Environmental and economic assessment of biomass sourcing from extensively cultivated buffer strips along water bodies

Katarzyna Golkowska, Benedetto Rugani, Daniel Koster and Cor Van Oers

Environmental Science & Policy, 2016, vol. 57, issue C, 31-39

Abstract: Buffer strips represent oblong land elements along water bodies playing an important role for the water quality management of the surface water. In the policy context buffer strips are referred to as land with defined farming restrictions aiming at protecting the water course. In the current EU agricultural policy framework the majority of the decisions regarding subsidy schemes for buffer strips is taken on the member country level, which results in great differences between the EU members with regard to this water protection measure. If incentives for farmers for establishing and maintaining buffer strips are in place, they are usually linked to the harvest ban on the buffer strip. Such protection model can be endangered by volatile and rising prices for agricultural products. However, buffer strip can represent a valuable source of different ecosystem services, including biomass provision. If harvesting under certain restrictions would be allowed, the biomass could generate additional revenue that might contribute to securing buffer strips existence and consequently maintaining their protection function.

Keywords: Riparian buffer strips; Environmental assessment; Economic assessment; Grass; Cereals; Harvesting biomass (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:enscpo:v:57:y:2016:i:c:p:31-39

DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2015.11.014

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