Preserving permanent mountain grasslands in Western Europe: Why are promising approaches not implemented more widely?

To protect grasslands and maintain the ecosystem services they provide, many European countries have been offering agri-environment measures aimed at maintaining extensive grazing by cattle, sheep or goats. Yet, despite more than two decades of agri-environment measures, semi-natural mountain pastures are still seen as threatened by abandonment and subsequent shrub encroachment. Building on a three-round Delphi inquiry, we analyse the perception of a range of experts on how measures aimed at maintaining mountain grasslands are designed and implemented in Austria, France and Norway. Results show that the experts see the need for a stronger involvement of diverse regional actors, the need to increase the flexibility given to farmers in managing mountain grasslands, and the need to reconceptualise monitoring as a social learning process. While these approaches are implemented in some ‘best practice’ examples, they are not widespread. Understanding these approaches as requiring double-loop learning may contribute to explaining their limited spread. Indeed, they build on a radically different conceptualization of farmers and of researchers, and thus of how agri-environment measures need to be designed and implemented to be effective. Yet, such radical changes are likely to be resisted.     

The impact of information on landowners’ participation in voluntary conservation programs - Theoretical considerations and empirical evidence from an agri-environment program in Saxony, Germany

The voluntary nature of programs that pay landowners for conservation measures raises the question of what factors favor participation in such programs. This article focuses on the controversial issue of the impact of information on the participation decision. We develop a straightforward model to analyze how information affects this decision, and empirically estimate the impact of information, as well as other factors, on participation in a conservation program in Saxony, Germany. We find in our theoretical analysis that information measures may affect program participation either in a positive or negative way, whereas our estimation results indicate that the influence of the diverse information measures that have been relevant in our empirical analysis is weak. We argue, however, that information measures may nonetheless be warranted, as they allow for better informed participation decisions, thus contributing to a more optimal selection of program participants.     

Encouraging collaboration for the provision of ecosystem services at a landscape scale—Rethinking agri-environmental payments

In this viewpoint we draw on insights from participatory agri-environmental policy making, spatial planning and collaborative approaches to environmental management. We propose steps for planning, design and implementation of agri-environmental payment schemes that will encourage collaboration and co-ordinated actions at a landscape scale to contribute more effectively to the continued provision of ecosystem services.     

Biodiversity and Green Infrastructure in Europe: Boundary object or ecological trap?

The concept of green infrastructure is widely used in environmental planning, but so far it has no standard definition. Planners, conservationists and scientists tend to welcome the term because it can serve as a boundary object, providing links among policy makers, developers and different academic disciplines. However, the concept of green infrastructure creates risks for biodiversity conservation in its adoption. It can be used to water down biodiversity conservation aims and objectives as easily as it can be used to further them because of the different ideas associated with it and the multiple interests pursued. In this paper, we address such risks by looking, among others, at the European Union’s Green Infrastructure Strategy and we suggest how planners and conservationists might deal with its growing importance in environmental policy and planning to enhance its value for biodiversity conservation.     

Shared ecological knowledge and wetland values: A case study

The estimation of wetlands’ non-use values to build up a total economic evaluation can be based on stated preference methods, which derives from the standard economic model that assumes a rational assessment of the consequence of preferences on personal utility. The paper describes the nature of the citizens’ shared ecological knowledge of wetlands functions, the relation of the shared ecological knowledge with the official/normative knowledge, and the relation between the motivations outlined by the shared ecological knowledge and those expected by the standard economic model. The results demonstrate that economic preferences are driven by multiple motivations well rooted in the social nature of shared ecological knowledge, and not by simply consequential motivations. In this case study, social knowledge of wetlands’ ecological functions is proportionally related to people's living proximity to those wetlands. Unexpectedly, shared ecological knowledge of historically well-known and critically important services, like the hydraulic and hydrologic services, has also been diminishing. Furthermore, there is a partial or clear-cut separation between official/normative knowledge and the shared ecological knowledge on crucial aspects like wetlands’ climate change role. This approach helps to construct a motivational framework to derive values that are useful as long as they allow accounting for a complex socio-cultural capital in the public decision making process.     

