valorisation of ancient local breeds such as the “Suino

Nero del Reatino” and the “Cavallo Agricolo Italiano”;

- Special cooking one day per week, such as an event like “Serata del Gran bollito, tutti i venerdì” (the big boil, every Friday night!).

Tools:

Press articles, Website, Email, Flyers, Posters.


GROUPS)

“Le Fontanelle” Farm is composed of farm activities, butchery and agri-tourism additional activities.

The partners involved are:

- purchasing support groups (GAS)

- typical local restaurants

- catering groups

- green economy laboratories in social places


“Le Fontanelle” farm is located in Contigliano (500 m sea-level), inside the Valle Santa, district of Rieti in

Lazio Region, Central Italy.

Start date: 2005

End date: on-going

RESOURCES

Human resources include the family-run business farm and seasonal farm workers for:

- Breeding activity: 3 hours/day, all year.

- Butchering activity: 3 hours/day, all year.

- Agri-tourism activity in winter (2 days/week) low season and in summer every day (July-August).

Average annual turnover: €140,000

Funding is provided through:

- Lazio Rural Development Programme (Public funding);

- Agro Environmental Measures:

- 214.8 Incentive to pay for the protection of animal resources (economic support to the resource keepers for on-farm conservation);

- 214.2 Incentive to pay for organic crops and breeding;

- Rural Competitive Measures:

- 112 Incentive to pay for the employment of young farmers;

- 113 Favouring early retirement for farmers;

- 121 Farm improvement.



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9


- Further diversification of agri-tourism activities.

- Increase of interest in local meat products; in particular there is an increase in demand for typical cold-cuts from the butchery shop of the “Suino Nero del Reatino” black breed pig.

- Use of local products, such as cheese and wine, produced by other highly qualified local farmers in the

Sabina area.

“Le Fontanelle” farm received a certificate from

Slow Food and won special competitions such as the

National Organic Cold Cuts Competition.

The organic farming certification process has not been maintained, as it entails excessively complex and timeconsuming procedures for very little production. “Le

Fontanelle” farm decided not to certify its breeding livestock because its value is characterised by the use of local breeds, traditional recipes and local process

(km0 distribution). The organic certification doesn’t improve its economic value. In this case, it could be beneficial to adapt the organic certification and control system to small farms.


Farm improvements:

- Farm butchery: renovation and construction of a meat-dripping room, 2 cold storage rooms and a maturing room;

- Farm: purchase of a farm tractor conforming to safety standards;

- Agri-tourism activities: building 6 bedrooms for guests;

- EC brand achievement.

We hope that the country will benefit from:

- Agricultural activities;

- Collective farmers’ initiatives;

- Network development for a local food chain (local production and distribution, km 0);

- Better relationships between farmers and public bodies interested in agricultural activities.


Vincenzo MARCHETTI and Rossella DI MAULA lefontanelle@tiscali.it

Website: http://www.agriturismolefontanelle.com

“

For a farmer like me … agricultural activities are satisfying.

Our greatest satisfaction is to achieving our goals while being in tune with people and our environment.

(“Le Fontanelle” farmer).

Agro-biodiversity conservation and valorisation experiences using autochthonous animal genetic resources in farm production are enhanced through organic farming, on-farm butchery and agritourism.

”





159

10

APICULTURAL ROAD

IMPROVING THE FIRST BEEKEEPING EDUCATIONAL PATHWAY IN KALNICA VILLAGE



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


In Kalnica, apiculture is traditional activity. The Slovak

Beekeepers Association, situated near the town of Nové

Mesto nad Váhom, contributed to creating a beekeeping educational pathway called J. M. Hurban. The path was opened in October 2009, with 8 sites over 8.5 km.

The main objective is to establishment an interest in beekeeping, particularly among young people, and to present the latest knowledge and experience in beekeeping issues.

During 2010, PPRC Piešt’any became involved in the creation of the “beekeeping educational pathway” by transferring scientific knowledge on the conservation medical plants’ biodiversity.

