Biodiversity monitoring with farmers

Biodiversity monitoring with farmers

Summary

About 700 farmers throughout Austria, as well as students from 14 agricultural and forestry schools are observing the diversity of plants and animals on their own meadows and pastures. The program “Farmers keep an eye on plants and animals!” is part of Austria’s program for rural development since the period 2007-13 and also in 2014-20.
The program stands for the annual monitoring and documentation of plants and animals, as well as for the willingness to care for and sustain the extensive grassland. The program is part of the education measures of the rural development program, with the aims to raise awareness, to build knowledge among farmers about biodiversity on their meadows as well as to inspire them for biodiversity monitoring. This helps to better understand the relationship between grassland management and the abundance of certain indicator species Regulations are not part of the program but only monitoring activities. Monitoring observations and management measures are reported on an online reporting portal.
Farmers are paid a compensation for their monitoring activities, if they take part in further measures of Austria’s Agri-Environmental-Program ÖPUL, namely CODE WF (€39/ha with a maximum of 3ha) or biological farming (lump sum of €57).

Objectives

  • Biodiversity monitoring, conservation and protection of extensive grasslands by farmers , monitoring of 200 plant and 50 animal species throughout Austria;
  • Awareness raising and knowledge about biodiversity among farmers via the observation and documentation of the development of plant and animal species and recognition of connections between management practices and abundance of certain species;
  • Environmental consciousness raising among farmers;
  • Citizen Science in order to gain knowledge about the effects of different land management practices.

Public Goods

(Farmland) biodiversity
(Farmland) biodiversity
Landscape and scenery
Biodiversity monitoring with farmers

Problem description

Since 1995, a huge number of farms within the framework of Austrian Agri- Environmental Program (ÖPUL) have adhered to the agreed management requirements of the nature conservation measure (WF) in the use of their species- rich meadows. However, it is assumed that only if farmers really understand why they are implementing certain management measures a long term effect will be the result. For nature conservation measures to work sustainably, more is needed
than incentive payments and contracts designed as simple as possible. The sole advise of ecologists is not enough to achieve long-term awareness. This is where the project sets in and tries to generate long-term understanding among farmers by counting and observing the abundance of animal and plant species themselves and setting them in relation to management.

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