CLIMATE-LAND: Consequences of climate policies for multiple ecosystem services of semi-natural grasslands of the cultural landscape

The CLIMATE-LAND project has explored carbon sequestration in semi-natural grazing land and climate impact of grazing. All five work packages are completed. WP.1: A comprehensive study is made of international scientific articles on soil carbon sequestration. Soil carbon sequestration of semi-natural grasslands can have large significance, and the albedo effect can be large, especially in northern regions and areas with long snow cover. Grazing can have a considerable effect for stimulating carbon uptake and sequestration in grasslands, depending on environmental conditions and geographical variation. This research can strengthen the knowledge basis for climate policy with regard to the trade-off between afforestation and climate policy for agriculture. The results are summarized in a review article under completion. A popular article on grazing ruminants as climate problem or climate solution is published in a Norwegian magazine. WP.2: Pilot measurements are made of (flux) of soil carbon uptake in study areas, with low, medium and high grazing pressure, in Iceland and in Norway, in Rogaland, Trøndelag and Nordland, and also at Lygra (cooperation with the coastal heathland project LandPress). The study areas are selected because they have a valuable biodiversity representative of semi-natural grazing land, and the project has studied carbon uptake in this nature type with potential synergy between different ecosystem services. An article on the pilot-measurements is under completion by the project partner. WP.3: Assessments of carbon sequestration in forest are made, as basis of comparison with carbon sequestration in grasslands, and an article has been published in Nature Communications on how European energy policy is poised to harm global forest conservation. The Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy (NIBIO) has assessed the importance of the albedo effect in the study areas. A main result is that albedo has less impact in coastal areas with shorter snow cover. Biodiversity has been mapped with a study design developed at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU). AgriAnalyse has interviewed farmers in the study areas, to illustrate economic consequences of possible change in agricultural policy measures to promote co-production of agricultural products and ecosystem services. WP.4: A large effort has been made to develop a survey on preferences for different types of use of the semi-natural cultural landscape. Photos of cultural landscapes in transition were manipulated in order to visualize the landscape effect of forest re-growth and afforestation for a choice experiment study. Two pilot studies and the main survey are carried out. Articles are submitted to journals. WP.5 Work has been made to develop a comprehensive framework for assessment and trade-off and synergies between ecosystem services, in the context of the proposed UN System of Environmental-Economic Accounting - Experimental Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA-EEA). A synthesis article is under completion. The CLIMATE-LAND project has been presented to international conferences, to a CLIMATE-LAND hosted seminar for researchers and policy makers, and other seminars. CLIMATE-LAND aims to make project results available for the national committee for climate accounting (TBU-Climate) Several project participants in CLIMATE-LAND cooperate with related projects: Cooperation with the MILJØFORSK project LandPress, on management of ecosystem services from coastal heathlands, and the KLIMAFORSK project Hidden costs, gives possibility to share data and strengthen development of methods for valuation of ecosystem services of semi-natural land. Cooperation with the Swedish project Organic beef and other ecosystem services produced at semi-natural pasture and forest mosaics, at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), gives possibility to share data and methods. CLIMATE-LAND has cooperated with the project Effekter av skogplanting og gjengroing på karbonlagre i jord i beitemark (Effects of afforestation and forest re-growth on carbon stored in soil in grazing land), led by Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA). Results from this project indicated that about the same amount of carbon is stored in soil in grazing land as in forest soil, in an area with planted spruce (about 1970) and grazing land in Verdal in Nord-Trøndelag. Grazing is important for keeping the landscape open, strengthening the albedo effect and maintaining biodiversity in semi-natural grasslands and other ecosystem services. With increasing climate risk, cf. the official report NOU 2018:17 Climate risk and the Norwegian economy, it can be important to maintain semi-natural grazing land in order to enhance food security based on Norwegian grazing resources.

Virkninger: CLIMATE-LAND bidrar til høynet kompetanse, tverrfaglig samarbeid og styrket kunnskapsutveksling mellom forskere innen klimaeffekt av beite, biologisk mangfold og jordbrukets økosystemtjenester. Prosjektet bidrar til styrket kontakt mellom forskere og forvaltningen og andre brukere. Effekter: Det er stort kunnskapsbehov om karbonlagring i beitemarksjord, spesielt i naturbeitemark og utmarksbeite, og stort behov for å se klimaeffekter av beite i sammenheng med avveining mellom andre økosystemtjenester. Beite er viktig for å holde landskapet åpent, styrke albedo-effekten, og opprettholde biologisk mangfold i naturbeitemark og andre økosystemtjenester. Avhengig av miljøforhold, kan beite medvirke til å styrke potensialet for karbonlagring i jord i naturbeitemark. Med økende klima-risiko, jfr. NOU 2018:17 «Klimarisiko og norsk økonomi», kan det ha stor betydning å opprettholde utmarksbeite for å styrke matsikkerheten gjennom matproduksjon basert på norske beiteressurser.

The project addresses an important knowledge gap in climate policy, namely that scientific and policy-relevant knowledge on grassland carbon sequestration has been lacking and is less available, as compared to knowledge on forest carbon sequestration. The re is a need for studies under Nordic environmental conditions studies to support application of results from the international scientific literature as a basis for climate policy. In this interdisciplinary project on multiple ecosystem services, we propo se that the scientific project partners carry out pilot studies of grassland carbon sequestration, of limited scope, in order to provide an entry point for assessing the value of carbon sequestration as an ecosystem service. The purpose is to enhance the knowledge basis for analyzing trade-offs and synergies between carbon sequestration and other objectives of environmental policy. We propose to carry out pilot studies in Norway, Sweden and Iceland, in order to obtain more knowledge about grassland carbon sequestration under Nordic environmental conditions, also taking into account albedo. The project will contribute to bridge the gap between different bodies of knowledge, by integrating natural science knowledge and pilot studies with social science and economic analysis of policy instruments for land use management, economic valuation studies of preferences for use of the multiple ecosystem services of the cultural landscape, compared with forests, and policy analysis of bundles (combinations) of multip le ecosystem services and the trade-offs and potential synergies between objectives for climate policy, biodiversity and other environmental policies. We aim to achieve considerable improvements in bridging the gaps between different bodies of knowledge a nd provide new knowledge as basis for suggesting alternative ways forward to contribute to the policy target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.