Natural England Commissioned Report NECR102 Ecosystem services from Environmental Stewardship that benefit agricultural production First published 16 August 2012 www.naturalengland.org.uk Foreword Natural England commission a range of reports from external contractors to provide evidence and advice to assist us in delivering our duties. The views in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of Natural England. Background Ecosystem services are defined as the benefits Describe the relationships between ES options and society gets from the natural environment. These ecosystem services. include cultural services such as the conservation of Assess ES options for their contribution to key biodiversity and people‘s enjoyment of the ecosystem services. countryside, regulating services, such as flood protection, clean air and water and provisioning Map the provision of these services through ES. services such as the production of food, timber and other resources. Many of these services are provided The research has confirmed that some of the options by agricultural land. Farmers are rewarded for the under the scheme provide ecosystem services which provisioning services by the market, but are important for agricultural production and for Environmental Stewardship (ES) is a major source of retaining a productive capacity. The report does not funding that helps farmers maintain and enhance the have all the answers and more research is required cultural and regulatory services that their land into quantifying the ecosystem services provided by provides. Environmental Stewardship and optimising the benefits these services provide to agriculture. The Natural Environment White Paper identified the need to increase food production whilst protecting, Evidence produced by this project will be enhancing and linking biodiversity and landscapes. disseminated to land managers, farmers and others To meet this challenge, land managers need to have through various routes, including the production of a a better understanding of the complex relationships Technical Information Note. between the different ecosystem services that farmland can potentially provide. This research was This report should be cited as: commissioned to identify the ecosystem services which ES (the main agri-environment scheme in Food and Environment Research Agency. 2012. Ecosystem services from Environmental Stewardship England) helps to provide that can: that benefit agricultural production. Natural England Commissioned Reports, Number 102. Identify the ecosystem services provided by ES that have associated crop production benefits. Natural England Project Manager - Mike Green, Natural England, Mail Hub Block B, Whittington Road, Worcester, WR5 2LQ [email protected] Contractor - Nigel Boatman, Food and Environment Research Agency (FERA), [email protected] Keywords - Agri-environment scheme, ecosystem services, agricultural production, farmers, land managers, options, management practices, environmental benefits Further information This report can be downloaded from the Natural England website: www.naturalengland.org.uk. For information on Natural England publications contact the Natural England Enquiry Service on 0845 600 3078 or e-mail [email protected]. This report is published by Natural England under the Open Government Licence for public sector information. You are encouraged to use, and re-use, information subject to certain conditions. For details of the licence visit www.naturalengland.org.uk/copyright. If any information such as maps or data cannot be used commercially this will be made clear within the report. ISSN 2040-5545 © Natural England and other parties 2012 SUMMARY This report contains a review of the ecosystem services provided by Environmental Stewardship (ES), the main agri-environmental scheme in England. It is particularly concerned with those that are of benefit to agricultural (especially crop) production, thus supporting the Defra departmental priority of supporting British farming and encouraging sustainable food production. Ecosystem services can be described as the full range of benefits that people and societies obtain from biological systems, including provisioning, regulating, cultural and supporting services. The report identifies ecosystem services associated with crop production benefits that can be provided by ES, describes the relationships between ES options and ecosystem services, scores options for their contribution to key ecosystem services and maps the provision of these services through ES across England. Key ecosystem services considered include soil formation, nutrient cycling, carbon sequestration, water regulation and purification, genetic resources, pest regulation and pollination. SOIL FORMATION, NUTRIENT CYCLING, CARBON SEQUESTRATION, WATER REGULATION AND PURIFICATION These services are considered together because of the close relationships between them. As the growing medium for crops and grass, soil is fundamental to agricultural production, as are the nutrients therein. Nutrient cycling, carbon sequestration, water regulation and water purification are all reliant on soil, and there are complex interactions between the different services that provide for, and/or are affected by, agricultural production The primary requirement for provision of these services is to maintain the soil in terms of both its quantity and its health/structure by maintaining organic matter content, avoiding compaction and preventing loss through erosion. Little research has been done on the effects of Environmental Stewardship options per se, but much can be inferred from work on similar types of management. The greatest benefits is likely to be achieved from a selection of strategically located ES options in conjunction with a robustly drawn up and implemented Soil Protection Review, along with required management for Nitrate Vulnerable Zones where applicable. Key options are those for winter cover crops, arable reversion, grassland creation, seasonal livestock removal from grassland, especially next to watercourses, maintaining traditional orchards, protecting archaeology under cultivated soils, buffer strips and field corners, nectar mixtures, management of intensive grassland and maize to reduce erosion, and bracken control. Organic farming benefits soil organic matter and the payment for organic production provides support for this. Most options that benefit soil, water and nutrient cycling on arable land involve taking land out of cropping, hence the benefits are only available to agriculture if the land is returned to cropping in the future. Exceptions are management of maize crops to reduce erosion, winter cover crops and protecting archaeological features through reduced tillage or direct drilling. Taking land out of production or converting to grassland also benefits soil macrofauna including organisms responsible for decomposition, which improves 1 soil organic matter contents. Options involving the sowing of legumes (e.g. nectar mixtures) increase soil nitrogen and organic matter contents and stimulate the soil biota. Location of options can be crucial and only specific field-by-field assessments will realise the full potential of the options. A whole farm approach is needed, with ecosystem service provision considered at a landscape scale. GENETIC RESOURCES Sources of genetic material for use in breeding improved types of plants and animals for agricultural purposes can arise from two main sources: (i) existing traditional varieties or breeds, or (ii) wild relatives of cultivated or domesticated forms. Traditional crop varieties are maintained in gene banks, for minority uses such as thatching, and by specialist professional or amateur growers etc. Some farms keep traditional breeds of livestock, either as a tourist attraction or for specific qualities, and their conservation is encouraged by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust. There are over 300 taxa that are wild relatives of UK crops, potentially forming a source of genetic diversity for use in plant breeding. Some of these are rare. Conservation ideally takes place in situ, but ex situ measures such as germplasm collections can also be used. It is important to conserve genetic diversity within species as well as the species itself. Key options include those for traditional orchards, species-rich grassland and upland meadows, coastal saltmarsh and the native breeds at risk grazing supplement. PEST REGULATION Regulation of pest species by natural enemies can be encouraged through the provision of appropriate habitats and resources, and by reduction in pesticide- induced mortality of natural enemies. Resources required by natural enemies include pollen and nectar, shelter habitats, alternative prey (when pests are not available), and an appropriately structured environment. These resources can be provided by a number of options under Environmental Stewardship, especially those for hedgerows and banks, buffer strips on cultivated land (especially if floristically enhanced), wild bird and nectar mixtures, undersown spring cereals and enhanced stubbles, beetle banks, low input and species-rich grasslands and upland meadows. There is good evidence that these options contain natural enemies, generally at higher densities and diversities than in the crop, but studies of the impacts of ES options on natural enemy densities in crops or effects on pest levels are few. No studies were found that