The targeted objectives of this action are multiple:

- Preservation of national heritage, reduction of genetic erosion;

- Raising and enriching the specific diversity of apicultural medicinal plants;

- Improving the awareness of stakeholders;

- Promoting tourism in connection with education;

- Development of the region.

BACKGROUND

The village, Kalnica, is in the Trencín Region, situated in the Považský Inovec mountain area (8 km East of Nove

Mesto nad Váhom), a well known tourist destination

(grass skiing, winter skiing). 1,036 inhabitants live in this village situated at an altitude of 215 m and covering an area of 2,640 ha. In phyto-geographical terms, the lower part of Kalnica’s territory belongs to the Pannonian flora. The composition of the landscape and flora is extremely valuable. Kalnica has extremely favourable climatic conditions for the development of fruit growing and high-quality vineyards.

Based on many years of cooperation, the Gene Bank of

SR was approached for the provision of medicinal plants for planting the J.M. Hurban beekeeping educational pathway. The origin of the idea comes from:

- Identification of good practices in natural heritage preservation;

- Identification of good practices in the sustainable use of biodiversity for the development of the region;

- Application of good practices into the management of local communities;

- Transferral of knowledge and experiences to the general public;

- Increasing the diversity of flora in this region.

METHODOLOGY

During 2010 and 2011, PPRC Piešt’any - Gene Bank of SR was involved in planting out different medicinal plants on the educational beekeeping pathway. The education pathway contributed to enriching the representation of species of medicinal and melliferous plants in this locality. These medicinal plants were grown from seeds with a country of origin of Slovakia, obtained from Gene

Bank SR. 10 species of medicinal and melliferous plants were planted; 15 plants from each species. The planting out was organised with the participation of the pupils and teachers of an elementary school in

Kalnica and 5 staff from Gene Bank SR. These activities provided educational material, promoted regional tourism and were helpful for regional beekeepers. The diversity of flora in this region will be increased by the planting of medicinal and melliferous plants along the

J.M. Hurban beekeeping educational pathway.




GROUP)

The promoter of the action is the Plant Production

Research Centre Piešt’any, Gene Bank of SR.

Target groups are the general public, students and schools, as well as specialist beekeepers. Target groups were reached after many years of cooperation between Gene Bank of SR and regional beekeepers.


Kalnica - June - December 2010 - planting out and cultivation of medicinal and melliferous plant species

Kalnica - March - October 2011 - planting out and cultivation of medicinal and melliferous plant species.

RESOURCES

For achieving these activities, a minimum staff of 5 people during a year is necessary. The annual budget for external costs and funding partners should be approximately €10,000.

Human resources involved in the action are the general public, research workers, students and beekeepers.

Time spent:

- Staff of Gene Bank SR:

Two days per month (June-December 2010)/8 hours per day, in total 112 hours

Two days per month (March–October 2011)/8 hours per day, in total 128 hours

- Kalnica beekeepers:

2010 January-December 2010, 4 days per month/8 hours per day/ in total 384 hours

2011 January-December 2010, 4 days per month/8 hours per day/ in total 384 hours

External costs are supported by PPRC Piešt’any,

Kalnica village, and volunteer beekeepers.


The observed results include:

- Enriched and increased specific flora diversity in

Kalnica region through planting out medicinal and melliferous plants (5 species/15 plants);

- Improved awareness of the stakeholders;

- Development of tourism in the region during the summer;

- Creation of training courses for 35 students;

- Dissemination of the research results for the general public for 48 participants (leaflets).


Objectives for the future include:

- Continue to teach and learn about the importance of diversity in medicinal and melliferous plants for specialised beekeepers and for the general public;

- Continue to plant out medicinal and melliferous plants on the education and apicultural pathway.



Gene Bank of the Slovak Republic benedikova@vurv.sk

+421 33 7722311

Website: http://reverse.cvrv.sk/en/

“

Education and training activities in tourist areas should result in an increase in visits. Similar activities should be organised in schools and other interest groups among the general public. The creation of educational pathways with interesting native plant species could increase the local diversity of plant species and conserve cultural heritage.

These activities are easily applicable in other regions.

