Grazing land
Drivers of LEDD in grazing land: Crete and Asterousia
Author: Constantinos KosmasEditor's note 14Jun2012: Text source D211, section 3.2.2
Drivers of LEDD in grazing land in Greece are mainly related to social, economic and political factors, policies such as the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and tourism development.
Overgrazing and under grazing
Overgrazing occurs when the number of animals grazing the land is more than its grazing capacity (Papanastasis 1998; 2000). Due to differences in the way that various grazing animals collect forage, their impact on vegetation and biodiversity loss is different (Rook et al. 2004). As animals graze, they remove parts of plants or whole plants. Removal is selective with the most palatable species eaten first in preference to less palatable ones, which eventually dominate the grazed area. This is the last stage of vegetation degradation (Papanastasis 2008). Furthermore, as animals move around they trample the soil with their hooves, exerting pressure and resulting in soil compaction which leads to reduction of soil infiltration rates causing higher surface water runoff. Under-grazing occurs when the number of animals grazing the land is less than its capacity. Under such conditions in dryland areas, highly flammable biomass remains on the ground, favouring wildfires which also lead to land degradation.
Continuous and intensive grazing has been taking place in Greece for millennia. Overgrazing is considered the main desertification cause for most parts of the country (Yassoglou 1989). In previous decades, a gradual degradation of the mountainous and hilly grasslands of Greece took place due to overgrazing in some areas and under grazing in others. These two opposite causes are mainly attributed to depopulation of marginal rural areas (e.g. remote mountain areas, highly degraded areas, adverse climatic conditions), and European policies (CAP). Under grazing, and consequent development of scrub, appear to threaten grazing lands more than overgrazing. Reduced grazing levels on the mountain pastures of Greece have allowed scrub and other unpalatable species to develop, reducing the grazing capacity of these areas by 25 percent. Nationally, 40 percent of all mountain pastures (including pasture, wooded pasture and shrub) are under-grazed (Alexandris 1985). Under grazed lands may also result in a loss of biodiversity (Papanastasis 2008).
As Figure 1 shows, overgrazing is associated with several environmental and socio-economic characteristics (Papanastasis 2004). The amount of biomass produced or left at the end of the grazing period, plant cover and species composition are important vegetation indicators (Papanastasis et al. 2003). Usually, when the land is overgrazed, the plant species remaining are undesirable for animals. Soil and climatic characteristics and temperature all affect vegetation and therefore the carrying capacity of grazing land. There is a direct relationship between soil depth (Papanastasis 1994) or the amount of rock fragment content on the soil surface (Alexandris et al. 1997) and herbage production in pastures.
Figure 1. Important environmental and socio-economic characteristics associated with overgrazing. Source: (Papanastasis 2004) |
Continuous grazing during the whole year is more detrimental to species composition than a seasonal or rotational grazing system (Sternberg et al. 2000). Combining overgrazing with wildfires can be more detrimental than either of the two causes of degradation alone. The distribution of road infrastructure also affects grazing pressure. Areas which are easily accessible by road tend to be grazed more intensively than more remote areas. Furthermore, grazing land situated near watering points or animal sheds tends to be more intensively grazed than land situated further away (Ghossoub 2003).
The socio-economic characteristics that affect the state of grazing lands, such as EU subsidies, local traditions, land tenure (private, state or communal pastures), alternative income sources and legal systems related to the use of pastures, are interrelated with several physical characteristics (land productivity) as well as management factors (number and type of animals, grazing system etcetera) (Figure 2) (Papanastasis 2004).
Figure 2. Soil erosion risk of an area burned in 2007 in Greece (Aliveri, Evia Greece). Source: (Kosmas et al. 2007). |
Overgrazing is a serious problem for most of the mountainous and hilly areas of Crete and is caused mainly by the type of grazing system (Stefanakis 2006) and stocking density. Overgrazing is especially important in the areas of the Psilorites and Asterousia mountains (the LEDDRA study site) (Papanastasis et al. 2006), and the Sfakia region, as a large number of animals is concentrated in those areas. Overgrazing results in high erosion rates, leads to the disappearance of important plant species and the expansion of species which are unpalatable to animals. Pastures in the upper mountainous zone either receive large numbers of animals during the summer period, or they are under grazed due to a lack of infrastructure (roads and drinking water for animals).
Studies on overgrazing in the Psilorites Mountains have shown that in phryganic lands, overgrazing favoured phryganic species at the expense of the herbaceous vegetation. In the opposite case, in grasslands, overgrazing affected negatively both herbaceous and woody species because the latter are desirable to animals (Papanastasis et al. 2006).
Forest fires
Forest fires in Greece constitute a serious threat of land degradation. During the last 40 years, the number of forest fires has rapidly increased. Fires have become frequent in pine-dominated forests and in pastures. Most fires started by people, either through carelessness or as a management tool to eradicate unpalatable vegetation. The majority of fires occur in areas with high xerothermic indices and moisture deficits. Soil dryness and wind speed are the principal factors of fire evolution. According to the Greek Ministry of Environment, the average rate of burned areas ranged from 44108 to 52417 ha/year in the last three decades.
