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1. Definition
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Name
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ORGANIC
FARMING
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Brief
definition
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Area
with organic farming as percentage of total agricultural
area
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Unit of measure
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%
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2.
Position within the logical framework DPSIR
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Type
of Indicator
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Response
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3.
Target and political pertinence
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Objective
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Contribution
to measures to combat desertification
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Importance
with respect to desertification
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Organic
farming involves a less intensive use of land, more
varied cultivation practices and entails significant
restrictions on the use of fertilisers and pesticides.
Council Regulation 2092/91 sets out strict requirements,
which producers must meet before agricultural products,
can be marketed in the EU as organic.
Organic
farming supplies the Mediterranean countries with
a production system that focuses on strategic interests,
not only for the single farm but also for the whole
land system. It is not only a production method but
also a practical development model that integrates
environmental, socio-economic and ethical aspects.
These interests are based on: the maintenance of soil
fertility, biodiversity, the use of appropriate technologies,
the proper use of water resources, the control or
reduction of desertification, crop rotations and the
diversification of products.
|
|
International
Conventions and agreements
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The
UNCCD emphasizes that combating desertification must
be tackled within the general framework of actions
to promote sustainable development.
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Secondary objectives
of the indicator
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Evaluation of the best
management practices in combating desertification.
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4.
Methodological description and basic definitions
|
Definitions
and basic concepts
|
The
principles of organic production at farm level contend
that the fertility and the biological activity of
the soil must be maintained or increased, where appropriate,
by: (a) cultivation of legumes, green manures or deep-rooting
plants in an appropriate annual rotation programme;
(b) incorporation into the soil of organic material.
This may be composted or not, from organic holdings
or products from livestock farming, such as farmyard
manure. If the manure comes from livestock holdings
it must be manufacture d and used respecting existing
national rules, or internationally recognized practices
concerning organic livestock production.
Pests,
diseases and weeds shall be controlled by a combination
of the following measures:
- choice of appropriate species and varieties, -appropriate
rotation programme,
- mechanical cultivation procedures,
- protection of natural enemies of pests through provisions
favourable to them (e.g. hedges, nesting sites, release
of predators),
- flame weeding.
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Benchmarks
Indication of the values/ranges of value
|
I°
range: < Local Mean -St. Dev.
II° range: >Local Mean - St. Dev. < Local Mean
III° range: > Local Mean < Local Mean + St.
Dev.
IV° range: > Local Mean + St. Dev
|
|
Methods
of measurement
|
Area
with organic farming (applying Council Regulation
2092/91) as percentage of total agricultural area
|
|
Limits
of the indicator
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Using
data only on organic farming neglects the potential
for reducing pollution by adopting other reduced-input
systems, for example schemes associate with EC REG
2078/92 (although this does include measures to support
organic farming), and adoption of Integrated Crop
Management (ICM). The adoption of these areas as indicators
would be a useful addition to the estimate of the
area farmed under sustainable systems.
|
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Linkages with other
indicators
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Agri-environmental management,
Sustainable farming
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5.
Evaluation of data needs and availability
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Data
required to calculate the indicator
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Organic
farming area; Total agricultural area. Depending on
the data availability the indicator can be calculated
at national, local and farm level.
|
|
Data
sources
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Regional
and National Agencies; Agricultural Census
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|
Availability of data
from national and international sources
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FAO; EEA
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6.
Institutions that have participated in developing the indicator
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Main
institutions responsible
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University
of Basilicata, Italy
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Other contributing organizations
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Universities of Athens,
Lisbon, Murcia.
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7.
Additional information
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Bibliography
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http://themes.eea.eu.int/Sectors_and_activities/agriculture/indicators/organic/index_html
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Other
references
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Contacts Name and address
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University of Basilicata
Prof Giovanni Quaranta
email: quaranta@unibas.it
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