”



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11

“GOURMET MUSEUM OF HERITAGE VEGETABLES”



ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


“Oh! Légumes Oubliés ® ” (Oh! Forgotten vegetables) is a tourism attraction directed towards the protection of the biodiversity, organic farming and history of food practices, for children and families, with a focus on

“Heritage Vegetables and Fruits”. The visit is developed around a vegetable conservatory, a gourmet maze which explains vegetable consumption through the centuries: from prehistory till tomorrow. There is also on site Auroch breeding (Bos primigenius) , a solar power supply for the farm, a cannery; the visitors can purchase local produce in the snack bar, and the cannery products are also available.

The price of a visit is 6.5 to 9 €, depending on time and size of visitor groups.

BACKGROUND

In the mid nineteen seventies Bernard Lafon created the concept of “Heritage Vegetables “in memory of his grandmother’s “crazy soup” and the herbs that she used. Beside the farm he has developed a vegetable soup cannery, and also the Château de Belloc “Farm

Park” which was newly developed at Saqdirac and on the 1st July 1995. Here are grown and developed several hundred of forgotten vegetables, plants and fruits such as wild nettle, dandelion, sorrel, ground cherry or “amour en cage”, elderberries, Périgord verjuice, patty pan, “potimarron” squash, purslane ...

Since the nineteen sixties, due to the widespread of transport, industrial concentration, the requirements of productivity and storage, the general drift from the land, fashions and commercial demands, numerous varieties or species of ancient fruits and vegetables have disappeared from our tables and we have tried to find them to utilize them again.


The creation of this site has required a lot of research and experimentation in order to revive species and varieties of heritage vegetables. Therefore, much of work was organized around alimentation history to explain the cause of their disappearance. Each time, it was necessary to find the methods of production, the old recipes, but also origin and history of these plants.

INVOLVED ACTORS (PROMOTER AND TARGET

GROUPS)

Bernard Lafon is the promoter of this project. During the last 30 years, he has regularly worked with cooking media, but also with botanists, sociologists, historians, gardeners and farmers. Based on self-fertilizing varieties and special grafting techniques, he has worked on the biodiversity movement which reached its greatest extent at the end of the last century, with large circulation of books and catalogues.

The orchard has been created in partnership with the Aquitaine Regional Plant Conservatory. It brings together local varieties of apples, pears, cherries, plums, peaches, and other little fruits that were grown in the past.

Together, they have created a garden concept for a sustainable development!

Today, this tourism development is targeted mainly to children, school groups and families.


HERITAGE VALUE OF BIODIVERSITY AS A PROMOTING TOOL FOR TOURISM


The Château de Belloc “Farm Park” is located 11km from Bordeaux, in the Aquitaine Region, France. It has a regional/national influence thanks to the tourism interest in the area.

Start date: “Oh! Légumes Oubliés ® ” was created in

1977 by Bernard Lafon and today it is one of the most popular sites to visit in France on the organic farming and food biodiversity uses.

RESOURCES

In terms of resource, it was necessary to acquire funding from several banks and other loans in order to finance the investment for this project, but also to train teams and employees.

For the tourism activities 3 fulltime people are employed, for running the site (farm production, cannery, farm shop) another 11 full time people are employed.

With the help from the media and journalists, this project has created awareness for the concept of heritage vegetables. The creative actions imagined allowed to give notoriety to the products, develop a brand and to generate income in order to increase activities on the farm.


These ideas and actions were taken up again by many farmers, throughout France and other foreign countries. With its “Bienvenue à la Ferme” (“Welcome to farm”) and “Organic” Labels, the Chateau de Belloc

“Farm Park” has become in a few years a major tourism attraction in South-Western France. It claims to be the first French tourist site focused on organic food and education of taste. It is ranked among the first 40 most beautiful French kitchen gardens, and has been visited by more than 350,000 people mainly from

France, Germany and England.

The principal ideas that we drew from this farm: it is possible to educate children to the environment and to taste with fun. But we also learn that agri-tourism and a “farm shop” could be an excellent way of development for a cannery on farm and a farmer!


