The influence of farming styles on the management of the Iveragh uplands, southwest Ireland

Sensitivity Analysis of a Land-Use Change Model with and without Agents to Assess Land Abandonment and Long-Term Re-Forestation in a Swiss Mountain Region

“…The constraint agent behavior allows for a good fit of the simulations with observed data (see 4.2). Such behavioral validations are still a challenge in ABM [69,70,72]. In contrast to other ABM studies addressing farmland abandonment [40][41][42]45], however, we do not model individual farms and remain within the structure of traditional normative farm sector supply modeling approaches [56].…”

“…Empirical research increasingly highlights the importance of considering multiple objectives [28,[63][64][65] as well as attitudes and preferences towards more nature-friendly farming when representing farmers' decision-making [62,[65][66][67]. In addition, farm diversification and associated constraints on labor availability (and other aspects of part-time farming) are thought to strongly affect farming system development and decisions on land abandonment, particularly in mountain regions, and have been highlighted as important elements in recent farmer typologies [68,69]. Historical accounts of land abandonment in the study region and interviews with farmers and the agricultural extension office confirm the importance of this aspect and of considering socio-economic factors alongside environmental (i.e., parcel) characteristics when assessing land abandonment and reforestation.…”

High nature value mountain farming systems in Europe: Case studies from the Atlantic Pyrenees, France and the Kerry Uplands, Ireland

“…The labour structure on the farms was 1AWU (Annual Work Unit) per 60.7 LU (Livestock Units). Approximately half (54%) the upland farms surveyed practised mixed grazing, along with the ovines they had a small herd of suckler cows, averaging eleven cows (O'Rourke et al, 2012). In the vast majority of cases the farmers' have today either given up the dry stock enterprise or switched from out-wintered store cattle to spring calving suckler cows of continental breeds, such as Limousine and Charolaise, in line with market demands.…”

“…They are increasingly classified as what Navarro and Pereira (2012: 903) refer to as 'poverty traps', where households suffer low returns on what is often a high labour investment, along with social disadvantage, population decline and poor access to services. Many are facing the stark choice of either abandonment or intensification, with both paths being detrimental to their natural values (O'Rourke et al, 2012). Recent model projections suggest that areas most at risk of farmland abandonment in Europe over the next twenty to thirty years are low-intensity livestock grazing systems, including large areas of semi-natural habitats of high conservation value (Keenleyside and Tucker, 2010;Paracchini et al, 2008;Renwick et al, 2013;Verburg et al, 2010).…”

Landscapes of transhumance in Norway and Spain: Farmers' practices, perceptions, and value orientations

“…Lack of use due to reduced grazing and mowing can lead to negative landscape changes in terms of loss of biodiversity and cultural heritage, and diminishing experiential values tied to identity and recreation (MacDonald et al 2000;Olsson et al 2000;Grabherr 2005;Höchtl et al 2005;Olsson 2005; O'Rourke 2006; Soliva et al 2008Soliva et al , 2010Bezák & Halada 2010;Kianicka et al 2010;O'Rourke et al 2012). Many countries with mountain regions and transhumance practices have implemented measures to support farmers and maintain the landscape, for example Switzerland and Austria (Orland 2004;Kirchengast 2009;Kianicka et al 2010).…”