GC0146 FAnGR Conservation Strategy: Policy REVIEW OF POLICY GOVERNING FARM ANIMAL GENETIC RESOURCES CONSERVATION STRATEGIES AND BREEDING PROGRAMMES Richard W. Small BSc PhD Livestock Diversity Ltd. www.livestockdiversity.com Defra Research Contract GC0146 Development of co-ordinated in situ and ex situ UK Farm Animal Genetic Resources conservation strategy and implementation guidance Page 1 of 49 GC0146 FAnGR Conservation Strategy: Policy EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. This report considers the policies that govern Farm Animal Genetic Resources (FAnGR) conservation strategies and breeding programmes. FAnGR are critical natural capital: they provide ecosystem services that cannot be substituted by other forms of capital. 2. The UK has obligations to conserve its FAnGR under the, mainly international, agreements to which it is a signatory. These include: The World Conservation Strategy (1980) The Convention on Biological Diversity (1992) The Global Plan of Action for Animal Genetic Resources and the Interlaken Declaration (2007) The Convention on Biological Diversity Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 (2010) Various EU regulations The commitments relevant to the conservation of FAnGR these entail are outlined. 3. The UK has opportunities to support the conservation of FAnGR under regulations and programmes, mainly at the European Union level. The historical development of such measures is outlined and the current regulations summarised. These include: Regulations EC 1698/2005 and EC 1974/2006 The European Union Biodiversity Strategy to 2020 The European Union Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe 4. To meet its obligations and take advantage of the opportunities the UK has developed a suite of national programmes at the UK and at devolved government levels. These include biodiversity strategies and agri-environment schemes for each of the countries of the UK. The policies and measures of these programmes relevant to the conservation and sustainable use of FAnGR are summarised. 5. In England financial support for FAnGR conservation and sustainable use has been through agri- environment schemes and has been linked to habitat management through the grazing of cattle or animals from a list of native breeds at risk. This excludes some species of farm livestock (e.g. poultry) and limits opportunities for others (e.g. pigs). 6. In the other UK countries agri-environment measures are also the means of support for FAnGR, but policies vary e.g. in Northern Ireland just one breed (Irish Moiled cattle) is supported whereas in Scotland eight cattle breeds are supported on the basis that they are native to, or traditional in, Scotland irrespective of their rarity. In Wales support under Glastir is offered to native breeds at risk of cattle, sheep and equines. 7. The UK has not adopted direct support of FAnGR through conservation strategies or breeding programmes, although these are possible under agri-environment regulations and have been developed and funded in other Member States. Neither has the UK developed a national gene bank or other ex situ resources for FAnGR which are also permitted by EC regulations. 8. The UK has contributed to FAnGR conservation and wise use through the continuing support of the FAnGR Expert Committee, publication of regular Country Reports on FAnGR and through act ive participation in EU and international bodies such as the European Regional Focal Point for Animal Genetic Resources. 9. Recognition of FAnGR as an integral element of biodiversity has been slow, but there is now increasing acceptance at all levels of government and by other stakeholders; this has not yet translated into adequate funding in comparison to ‘wild’ biodiversity and plant genetic resources. 10. In part, this increased recognition is a result of the greater appreciation of the role of livestock in delivering ecosystem services and the need for FAnGR to meet challenges such as sustainable food production, climate change, nutrient cycling and waste product recycling. 11. Reform of the Common Agricultural Policy provides an opportunity for the UK to develop support programmes for FAnGR, including conservation strategies and breeding programmes. In addition, exemption from culling for breeds at risk must be retained in the proposed EU Animal Health Law. Page 2 of 49 GC0146 FAnGR Conservation Strategy: Policy Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 1 INTRODUCTION 4 2 INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS 4 2.1 The World Conservation Strategy – Living Resource Conservation for Sustainable Development 1980 4 2.2 Convention on Biological Diversity 1992 5 2.3 United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation’s Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture 9 2.4 Global Plan of Action for Animal Genetic Resources and the Interlaken Declaration 10 2.5 The CBD Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 (2010) 21 2.6 European Directives and Regulations 21 3 UK NATIONAL MEASURES 33 3.1 A Vision for Biodiversity in Agricultural Landscapes – England Biodiversity Strategy Group 2011 33 3.2 The Natural Choice: Securing the value of nature. Natural Environment White Paper (2011) 34 3.3 Biodiversity 2020: A strategy for England’s wildlife and ecosystem services. England Biodiversity Strategy (2011) 34 3.4 Scotland’s Biodiversity – It’s In Your Hands 2004 35 36 3.5 Environment Strategy for Wales 2006 3.6 Northern Ireland Biodiversity Strategy 2002 36 3.7 Agri-environment and Rural Development Schemes 37 4 SUMMARY AND DISCUSSION 39 39 4.1 Impacts of past and current policies 4.2 Opportunities for FAnGR Conservation 41 4.3 CAP Reform 43 4.4 Existing commitments and conclusion 45 REFERENCES 46 Page 3 of 49 GC0146 FAnGR Conservation Strategy: Policy 1 I N T R O D U C T I O N Policies governing FAnGR conservation strategies and breeding programmes can be categorised into two broad groups: i. those, mainly international, agreements that place an obligation on the UK to conserve its FAnGR, and ii. those, mainly EU, regulations and programmes that would allow support for the conservation of FAnGR. To be implemented these need to be translated into national policies and actions. International and national policy documents increasingly recognise the concept of ‘natural capital’ i.e. those elements of nature which either directly provide or underpin human well-being (Natural Capital Committee, 2013; see also the 2011 Natural Environment White Paper http://www.official-documents.gov.uk/document/cm80/8082/8082.pdf). These elements of nature perform ‘ecosystem services’ which are often undervalued, if they are accounted at all. FAnGR should be recognised as natural capital or even as ‘critical natural capital’(that is the part of natural capital that performs important ecosystem functions and that cannot be replaced by other forms of capital such as human-made or social capital). Wisely used and effectively managed FAnGR can make an invaluable contribution to human well-being, but the threats to FAnGR globally are such that the FAO launched the first Global Plan of Action for Animal Genetic Resources, and the associated Interlaken Declaration, in 2007. The UK is a signatory to the Global Plan of Action and the Interlaken Declaration, as well other relevant international agreements as described below. The second UK Country Report on Farm Animal Genetic Resources will be published in 2013, demonstrating the UK’s commitment to the recognition and monitoring of this element of its natural capital. However, further actions will be needed in order to fully meet the UK’s obligations and commitments under international agreements to conserve and wisely use its FAnGR. The proposals for FAnGR conservation strategies and breeding programmes discussed elsewhere in this project would need to be driven by, and consistent with, the UK’s obligations under the international agreements to which the UK is a signatory and the various EU regulations and programmes, particularly the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). This report outlines those international agreements and relevant EU regulations and programmes and suggests how the UK may develop FAnGR conservation strategies and breeding programmes within that framework. It also suggests how the reform of the CAP for the period 2013-2020 may present new opportunities for FAnGR conservation strategies and breeding programmes in the UK. 2 I N T E R N AT I O N AL AG R E E M E N T S 2.1 The World Conser vation S trateg y – Li ving Resource Conser vati on for S ustainable De vel opment 1980 http://data.iucn.org/dbtw-wpd/edocs/WCS-004.pdf The 1980 World Conservation Strategy was an initiative by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF). The Strategy had three main objectives of living resource conservation; the objective relevant to the current review (Chapter 1) was: Page 4 of 49 GC0146 FAnGR Conservation Strategy: Policy ‘ to preserve genetic diversity (the range of genetic material found in the world’s organisms), on which depend the breeding programmes necessary for the protection and improvement of cultivated plants and domesticated animals, as well as much scientific advance, technical innovation, and the security of the many industries that use living resources.’ [Our emphasis] Priority requirements for genetic diversity set out in the strategy (Chapter 6) include to: ‘preserve as many varieties as possible of crop plants, forage plants, timber trees, livestock, animals for aquaculture, microbes and other domesticated