In front of stakes of ecology, sustainable development, nutrition and public health, many projects are possible for the future. During the next tourism season: we will create a restaurant formula with meals available on site, and also new direct sales on Internet.

Heritage vegetables history is continuing but will always look to the beginning for its future.


Bernard LAFON

Château de Belloc, 33670 Sadirac, France

Tel +33 556 306 100 bernard@alimenthus.com

Websites: www.ohlegumesoublies.com

www.ohlegumesoublies.com/eng/index-fr.asp

www.alimenthus.com

“

Our experience seems interesting to share, because it answers to many modern challenges for education, environment and economic purpose: it is necessary to create other sites and actions to create a real sustainable development in industrial countries.

”



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PARCHINMOSTRA - TOURING EXHIBITIONS


Arsial, Italy

ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


“ParchinMostra” is a programme of touring exhibitions.

It promotes and popularises our regional natural values, by creating events to raise the awareness of citizens (including students) and tourists of our most important environmental issues and resources. For each exhibition, local communication is carried out.

In almost three years of the project, ten exhibitions took place:

- Five photographic exhibitions, of naturalistic pictures or more “artistic” pictures;

- Two exhibitions of naturalistic paintings (realised for the artistic prize, “Premio Naturarte”);

- Three exhibitions of “naturalistic” discoveries on

Latium’s wildlife and environment, supported by texts, pictures, video, interactive material and microscopes.

At the moment five exhibitions are being displayed through our region’s natural protected areas:

- “Wild Lazio”, an exhibition of naturalistic photography showing the most intact natural areas of Latium;

- “Herbario Magico”, a photographic exhibition dedicated to “magic” plants used centuries ago for medical treatment: some of the pictures use 3D technologies;

- “Verso Sud”, a photographic exhibition focused on Southern Latium’s natural landscapes and archaeological monuments;

- “BiodiversiLazio”, an exhibition on biodiversity showing natural discoveries from Latium’s wildlife;

- A exhibition of naturalistic paintings on the theme

“Natural and agricultural Latium”.

BACKGROUND

The Latium Regional Park Agency (ARP) is the first, and so far the only, agency in Italy entirely dedicated to the regional system of natural protected areas. The

Agency was established in 1993 and since then has assisted the management bodies of natural protected areas in different fields of activities such as biodiversity conservation, capacity building and environmental education.

The idea of ParchinMostra was initiated in 2009 in the attempt to create a useful tool for parks and local administrations to promote the environmental resources that they manage.

These exhibitions are mainly directed at local citizens and students, who often need to be encouraged to discover the beauty of their territory and its unexpected resources of their territory; but they can also be a valued help in attracting visitors to some areas of Lazio normally not paid so much attention by tourism.

The programme’s secondary purpose is also to liven up towns and villages that protect important natural values. The exhibitions, in our opinion, are an opportunity to take advantage of underused existing buildings in rural areas. These buildings are generally underemployed but are very beautiful: this initiative gives local populations the opportunity to visit the exhibition and to “take possession” of the buildings.


First, our working group discussed the choice of topics to be dealt with, and consequently, the type of exhibitions that were easiest to organise and the most attractive ones. We planned three types of exhibitions: naturalistic paintings exhibitions, photographic exhibitions, and more elaborated displays focused on naturalistic discoveries, illustrated by in-depth articles, pictures, interactive games and microscope presentations.



The subsequent steps were:

- Elaboration of the project and creation of each exhibition with the cooperation of established professionals

- Communication to the parks about the availability of the exhibitions;

- Collection of requests from the protected areas or other kinds of public administration;

- Conduct of surveys to check or verify that the location chosen could satisfy the features required: indoor spaces, security of exhibited material, etc.

- Planning the agenda;

- Collection of feedbacks from each protected area that hosted an exhibit. In the first year, for example, this stage enabled us to gather information about the best future locations.


GROUPS)

“ParchinMostra” has been designed and managed by the ARP - Agenzia Regionale Parchi, a structure within the Regione Lazio whose aims are to coordinate and manage policies, programmes and actions involving all regional protected areas.

