The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

"The situation is dramatic": Scientists call for a new agricultural policy

2020-10-12T14:03:46.214Z


The biodiversity in fields and meadows is decreasing sharply. Scientists from several academies are urging politicians to act - and suggesting concrete steps.


Icon: enlarge

The less fragmented the agricultural landscape, the worse it is for biological diversity

Photo: Stefan Rampfel / dpa

The current European agricultural policy is destroying biodiversity and the currently planned reform does not go far enough to stop species extinction - that is the message of a recent statement from several science academies.

In their report on "Biodiversity and Management of Agricultural Landscapes", the National Science Academy Leopoldina, the Academy of Technical Sciences (acatech) and the Union of German Academies of Sciences describe the consequences of agriculture on plants, insects and birds.

"The decline in biological diversity in the agricultural landscape is so dramatic that serious consequences for the functionality of the agricultural ecosystems and for human well-being are to be expected in the future," says the paper that is available to SPIEGEL.

No blame

The authors avoid ascribing blame.

Many reasons work together, often they are the logical consequence of processes that the farmers are currently at the mercy of if they want to survive:

  • larger areas,

  • more animals in stables,

  • monotonous cultures,

  • widespread pesticides and artificial fertilizers.

Everything that makes agriculture more efficient and more competitive.

In contrast, the statement is very clear in the conclusion:

  • "The situation is dramatic, the need for action is acute. This is another reason why it will not be enough to just change individual components of the system of the agricultural landscape. A change in society as a whole is required

    towards sustainable agriculture. "

The opinion therefore includes suggestions for better information for consumers or for research approaches in science.

The demands on politics are particularly clear.

The scientists formulate proposals on how politicians could act - shortly before the negotiations on the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) enter the decisive phase.

"In order to be able to finance the corresponding programs for the preservation of biological diversity, a gradual withdrawal from direct payments is necessary."

The CAP is always valid for seven years and is the largest single budget item in the EU.

Every year more than 50 billion euros are distributed to Europe's farmers, six billion of them in Germany alone.

On average, between 2010 and 2016, these EU subsidies made up around a third of farmers' income in Germany, according to calculations by the authors.

Intensive negotiations are currently underway on the new CAP for the years 2021 to 2027.

Important decisions are to be made in the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers in October.

The scientists conclude that the CAP is a crucial lever for changing the structure of agriculture.

There is an "urgent need for fundamental reform".

In future, the so-called first pillar payments should be linked to the impact on the environment and biological diversity, suggest the scientists.

This primarily refers to the direct payments to farmers.

They make up the largest part of the CAP funds and the largest part of them is disbursed according to area and with only a few conditions attached.

The authors write that saving biodiversity is just one of many environmental goals for which money could be invested in the coming years.

Climate protection has hardly played a role either.

"Direct payments without a corresponding link, however, cannot be justified scientifically or in terms of regulatory policy".

Therefore, "a gradual exit from direct payments is necessary."

In the draft of the EU Commission, which is the basis for negotiations in the other EU institutions, area payments are still provided.

Beyond the CAP reform, the scientists plead, among other things, for a stronger involvement of the environment ministries in agricultural policy: Experience shows that "the cooperation between agriculture and the environment both at the ministerial level and in the administration is deficient".

Therefore, "closer cooperation or a complete integration of agricultural and environmental policy is required."

The researchers also believe that clear guidelines are necessary.

For example, they propose to limit the number of animals per hectare that farmers can keep.

In addition, they bring mandatory ecological advice for companies into play.

And an agricultural law: "By formulating specific standards, it could ensure that environmental and nature conservation standards in agriculture - even without subsidies - would be enforceable and thus controllable."

For example, clear "quantitative criteria for improving biodiversity and regular controls based on biodiversity monitoring" are necessary.

The scientists make it clear that this is not just their personal assessment with a reference to German and European laws, guidelines and strategies: "According to all these legal bases and initiatives, the decline in biological diversity (...) in the agricultural landscape must The current trends must be reversed. "

Icon: The mirror

Source: spiegel

All news articles on 2020-10-12

You may like

Trends 24h

News/Politics 2024-03-28T06:04:53.137Z

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.