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Agrobiodiversity as driving force
of sustainable rural development
Credits:
Menko Wiersema & Frans van Alebeek
Province of South-Holland Applied Plant Research
Amsterdam
Rotterdam Wageningen
Hoeksche Waard
Landscape impressions
3 developments meet in
Hoeksche Waard
Environmental
Concerns Biodiversity
Policies
FAB
Research
Awareness Opportunity
Tools
Public Support
Aims for the Hoeksche Waard
• Natural corridors along creeks and water courses, vegetation management to support functional biodiversity
• Flower or grass strips as field margins along all water courses (as buffers, to meet EU water quality standards)
• Field margins and flower strips provide habitat and alternative food (nectar, pollen) for predators and parasitoids, resulting in enhanced natural pest suppression in crops
• A network of walking paths on 10% of the field margins, to increase the area’s attractiveness and accessibility for tourists
A series of projects and initiatives
Project on field margins along 200 km of water courses (2005-2007), to expand in the region and nationally
The LTO project on functional agrobiodiversity (FAB): a pilot on 5 farms on 300 hectares: natural pest control
• Ecological vegetation management of dikes, water ditches, road sides, etc. (water board, towns and others)
• Pilot on soil-biodiversity for sustainable agriculture
• Restoring creek network
• Small scale projects on biodiversity by local inhabitants
Landscape impressions
Landscape impressions
Control threshold
Spring Summer
Uncontrolled
exponential growth
Predators from field
margins slow down
aphid populations
Field margin Flower strip
Parasitoids, ladybird
beetles and hoover flies
control the aphids
Example:
aphids in wheat
Perspective
• Sustainable agriculture, using the best of biodiversity
functions for production
• Less environmental contamination because of reduced
use of agrochemicals, clean water
• Reduces drift and run-off, margins as buffers
• Improved green-blue veining, a network of habitats for
flora and fauna (birds, bees, etc.)
• Network of walking paths, more touristic visits and
appreciation of the landscape
Valuation of green blue veining
CBA for three scenario’s:
• Optimal green blue veining of landscape for
natural pest control
• Green blue veining in public space
• Green blue veining for natural pest control , GPS-
agriculture and optimising recreation
Cost A B C
64 mio 26 89
Benefit 121 51 143
But: unbalanced distribution of costs and benefits
Landscape funds now being studied/ tried
Thank you