The target groups of ParchinMostra are first of all stakeholders such as schools, social centres, environmental associations, and, in general, all citizens.

Also particular targets include: a) local administrators, exhibitions being in fact an additional way to promote local territories; b) naturalistic artists and photographers, whose productions are then exhibited.


The activity has a regional scale: touring exhibitions are installed in the visitor centres of protected areas, in dedicated halls within naturalistic museums, or alternatively in recently restructured historical palaces in town and rural centres.

ParchinMostra started in April 2009 and is still on-going.

RESOURCES

During the first two year of ParchinMostra, five employees of ARP worked on the project.

External funds: about €160,000 including external found (€70,000 from Agenzia di Sviluppo - BIC Lazio)

RESULTS

The expected results are:

- An increase in awareness on environmental issues amongst citizens

- An increase in the understanding of natural protected areas’ values, activities and aims


Fabrizio PETRASSI fpetrassi@regione.lazio.it

Mariapia PIERMARINI mpiermarini@regione.lazio.it

Agenzia Regionale per i Parchi - Regione Lazio

Via del Pescaccio 96/98 – 00166, Roma, Italy

+39 651687388

Websites: http://www.arplazio.it

http://www.parchilazio.it

- An increase in the attractiveness and liveliness of towns and rural villages that host the exhibitions

Positive results:

- Increase in demand for each exhibition: 12 requests

(average) in the first year of the project (for 4 exhibitions), as against 15 requests (average) in the second year of the project (for 4 exhibitions);

- Increase in the number of institutions that have requested the exhibitions: 27 in the first year, 39 in the second year. Currently, exhibitions are set up in 52 different locations;

- Total number of sites hosting the exhibitions in less than 3 years: 93 (average 9.3 per exhibition).

LESSONS LEARNT

- Less is better: the larger the exhibition, the bigger its problems (transport and assembling costs grow as do difficulties in finding suitable locations, etc.);

- Diversity is good: by realising very different kinds of exhibition you will be able to arouse the interest of a wider range of local administrations and citizens;

- A good exhibition is a good promoter of itself, or the importance of word of mouth;

- The central role played by local referents or the careful choice of your contacts (that can really make the difference!);

- Local communication is crucial: if it is well done, you can bring the exhibition even to the most decentralised location and it will be a success.

Problems encountered

- Lack of personnel working on the project (two of the five people who started ParchinMostra no longer work on the project);

- (Sometimes) lack of local communication;

- An exhibition doesn’t always turn out to the best: its success also depends on the location chosen;

- (Sometimes) limited opening hours and days of the exhibitions are caused by a lack of local staff;

- It is not simple to obtain precise data feedback about the visitors and schools involved;

- Insufficient funds for the continuation of the project.


Currently five exhibitions are being displayed through our region. Considering the requests, three of these will run again for most of 2012.

A new “naturalistic” exhibition about the birds of the wetlands has already been funded and is in the design phase. In addition we have collected some ideas and plans for new photographic exhibitions.

“

The opinion of our working group is that “ParchiMostra” is a programme that is easy to replicate in other contexts. It is essential to create exhibitions that can be modulated and adjusted according to local needs and the chosen location. This is a typical project requiring attention and management experience for the preparation and launching of each exhibition; but once it is engaged, less involvement is needed for the exhibition to continue. Something to remember: the expressions on the faces of people reading the label on our exhibits: “Si prega di toccare”

(Please, touch it).

”



165

13

EXCURSIONS WITH HISTORICAL PEAT BOATS

Bremen Region, Germany


ECONOMIC

ECOLOGICAL

SOCIAL


Historical peat boats are rebuilt by a cooperative of unemployed people (funded by the European Social

Fund ESF) and excursions are organised for the public in the peaty and swampy lowlands of Northern

Germany. This is an example of how historical boats can be rebuilt and used to show people a landscape of high natural value without disturbing it.

Since 2007, the boats have been managed by an employment initiative, called TORFKÄHNE Bremen.

During this time, 4 reconstructed peat boats were bought. Now they give work to 8-15 unemployed people per year and train them to organise boat trips, repair boats and give explanations to customers during the trips. They explain the history of the use of peat and bogs and life in the bogs and swamps around the city of Bremen.