Wildfires set by shepherds to control undesirable growth of vegetation is a common practice in many areas of Greece. Although Mediterranean vegetation is well adapted to fire and usually regenerates soon after burning, it can be destroyed if burning is combined with grazing. Several studies have shown that the combination of wildfires and grazing are the main cause of rangeland degradation and desertification (Arianoutsou-Faraggitaki 1985; Margaris and Koutsidou 1995; Pantis and Mardiris 1992; Papanastasis et al. 1990 Vokou et al. 1986).
Approximately 90 percent of the areas burned every year are areas largely susceptible to soil erosion and land desertification due to shallow soil depth and steep slopes. A typical example of high land sensitivity to soil erosion and desertification is shown in Figure 3 (Aliveri, Evia, Greece). Soils are mainly characterized as subjected to high (red) or moderate (orange) erosion risk. In addition, land desertification risk is predominantly high (purple or red) or moderate (all colours except green).
Figure 3. Land desertification risk of an area burned in 2007 in Greece (Aliveri, Evia Greece). Source: (Kosmas et al. 2007). |
Fire in grazing land, as an environmental concern for forest managers, appeared mostly in the second half of the past century (Pausas and Vallejo 1999). Up to this period, reforestation in these areas was conducted for preventing flooding of lowland, for wood production, and for promotion of rural employment. After the expansion of wildfires, forest managers developed strategies for fire prevention in order to abridge the degradation of grazing lands. Measures include: early warning systems for fire ignition; infrastructure for combating forest fires; the national cadastral plan for forests and forested areas.
The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)
In the early 1980s, the EU began to subsidise livestock farming (goats and sheep) in order to offer financial support to traditional livestock farmers. The Common Agricultural Policy, through its structural policies, provides an adequate income to farmers, contributing to the development of regional economies and the maintenance of landscapes, particularly in less favoured areas. In addition, subsidies allocated under the CAP accelerate the intensification of husbandry (Wilson and Juntti 2005). Higher farm prices under CAP encourage farmers to keep larger numbers of animals in degraded areas. The number of sheep and goats in Greece has doubled in the last three decades as a result of subsidy allocation, while the number of cows has decreased.
The Greek Government has encouraged livestock farming, according to the grazing-capacity of each region, but without setting rules and prerequisites for the sustainable management of livestock farming (e.g. for the creation of infrastructure for supporting professional livestock farmers, protecting grazing lands and the natural environment) (Tsimpidis 2008). This uncontrolled allocation of subsidies does not comply with national and international legislation for the protection of forests and natural habitats. However, it brought about the creation of very large herds which required extensive areas of grazing land, far exceeding the grazing capacity of many regions. Local authorities also became involved in this uncontrolled financing and management, by renting public areas as grazing lands to livestock breeders. Also, forests have been rented as grazing-lands, as have areas that have either been proposed for protection within the framework of the network of European protected areas (NATURA 2000), as well as areas being protected by international environmental conventions. As a result, this type of livestock farming developed rapidly in many parts of the country (Tsimpidis 2008). This problem was most acute in the Eastern Aegean islands and in Crete.
EU production subsidies are important in supporting farm incomes, and are sometimes greater than the income achieved from livestock production. Farmers try to maximise their farm income, so their land management decisions are directed towards maintaining the number of animals that can assure higher income. But high animal density is a crucial factor of land degradation, leading to vegetation degradation and, in turn, to soil compaction and erosion. Overgrazing by thousands of sheep and goats is the main contributory factor to the desertification of mountainous areas of Greece
The animal population in Crete, mainly sheep and goats, is higher than the carrying capacity of the land. It is estimated that 1,500,000 sheep and goats graze on 55 percent of Cretan land, eliminating all edible vegetation in their desperate struggle to find food.
Tourism development
In the last few decades, tourism in Greece has increased significantly. New developments, mass tourism, urbanisation and over-exploitation of water resources has led to a progressive decline in traditional husbandry. In previous years, approximately 12 million overnight stays of foreign and national visitors in hotels and rented apartments have been recorded. Crete is one of the most well developed tourist destinations in Greece, receiving more than 2.5 million tourists every year.
Tourism development motivates farmers to expand their livestock activities into parallel activities such as agri-tourism. In 1967, a national action plan divided Greece into zones for tourism development. The north of Crete was designated as a high priority area for tourism development and this sparked a building boom in the area. Due to the high numbers of tourists, demand of agricultural products increased considerably. Under these circumstances, farmers tended to expand their livestock operations in order to provide the required quantities of high quality products, particularly important during the height of the tourist season. As a result, more people became engaged in agricultural activities and migration from rural to urban areas was reduced.
Different EU programmes and funds have been used to promote the economic development of rural areas through diversification of local economies and support for bottom-up initiatives. Young farmers have been financially supported by European and National funds, such as the 3rd CSF Regional Operational Programme and the LEADER programme, which is implemented by the national OPAAH Integrated Rural Development Programme. These support programmes have prompted many young farmers to organise their activities on a more professional basis and follow new tourism trends such as agri-tourism. As a result of these drivers, pressure on grazing lands has continued to increase, as the nutritional demands of larger herds of livestock and higher production levels need to be met.