A multi-actor, participatory approach to identify policy and technical barriers to better farming practices that protect our drinking water sources

Paul Campling; Ingeborg Joris; Maura Calliera; Ettore Capri; Alexandru Marchis; Anna Kuczyńska; Tom Vereijken; Zuzanna Majewska; Els Belmans; Lieve Borremans; Elien Dupon; Ellen Pauwelyn; Per-Erik Mellander; Christopher Fennell; Owen Fenton; Edward Burgess; Alexandra Puscas; Elena Isla Gil; Miren Lopez de Alda; Gemma Francès Tudel; Erling Andersen; Anker Lajer Højber; Marzena Nowakowska; Nicoleta Suciu

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.142971

A multi-actor, participatory approach to identify policy and technical barriers to better farming practices that protect our drinking water sources

Sci Total Environ. 2021 Feb 10;755(Pt 2):142971. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.142971. Epub 2020 Oct 17.

Authors

Paul Campling¹, Ingeborg Joris², Maura Calliera³, Ettore Capri³, Alexandru Marchis³, Anna Kuczyńska⁴, Tom Vereijken⁵, Zuzanna Majewska⁶, Els Belmans⁷, Lieve Borremans⁷, Elien Dupon⁸, Ellen Pauwelyn⁸, Per-Erik Mellander⁹, Christopher Fennell⁹, Owen Fenton⁹, Edward Burgess⁹, Alexandra Puscas¹⁰, Elena Isla Gil¹¹, Miren Lopez de Alda¹², Gemma Francès Tudel¹², Erling Andersen¹³, Anker Lajer Højber¹⁴, Marzena Nowakowska¹⁵, Nicoleta Suciu³

Affiliations

¹ Vlaamse Instelling voor Technologisch Onderzoek, Boeretang 200, Mol, 2400, Belgium. Electronic address: paul.campling@vito.be.
² Vlaamse Instelling voor Technologisch Onderzoek, Boeretang 200, Mol, 2400, Belgium; Department of Bioscience Engineering, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, B-2020 Antwerp, Belgium.
³ Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, European Observatory on Sustainable Agriculture, DISTAS, Via Emilia Parmense 84, 29122 Piacenza, PC, Italy.
⁴ Polish Geological Institute - National Research Institute,4 Rakowiecka Street, 00-975 Warsaw, Poland.
⁵ European Water Stewardship, Oostergoweg 9, 8911, MA, Leeuwarden, the Netherlands.
⁶ Institute of Technology and Life Sciences, Falenty, Al. Hrabska 3, 05-090 Raszyn, Poland.
⁷ Eigen Vermogen van het Instituut voor Landbouw en Visserijonderzoek, Burgemeester van Gansberghelaan 96, Merelbeke 9820, Belgium.
⁸ INAGRO, Ieperseweg 87, Rumbeke Roselare 8800, Belgium.
⁹ Crops, Environment and Land Use Programme/Agricultural Catchments Programme, Teagasc, Johnstown Castle Environment Research Centre, Wexford, Co. Wexford, Ireland.
¹⁰ Asociatia Ecologic Baia Mare, Florilor Str 8/36, Baia Mare 430273, Romania.
¹¹ CPABLLParc Agrari del Baix Llobregat, Can Comas, Camí de la Rivera, s/n, 08820 El Prat de Llobregat, Spain.
¹² CSICWater, Environmental and Food Chemistry Unit (ENFOCHEM), Department of Environmental Chemistry, Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA-CSIC), Agencia Estatal Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, Jordi Girona 18, Barcelona 08034, Spain.
¹³ Kobenhavns Universitet, Norregade 10, Kobenhavn, 1165, Denmark.
¹⁴ Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, Oster Voldgade, 10, Kobenhavn K 1350, Denmark.
¹⁵ Polish Geological Institute - National Research Institute, Pomeranian Branch, 20 Wieniawskiego St., 71-130 Szczecin, Poland.

Abstract

Despite an improvement of water quality across Europe there are many pollution hotspots for both nitrates and PPPs, mainly due to agricultural activities. The BMPs and MMs to reduce pollution from agriculture are well known, and there are policy instruments in place to ensure drinking water standards, but the current approach has not been efficient enough. Within the H2020 Water Protect project the premise was that there is a need for a multi-actor, participatory approach to tackle the issue from a new angle, and to assess why the uptake of known BMPs and MMs was not better among farmers. Seven "Action Labs" were selected that represent major physical, socio-economical, cultural and farming settings across Europe. A methodology of multi-actor engagement was chosen but with different approaches due to the local context. Initially the level of farmers' awareness about water quality issues was matched to the observed uptake rates of BMPs and MMs. In a second survey barriers hindering the uptake of measures were identified. The first survey revealed a low general awareness on the potential pollution to drinking water sources. Despite this, between 24% to 88% of the surveyed farmers per Action Lab were already voluntarily adopting one quarter of the selected BMPs and MMs. The second survey demonstrated the need to address organisational, legislative, sociological and technical barriers. The lack of coordination between different institutional bodies promoting measures and the financial incentives needed to invest and operate these often-costly measures need to be considered. The multi-actor, participatory approach with its improved awareness and collaboration made it possible to identify the crucial factors for improvement - to build a social acceptance among all actors and communicate the issues and solutions from the start.

Keywords: Best Management Practices; Common Agricultural Policy; Mitigation measures; Nitrates; Plant protection products; Water contamination.