The excursions go through a specific landscape of high natural value. Wetlands are used as grassland in a nature friendly way and house many meadow birds and rare plant species. Therefore, people understand the natural value of this landscape. Explanations are also given on the historical use of peat, the colonisation of the bogs and swamps in the 18 th and 19 th centuries and the biodiversity of today.

This action therefore has social benefits but also benefits of raising awareness towards biodiversity and the natural values of the region of Bremen.

BACKGROUND

In 2001, a shipyard specialised in rebuilding historic

Hanseatic boats also reconstructed a peat boat. These boats were in former times (from the cultivation of the bogs and swamps around Bremen in the mid 18 th century) the only means of transport from the bogs to the city of Bremen. Inhabitants of the villages in the bogs transported peat for heating to the town and obtained money, food and other goods in exchange. This form of transportation ended in 1900 when a railway was built. Later, people in the town used coal, oil and gas for heating the houses instead of peat and this branch of trade ended.

In the surroundings of Bremen, in the region of former peat bogs called the “Teufelsmoor” (Devil’s bog), the first trips were organised in the 1980s with reproductions of historical peat boats. Since 2007, an employment initiative has started trips from the city of

Bremen. Since 1983, this has been a new branch within an employment initiative that gave work to unemployed people. They have many different units for nearly all kind of professions and try to give people work and help them to get a permanent job. In 2007, they founded the initiative for the peat boats.




The project started from the interest of the employment initiative in running a historical peat boat in Bremen.

Now it is a professional group composed of skippers and volunteers who organise and run the trips, give information about history, landscape and natural values and handle and repair the boats.

Many of the former employed members of TORFKÄHNE

Bremen are still working there as volunteers. The fleet of boats has increased up to 4 boats now.


GROUPS)

The action promoter is an employment institution that trains people to build historical peat boats, organise boat trips and give explanations about historical use of peat and bogs and life in the bogs and swamps around the city of Bremen.

The target groups are tourists, interested people, clubs, companies, etc.


The boats cruise through the Blockland and Wümme-

Area in the north of Bremen; the port is in the centre of Bremen.

The start date of this activity was summer 2007.

RESOURCES

Human resources: There are about 8-12 people in a job-creation scheme, 2 permanent employees and many volunteers.

Time spent by the team: Full time during the summer season, less in winter time.

Action funding: The project is supported by the

European Social Fund (ESF), the Federal Employment office, regional social funds and sponsors.


During the season from April to October, some on thousand people took part in the excursions. In 2011, 43 trips were scheduled with 350 people and 15 chartered trips with about 2,000 participants. So the project has high touristic value, but also raises awareness of the importance of regional biodiversity and history of peat and bogs.

Now the project has four peat boats of their own and can rent one or two more if needed.

8-12 former unemployed people are engaged per year.

The project lacks funding because the excursion fees do not cover all the costs. So they are trying to obtain new sponsorship and governmental aid. They get a lot of idealistic support but not so much financial support.


The project has been growing over the years and new ideas have appeared.

From 2012, TORFKÄHNE Bremen has been organising excursions with school classes from the first to the sixth class about various themes: the history of peat as fuel for heating in the 18 th and 19 th century; getting peat as fuel to the city of Bremen; the history of colonisation.

Since 2011, they have been taking trips with a storyteller who tells stories of the poor and hard life of former times in the bogs.

Finally, they want to cooperate with a nature conservation organisation (a local branch of German

Friends of the Earth) to organise natural excursions.

Moreover, a small exhibition in the harbour of peat boats with different kinds of peat and typical plants of the bogs and swamps is foreseen.


