Current extent and stratification of agroforestry in the European Union

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dc.contributor.authorden Herder, Michael
dc.contributor.authorMoreno, Gerardo
dc.contributor.authorMosquera-Losada, María Rosa
dc.contributor.authorPalma, João H. N.
dc.contributor.authorSidiropoulou, Anna
dc.contributor.authorSantiago-Freijanes, Jose Javier
dc.contributor.authorCrous-Duran, Josep
dc.contributor.authorPaulo, Joana A.
dc.contributor.authorTomé, Margarida
dc.contributor.authorPantera, Anastasia
dc.contributor.authorPapanastasis, Vasilios P.
dc.contributor.authorMantzanas, Kostas
dc.contributor.authorPachana, Przemko
dc.contributor.authorPapadopoulos, Andreas
dc.contributor.authorPlieninger, Tobias
dc.contributor.authorBurgess, Paul J.
dc.date.accessioned2017-05-12T14:28:37Z
dc.date.available2017-05-12T14:28:37Z
dc.date.issued2017-03-20
dc.description.abstractAn accurate and objective estimate on the extent of agroforestry in Europe is critical for the development of supporting policies. For this reason, a more harmonised and uniform Pan-European estimate is needed. The aim of this study was to quantify and map the distribution of agroforestry in the European Union. We classified agroforestry into three main types of agroforestry systems: arable agroforestry, livestock agroforestry and high value tree agroforestry. These three classes are partly overlapping as high value tree agroforestry can be part of either arable or livestock agroforestry. Agroforestry areas were mapped using LUCAS Land Use and Land Cover data (Eurostat, 2015). By identifying certain combinations of primary and secondary land cover and/or land management it was possible to identify agroforestry points and stratify them in the three different systems. According to our estimate using the LUCAS database the total area under agroforestry in the EU 27 is about 15.4 million ha which is equivalent to about 3.6% of the territorial area and 8.8% of the utilised agricultural area. Of our three studied systems, livestock agroforestry covers about 15.1 million ha which is by far the largest area. High value tree agroforestry and arable agroforestry cover 1.1 and 0.3 million ha respectively. Spain (5.6 million ha), France (1.6 million ha), Greece (1.6 million ha), Italy (1.4 million ha), Portugal (1.2 million ha), Romania (0.9 million ha) and Bulgaria (0.9 million ha) have the largest absolute area of agroforestry. However the extent of agroforestry, expressed as a proportion of the utilised agricultural area (UAA), is greatest in countries like Cyprus (40% of UAA), Portugal (32% of UAA) and Greece (31% of UAA). A cluster analysis revealed that a high abundance of agroforestry areas can be found in the south-west quadrat of the Iberian Peninsula, the south of France, Sardinia, south and central Italy, central and north-east Greece, south and central Bulgaria, and central Romania. Since the data were collected and analysed in a uniform manner it is now possible to make comparisons between countries and identify regions in Europe where agroforestry is already widely practiced and areas where there are opportunities for practicing agroforestry on a larger area and introducing novel practices. In addition, with this method it is possible to make more precise estimates on the extent of agroforestry in Europe and changes over time. Because agroforestry covers a considerable part of the agricultural land in the EU, it is crucial that it gets a more prominent and clearer place in EU statistical reporting in order to provide decision makers with more reliable information on the extent and nature of agroforestry. Reliable information, in turn, should help to guide policy development and implementation, and the evaluation of the impact of agricultural and other policies on agroforestry.en_UK
dc.identifier.citationMichael den Herder, Gerardo Moreno, Rosa M. Mosquera-Losada, João H.N. Palma, Anna Sidiropoulou, Jose J. Santiago Freijanes, Josep Crous-Duran, Joana A. Paulo, Margarida Tomé, Anastasia Pantera, Vasilios P. Papanastasis, Kostas Mantzanas, Przemko Pachana, Andreas Papadopoulos, Tobias Plieninger, Paul J. Burgess, Current extent and stratification of agroforestry in the European Union, Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, Volume 241, 1 April 2017, pp121-132en_UK
dc.identifier.issn0167-8809
dc.identifier.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2017.03.005
dc.identifier.urihttp://dspace.lib.cranfield.ac.uk/handle/1826/11883
dc.language.isoenen_UK
dc.publisherElsevieren_UK
dc.rightsAttribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
dc.subjectLand useen_UK
dc.subjectLand coveren_UK
dc.subjectHigh natural and cultural valueen_UK
dc.subjectHigh value treesen_UK
dc.subjectLand use/cover area frame survey (LUCAS)en_UK
dc.titleCurrent extent and stratification of agroforestry in the European Unionen_UK
dc.typeArticleen_UK

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