Biodiversity and food production in semi-natural pastures. Methods and scenarios to handle multi-functionality in environmental assessments.

In this project we will address the important and unresolved goal conflicts between conservation of biodiversity in semi-natural pastures, efficient use of arable land for food production and climate mitigation.

Semi-natural pastures throughout Europe have been shaped by traditional farming with constant removal of nutrients through hay-making and grazing and without fertilization or ploughing.

These lands hold great biological and cultural values ​​and are key biotopes for biodiversity conservation of red-listed species.

As agriculture has intensified, large areas of semi-natural pastures and meadows have been lost and today the status of the majority of Sweden´s grassland biotopes is poor.

While more of these lands, and hence animals, are needed to conserve biodiversity, ruminant livestock also contribute considerably to climate change and cropland use - a need to balance many aspects arise.

We will develop novel methods for environmental assessment of grazing-based meat and milk that can handle both landscape aspects and related ecosystem services, climate impact and resource use, and test these on real farms.

We will also, in close cooperation with stakeholders, develop scenarios for how conservation of semi-natural pastures in Sweden can be achieved while minimizing climate impacts and cropland use for feed production.

The climate impact, cropland use, fossil and renewable energy use as well as nutrients flows will be quantified in the scenarios.