Soil management practices to deliver crop productivity and soil carbon

storage: understanding socio-economic barriers and opportunities

Jane Mills, Julie Ingram, Ana Frelih-Larsen, McKenna Davis

Edinburgh 25-27th September 2013

Management Carbon flows Carbon stocks

Carbon storage

Soil functionsFarming systems resilienceRegulating functionsSupporting functions

Why Soil Carbon?

Soil Carbon Management Practices

• Catch crops

• Crop rotations

• Residue management

• Reduced tillage operations

• Fertiliser and manure management

Two overall aims:

• To identify farming systems and agronomic practices that result in an optimized balance between crop productivity and soil carbon sequestration.

• To develop and deliver a decision support tool (DST) and guidelines to support novel approaches to different European soils and categories of beneficiaries (farmers, farm advisory and extension services, and policy makers).

Scotland, Denmark, Poland, Hungary, Italy, Spain

Case study regions

WP1Linking soil carbon &

crop productivity

WP2Soil management

systems in Europe

WP4 DST &

Guidelines

WP3Economic appraisal of soil management

options

Improving knowledge

LTEs & new experiments

WP5Stakeholder

involvement & dissemination

Applying knowledge

Case studies

7

WP1Linking soil carbon &

crop productivity

WP2Soil management

systems in Europe

WP4 DST &

Guidelines

WP3Economic appraisal of soil management

options

Improving knowledge

LTEs & new experiments

WP5Stakeholder

involvement & dissemination

Applying knowledge

Case studies

Consultation with the farming community

Aims: To consult experts both nationally and in the case study regions about two main issues:

1. the current promotion, implementation and barriers to uptake of soil management practices with particular emphasis on soil carbon management, and

2. their experience and requirements of DSTs, with particular emphasis on those supporting soil carbon management.

Method: interviews

• First stakeholder consultation

• 60 advisers, policy makers (decision makers) & research practitioners interviewed across study regions

• Respondents selected based on expertise and experience in relation to the soil and crop management.

• Interview schedules developed using expert knowledge, a literature review and partner consultation

Findings: Promotion and awareness of soil carbon management practices

• Little evidence of specific government policies

• Usually advice integrated as part of other programmes, e.g cross-compliance

• Soil carbon management relatively new issue so awareness generally limited - growing in Denmark and Scotland but remains low in Poland

• Variation in the extent of awareness within countries - reflects farmer age and farming and educational background

Findings: Barriers to promotion and uptake of soil carbon management practices

• Perceived scientific uncertainty about soil carbon management.

• Difficulty demonstrating soil carbon management practices, effects and economic benefits over a long time.

• Farmers’ perceptions, priorities, knowledge and lack of familiarity of soil carbon management practices.

• Perceived requirement to invest in new technology

Findings: Incentives for soil carbon management practices

• Financial incentives

• Evidence of benefits – impact on productivity and profitability

• Real life case study examples

• Messages - use simple language and quantify impact

• Integrating advice into existing advice programmes, policies and regulations

ConclusionsPerspectives from the farming community helping to develop practices that can optimise productivity and soil carbon storage - further consultation activities planned

Also helping to shape the decision support tool, guidelines and policy recommendations being developed in the project

Credibility - scientific plausibility of the technical evidence and arguments Salience - relevant to needs of decision makersLegitimacy - respectful of stakeholders’ divergent values and beliefs and unbiased

www.smartsoil.eu www.catch-c.eu

Thank you!