10/05/2011 image expired

Biodiversity has diminished considerabley on cultivated land in Europe, according to analysts at the ornithological station at Sempach, Switzerland. Over the last ten years, numbers of lapwings, skylarks and Whinchat have fallen by 20%. These birds serve as infallible indicators of biodiversity in the regions where they feed and nest.

According to researchers at the Sempach station and the authors of the ‘Environmental Objectives for Agriculture’ report, produced by the federal offices of agriculture and the environment, these species have been victims of an over-intensification of agricultural practices; a high degree of mechanization and use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. These species amongst others, the researchers warn, must be protected and their habitats the subject of conservation measures, which is not currently the case.

The ornithological station remains hopeful that new policy measures for 2014-17, which are expected to include measures that benefit threatened plant and animal species, will address this. Under the policy reforms supported by the station, farmers will benefit from direct payments in return for providing environmental services and promoting biodiversity.

The stations’ scientists maintain that it is possible to marry productive agricultural production and maintenance of habitats which have a high ecological value; they say some farmers are already practicing this commitment to the environment, as demonstrated by the Futurescape Project, in the Fenlands of Eastern England, where conservationists and farmers are working together to preserve wetland habitats and implement agri-environmental farm management.