Ullrich MICKAN, Facility manager

Torfkähne Bremen,

Stavendamm 8, D-28195 Bremen

+49 421. 37 87 75 89 mickan@bras-bremen.de

info@torfkaehne-bremen.de

Website: http://www.torfkaehne-bremen.de



167

PHOTOS CREDITS:

AGRICULTURE AND BIODIVERSITY

1. Environmentally-friendly farming regional programme: CRA

2. Regional Act for agro-biodiversity conservation: Map= ARSIAL-SIT; ARSIAL-STQ

3. Microbial biodiversity and soil health: C Garbisu (NEIKER)

4. Environmental study guidelines: DG Environment Región of Murcia

5. Dry calcareous grasslands preservation: CEN Aquitaine

6. Landscape management plan for farmers: EMU V.Kuusemets; EMU K.Sepp; EMU M.Ööpik

7. Agri-food landscapes: M Askasibar (PAISAIA)

8. Farming and protecting snails: K. Koukos (Helix Far)

9. Natural biodiversity in vineyards: E Maille Agrobioperigord

10. Preserving a cultural heritage: CVRV Piešt’any

11. Potato genes: JI Ruiz de Galarreta (NEIKER)

12. Archeologia Arborea tree collection

13. Breed conservation: = E. UGARTE (NEIKER)

14. “Seed houses” concept: Agrobioperigord

15. Designation of origin for agro-biodiversity

16. Collective Mark “Natura in Campo”: Lazio Region - ARP (Regional Park Agency)

17. Landrace seeds event RENABIO: ReseauSemences Paysannes

18. Agro-biodiversity in Trasimeno Lake: Trasimeno

19. The taste of landraces: Agrobioperigord

20. Educational garden: CVRV Piešt’any

21. Public participation in biodiversity conservation: CVRV Piešt’any

LAND PLANNING AND BIODIVERSITY

1 Landscape programme and land use plan: archive SUBV

2. Green network in Estonia: EMU V.Kuusemets; EMU E.Pildid

3. Umbria Region Ecological Network: R.Segatori, MAICh

4. Natural areas within a city: CEN Aquitaine

5. Upgrading motorway infrastructure: ASF

6. Añarbe Reserve: Designation of a Forest Reserve Zone: I. Azkarate Pérez

7. Plant Micro-Reserves: MAICH©

8. Territorial plan for wetlands: A. Salazar

9. Defining technical criteria for Regional environmental regulation: DG Environment Región of Murcia

10. Environmental impact assessment reports: P. Ortega

11. Common lands landscape: “Contrada Allumiere” Association; ARSIAL-STQ; Allumiere Agrarian University

12. Landscape charter to promote territory attractiveness: Pays Val de Garonne-Gascogne

13. Declaration: Biodiversity in cities and municipalities: ©Umweltschutzamt Bremerhaven

TOURISM AND BIODIVERSITY

1. Regional strategy for conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in tourism: DG Environment Región of Murcia

2. Management of the National Park of Samaria: Forest Directorate of Chania

3. Quality labels for Tourism in Protected Natural Areas: T. Andrés

4. Nature on tour: Promotion of sustainable tourism: Lazio Region - ARP (Regional Park Agency)

5. Aquitaine Nature Days: education and discovery of biodiversity: ONCFS RNN Ares

6. Alviano Lake: Environmental education and bird watching

7. Discovering vultures, local ecotourism initiative: Mathieu Sannier LPO Aquitaine

8. Geocaching@nature: ©Umweltschutzamt Bremerhaven

9. Black pig: increase in value of a local breed: “Le Fontanelle”

10. Apicultural road: beekeeping educational pathway: CVRV Piešt’any

11. “Gourmet Museum of Heritage Vegetables”: Bernard Lafon

12. ParchinMostra-touring exhibitions

13. Excursions with historical peat boats: Henrich Klugkist

Find all Reverse documents on our website: www.reverse.aquitaine.eu

This project is cofinanced by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and made possible by the INTERREG IVC programme

enhancing biodiversity and boosting economic development

ENHANCING BIODIVERSITY

AND BOOSTING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

47 successful regional case studies in Europe in the fields of agriculture, land planning and tourism

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ENHANCING BIODIVERSITY

AND BOOSTING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

47 successful regional case studies in Europe in the fields of agriculture, land planning and tourism

HIGHLIGHTS

Challenges related to biodiversity and economic development

THE REVERSE PROJECT

www.reverse.aquitaine.eu

REVERSE PARTNERS

Regions:

