PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
Mediterranean wetlands are threatened by the economic activities carried out in their catchment basins.
Conventional agricultural techniques have environmental impacts that are aggravated when they are employed in wetland catchment basins. These impacts include diminished production capacity and content of organic material; contamination of surface water by sediments, fertilisers and phytosanitary products; increased CO2 emissions and gradual impoverishment of biodiversity.
OBJECTIVES
This “Sustainable Wetlands” project proposed agricultural practices which conserve the natural resources using demonstration plots supplied by farmers in the catchment basins of wetlands and applying a “bottom-up” approach of the concept of integrated land management.
Concrete project objectives were to:
RESULTS
Overall, the project can be considered successful. The project team carried out a study of ecological farming in Spain and defined field practices and techniques together with local farmers, mainly based on the concept of conservation and integrated agriculture (sown ground cover, spontaneous ground cover, direct sowing, minimum tillage, etc.). Results were transferred to a GIS-based ‘virtual decision system’ (VDS) called “Sustainable management in agriculture and conservation of wetlands”, developed by the project to facilitate the selection of the target areas based on agro-ecological parameters.
Plots covering 60 ha were selected to test soil management and sustainable production techniques in the catchment areas of Andalusian wetlands. A total of 13 plots were planted with three culture types: wheat, sunflower, and olive trees. A few techniques of "precision agriculture" were also applied for environmental and economic reasons.
A ‘wetland office’ was created to provide information, technical support and advice on conservation agriculture and Natura 2000 sites, and to disseminate and transfer the wetland-related project techniques and methods. As ‘transference centre’ i twill continue to give technical support and assistance after the project’s closure.
Studies on the economical viability and social benefits that could arise from the use of sustainable agriculture techniques and EMAS certification were developed. One of the project plots succeeded in becoming EMAS certified.
Significant environmental benefit as regards soil quality, water balance and run off water quality were obtained in the project plots. The production/yield was as high, or higher, than with traditional methods. On the whole, the results obtained demonstrated that the implementation of conservation and integrated agriculture practices around fragile natural wetland areas is technically and economically viable, brings about numerous environmental benefits and is very likely to generate notable long-term social, economic and environmental benefits.
The project also succeeded in showing farmers that changes in the agriculture practices are feasible and viable and are compatible with the management of the areas included in, or surrounding Natura 2000 sites. Key to this has been the "bottom up approach", with implementation of the project activities using demonstration plots supplied by the farmers themselves and by integrating the farmers in the design and test of tools aimed to achieve greater sustainability in the catchment basins of wetlands. Most of the farmers were convinced after the experiments done by themselves and continue applying these practices in their estates after the project’s end.
As growing importance is given to conservation techniques across Europe, the project has been useful in promoting these techniques in a professional sector that is usually resistant to change. This will hopefully have further effects in the long term and be translated into the development of further initiatives/projects in arid areas of Southern Europe.
