High Nature Value Farmlands in the Danube-Carpathian Region

Geographical location:

Europe/Middle-East > Eastern Europe > Bulgaria

Europe/Middle-East > Eastern Europe > Romania
Europe/Middle-East > Europe General

Summary

High Nature Value (HNV) farmland represents one of the most significant, but at the same time one of the most threatened, forms of ecologically sound entrepreneurship in Europe. HNV farmland is now a central focus of the European Union (EU) rural development policy.

A detailed understanding of the concept of HNV farmland and of the complex needs of farming systems in HNV farmland areas are essential prerequisites for the formulation of effective policies in accordance with EU goals.

Background

High Nature Value (HNV) farmland's importance in safeguarding Europe’s biodiversity and landscape is now recognised at a continental level. This culminated in the agreement in Madrid in 2006, following on from the Kiev meeting of environment ministers, at which commitments were made to identifying and managing HNV farmland by 2006 and 2008 respectively.

At the same time, HNV farmland areas are rapidly changing - changes which are in danger of accelerating as economic prosperity gives farmers a wider range of options. Governments can address some of the problems, but given the fact that HNV farmland’s profile has only recently been raised, the rapidly changing state of knowledge and awareness at all levels, and the amount of local variation in not only ecological relationships, but also social, economic and cultural factors, they need help in making the concept relevant at the local level.

HNV farmland will be central to EU policy in the 2007-2013 programme period. The Rural Development Strategy guidance issued by the Commission makes it clear that "to protect and enhance the EU’s natural resources and landscapes in rural areas, the resources devoted to axis 2 (i.e. land management) should contribute to biodiversity and preservation of high nature value farming and forestry systems" as one of only 3 priorities for this theme of policy.

There is an opportunity to use national and EU funding to steer the development of HNV farmland areas in a way which maintains their natural value, addresses the aspirations of farmers and rural communities, and increases the degree to which the value placed on these sites internationally translates itself into direct reward for the ecologically sound entrepreneurs themselves.

The pressure to align policies to those of the EU for actual or prospective Accession States provides an opportunity to do much good, depending on the approach taken locally. The danger is that a rushed approach now will handicap policies for years to come.

Objectives

The objectives are twofold:

1. Make HNV farmland a familiar and comfortable concept in the target countries, and a focus around which farmers in marginal areas, governments and wider civil society can unite to promote truly sustainable development.

2. Reflect on the actual problems of HNV areas and on the appropriateness or otherwise of both the proposed implementation of Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) and rural policy in the areas.

The target groups are thus also twofold:

1) Everyone involved in the process of ensuring positive management - governments (both centrally and in the local administration) and the EU, and farmers and their advisors, but also the public on whose funds the success of the venture will still substantially depend.

2) Those specifically involved in the policy development process - primarily government ministries and secondarily stakeholder organisations.

Geographically, the focus is:

- Policy making: national (and European).

- Awareness during policy implementation: local (and national/European).

- Awareness raising for stakeholders: from local to national to European, but with stress in target countries.

- Awareness raising for the wider public: local, national and European.

Solution

Achieving the objectives requires complex and multi-directional awareness-raising. Policy makers, the public and farmers must learn about Nature Value. Ecologists and policy makers need to learn about the needs and aspirations of farmers. Farmers, advisors and policy makers must learn how to steer agricultural change in an ecologically-sound manner. The EU needs to learn about the realities on the ground when developing its policies and pass on the opportunities which exists in its measures.

This is to be done by a combination of explaining the concept, illustrating how it links to the target country/area, illuminating the potential problems for ensuring the safeguarding of this heritage for Europe, discussing current and proposed policy instruments and the overall balance of policy and the degree to which is addresses the problems identified, the drawing up of specific proposals for improving the policy matrix, and transmitting broader lessons learnt to Brussels.

Achievement

Both Bulgaria and Romania include packages on the management of HNV farmland in their national agri-environment projects 2007-2013. The relevant working groups of experts from government, academic institutions and nature conservation non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have made it clear that there is a significant lack of real ground-based information on the status and potential for conservation of these areas. At the same time, they recognise their importance and wish to prioritise their management in the national projects.