Specialised organizations:

ABOUT THIS GUIDE

Find your way through this guide

AGRICULTURE, FOOD PRODUCTION AND BIODIVERSITY

LAND PLANNING AND BIODIVERSITY

TOURISM AND BIODIVERSITY

AGRICULTURE, FOOD PRODUCTION AND BIODIVERSITY

AGRICULTURE, FOOD PRODUCTION AND BIODIVERSITY

CASE STUDY

NUMBER

ENVIRONMENTALLY-FRIENDLY FARMING:

A REGIONAL PROGRAMME OF HIGH QUALITY ENVIRONMENTAL CERTIFICATION

REGIONAL ACT FOR AGRO-BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION

PROTECTION OF AUTOCHTHONOUS GENETIC RESOURCES OF AGRICULTURAL

INTEREST IN LAZIO REGION

MICROBIAL BIODIVERSITY

A BIO-INDICATOR OF THE IMPACT OF AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES ON SOIL HEALTH

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDY GUIDELINES:

ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF AGRICULTURE ON THE ENVIRONMENT

DRY CALCAREOUS GRASSLANDS

PRESERVATION AND MANAGEMENT OF A NETWORK OF DRY CALCAREOUS

GRASSLANDS IN THE VIC-BILH TERRITORY

LANDSCAPE MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR FARMERS

PRESERVING BIODIVERSITY IN AGRICULTURAL LANDSCAPE

AGRI-FOOD LANDSCAPES

FARMING AND PROTECTING SNAILS

NATURAL BIODIVERSITY IN VINEYARDS:

ASSESSMENT OF ARTHROPODS BIODIVERSITY IN ORGANIC VINEYARDS

ACCORDING TO CROPPING PRACTICES

GENE BANK

PRESERVING A CULTURAL HERITAGE

POTATO GENES

CONSERVATION OF LOCAL CULTIVARS AND WILD SPECIES OF POTATO

ARCHEOLOGIA ARBOREA

BREED CONSERVATION

GENETIC BREEDING PROGRAMME OF AUTOCHTHONOUS BREEDS

“SEED HOUSES” CONCEPT

COLLECTIVE MANAGEMENT NETWORK OF CULTIVATED BIODIVERSITY

DESIGNATION OF ORIGIN FOR AGRO-BIODIVERSITY

VALORISATION OF CROP BIODIVERSITY THROUGH THE ADOPTION OF EUROPEAN

DESIGNATIONS OF ORIGIN: PDO AND PGI

COLLECTIVE MARK “NATURA IN CAMPO”

PRODUCTS FROM THE PARKS ON GENETIC RESOURCES

LANDRACE SEEDS EVENT:

RENABIO, AN INTERNATIONAL MEETING TO REVIVE CEREAL’S BIODIVERSITY

AND FARMER AND BAKER KNOW-HOW

AGRO-BIODIVERSITY IN TRASIMENO LAKE

USING GENETIC RESOURCES IN AGRICULTURE FOR RESTORING ECOSYSTEMS

THE TASTE OF LANDRACES

DEVELOPING THE SPECIFICITIES OF MAIZE LANDRACE VARIETIES IN HUMAN FOOD

TO DEVELOP CULTIVATED BIODIVERSITY

EDUCATIONAL GARDEN

MEDICINAL AND AROMATIC PLANTS AS EDUCATIONAL MATERIAL

FOR PRIMARY SCHOOLS

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION

A PARTICIPATIVE PROCESS FOR THE BUILDING OF A MANAGEMENT PLAN

FOR A SPECIAL AREA OF CONSERVATION (SAC) OF THE NATURA 2000 NETWORK

WITH EMPHASIS ON AGRICULTURAL ASPECTS

LAND PLANNING AND BIODIVERSITY

LAND PLANNING AND BIODIVERSITY

CASE STUDY

NUMBER

LANDSCAPE PROGRAMME AND LAND USE PLAN

Bremen Region, Germany

GREEN NETWORK

DESIGNATING AN ECOLOGICAL NETWORK AT COUNTY LEVEL