Abandonment or survival? Understanding the future of Castanea sativa stands in function of local attitude (Northern Apennine,Italy)

In a chestnut belt in the northern Apennines (Italy), we interviewed current (n = 52) and potential growers from a younger generation (n = 57), to assess what factors are likely to drive their willingness to continue chestnut culture. In 35 cases, local appraisals of chestnut stand disturbances were also contrasted with expert assessments. More than half of current growers were confident about the future of chestnut cultivation. This proportion decreased with grower’s age and experienced issues, while slightly increased in presence of multifunctional management and support from family members. Although most growers resulted highly capable of diagnosing problems, expert advice significantly contributed to driving positive perceptions. About half of the younger interviewees also expressed interest in growing chestnut. This proportion was higher for respondents who are exposed to chestnut culture within the family, and who value cultural services above other ecosystem services (ES) of forests. Overall, passion for the activity and attachment to local heritage were the most influential motivation for both categories of respondents. We outline policy actions that may encourage the continuation of chestnut management and, more generally, conservation of cultural landscapes in mountain areas. Possible measures include financial incentives (e.g., payments for ES), tighter integration of traditional and expert knowledge in the production chain, and public recognition of the value of local heritage in land management. Broader support to maintaining services and infrastructure in rural areas, however, will also be a pre-condition.     

Assessing governance of biosphere reserves in Central Europe

The biosphere reserve (BR) concept, developed within UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme, represents a hallmark in seeking to reconcile conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. The MAB Programme functioning mechanisms leave the responsibility for the translation of its BR objectives to the management authorities of the participating countries. While a shift to broad social and livelihood perspectives is emerging in the BR Programme, reflecting contemporary requirements for the sustainable management of larger territories including protected areas, it suffers from implementation deficits at the local level.     

Perceived importance of ecosystem services in the Białowieża Forest for local communities – Does proximity matter?

Effective protection of biodiversity in areas of high conservation value requires trade-offs between local use of natural resources and conservation restrictions. The compromise is often difficult to reach, which causes conflicts over the management priorities of existing and potential protected areas. Ecosystem services (ES) perspective offers a promising avenue for diagnosing and reconciling contrasting interests concerning the use of benefits from ecosystems. We examined how the spatial proximity to the Białowieża Forest (BF), a European biodiversity hotspot, affects the perceived use of ES by local communities. We performed a survey among 719 respondents from 35 villages situated within BF and in its vicinity. We found that both the declared use of ES and the perceived influence of ES on household’s economy was declining with the distance from BF with particularly high differences between areas not further than 3 km from BF and areas located 3-15 km from BF. Different zones varied in terms of benefits from tourism and costs connected with a potential limited access to ES due to conservation. Broadening the perspective, we argue that the trade-offs linked to ES may vary depending on the location in relation to the protected area and that local communities should not be treated as a homogenous group when considering benefits from the forest. Awareness of common patterns of ES use over space and local specificity may enhance effective management of even highly contested conservation areas.     

Playing musical chairs with land use obligations: Market-based instruments and environmental public policies in Brazil

In Brazil, market-based instruments focusing on land use dimensions are increasingly promoted as a means to make public environmental policies effective. Landowners and farmers call for more flexible regulations and economic incentives to adopt ecologically sound practices, while public agencies and conservation NGOs seek new ways of financing and legitimising legal standards. Market-based instruments are considered by these actors as having the potential to both achieve their own goals and conciliate all interests. As a result, legal frameworks (including cap-and-trade systems, biodiversity offsetting and payments for ecosystem services) are being designed which allow to exchange land use rights and obligations. Under a sociolegal approach, this article provides an overview of such instruments. It shows to what extent they may entail a reconfiguration of the burden sharing and the priority setting of nature conservation. Depending on how actors use legal standards, their responsibilities may be eased and the level of conservation may be lowered, both facts that raise significant controversy.     

壶瓶山植物资源区系特征与保护利用

壶瓶山有植物206科、840属、2262种,资源丰富、珍稀濒危植物多、开发价值高;提出了植物资源保护与利用对策。